Great is the Mystery of Faith
Ancient wisdom from an ancient church father
A little while ago, I came across a quote on Facebook by a guy called Melito of Sardis.
Melito was bishop of the church in Sardis (modern-day Sart), a city of Asia Minor near Smyrna (modern-day Izmir, Turkey), and lived between 160–170/177 AD until he was martyred, possibly under the reign of Marcus Aurelius. Due to the close proximity of locations, he may also have known Ignatius who was also from Asia Minor, and potentially was also an acquaintance of Polycarp and his disciple, Irenaeus. There’s also the thought that he may have been the successor to the leader of the church in Sardis, which is mentioned by the Apostle John in Revelation 3:1–6.
His writings only survive in fragments, as I’ve recently discovered, but what we do have is a real gem! His writings about Jesus and the Passion are so poetic it’s really quite moving. The way he contrasts the qualities of deity with what Jesus endured as a man in a human body really brings some perspective about just how big of a thing the Incarnation was and what Jesus gave up in coming down to us in that way. Have a read of this quote to see what I mean:
The earth shook, and its foundations trembled; the sun fled away, and the elements turned back, and the day was changed into night: for they could not endure the sight of their Lord hanging on a tree. The whole creation was amazed, marvelling and saying, “What new mystery, then, is this?”
The Judge is judged, and holds his peace; the Invisible One is seen, and is not ashamed; the Incomprehensible is laid hold upon, and is not indignant; the Illimitable is circumscribed, and doth not resist; the Impossible suffereth, and doth not avenge; the Immortal dieth, and answereth not a word; the Celestial is laid in the grave, and endureth!
What new mystery is this? The whole creation, I say, was astonished; but, when our Lord arose from the place of the dead, and trampled death under foot, and bound the strong one, and set man free, then did the whole creation see clearly that for man’s sake the Judge was condemned, and the Invisible was seen, and the Illimitable was circumscribed, and the Impassible suffered, and the Immortal died, and the Celestial was laid in the gave.
For our Lord, when He was born man, was condemned in order that He might Show mercy, was bound in order that He might loose, was seized in order that He might release, suffered in order that He might feel compassion, died in order that He might give life, was laid in the grave that He might raise from the dead. — Melito of Sardis, Discourse on Soul and Body
Speaking to “mysteries”, it reminds me of this verse that Paul writes to Timothy, which is also poetic in its structure and is possibly an early form of a hymn, as some scholars believe:
1 Timothy 3:16 (HCSB)
And most certainly, the mystery of godliness is great:
[God] was manifested in the flesh,
vindicated in the Spirit,
seen by angels,
preached among the nations,
believed on in the world,
taken up in glory.
If you’re familiar with the Anglican liturgy (and it may be the same in other liturgical churches, I’m not sure), we will often recite similar words speaking to the mystery: “Great is the mystery of faith: Christ has died, Christ has risen, Christ will come again!”.
What we believe and live by in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus is a mystery! It is a strange and powerful thing that God did by sending his Son in the form of a human to grow, teach and ultimately die for us so that we can be made righteous and adopted into the family of God. I don’t think we’ll ever quite wrap our heads around it all fully.
I’m going to end this with another poetic excerpt from Melito. I find this to be a very powerful image of what Jesus did for us. I get chills every time I read it. Take a moment to really ponder on these words as you read them and consider the fullness of what happened when Jesus gave his life for us all and just how much of a sacrifice it was:
He that hung up the earth in space was Himself hanged up; He that fixed the heavens was fixed with nails; He that bore up the earth was born up on a tree; the Lord of all was subjected to ignominy in a naked body — God put to death!…[I]n order that He might not be seen, the luminaries turned away, and the day became darkened — because they slew God, who hung naked on the tree…This is He who made the heaven and the earth, and in the beginning, together with the Father, fashioned man; who was announced by means of the law and the prophets; who put on a bodily form in the Virgin; who was hanged upon the tree; who was buried in the earth; who rose from the place of the dead, and ascended to the height of heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of the Father. — Melito of Sardis, On Faith
