the Son says something which seems to suggest that the Father is greater: he
SERMON 217 181 ascended to prepare the place, so that we might come safe and sound to what had been prepared.14 What he prepared was himself; stay in him. Is Christ too small a house for you? Now you needn't even be afraid of his passion; he rose from the dead, and he dies no more, and death can no longer lord it over him (Rom 6:9). The bad place, the bad days are what this world is; but let us do good in the bad place, and lead good lives in the bad days, and the good eternal place will come our way, the good eternal days; and those good days will all be one day.
I mean, why are the days here bad? Because one day passes for another to come; today passes for tomorrow to come; yesterday passed for today to come. Where nothing passes, there is one day; and that day is Christ. The Father too is day; but the Father is day from no day, while the Son is day from day.15 Sing to the Lord a new song, sing to the Lord, all the earth. Sing to the Lord and bless his name; proclaim the good news of day from day, his salvation (Ps 96:1-2). Christ is day. If you don't recognize him here, listen to a wise old man; if you still lack understanding, young man, whoever you may be, listen to the white hairs of truth. That old man Simeon observed the infant Lord Christ who was being carried by his mother, and was holding heaven together. He observed how tiny he was, he knew how great he was, and he took him in his arms, because he had received a reply from God that he would not see death unless he had seen the Christ of the Lord. He took him in his arms and said, Now you will let your servant, Lord, go in peace according to your word, because my eyes have seen your salvation (Lk 2:25-30). So, proclaim the good news of day from day, his salvation. This, you see, is what Simeon was saying: "The one I was waiting for has come; what am I doing here any longer?" He took him, being on the point of being taken by him. He was carrying Christ the human being, he was being carried by Christ the divine being.
The one God begot is the same as what God is himself
7. So hold firmly to this: I'll give you a rule, so that you needn't panic when the Son says something which seems to suggest that the Father is greater: he either says it as man, because God is greater than man; or else he says it as the one who is begotten, to honor the one by whom he was begotten. You shouldn't ask for more; because God begot God, in his greatness he begot his equal. If God did not beget true God, and in his greatness did not beget his equal, then he begot a monster, not a true Son.16 But because he did beget a true Son, the one he begot is the same as what he is himself.