Беседа 14

Conversation 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 Rom 8.12–13. Moreover, brethren, we must not live according to the flesh. If you live according to the flesh, you are about to die; if you put to death the deeds of the flesh by the spirit, you will live. Having shown what the reward of spiritual life is, which instills Christ in us, revives dead bodies, gives wings to heaven, makes the path of virtue more convenient, (the apostle) then necessarily presents an admonition, saying: therefore, we should not live according to the flesh. However, he did not say that, but much more expressively and forcefully, saying that we are debtors to the Spirit - with the words: “we are not debtors to the flesh,” he pointed out exactly this. And everywhere he reveals this, proving that everything that God did for us was not out of duty, but out of grace alone, yet what happens after this from us is not a gift, but a duty. He hints at this when he says: “At the price of purchase, do not become servants of men” (1 Cor. 7.23), and he shows the same thing when he writes: “Carry your own” (1 Cor. 6.19). And he mentions the same thing in another place, saying: “For if one died for all, then all died”, and: “I died for all, so that those who live live for themselves” (2 Cor 5.14-15). The same is confirmed here with the words: “we must.” Then, since he said, “We owe not to the flesh,” so that you would not again attribute this to the being of the flesh, he did not stop there, but added: “to live according to the flesh.” We are obliged to do a lot for the flesh: nourish it, warm it, give it rest, treat it when it is sick, clothe it and provide it with many other services. So, so that you do not think that (the apostle) forbids such service to the flesh, he, having said “we ought not to the flesh,” explains this by saying: “to live according to the flesh.” I forbid, he says, to have such care for the flesh, which leads to sin, and on the other hand, I wish that there be care for it, which he explained later. Namely, having said: “Do not please the flesh” (Rom. 13:14), he did not stop there, but added: “in lust.” He teaches the same thing here, saying: let the flesh be the subject of care, because we are its debtors in this, but, of course, we will not live according to the flesh, that is, we will not make it the mistress of our life. It is necessary that she walk behind, and not in front, so that she does not rule our lives, but accepts the laws of the Spirit. So, having defined this and confirmed that we are debtors of the Spirit, then showing what debtors of good deeds we are, (the apostle) speaks not about the past, but about the future, in which one should especially marvel at his prudence. Although the previous blessings were sufficient, he does not present them now and does not speak about those ineffable mercies, but points to future ones. Many people are usually touched not so much by a previously shown benefit, but by what is expected and in the future. Intending (to talk about future good deeds), the apostle first frightens with the sorrowful and bad consequences of carnal life and says this: “For if you live in the flesh, you must die,” meaning here immortal death, that is, punishment and torment in Gehenna. It is better to say, if we carefully consider this, that he who lives according to the flesh is dead even in this life, as we have already explained to you in the previous conversation. “If you put to death the deeds of the flesh with the spirit, you will live.” Do you notice that he is not talking about the nature of the body, but about carnal affairs? He did not say: “if you mortify your bodily nature by the Spirit, you will live,” but “actions” and, moreover, not all, but vicious ones, this is clear from what follows, where he says: if you do this, you will live. And how would this be possible if he talked about all matters in general? After all, seeing, and hearing, and speaking, and walking is a carnal matter, and if we begin to kill such things, then we will so renounce life that we will be accused of suicide. So, what kind of works (the apostle) commands to be put to death? Those who lead to vice, tend towards evil, who cannot be killed except by the Spirit. By killing other deeds, you can kill yourself, which is not permissible, but these deeds are killed only by the Spirit. If the Spirit appears, all disturbances subside, all passions are pacified and nothing rebels against us. Have you noticed how (the apostle) exhorts us with future blessings (as I said above) and proves that we are debtors not only because of what has already been done for us? The benefit of the Spirit, he says, consists not only in the fact that He has forgiven us past sins, but also in the fact that it makes us invincible from sin in the future and merits immortal life. After that, pointing to the new award, he added: Rom.8:14. The little ones are led by the Spirit of God, these are the sons of God. This crown is much more important than the previous one. Therefore, he did not just say: all who live by the Spirit of God, but “the virgins... are led by the Spirit of God,” which expresses his desire for the Spirit of God to be the master of our life, like a helmsman controls a ship, or a driver of a pair of horses. Not only on the body, but also on the soul (the apostle) imposes such a bridle. He does not want the soul to dominate, but he subordinates its power to the power of the Spirit. So that (the Romans), trusting in the gift of baptism, do not neglect their subsequent lives, (the apostle) says that although you have received baptism, however, if after this you are not led by the Spirit, you will lose the dignity given to you and the right of adoption. Therefore, he did not say - those who received the Spirit, but - “the little ones... are led by the Spirit of God,” i.e. those who live like this throughout their entire lives, “these are the sons of God.” And since this dignity was given to the Jews, because it is said: “Az reh: ye are gods, and all are the sons of the Most High” (Ps 81.6), and again: “I have begotten sons and raised them up” (Is 1.2), and again: “My son is the firstborn of Israel” (Ex 4.22), and also Paul himself says: “whose sonship is” (Rom 9.4), then he and reveals what difference there is between one and the other honor. Although the names are the same, he says, the cases are not the same. And clear proof of this is presented in the comparison of those who succeeded, and the gifts given, and future rewards. And, firstly, it shows what gifts were given to the Jews. Which ones exactly? The spirit of slavery. Therefore I added: Rom.8:15. I don’t like the spirit of work and I’m afraid. Then, without talking about the opposite of slavery, that is, the spirit of freedom, he pointed to what is much more important - namely, the spirit of adoption, through which the spirit of freedom is communicated, saying: but accept the spirit of sonhood. It is clear what the spirit of adoption means, but what the spirit of slavery is is not clear, and therefore it is necessary to explain it, especially since what was said (by the apostle) is not only not clear, but even completely incomprehensible. After all, the Jewish people did not receive the Spirit - what is (Paul) talking about here? That’s what he called the letters because they were spiritual, as well as the law, spiritual, and water from the stone, and manna: “all of this,” he says, “is also spiritual food, and all this is spiritual beer.” And he also calls the stone spiritual, saying: “I drink from the spiritual stone that follows” (1 Cor 10.3-4). Since all these actions were supernatural, (the apostle) called them spiritual, although those who participated in them did not receive the Spirit. Why were the Old Testament writings the writings of slavery? Consider the entire life of the Jews and then you will clearly recognize this. With them, punishments were given quickly, and the reward followed immediately, being proportionate and similar to some kind of daily allowance given to servants; strong fear was visible everywhere before their eyes, bodily ablutions were strictly observed, including abstinence in actions. It’s not like that with us, but our thoughts and conscience are cleared. (Christ) does not say only - do not kill, but also - do not be angry, or not only - do not commit adultery, but also - do not look with an unclean eye, so that not out of fear of real punishment, but out of love for Him, we acquire skill in virtue and succeed in everything else. (God) does not promise a land flowing with honey and milk, but makes us joint heirs of the Only Begotten, by all means diverting us from real blessings and promising to bestow those that are typical for those who have become sons of God to receive; We have nothing sensual, nothing corporeal, but everything is spiritual, the Jews, although they were called sons, were like slaves, and we, as having become free, received adoption and are awaiting heaven for ourselves; (God) spoke with the Jews through others, and with us Himself personally. The Jews did everything prompted by the fear of punishment, but the spiritual ones do everything out of desire and love and prove this by the fact that they succeed beyond what is prescribed in the commandments. The Jews, like mercenaries and ungrateful people, never ceased to grumble, but Christians please the Father; those, being favored, blasphemed, but we give thanks even in danger. Although sinners must now be punished, there is a big difference in this; the priests stoned the Jews, burned them, and cut off members of their bodies; Likewise, we are subject to punishment, but for us it is enough to be excommunicated from the Father’s table and removed from contemplating it for a certain number of days. For the Jews, adoption was only an honor in name, but with us this is followed by action - cleansing through baptism, the gift of the Spirit and the sending of other blessings. To this we can add many other proofs of our nobility and their insignificance. The Apostle, having designated all this with the words Spirit, fear and adoption, provides another proof that we have the spirit of adoption. Which one exactly? For Him we cry: Abba Father. How important this is - the enlightened are well aware of this, since in the sacramental prayer they are commanded first of all to pronounce this saying. So what? Didn't the Jews call God Father? Do you not hear what Moses says: “Thou hast forsaken the God who begat thee” (Deut. 32.18)? Do you not hear how Malachi reproaches and says: “Is not there one God who created us, ... is there not one Father of you all” (Mal 2.10)? But even though many other sayings (Scriptures) were cited, we will not find anywhere that the Jews called God by the name of the Father and prayed to Him. In our country, priests, laity, superiors, and subordinates are all commanded to pray like this. And this is the first word that we utter after that wonderful birth and after the new and extraordinary order of feeding. Moreover, if the Jews ever called God Father, it was according to their own understanding, but those who live by grace call it so, prompted by the power of the Spirit. Just as there is a spirit of wisdom, by which the foolish became wise, which was revealed in the teaching, just as there is a spirit of power, by which the weak raised the dead and cast out demons, there is also a spirit of the gift of healings, a spirit of prophecy and a spirit of tongues, so there is also a spirit of adoption. And just as we know about the spirit of prophecy that he who has it predicts the future, speaking not from his own mind, but moved by grace, so we must say about the spirit of adoption that, having received it, he calls God Father, prompted by the Spirit. The Apostle, wanting to show our true origin, also used a Jewish expression; he did not only say “Father,” but “Abba Father,” as legitimate children mostly call their father. So, having spoken about the difference in life, in the given grace and freedom, (the apostle) presents a new proof of the superiority received from this adoption. Which one exactly? Rom.8:16. The Spirit itself,” he says, “will obey our spirit, as we are children of God.” I affirm this, he says, not only on the basis of the word, but also on the basis of the reason that gives rise to the word, since I pronounce this according to the inspiration of the Spirit. This (the apostle) expressed even more clearly in another place, saying: “God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying: Abba, Father” (Gal. 4.6). What does it mean – “The spirit obeys the spirit?” The Comforter, says (the apostle), testifies to the gift communicated to us. This is not only the voice of the gift, but also the voice of the Comforter who gave the gift; He Himself, through His gift, taught us to pronounce this word. And when the Spirit testifies, how can there be bewilderment? If this had been promised by a person, or an angel, or an archangel, or some other similar power, then doubt would perhaps have been possible for some, but when the highest Being has given it and testifies to us about it with the word that is commanded to be uttered in prayer, then who can doubt the dignity? When a king favors someone and declares his honor before everyone, will any of his subjects dare to contradict him? Rom.8:17. And also children and heirs, - continues (the apostle). Do you notice how he gradually increases the gift? Since it is possible to be children and not become heirs (after all, not all children are heirs), then (the apostle) adds: “and heirs.” The Jews, in addition to the fact that they were not adopted as sons, like us, were also deprived of their inheritance: “for he will destroy the wicked... and give the grapes to another worker” (Matthew 21:41). And before that (Christ) said: “For many from the east and west will come and lie down with Abraham, ... but the sons of the kingdom will be cast out” (Matthew 8.11-12). But (the apostle) does not stop there, but adds something more. What exactly? The fact that we are heirs of God is why I added: And more importantly, not just heirs, but also Do you see how (the apostle) tries to bring us closer to the Master? Since not all children are heirs, it shows that we are both children and heirs. Further, since not all heirs are heirs of great deeds, he shows that we also have this, being heirs of God. And again, since one can be an heir of God, but not a joint heir with the Only Begotten, this shows that we have this too. And note the wisdom (of the apostle): when he spoke about what those who live according to the flesh will suffer, he did not expand on the description of sorrows, but only said that they would die, and, touching on the promises, he speaks much more extensively, mentions the retribution of rewards and lists various and great gifts. If being a son is an indescribable grace, then imagine how important it is to also be an heir. And if this is important, then it is much higher to be a co-heir. Then, wanting to show that all this is not a gift of grace alone, and at the same time to give more credibility to his words, (the apostle) added: For as long as we suffer with Him, we will also be glorified with Him. If we, says (Paul), shared (with Christ) in sorrows, much more will we share in joys. He who bestowed such great benefits on those who had not yet shown any merit, will he not reward them all the more when he sees that they have worked and suffered so much? So, having proved that reward really exists, the apostle, so that his speech may receive credibility and so that no one doubts, again proves that it also has the power of grace - partly so that those who doubt will believe what is said, and those who believe will not be ashamed, as if they are always saved by grace, partly so that you will know how much the reward of God exceeds your labors. He expressed the first by saying: “Let us suffer with Him, so that we may also be glorified with Him,” and regarding the second he added, saying: Rom.8:18. as if the passions of the present time for the glory that desires to appear in us are unworthy. In the previous words (the apostle) demands spiritual correction of morals when he says: you must not live according to the flesh, that is, you must avoid lust, anger, love of money, vanity, envy; and now, after reminding the believer of all the gift given to him, which has significance for the future, after strengthening and exalting him with hopes, placing him near Christ and declaring him a joint heir of the Only Begotten, now he boldly leads him into disaster. It is not the same thing to overcome the passions that arise within us and to endure external temptations - beatings, hunger, deprivation of property, imprisonment, shackles, leading to execution. For the latter, a lot of nobility of soul and vigor are needed. And notice how (the apostle) simultaneously lowers and exalts the wisdom of those who strive. Every time he points out that rewards are higher than labor, he encourages greater labor and does not allow himself to be thought highly of as being conquered by rewards of crowns. And in another place he says: “For even though our sorrow is now light, when it is multiplied into success, the burden of eternal glory will be made for us” (2 Cor 4.17). He made this speech to those more wise; here he does not recognize the suffering as easy, but consoles them with the reward of future blessings, saying: “I am unsatisfied, for the passions of the present time are unworthy.” And he did not say: they are worth nothing in comparison with future joy, but - which is much stronger - in comparison with future glory. Where there is joy, there is not always glory, and where there is glory, there is, of course, joy. Then, having said that glory is future, he proves that it already exists. He did not say: in comparison with the one who will be, but: “who wants ... to appear,” i.e. it still exists, but is hidden, which he expressed more clearly in another place, saying: “our life is hidden with Christ in God” (Col 3.3). So, trust in this glory: it is already ready and awaits your labors. It saddens you that it is still ahead, but this very thing should make you happy, since great glory is prepared there, ineffable and surpassing your present state. (The Apostle) not without purpose said: “the passions of the present time,” but with the intention of showing that the future glory surpasses the present, not only in quality, but also in quantity. Present suffering, whatever it may be, ceases with present life, and future benefits extend to endless centuries. And since (the apostle) could not count them in detail and depict them in words, he called them glory, which especially seems pleasant to us, because it is considered the pinnacle and head of all good things. (The Apostle) in another way encourages the listener and strengthens the speech with an indication of creation, meaning in the following words two goals: to instill contempt for the present and - desire for the future; at the same time, he also has a third goal, which it would be more correct to call the first, namely to show how dear the human race is to God and in what honor our nature is held by Him. Moreover, with this one teaching (the apostle), like cobwebs and children's toys, he overthrows all the rumors that philosophers have compiled about this world. But to make this clearer, let us listen to our own apostolic words. Rom.8:19–20. The creatures long for the revelation of the sons of God, he says. For the creature obeys vanity, not by will, but because of him who obeyed, in hope. (The Apostle) speaks here of the following: this creature is greatly tormented, waiting and waiting for those benefits that we have now spoken about - hope is a strong expectation. And to make the speech more expressive, (the apostle) personifies this entire world, as the prophets do, saying that the rivers applaud, the hills jump, the mountains jump - but not so that we consider them animate and attribute to them some kind of thought, but so that we conclude about the abundance of goods, extending even to the most insensitive creatures. The prophets often do the same thing when depicting something sad, saying that the vineyard is crying, the wine, the mountains and the vaults in the churches are making a loud noise - so that we again understand the excessiveness of evils. And the apostle, imitating (the prophets), personifies creation here and says that it groans and suffers, not because he actually heard the groaning of earth and heaven, but in order to express the abundance of future blessings and the desire for liberation from present evils. “For the creature obeys vanity, not willingly, but because of him who obeyed.” What does it mean, “I obey the creature in vanity?” She became corruptible. For what and for what reason? It's your fault, man. Since you received a mortal body subject to suffering, the earth was cursed and produced thorns and thistles. And that the sky, which has decayed along with the earth, will subsequently have a better lot, listen to how the prophet says about this: “In the beginning, O Lord, You founded the earth, and the works of Your hand are the heavens. They will die. But you remain: and all the garments will be worn out, and all the garments will be worn, and they will be changed” (Ps 101.26-27). And Isaiah exclaims: “Lift up your eyes to heaven and look to the earth below, for the heaven is established like smoke, and the earth promises like a robe, and those who dwell on the earth like... this shall die” (Isaiah 51.6). Have you understood how creation served vanity and how it is freed from corruption? One says: “as if I have taken off my clothes, they will change,” and Isaiah says: “those who live on the earth, as if... this will die,” pointing not to complete destruction, since those living on the earth, that is, people, will undergo not final, but temporary death, from which they will pass into immortality; so is the creature. All this (the prophet) expressed with the words: “as ... this will die.” Paul says the same thing later, but for now he talks about slavery and shows why it happened, and considers ourselves to be the cause. So what? Is a creature, being subjected to this because of another, offended? Not at all, because she exists for me. And if she exists for me, then how can she be insulted, how quickly can she endure it for my correction? And in general, the concepts of just and unjust should not be applied to the inanimate and insensitive. But Paul, after personifying the creature, does not enter into further discussions about what was said, but hastens to console the listener as much as possible with another thought. Which one exactly? What are you saying? he reasons: has the creation really suffered evil through you and become corruptible? But this did not cause her any offense, because through you she will again be incorruptible, as is indicated by the word “in hope.” When he says, “I obey not by will,” then with these words he does not at all show that the creature has reason, but he admonishes you that everything was a matter of Christ’s care, and not of her merit. Further (the apostle) says in what hope (the creation submitted to vanity). Rom.8:21. As if the creature itself will be freed. What does “sama” mean? You are not alone, but that which is lower than you, that has neither reason nor feeling - and that will share with you in blessings. He will be freed, says (the apostle), from the work of corruption, that is, it will no longer be perishable, but will become consistent with the beauty of your body. Just as the creation became corruptible when your body became corruptible, so when your body becomes incorruptible, the creation will follow it and become corresponding to it. Expressing this, (the apostle) added: into the freedom of the glory of the children of God, that is, through freedom. Just as the nurse who raised the king’s son, when he receives paternal power, enjoys blessings with him, so does the creature, according to the apostle. Do you see that a person is ahead everywhere and that everything is done for him? Do you notice how (the apostle) consoles the struggler and proves God’s inexpressible love for mankind? Why do you grieve over temptations? he says. You endure for yourself, and the creature endures for you. And not only consoles, but also proves the authenticity of what he said. If the creature, which because of you has become what it is now, hopes, how much more hope do you, through whom the creature will enjoy all those benefits. And people usually dress their servants in their best clothes for the honor of their son, when he needs to appear in all his dignity. So God clothes the creation with incorruption in the freedom of the glory of his children. Rom.8:22. We know that all creation... sighs and suffers even to this day. Do you notice how (the apostle) shames the listener, saying as it were: do not be worse than a creature and do not cling to the present. Not only should you not cleave, but you should also sigh over the delay in your migration from here. If the creature does this, all the more fitting is it for you, gifted with reason. But this is still not enough to shame you, therefore (the apostle) added: Rom.8:23. not exactly, but we ourselves have the firstfruits of the spirit, and we sigh within ourselves, that is, as having already anticipated future benefits. Even if someone were a man of stone, what has been given to us is already enough to excite us, distract us from the present and inspire us to the future, both because what has been given is great and because these so great and many gifts are only the beginning. If the first fruit is such that through it one can be freed from sins and achieve righteousness and sanctification, and (the apostles) cast out demons and raised the dead with their shadows and clothes, then imagine what all the future blessings are. And if a creature sighs, which is devoid of reason and the gift of speech and which has no knowledge of all this, then much more should we sigh. But so that heretics have no reason to think that (the apostle) condemns everything present, he says further: we sigh not because we condemn the present, but because we desire more. He expressed this very thing in these words: What are you saying, Pavel? Why do you constantly turn back and forth, then exclaim that we have already become sons, then again classify this good as an object of hope and write that we still have to receive it? So, correcting this with what follows, (the apostle) adds: that is, perfect glory. Now our fate, until our last breath, is a secret, because many of our sons later became dogs and captives. And when we move from here with good hope, then the gift will become inalienable, more obvious and greater, then there will be no fear that sin and death can change it. Then only will grace become safe when our body is freed from death and countless sufferings. The word “delivery” does not mean a simple ransom, but one after which it is no longer possible to return to the former captivity. And so that you do not fall into bewilderment, constantly hearing about glory and not having a clear concept of it, (the apostle) reveals future benefits in detail, pointing to a change in your body and, accordingly, in all creation. He expressed this more clearly in another place, saying: “Who will transform the body of our humility, so that he may be conformed to the body of glory” (Phil 3:21). And in another letter he writes: “When... this mortal has put on immortality, then the word will be written: death was sacrificed in victory” (1 Cor 15.54). And to prove that along with the destruction of the body there will follow a change in the state of all objects participating in life, (the apostle) wrote in another place: “for the form of this world is passing away” (1 Cor 7.31). Rom.8:24. By hope we are saved, - he continues. Since (the apostle) had hitherto been speaking about the promise of future blessings, and for a weaker listener it seemed regrettable to have only hope for good, he first revealed that future blessings are much more reliable than present and visible ones, talked a lot about the gifts already communicated and proved that we have received the firstfruits of future blessings, and then, so that we do not look for everything here and do not destroy our nobility acquired through faith, he says: “By hope of Let us be saved." The meaning of these words is as follows. You don’t need to look for everything here, but you need to hope. After all, we brought God only one gift, that we believed Him in the promise of future blessings, and only in this way were we saved. If we lose this path, we will ruin our offering. I ask you, he says: have you not been guilty of countless bad deeds? Are you a lost man? Are you not subject to judgment? Wasn't everyone powerless to save you? So what saved you? There is only one hope in God, one faith in what He promised and gave: you could not bring anything more as a gift to God. And if hope saved you, keep it now. Since she has brought you so many benefits, it is obvious that she will not deceive you regarding the future. If she, having found you dead, perished, captive and enemy, made you a friend, son, free, righteous and joint heir and brought you so many benefits that no one had ever expected, then, after such great generosity and favor, will she really abandon you in subsequent circumstances? So, don’t tell me: again hopes, again expectations, again faith. Thus, you were saved at the beginning and you brought this only gift to the groom. Therefore, observe it and keep it. If you demand everything here, you will destroy your merit, through which you became famous. This is why (the apostle) adds: But visible hope is not hope: who sees and trusts? Rom.8:25. If we don’t see him, we hope, we wait patiently, that is, if you look for everything here, then what is the point of hope? What is hope? Firm confidence in the future. Does God require more from you, after He Himself has given you all His blessings? He requires only one thing from you - hope, so that you yourself can somehow contribute to your salvation. This is exactly what (the apostle) hints at when he says: “Even if we don’t see him, we hope, we wait with patience.” God crowns the one who hopes just as he crowns the one who toils, suffers poverty and endures countless adversities. The word “patience” indicates effort in labor and great constancy. But nevertheless, God granted this to the one who hopes, in order to comfort the weary soul. Then, proving that even for this easy work we use strong help, (the apostle) adds: Rom.8:26. and the Spirit also helps us in our weaknesses. One thing belongs to you - namely patience, and the other is the gift of the Spirit, which encourages you to hope and through it makes your labors easier. Then, so that you know that grace not only accompanies you in labors and dangers, but also assists you in what seems to be the easiest things and provides its assistance in everything, (the apostle) added, saying: Let’s pray for something, as we should, but we don’t know. With these words (the apostle) points out the great providence of the Spirit for us and teaches the Romans not to consider useful everything that appears as such according to human judgment. Since it was natural for the Christians of that time, who were beaten and expelled and who suffered countless calamities, to seek peace, consider it useful for themselves and ask God for such grace, then (the apostle) says: do not consider that what seems to you to be really useful for yourself. After all, in order to know what is useful for ourselves, we need God’s help: man is so weak and insignificant in himself. That is why (the apostle) said: “For what we will pray, as we should, we do not know.” And so that the student would not be ashamed of ignorance, (the apostle) revealed that the teachers themselves were in ignorance. He did not say: you do not know, but: “we do not know.” And that he did not say this out of modesty, I discovered in other circumstances. He constantly asked God in his prayers to see Rome, but this did not suddenly come true after his prayer; He also often prayed for the thorn given to him in the flesh, that is, for disasters, and did not receive what he asked for at all. So in the Old Testament, Moses, who asked to see Palestine, Jeremiah, who prayed for the Jews, and Abraham, who interceded for the Sodomites, did not receive what they wanted. But the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings that cannot be uttered. What has been said is unclear, due to the fact that the miracles, which were then numerous, have now ceased. Therefore, it is necessary to tell you about the state of that time, and in this way the speech will be clearer. What was the situation then? To all those who were baptized at that time, God imparted various gifts, which were generally called spirit. “Those who prophecy are subject to the prophet” (1 Cor 14.32). One had the gift of prophecy and predicted the future; the other was the gift of wisdom and taught the people; another had the gift of healing and healed the sick; another was a gift of power and raised the dead; another had the gift of tongues and spoke different dialects. Besides all these gifts, there was also the gift of prayer, which was also called spirit; whoever had this gift prayed for the whole people. Since we, not knowing much that is useful for us, ask for useless things, the gift of prayer descended on one of the Christians of that time, who alone for everyone asked for something generally useful for the whole Church and taught others to pray. So, (the apostle) here calls spirit both the gift itself and the soul that receives it, intercedes before God and groans. Honored with such grace, he stood up with great contrition, falling to God with strong inner sighs and asked for what was useful for everyone. Now a sign of this is the deacon, who brings prayers for the people. Pointing to this, Paul said: “The Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings that cannot be uttered.” Rom.8:27. Test your hearts. Do you see that we are not talking about the Comforter, but about the spiritual heart? Otherwise, it would be necessary to say: he who tests the Spirit. But so that you understand what is said about a spiritual person who has the gift of prayer, the apostle added: test the hearts of the message that there is wisdom of the spirit, that is, a spiritual person. As if according to God he preaches about the saints. He intercedes not, the apostle argues, that God does not know our needs, but so that we learn to pray for what is needed and ask God for what is pleasing to Him: this means “according to God.” Thus, this was done both for the comfort of those present and for the best instruction, since the One who imparts gifts and bestows countless benefits was the Comforter. “But all this,” says (the apostle), “works one and the same Spirit” (1 Cor 12.11). And this happens for our learning and in order to demonstrate the love of the Spirit, which descends to us to such a degree. Therefore, everyone listened to the one praying, since the prayer was performed according to the will of God. You see how many lessons (the apostle) teaches them about God’s love for them and the honor shown to them. Really, what hasn’t God done for us? For us He created the corruptible world, and for us also the imperishable; He deigned for us to have the prophets endure adversity, for us he sent us into captivity, for us he allowed us to fall into the cave and endure countless sufferings. He created prophets for ourselves, and apostles for us; for us he betrayed the Only Begotten, for us he punishes the devil, he seated us at the right hand, he endured reproaches for us, because he says: “the reproaches of those who reproach you attack Me” (Ps 68.10). But, however, if after this we retreat from Him, He does not leave us, but again calls and disposes others to ask for us in order to bestow His grace on us, as was the case with Moses, to whom God said: “Leave Me... and I will consume them” (Exodus 32.10), in order to thereby encourage him to intercede for the Jews; and now He does the same thing, which is why He imparts the gift of prayer. (God) did this not because He Himself needs our prayer, but so that we, saving ourselves without prayer, would not become worse. For this, of course, reason, He repeatedly says that He is reconciling with the Jews for David, for one thing or another, doing this again for the purpose of giving the reconciliation an appearance of legality, although He would show Himself more philanthropic if He said that He ceases His anger against the Jews on His own account, and not for this or that. But (God) was not so concerned about this as about ensuring that the very reason for reconciliation did not serve as a reason for carelessness for those being saved. Thus, having said to Jeremiah: “Do not pray for these people... I will not hear you” (Jer 11.14), He did not want (the prophet) to stop praying (after all, God greatly desires our salvation), but to frighten the Jews; Therefore, the prophet, having learned this, did not stop praying. And in order for you to be convinced that this was said with the intention of shaming (the Jews), and not (the prophet) to turn away from prayer, listen to what (God) says: don’t you see what they are doing? And when he says to the city (Jerusalem): “If you wash yourself with nitre and multiply for yourself the herbs of Borithus, you are depraved ... before Me” (Jer 2.22), he does not want to plunge into despair, but to encourage repentance. Just as He frightened the Ninevites and disposed them to repentance most of all by pronouncing an indefinite sentence about them and not giving them good hope, so He does the same here, arousing (the Jews) and instilling in them respect for the prophet, so that at least in this way they would listen to him. And since they were in an incurable illness and were not at all enlightened by the fact that others were taken into captivity, then (God) first exhorts them to remain there, and when they could not stand it and began to flee to Egypt, then (God) allowed this, but demanded of them that they should not indulge in Egyptian wickedness. When they did not obey in this either, He sent a prophet to them so that they would not become completely corrupted. And since they did not respond to His call, He Himself follows them, corrects them, keeps them from greater wickedness, and constantly accompanies and follows them, like a tenderly loving father following a son who fails in everything. For this purpose (God) sent not only Jeremiah to Egypt, but also Ezekiel to Babylon. The prophets did not resist this, because they knew how much the Lord loved the Jews, they even did it willingly, like a grateful servant who is filled with pity for the dissolute son (of his master) when he sees that his father grieves and laments for him. And what (the prophets) did not tolerate from the Jews? They were sawn apart, persecuted, reviled, subjected to countless misfortunes, and after all this they came to them again. Samuel did not cease to grieve for Saul, although he was cruelly offended by him and suffered unbearable insults; however, he did not remember any of them. Jeremiah even wrote a lament for the Jewish people, and when the Persian commander gave him complete freedom to live safely wherever he wanted, he chose to endure evil with his people and suffer poverty on a foreign side rather than stay in his homeland. So Moses, leaving the royal palace and court life, hastened to share the misfortunes of the Israelites. Daniel did not eat bread for twenty-six days and tormented himself with the strictest fasting in order to appease God to the Jews. The three youths, being in the cave and in strong fire, offered up fervent prayers for the Jews, but did not lament for themselves, because they were unharmed; and since they then hoped to have special boldness, they prayed for them, saying: “Let us be accepted with a contrite soul and a humble spirit” (Dan 3.39). For their sake, Joshua tore his vestments, for their sake Ezekiel shed tears and lamented, seeing that they were being killed, and Jeremiah said: “Leave me alone, so that the mountaineer may weep” (Isaiah 22.4). And before that, not daring to intercede for a complete end to the disasters, he asked when they would end, saying: “How long, Lord?” Thus the entire host of holy men was filled with love. That’s why Paul said: “Put on your clothes as God’s chosen saints... in the womb of compassion, kindness, lowliness of mind” (Col. 3.12). Do you notice all the expressiveness of the words, and also how (the apostle) wants us to be constantly merciful? He didn’t just say “be merciful,” but “put on your clothes,” letting those know that mercy, like clothing, should always be with us. He also did not simply say – clothe yourself with mercy, but – “in the womb of generosity”, so that we imitate the natural feeling of tender love. But we do the opposite. If someone comes up asking for the smallest coin, then we reproach him, vilify him, and call him a deceiver. And don’t you shudder, man, aren’t you ashamed that you call a deceiver for a piece of bread? If he is pretending, then for one reason it deserves regret that he is tormented to such an extent by hunger that he is forced to take on such a guise. And this is proof of our cruelty. Since we do not easily give voluntarily, the poor must inevitably invent countless tricks in order to deceive our inhumanity and soften our cruelty. It would be a different matter if he asked you for a silver or gold coin, then you would have reason to suspect; if he comes to you for the necessary food, then why do you needlessly wax philosophical and investigate with excessive precision, accusing him of inaction and laziness? If we need to talk about this, then it is not others, but ourselves who should be reproached. Therefore, when you come to God to ask for mercy for your sins, remember these words and you will understand that it is fairer for you to hear them from God yourself than for a beggar to hear them from you. And yet God never spoke such words to you, did not say: go away, you are a hypocrite, although you constantly go to church and listen to My laws, but in the square you prefer gold, and your desire, and friendship, in a word - everything to My commandments; now you seem humble, but after prayer you become insolent, cruel and inhuman; So, get out of here and never come to Me. We deserve to hear this and even more, but God never reproached us with anything like that, but is also long-suffering, fulfills everything on His part and gives us more than we ask. Having thought about this, we will relieve those who ask from poverty and, even if they pretend, we will not investigate this. After all, we ourselves need salvation, moreover, with condescension, with love for mankind and much mercy. If, in our opinion, we enter into a strict investigation, then it is impossible to ever be saved, but everyone must be punished and perish. So, let us not be strict judges of others, lest they demand a strict account from us: but we are burdened with sins that exceed any mercy. Let us have more pity for those who sin without deserving leniency, so that we ourselves can hope for such mercy for ourselves, although no matter how hard we try, we will never be able to show such philanthropy as we need from the philanthropic God. Hence, is it not reckless, when we ourselves are in such great need, to strictly examine the affairs of our fellow men and do everything against ourselves? Thus, it is not so much that you make him unworthy of your good deed, but rather that you make yourself unworthy of God’s love for mankind. Whoever exacts strict punishment from his fellow man, God will exact much more strict punishment from him. Therefore, let us not speak against ourselves, but whether someone approaches out of carelessness or laziness, we will begin to serve. After all, we ourselves often, or rather, always sin through negligence, and yet God does not immediately demand an account from us, but gives us a period for repentance - every day he feeds us, admonishes us, teaches us and supplies us with everything else, so that we too imitate Him in such mercy. Let us also put aside cruelty, let us cast off brutality from ourselves, since by doing this we benefit ourselves more than others. We give money, bread, clothing to others, but we prepare for ourselves the greatest glory, which cannot be described in words, because, having put on incorruptible bodies, we will be glorified and reign with Christ. How great this is, we will learn from what follows, or better yet, now we cannot get a clear idea about it. But in order to form some idea about this based on our present benefits, I will try, as much as I can, to depict what I said. Tell me, if someone, having reached old age and living in poverty, suddenly promised to make you young, bring you to a flourishing age, make you stronger and more beautiful than anyone else, give you royal power over the whole earth for a thousand years and protect your reign with the most perfect peace, then what would you not agree to do and endure for such a promise? But Christ promises not this, but much more important. After all, the difference between old age and youth is not as great as between corruption and incorruption, and the difference between the kingdom and poverty is not as great as between future and present glory, between which there is the same difference as between a dream and reality. But I haven’t explained anything yet, and, in general, there are no words to describe the greatness of the difference between the future and the present, since, due to time, it is completely impossible to comprehend the whole difference with the mind. Indeed, how can life that has no end be compared with the present? And the world of the future life is as different from the world of this life as the world is from war, incorruption is as much superior to corruption as a pure pearl is better than a piece of dirt, and it is better - no matter what anyone says, not to fully depict this difference. If I compare the beauty of future bodies with the light of a sunbeam or with the brightest lightning, then I will not yet say anything worthy of that splendor. What earthly treasures, what bodies, or better yet, what souls should not be despised for the sake of the future? If someone now brought you into the royal palace, gave you the opportunity to speak with the king in the presence of everyone, even to be with him and eat food from the same table, then you, of course, would recognize yourself as the happiest of all. And intending to ascend to heaven, to appear before the very King of the universe, to compete in splendor with the angels, to enjoy that ineffable glory, you still hesitate whether you should despise money, whereas, even if you were to lose your life itself, you should rejoice, rejoice, be inspired with delight. To obtain the position of a boss, which gives you reasons for theft (I cannot call this an honest profit), you give everything you have, borrow from others, and if necessary, you will not regret mortgaging your wife and children, and when you are faced with the Kingdom of Heaven, such power in which you will not have a successor, when God Himself entrusts you with the management not of a corner of the earth, but of the whole sky, you hesitate and refuse, you spare money and do not Do you understand that if the side of the sky we see is so beautiful and attractive, then how much more excellent is its highest part and the sky of heaven? But since it is still impossible to see this with your bodily eyes, then ascend with your mind and, having become higher than the visible sky, look at that sky that is higher than this, to an infinite height - at the light that inspires horror, at the hosts of angels, at the countless faces of archangels and at other incorporeal forces. And then, having descended from this height, take our picture and imagine what is around our king, such as: men in clothes embroidered with gold, pairs of white mules with gold jewelry, chariots with expensive stones, snow-white carpets, plaques rippling on chariots, dragons depicted on silk clothes, shields with golden protuberances in the middle, belts from them, speckled towards the circle with many stones, horses dressed in gold, and golden bridles. But as soon as we see the king himself, we will stop looking at all this. He alone attracts our attention, his purple, diadem, seat, belt, shoes and extraordinary shine of appearance. Precisely combining all this, again raise your mind from this to that terrible day on which Christ will appear. Then you will see not pairs of mules, not golden chariots, not dragons and shields, but something that is full of great horror and produces such a striking impression that even the ethereal forces themselves are amazed, as it is said: “The powers of heaven will be moved” (Matthew 24.29). Then the whole sky will open, the gates of the firmament will open, the only begotten Son of God will descend, accompanied not by twenty or a hundred people, but accompanied by thousands and thousands of angels, archangels, cherubim, seraphim and other powers, everything will be filled with horror and trembling, the earth will dissolve, and no matter how many people there have been in the world - from Adam until that day, everyone will rise from the earth, everyone will be raptured, and Christ will appear in such glory that the moon, the sun, and every light will be hidden in this brilliance. What word will depict that bliss, that splendor and glory? My poor soul! Even now I have to cry and sigh heavily at the thought of what blessings we have lost, what bliss we have been alienated from, precisely alienated (I am talking about myself too), if we do not accomplish something great and amazing. Let no one speak to me here about Gehenna, since to lose such great glory is more painful than any Gehenna, and to be alienated from this lot is worse than countless punishments. But, however, we still strive for the present and do not think about the machinations of the devil, who takes away more from us for a little, gives us dirt in order to steal gold, or more correctly, the sky, shows us a shadow to drive us away from the truth and deceives us with dreams (this is real wealth), so that when that day comes we find ourselves the poorest of all. So, having thought about this, let us, before it is too late, avoid deception and strive for the future. After all, it cannot be said that we did not know about the brevity of real life, when daily affairs proclaim louder than a trumpet about real worthlessness, laughter, shame, danger and death. What excuse will we have for how quickly we pursue with great jealousy what is associated with danger and shame, how quickly we run away from what is safe and brings us glory and splendor, how quickly we surrender to the full power of the love of money? The slavery of wealth is heavier than any torment, as all those who have been honored to be freed from it know well. Therefore, in order for you to know this wonderful freedom, break your bonds, run away from snares; let not gold be kept in your house, but that which is more valuable than countless riches—alms and philanthropy. This gives us boldness before God, but gold covers us with great shame and greatly helps the devil to influence us. But why do you arm your enemy and make him stronger? Arm your right hand against him, gather all the beauty into your soul, store up all your wealth in your mind, let heaven, and not the ark and the house, guard your gold, and let us put on all ours, because we ourselves are much better than walls and more important than the foundations of a house. Why should we, having forgotten about ourselves, turn all our care to something that, when leaving here, we cannot take with us, and often cannot be retained while remaining in this life, while the opportunity presents itself to enrich ourselves so that not only here, but also there we will be more sufficient than everyone else? Whoever carries fields, houses, and gold in his soul, wherever he appears, he comes with all this wealth. But how, you ask, is this possible? Perhaps with greater convenience. If you transfer this to heaven with the hands of the beggars, then you will put everything into your soul, so that, even if death comes to you, no one will take this away from you, but you will also move into the next life with wealth. Such a treasure belonged to Tabitha, who was glorified not by the house, not by the walls, not by the stones, not by the columns, but by the bodies of the widows she covered, the tears she shed, the death that escaped from her and the life that returned. Let us also begin to prepare such storehouses for ourselves, we too will begin to build such houses for ourselves. In this we will have God as a co-worker and we ourselves will be His co-workers. God brought the poor from non-existence into existence; You did not allow those who had already been brought into being and exist to perish from hunger and other misfortunes, healing and correcting them and supporting the church of God with all measures: what in terms of benefit and glory can be equal to this? But if you still do not clearly understand what kind of decoration God gave you when he commanded you to provide for the poor, then think with yourself about the following. If God gave you such power that you could restore the collapsing sky, would you not recognize this as an honor that is much higher than you? But God has given you even greater honor. He has charged you with correcting that which is dearer to Him than heaven itself: and in the face of God, nothing visible can compare with man. For man He created the heavens, the earth, and the sea; He desires to dwell in it more than in heaven. But, although we know this, we have no diligence or care for God’s churches, but, leaving them neglected, we build magnificent and huge houses for ourselves. For this we are deprived of all benefits, we become poorer than any beggar, because we decorate those houses that, having moved from here, we cannot take with us, and we do not care about those that can be moved with us there. After all, the decayed bodies of the poor will undoubtedly be resurrected. And then God, who commanded to love the poor, having gathered them, will praise those who cared for them, and will marvel at the fact that they tried in every way to support their life, which was ready to fade away either from hunger, or from nakedness and cold. But we, when such great praise is offered to us, still hesitate and do not want to take upon ourselves this wonderful care. Although Christ has no shelter for Himself, but walks strange, naked and hungry, yet you, without need or benefit, build country houses, baths, galleries and many palaces, but you do not give Christ even a small shelter, but decorate the upper parts of the house for crows and kites. What could be worse than such frivolity? What's worse than this madness? This is truly a sign of extreme madness, or better yet, something that cannot be adequately expressed. But, however, if you wish, then, of course, it is possible to recover from this, albeit a serious illness, and it is not only possible, but even easy, and not only easy, but much easier to free yourself from this danger than from bodily suffering, how much better is the Doctor. So, let us begin to attract Him to us, let us ask Him to touch us, and on our part we will apply everything that is needed, I mean desire and readiness. He will not demand anything else, but as soon as He accepts only this from us, He will bring everything else from His side. Let us bring to Him everything we can, so that here too we can enjoy perfect health and receive future blessings through the grace and love of our Lord Jesus Christ, with whom be glory to the Father and the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and unto ages of ages. Amen. You might be interested in: