358. Беседа в пяток Пасхи и в день рождения Благочестивейшего Государя Императора Александра Николаевича

(Spoken in the Dormition Council on April 17th; printed in the Works of the Holy Father in 1859 and in the collection of 1861) And Jesus came up and said to them: All power has been given to Me in heaven and on earth (Matthew 28:18). Our Lord Jesus Christ, after His resurrection from the dead, appeared to His closest disciples and other believers in Him many times over the course of fourty days, before His ascension into heaven. His first appearances were intended to provide full confirmation that He had indeed risen from the dead. In other subsequent appearances, He “spoke also about the kingdom of God” (Acts 1:3), taught the highest knowledge of the truths and sacraments of the faith, and established His Church. The Evangelist Matthew, at the end of his Gospel, described one of these phenomena, which has a special significance, as can be seen, among other things, from the fact that in other appearances the Lord revealed Himself to one or many, without preliminary, as a sudden visitor or companion, and about this phenomenon He anticipated His disciples, and appointed a place for it. “Let them go to Galilee, and there they see Me” (Matthew 28:10). The Evangelist does not determine the time of this appearance: but, without a doubt, it followed already when the previous appearances, at least in His closest disciples, had sufficiently confirmed and freed from doubt the faith in the accomplished resurrection of the Lord. Although the Evangelist points to only eleven Apostles as eyewitnesses of this appearance of the Lord, it is likely that many others also took part in this. Probably 879, the early anticipation of this phenomenon and the designation of the place in Galilee, where Christ the Savior preached a lot before His suffering, and where then there were many who believed in Him, tended towards this; and, of course, from these “we... began to doubt” (Matthew 28:17), not having been prepared by the vision of the previous appearances of the Risen One, as the Apostles were prepared 880. The Lord Jesus began His gospel sermon with the announcement that “...the kingdom of heaven is drawing near” (Matthew 4:17): and at the end of His earthly career he already defined this nearness in the shortest measure: “I am not to eat, nor am I to drink, until the kingdom of God comes” (Luke 22:16, 18). But His disciples did not yet fully understand the kingdom of heaven; they had not yet freed themselves from the Jewish thought of the earthly kingdom of the Messiah. With the resurrection of the Lord, the time has come, since convenience has opened, to give them a clear, experienced concept of the kingdom of heaven, to show them it in action itself. For this purpose, the resurrected Lord appears to the disciples gathered by His preliminary command in Galilee, and proclaims His reign in that kingdom, the approach of which he predicted 881: “Jesus came, speaking to them, saying: all power has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.” Now you see: the king of the kingdom foretold 882 is the risen Christ; His kingdom is “heavenly,” because His resurrected life, obviously, is no longer earthly, but heavenly and transcendental, and such is His activity; but His kingdom is not limited to heaven, but extends to the whole earth, in order, in particular, to raise people who believe in Him from an imperfect, mortal life on earth, through grace-filled rebirth, to heavenly, perfect, immortal life, to the bliss of the kingdom of heaven. But the word of our risen Lord, resolving the question: what is the kingdom of heaven, the approach of which He predicted, at the same time gives rise to another question: how is it not before, as after the resurrection, that all power in heaven and on earth was given to him, when He had this power from eternity, as the only begotten Son of God, by whom “all things were created, in heaven and on earth” (Col. 1:16), and who “bears ... all things by the word of His power” (Heb. 1:3)? To resolve this question, it is necessary to distinguish the state of the Son of God before His incarnation from His state after the incarnation, His state as God, and His state as the God-man. According to the first state, as God, He always has unlimited power over everything that He has created, and is preserved and controlled by His providence. In the second state, He, entering earthly life, “made Himself humble and took on the form of a servant” (Phil. 2:7); and then the glory of His Divinity was hidden; His humanity was only just preparing for glorification. Having offered himself, according to humanity, for the guilt of our all-natural humanity before God, as a purifying sacrifice to the justice of 883 God the Father, He acquired in His resurrection glorification of His humanity and, at the same time, the hope of glorification to our all-natural humanity. There, where He abided from eternity, and abides as God, He has now ascended as the God-man - “above all the heavens” (Eph. 4:10); and, as the Church sings, “The angels marvel at the sight of man above himself” 884. Before the death on the cross and resurrection of Christ the Savior, for a person expelled from paradise by sin and the condemnation of sin, paradise and heaven were concluded by eternal justice, and the power opening them was not visible; The gates of hell were closed behind the sinners descending into it, and the power opening them was not visible. The risen Christ is “holy and true, having the key of David” - the cross, “he opens, and no one will close” (Rev. 3:7). To him was “given...power” to open hell, and to destroy those who were condemned of old, to open heaven, and to bring in those who had been pardoned. The power that was “given” to the risen Christ the God-man “on earth” is the same that acts here initially and which acts completely in heaven. Here He introduces believers from the kingdom of damaged nature into the kingdom of grace, to the children of the old Adam “that he... may be the children of God” (John 1:12): there from the kingdom of grace, he elevates them to the kingdom of glory. Finally, in the proclamation of the royal power of the risen Christ, may the opened space of this power not be left without special attention: “all power in heaven and on earth.” In what various 885 forms “all power” of Him appears in heaven is inaccessible to our contemplation. Let us think about all His power on earth that is closest to us. If He has “all authority”: then there is no authority or power here that is not subject to His authority. Extending the power of grace to every believing soul and to the entire kingdom of faith, to the Church created by Him, He also extends the power of His wisdom, goodness and truth to the visible life of man, personal and social, and to the entire kingdom of nature. Under the power of His wisdom and goodness, the life-giving sun shines, the wind breathes, the clouds rain, the water irrigates and gives water, the earth wears out vegetation beneficial to man. Under the power of His wisdom and goodness, a person is born, a family arises, a people grows, strengthens and blossoms, a kingdom is created, established and exalted. Under the power of His offended goodness and truth, the sun scorches, the air breathes perniciously, the cloud shoots deadly arrows of lightning, the water floods, the earth denies man its gifts. Under the power of His offended goodness and truth, a person inattentive to this power is deprived of light and wanders, the family is upset, the people are confused 886, the kingdom wavers. Meek for the meek, and for “tottering tongues,” for “people who teach in vain,” for “those who break the bonds” of the Divine law, the Heavenly Father gave formidable power to His only begotten Son, King Christ, by His predestination: “Ask of Me, and I will give these tongues Your inheritance; I have guarded them with a rod of iron, like vessels I will destroy the wicked” (Ps. 2:1, 3, 8–9). Reverence the power of King Christ, son of the kingdom of heaven, sought and expected. Reverence the authority of King Christ, son of the kingdom of the earth. Reverence Him in thought, heart, deed, life. Ask often what He wants from you, and do His will, “working for Him with fear,” and, having done it, “rejoice in Him with trembling” (Ps. 2:11). When undertaking a task, ask whether it pleases Him: and ask His blessing for that which pleases Him: and do not hesitate to reject that which does not please Him. “Accept this punishment,” that is, instruction 887, “lest the Lord be angry” (Ps. 2:12). It is joyful and edifying to see now the pious people rejoicing in the Most Pious King, and bringing their joy in the presence of the King of those reigning, thanking him for the birth of the King, as for a heavenly gift, asking for long life and prosperity to the King, as a heavenly gift. Oh, if only it were always like this in everything! – Why do other arrogant minds, having left the obedience of the all-powerful wisdom of Christ, strive spontaneously and ingeniously to dominate 888 over affairs, and over laws, and over the general understanding of the people? – Why is it that the guardianship of truth and honesty is not the high and 889 strong fear of God, but the cowardly and 890 insignificant fear of human opinion? Oh, if no one in the kingdom of earth acted in oblivion of the power of heaven! Oh, if only “as the eyes of a servant are in the hand of his masters, ... so our eyes are in the Lord our God, until he shows mercy to us!” (Ps. 122:2). The Lord of souls is faithful to accomplish 891 salvation of souls; The King of kings is faithful to bless the intentions and deeds of the King, and to improve and preserve the 892 kingdom in good health. Amen. Handwritten the author at first, instead of this, it was: “what.” These words are handwritten. the author is inserted after. Handwritten The author previously said: “in the foretold kingdom of heaven.” Instead of this, there was previously the word: “heavenly.” This word is handwritten. the author is inserted after. Instead, it was hand-in-hand. author: “restless.” Handwritten author vm. These words were: “the human mind has come out of obedience to the all-powerful wisdom of God and strives to reign spontaneously and without limit.” Handwritten author these words are inserted after. Handwritten the author’s word used to be: “arrange.” You might be interested in: