Слово 35. О любви к миру

The word spoken by the Lord is true that it is impossible for a person to acquire love for God with love for the world, and it is not possible, when communicating with the world, to enter into communication with God, and with care for the world to have care for God. As soon as we leave God due to vanity or often due to a lack of what is needed for the body, many of us deviate in other directions. Others agreed to work for the Kingdom of Heaven. And they do not remember the promise that the Lord spoke 197: “If you devote all your care to the Kingdom of Heaven, I will not deprive you of the visible nature that satisfies your needs, but everything will come to you along with the rest. For I will not leave you to take care of yourselves." 198 The Lord cares about the soulless birds created for us; will he really care about us? This is impossible. Whoever cares about the spiritual or about something that serves the spiritual, bodily things are provided to him without worrying about how much and when he needs it. And whoever cares about bodily things beyond need, involuntarily falls away from God. If we try to take care of what serves for the glory of the name of the Lord, then the Lord will take care of both 199 according to the extent of our achievement. However, let us not try to tempt God in the physical, in exchange for our spiritual deeds, but let us direct all our deeds towards the hope of future blessings. Whoever, out of love for his soul, has once given himself over to virtue and desired to complete its practice, does not after this worry about the physical, whether he has it or not. In relation to 200 God often allows the virtuous to be tempted by something like that 201 and allows temptations to rise up against them from everywhere: he strikes them in their body, like Job, plunges them into poverty, causes people to retreat from them, defeats them in what they have acquired 202 ; only no harm comes to their souls. For it is impossible that, when we follow the path of righteousness, we will not encounter sadness, that the body will not languish in illness and suffering, and that it will remain unchanged, if only we love to live in virtue. If a person spends his life according to his own will, or indulging in envy, or destroying his soul, 203 or doing anything else harmful to him, then he is subject to condemnation. And when he follows the path of righteousness, and is already making his procession to God, and has many like himself, and something like that comes across him 204, then it is not appropriate for him to deviate from his path, but he must joyfully, without inquisitiveness, accept it and thank God that he sent him this grace and that for God’s sake he was deemed worthy to fall into temptation and become an accomplice in suffering with the prophets, apostles and other saints, for the sake of this path they endured tribulations. Whether from people, from demons, or from the body, temptations will come to him (it is impossible for them to come and be allowed without God’s beckoning), let this be for him a reason for righteousness. For it is impossible for God to show a benefit to someone who desires to be with Him in any other way than by sending temptations to him for the sake of the truth, because a person cannot by himself, without the grace of Christ, be worthy of this greatness, that is, for these divine labors, enter into temptation - and rejoice. Saint Paul testifies to this. For this is such a great thing that the apostle clearly calls it a gift, when a person is prepared to suffer for the sake of hope in God. Paul says: “This was given to us from God, “not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for Him” (Phil. 1:29). So Saint Peter wrote in his epistle: “When you suffer righteousness’ sake, you are blessed” (1 Peter 3:14), because you have become partakers of the passions of Christ (see Phil. 3:10). Finally, then you should not rejoice when you live in abundance, but in sorrows you should lower your face and consider their ways of God alien. For His path 205 from time immemorial and from generation to generation has been paved by the cross and death. Where did you get this idea 206? Find out from this that you are outside the path of God and are moving away from it. Do you want to follow in the footsteps of the saints or do you intend to arrange for yourself a different, special path and walk along it without suffering? The way of God is a daily cross. No one ascended to heaven living coolly 207 . As for the cool path, we know where it ends. God does not want those who have given themselves to Him with all their hearts to be careless. His concern should be about the truth. And from this it is known that he is under God’s Providence, when God constantly sends him sorrows. Providence never allows those living in temptation to fall into the hands of demons, especially if they kiss the feet of the brethren, cover up and conceal their guilt, as if they were their own. Whoever wants to have no worries in this world 208 and desires this, but also wants to practice virtue, is not on its path. For the righteous not only strive in good deeds of their own free will, but also involuntarily endure strong struggles with temptations to test their patience. A soul that has the fear of God in itself is not afraid of anything that harms it physically, because it trusts in God from now on and forever and ever. Amen. That is, spiritual and physical. That is, that sorrow is alien to the path of God. To live without a feat for the truth. You might be interested in: