Our Lord Jesus Christ communicates through the Prophets, frequently using His name as well as ours, demonstrating His unity with us. As it is written, "the two shall become one flesh." Hence, in the Gospel concerning marriage, the Lord declares that they are no longer two, but one flesh. This union reflects our mortality, as He assumed human form; not that He is one with us in divinity, rather He is the Creator and we are His creation. Therefore, anything our Lord says in the context of the human experience He embraced relates both to the Head who has ascended into heaven and those members still journeying through this earthly life. Let us listen as our Lord Jesus Christ speaks through the scriptures. The Psalms were proclaimed long before His birth from Mary, yet He was always the Lord, being the Creator of all from eternity while in time was manifested in His creation. Let us firmly embrace this Godhead, striving to understand Him as fully equal to the Father. This Godhead, in its equality to the Father, took on our mortal nature, not from His essence, but from ours; so that we, in turn, might partake of His Divine nature, not from our own origins but through His.
"Lord, You have searched me and known me" (Psalm 138:1). Let the Lord Jesus Himself affirm this before the Father; for the Father is not truly His Lord except because He chose to be born in human flesh. He is God the Father, and the Lord of humanity. Do you understand to whom He is a Father? To the Son who is equal to Him. The Apostle states, "Who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God" (Philippians 2:6-7). This form reveals the Father, who is equal to Himself, the only begotten Son, born of His very essence. But for our sake, He who was part of our mortal existence was remade so we could share in His divine nature. What does the Apostle declare about Him? He states: "But He emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant, and coming in the likeness of men, and being found in appearance as a man" (Philippians 2:7). He existed in the Form of God, equal to the Father; yet, He embraced the form of a servant, to become lesser than the Father.
"You know my sitting down and my rising up" (Psalm 138:2). What does it mean to sit down or to rise? The one who sits humbles himself. Thus, the Lord sat during His Passion and rose in His Resurrection. He states, "You have known it," meaning You desired it and approved it; it was accomplished according to Your will. If we consider the words of the Head spoken through the Body: a person sits in humility when repenting and rises when sin is forgiven, lifted to the hope of eternal life. Do not elevate yourselves before first humbling yourselves. Many wish to stand before they have knelt, craving to appear righteous without confessing their sins.
"You have understood my thoughts from afar; You have marked out my path and my laying down" (Psalm 138:3). What does it mean to be afar? While I am still on my pilgrimage, before reaching my true homeland, You understand my innermost thoughts. Like the prodigal son who ventured into a distant land, after enduring toil, hardship, sorrow, and necessity, he remembered his father and resolved to return, saying, "I will arise and go to my father." He spoke of arising before he sat down. Here we can recognize the acknowledgment: "You knew my sitting down and my rising up." I sat in want; I rose in longing for Your Bread. You understand my thoughts from afar. Truly, I have traveled far, but where is He whom I abandoned? This is why the Lord states in the Gospel that his father met him on his way back. Indeed, God knew his thoughts from afar. "My way," he reflects, was far from good and led him to stray from his father. What is my way? It is characterized by my past actions. What is my boundary? It signifies what I have achieved. You have traced my path and my limits. Yet, this boundary, regardless of its distance, has never been outside Your sight. I have gone far, and yet You were ever present. You foresaw my every step before I took them, allowing me to walk my path through toil, that upon realizing this toil, I might return to Your ways. For there is no deception in my tongue. What does this signify? I confess to You, Lord; I have strayed far from You and have fallen away from You, with whom it is good for me, and it has been detrimental for me to be without You.
"Behold, Lord, You know all my works, both last and ancient" (Psalm 138:5). You recognized my last actions when I tended the swine; You knew my past transgressions when I demanded my share of the inheritance. These past actions led me into new troubles: original sin, which resulted in our fall, and the new trials that arose as we entered into this arduous mortality. And if these are endpoints for us now, a final state awaits the wicked, which will be declared to them, "Depart into everlasting fire" (Matthew 25:41). You have formed me and placed Your hand upon me. Where were we shaped? In this mortal frame, destined for the labors we are all born into. For no one is born without God being his Creator in his mother's womb; none exists who does not have God as their Maker. Thus, You have fashioned me for these labors and imposed upon me Your hand of correction, invoking justice upon the proud. For by humbling the proud, He gently uplifts the humble.
"Your art has marvellously manifested itself in me; it has become strong; I cannot attain to it" (Psalm 138:6). Consider now something that may seem obscure but holds great joy when grasped. Moses, the holy servant of God, received a message through the cloud, as, from a human standpoint, God spoke through manifestations of His work. Moses longed to see the reality of God's presence and asked God, "If I have found favor in Your sight, show me Your glory" (Exodus 33:13). When he earnestly sought this vision and in intimate conversation desired to see God's Glory and countenance, God replied, "You cannot see My face; for no man shall see Me and live" (Exodus 33:20). But He continued, "I will place you in the cleft of the rock, and I will pass by, and you shall see My back; but My face shall not be seen." From these words arises mystery: "When I pass by," God signifies that there are aspects of His presence we cannot fully comprehend. For He is beyond what we might imagine! If one considers such matters about God's Majesty, what difference does it make if the temples are empty? One can create idols in their heart instead. This passage holds profound truths... Those who were angered by the Lord they encountered sought guidance for salvation; they were told, "Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit" (Acts 2:38). They beheld His back, for His hand was not permanently over their eyes, but lifted when He passed by. Once He moved on, they asked the disciples, "What shall we do?" First they were angry, later compassionate; initially resistant, then devoted; first blind, afterwards enlightened.
"Where can I go from Your Spirit?" (Psalm 138:7). Where can a fugitive in a far land hide from the eyes of the One he fled? Where shall he venture when all bounds are exhausted? If I ascend into heaven, You are there; if I make my bed in hell, You are there. Ultimately, this weary fugitive learns he cannot escape Him from whom he has tried to flee. Behold, He fills all places; where can you hide? This fugitive may seek refuge, yet often humans find comfort only from those who are weaker than their oppressors. They may think they are safe until they learn of a more powerful sovereign. Yet, where is the Lord not present? Who can deceive God? Who remains unseen by God? From whom does God not require accountability? Where can the fugitive go from the face of God? He twists back and forth, searching for an escape.
"If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea" (Psalm 138:9), will You not be there? For what boundary does an expanse of sea have if not the edge of the world? Let us boldly chase after our hopes upon the wings of divine love, without resting in any other space than the farthest shores. Aspiring to flee from within Your presence, if one seeks rest elsewhere, they are cast into deeper troubles. Yet let us fervently pursue God, hoping to find comfort at the horizon of our lives.
Now listen to the One who can lead us there. "Your hand will lead me, and Your right hand will uphold me" (Psalm 138:10). May we reflect on this together, beloved brethren; let it be a source of hope and comfort. Let us regain through love what we lost through lust. Lust has tethered our wings, lowering us from the heights of spiritual liberty—the gentle breeze of the Spirit of God. As we were brought low, we lost our wings, becoming captive; yet He redeemed us through His blood. He empowers us with the commandments that enable us to soar above worldly entanglements.
With free will, what can we accomplish if He who commands does not assist us? "And I said, 'Perhaps darkness shall cover me'" (Psalm 138:11). Yet now I have believed in Christ and am lifted upon the wings of enduring love... In contemplating the length of our journey, I admit: the night brought light in my ecstasy. I lamented, viewing this great sea and the challenges it presented, yearning to persevere to the end. Thanks be to Him who sought me, restoring me when I was lost; who struck my back with the rod of discipline, calling me back from destruction, illuminating my night with His presence. For as long as we dwell in this life, darkness will come, yet "night shall not be dark to You" (Psalm 138:12). Darkness cannot overshadow You; instead, You bring light into it, as is declared in another psalm: "You, O Lord, will light my lamp; my God will enlighten my darkness." Yet who are those who remain in darkness without the light? The wicked, steadfast in their perversion—when they sin and conceal their faults, they become darkness themselves. Acknowledging our sins will illuminate our darkness; defending them deepens it. How can we escape the anguish born of our failures? Let us not obscure our own shadows with hidden sin; the night shall become bright in our joy.
"The night will shine like the day" (Psalm 138:12). Night signifies adversity, day represents worldly prosperity. If we recognize that our challenges stem from our sins, viewing His chastisement as sweet mercy rather than bitter judgment, then we will understand that the darkness of our trial can be perceived as light... But when Christ, our Lord, entered our souls through faith, He promised another light, inspiring patience, teaching us to remain steadfast despite worldly trials. Thus, as faithful followers, one becomes indifferent to worldly matters, praising God in every circumstance, in abundance or in loss, in health or in sickness.
"For You formed my inward parts; You knit me together in my mother's womb" (Psalm 138:13). The Divine is internal; He governs not only the heart but every desire—giving joy through the light of His wisdom. What shall we do then? Do we rejoice when our circumstances favor us, when time brings fortune? No, he might say. Why? Because "You formed my inward parts; You have taken me from my mother's womb." In that womb, I perceived that night and light distinctly... Now that we have emerged, we view them with indifference, realizing, "As is His darkness, so is His light." Neither worldly success can make us rejoice, nor misfortune cause despair. We are to uphold righteousness, love steadfastly, cling to faith, and hope in God, showing love toward neighbor. Through these labors will we experience unending light, a day that never sets. All worldly illumination and darkness is transient.
THEOSIS