103. Учение

We see that people are learning various arts and sciences. Some learn to sew dresses, others learn to trade, others learn to build houses, others learn to speak foreign languages, others learn to speak and write beautifully and sweetly, others learn to philosophize or excel in the natural sciences, and so on. Likewise, Christians must learn to live like Christians. Without this, any art and science are nothing. Christian! External science and art are common to pagans and Christians, since pagans, as we see, are taught arts and sciences. But the ability and art to live piously and Christianly is characteristic of only Christians. A Christian is known not because he speaks and writes beautifully, but because he lives beautifully and pleasing to God - not from external wisdom, but from the teachings of the Gospel and Christian philosophy. Many speak and write beautifully, but live rudely. Many people philosophize a lot about natural things, but don’t even know the ABCs of Christianity. A true sage is one who is foolish to the world, but wise to Christ. He is truly senseless and insane who, although he knows everything, does not know God and Christ the Son of God. Study, Christian, Christian evangelical philosophy and you will be truly wise, although the world will consider you crazy. Christian training consists of the following: 1) In the knowledge of God. When you come to know God, you will become wiser, but within, not without. And the more you learn, the wiser and more skillful you will be in the Christian rank. When you truly know that God is Omnipresent and Omniscient, and sees your every deed, thought, undertaking and intention, and hears every word, and in His Almighty hand is your life and death, this knowledge will certainly teach you to fear Him and tremble, and everywhere to act carefully, speak carefully, do carefully, think and act carefully. When you know that God is just and rewards everyone according to their deeds, then this knowledge will prompt you to earnest repentance for previous sins. And you will sigh and cry to him from the depths of your heart: Do not enter into judgment with Your servant, for no one living will be justified before You (Ps. 142:2). If you see iniquity, Lord, Lord, who will stand? (Ps. 129:3). When you know that God is true, ever-present and unchangeable goodness and love, you will certainly love Him. Who, having known good, does not love good? When you come to know God more and more in such a spirit, then from such knowledge will certainly follow diligent obedience to Him, submission and obedience, and from obedience - careful fulfillment of His holy commandments. 2) In abstinence and mortification of passions and lusts that are at war with the soul. But here, too, knowledge is needed. Find out what lies in your heart. Look there often, and you will see that in him there is pride, arrogance, pride, love of money, anger, envy, love of glory, uncleanness, a desire for revenge and all kinds of sinful abomination. From within, from the human heart, come evil thoughts, adultery, fornication, murder, theft, covetousness, malice, deceit, lasciviousness, the envious eye, blasphemy, pride, madness (Mark 7:21-22; Matt. 15:18,19). And if they come, then they are there. And what is in one person is in another, for we are all infected with this poison. All this evil leads a person to nothing other than destruction. Learn to recognize the destructive evil hidden within you, and then you will learn to hold back and kill what leads you to destruction, and you will try to defeat and kill those enemies who always want to kill you. You must certainly crucify the flesh with its passions and lusts if you want to live like a Christian and be Christ’s. According to the apostolic teaching, only those of Christ are those who have crucified the flesh with its passions and lusts (Gal. 5:24). Learn to know yourself in order to know what great disaster lies within you, and you will try to get rid of it. Learn to recognize the enemies who are inside you, and not outside, and, having recognized them, kill them - so that they do not kill you forever. If they are dead, then your soul will live. And if they are alive and possess you, then your soul will be dead. Defeat and kill them - may your soul live. Beloved! Conquer yourself in this way - and you will master yourself, you will be truly noble, lord, king and ruler. 3) In truth and love for one's neighbor. And here knowledge is needed. Recognize that your neighbor is the same person as you, and has everything that you have, but does not want the same things as you. Like you, he wants all good, does not want any evil. Don’t do to him what you don’t want for yourself, and do what you want for yourself. This is the truth and Christian love for one’s neighbor. This is what our Lord wants from us: Love your neighbor as yourself (Matthew 19:19). Love does not do evil to one’s neighbor, but wants every good thing for him. Love your neighbor, and you will not do to him what you do not want for yourself, and you will want to do everything that you want for yourself. This is what a Christian needs to learn from infancy to the end of his life. This is Christian Science. This is quite an art. He is a true lover of wisdom who studies this philosophy. Those who begin to study the arts and sciences admit their ignorance and try to learn what they do not know. In other words, that’s why they learn because they don’t know. Likewise, Christians, if they want to learn Christian philosophy, must admit their ignorance and madness. Without this, learning will be vain and useless. It is the ignorant who learn, not the wise. As we see, those who study external sciences and arts, the more and more carefully they study, the more skillful they become. Likewise, the more diligently and thoroughly someone studies Christian philosophy and corrects himself according to its rules, the more skillful a Christian he becomes. The more he knows God, the more he fears and loves Him. The more he considers himself, the more he humbles himself and corrects himself. The more he thinks about his neighbor, the more justly and lovingly he treats and acts with him. And so he comes to perfection, as far as possible for someone living in the flesh. 4) All human effort and zeal are in vain without God’s help. For the flesh always wants to possess a person; and our mind is blind without the enlightenment of God; The devil always and everywhere spreads nets under our feet and tries in every possible way to make us stumble, and the world with its temptations surrounds us and wants to weaken and corrupt us. Therefore, it is absolutely necessary to sigh and pray to the Lord with all diligence and often, so that He Himself will guide us in the matter of learning and help us learn successfully. He mercifully promised to give us His grace. And if he promised, he will give to those who ask. Ask, and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you; for everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened (Matthew 7:7–8). Study, Christian, Christian Science, in order to be a true Christian and a disciple of Christ. Christ the Lord will not ask us at His Last Judgment whether we were skilled in trade, eloquence, astronomy, geography and other sciences. He will ask whether they did and learned what His holy Gospel teaches and what they promised to do in holy baptism and swore allegiance to Him. Only about this science and art will he ask us then. God, attend to my help, Lord, strive for my help (Ps. 69:2). Look upon me and have mercy on me, according to the judgment of those who love Your name. Direct my steps according to Thy word, and let not all iniquity possess me (Ps. 119:132–133). You might be interested in: