Беседа 17

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 10.1. Brothers, the good will of my heart and prayer, even to God, for them is for salvation. (The Apostle) intends to accuse (the Jews) again and, moreover, more strongly than before, therefore he again rejects any suspicion of hostility and uses a great deal of preliminary explanation. Pay no attention to the words and accusations, he says, but to the fact that I do not proclaim this with a hostile disposition. It is not typical for one and the same person to desire (the Jews) salvation and not only desire, but pray for it, and at the same time hate and turn away from them; and by the word “favor” (the apostle) here he means, precisely, a strong desire. Notice that his prayer comes from the heart. It is not that he takes great care and prays that the Jews will escape punishment, but that they will be saved. And not only here, but also in the following words (the apostle) reveals the favor that he has towards the Jews. He tries with great effort, as much as possible, to excuse (the Jews) and seeks for them at least some shadow of justification, and yet he does not succeed in this, being defeated by the nature of deeds. Rom.10:2. I testify to them that they have the zeal of God, but not according to reason. So this is worthy of apology, not condemnation. If they were rejected not out of human nature, but out of jealousy, then it is fairer to pity them than to punish them. But notice how (the apostle) wisely pleased them with his word and discovered their inappropriate contention. Rom.10:3. Not understanding God's truth, he says. Another pretext for an apology, which subsequently strengthens the accusation and deprives any justification. And seek to establish your own truth, he says, without obeying the truth of God. With these words, he shows that the Jews fell into error more through stubbornness and love of power than out of ignorance, and did not even present the righteousness that is required by the law, which (the apostle) expressed with the words “seeking to establish.” However, it is clear (the apostle) did not reveal this, since he did not say that they were deprived of both righteousnesses, but with his characteristic prudence he only made a very intelligible hint. If the Jews were still trying to present legal righteousness, then it is clear that they did not present it. And if you did not submit to the truth of God, then you lost it. The righteousness of the Jews (the apostle) calls his own either because the law no longer had force, or because it was acquired through labor and then; and he calls the truth of God righteousness from faith, because it is acquired only by grace from above and we are justified not by works, but by the gift of God. But those who constantly resist the Holy Spirit and strive to be justified through the law are far from faith. Being far from faith and not having received the justification bestowed by faith, and also not being able to be justified by the law, they lost everything. Rom.10:4. The end of the law is Christ, in righteousness to everyone who believes. Notice Paul's prudence. Since he called both the truth, so that those who believed among the Jews would not think that they had one truth, but were deprived of another and therefore were accused of lawlessness (after all, they, as new converts, still had to be afraid), and so that the Jews would not again assume to fulfill the truth and would not say: if we have not fulfilled it yet, then without a doubt we will fulfill it - look what (the apostle) does. He proves that there is only one righteousness, that legal righteousness consists in righteousness by faith, and whoever has acquired righteousness by faith has also fulfilled legal righteousness, and whoever has rejected the first has lost the last. If Christ is the goal of the law, then he who does not have Christ, even if he thinks that he has righteousness, nevertheless does not have it, but he who has Christ, even if he has not fulfilled the law, has achieved everything. The goal of healing is health. Just as someone who can make someone healthy, even if he doesn’t know the art of medicine, has everything, and someone who doesn’t know how to cure, even if he thinks that he follows the art, loses everything, so it happens with the law and faith: whoever has faith has achieved the goal of the law, and whoever is outside of faith is alien to both faith and law. What exactly did the law want? Make a person righteous. But he was powerless because no one fulfilled the law. This was the purpose of the law, this is what everything was leading to, this is why everything was done - holidays, commandments, sacrifices, and everything else, so that a person would be justified. But this goal was more accurately achieved by Christ through faith. So, do not be afraid, says (the apostle), that you break the law after you have come to faith: you then break the law when, because of the law, you do not believe in Christ; when you believe in Him, then you have fulfilled the law, even much more, because you have achieved much greater righteousness. The apostle confirms this thought with Scripture. Rom.10:5. Moses... writes the truth, south of the law, - he says. This means: Moses shows us what legal righteousness is and what it is. So, what does it consist of and how is it acquired? By fulfilling the commandments. The Creator... will live in them, - he says. It is impossible to become righteous according to the law except by fulfilling all the commandments, but this was not possible for anyone. So this righteousness was destroyed. But tell us, Paul, about another righteousness, about righteousness by grace - what does it consist of and how is it acquired? Listen to how clearly (the apostle) describes it. After he has denounced the righteousness of the law, he moves on to the righteousness of grace and says: Rom.10:6–9. and even though it is true from faith, it says: Do not say in your heart: Who will ascend to heaven? that is, to bring Christ together. Or whoever goes down into the abyss, that is, to raise Christ from the dead. But what does it say? ...There is a word near you in your mouth and in your heart, that is, the word of faith, which we preach. For if you confess the Lord Jesus with your mouth, and believe in your heart, for God has raised Him from the dead, and you have been saved. So, so that the Jews cannot say: how did they find greater righteousness who did not find less? - (the apostle) provides indisputable proof that the new path is easier than the old one. There, the fulfillment of all the commandments was required: when you fulfill everything, you will live; and righteousness from faith does not say that, but what exactly? “If you confess the mouth of the Lord Jesus, and believe in your heart that God raised Him up from the dead, you will be saved.” Then, so that, due to the proof that this path is convenient and easy, it does not seem that it is not worth even attention, look at how (the apostle) spreads about it. He didn’t immediately begin to do what we said, but what does he say? “And even though the truth is from faith, it says: Do not say in your heart: who will ascend to heaven, that is, to bring Christ together? Or whoever goes down into the abyss, that is, to raise Christ from the dead.” Just as negligence and relaxation, weakening labors, resist the virtue revealed in deeds, and a very awake soul is needed not to give in, so whenever it is necessary to believe, thoughts arise that disturb and weaken the thoughts of many, and to repel them, a soul full of strength is needed. Therefore (the apostle) reveals these very thoughts, and as he did when speaking about Abraham, he does so here. Having proved there that Abraham was justified by faith, (the apostle), so that they would not think that he had acquired such a great crown in vain and for nothing, he praises the property of faith and says: “For the hope of faith is greater than the hope of faith, in which he was the father of many tongues... And he did not fail in faith, neither did he see his own flesh already slain,... and the deadness of Sarah’s lies. But the promises of God were not doubted by unbelief, but made possible by faith, giving glory to God and being known to be able to do what he promised” (Rom 4.18-21). By this (the apostle) he proved that Abraham needed both works and an exalted soul, accepting what is higher than hope and not being tempted by the visible. He does the same here and proves that we need a wise mind, a strong will and striving for the heavenly. He didn’t just say: don’t speak, but: “Do not speak in your heart,” that is, don’t even think about doubting and saying to yourself: how is this possible? Do you see that this is primarily the property of faith, to reject all earthly considerations, to seek that which is above nature and, rejecting the weakness of thoughts, to accept everything with the help of the omnipotence of God? The Jews not only said this, but also that it is impossible to be justified by faith. But (the apostle) applies the same thing to another event, so that, having shown that it is so important that in its fulfillment it requires faith, thereby convincing that it is fair to weave a crown for believers. And he uses the saying of the Old Testament, always trying to avoid accusations of innovation and opposition to it. What (the apostle) says here about faith, Moses spoke to the Jews about the commandment, proving that they received many benefits from God. There is no need to say, argues (the apostle), that we must ascend to heaven or swim across the vast sea and then receive the commandments, since God has made this such a great and difficult matter convenient for us. What does it mean: “there is a verb near you”? That is, it’s easy, because salvation is in your heart and on your lips. For your salvation, you do not need to take a long journey, cross the sea and cross the mountains; on the contrary, if you do not even want to cross a threshold, then you can be saved while sitting at home, because the means of salvation are on your lips and in your heart. Then, giving a new proof regarding the ease of the word of faith, (the apostle) says that God raised Christ from the dead. Think about the dignity of the one who committed it and you will no longer see any difficulty in this matter. So, that Christ is Lord, this is clear from the Resurrection, as (the apostle) said at the beginning of the letter: “to the called Son of God... from the resurrection from the dead” (Rom. 1.4). And that the resurrection is possible, this is proven even for completely unbelievers by the power of the one who performed it. So, since justification is very important, and easy, and convenient, even if it is impossible to justify oneself otherwise, is this not extreme stubbornness, leaving what is convenient and easy, and taking on the impossible? After all, no one can say that they abandoned the matter because of its difficulty. Do you notice how (the apostle) deprives the Jews of any excuse? What kind of justification do they really deserve who choose what is most difficult and impossible to do, and leave what is easy and can save them, which the law itself was not able to give? All this proves nothing more than a stubborn will that resists God. The law is burdensome, but grace is light; the law does not save even with countless efforts, but grace provides justification, both gracious and legal. So, what will those who persist against grace and adhere to the law without benefit or purpose say in their defense? Then, since (the apostle) said something important, he again confirms this with Scripture. Rom.10:11–13. For the Scripture says, he says: whoever believes in Him will not be ashamed. For there is no difference between Jews and Greeks: he is the Lord of all, rich in everything and in all who call on Him. Whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. Do you notice how (the apostle) gives evidence of faith and confession? When he says: “everyone who believes,” he indicates faith, and when he says: “everyone who calls,” he means confession. Then, again proclaiming the community of grace and casting down the arrogance of the Jews, (the apostle) in brief words recalls what he proved at length above, and again confirms that there is no difference between the Jew and the uncircumcised. “There is no difference between Jews and Greeks,” he says. And what was said above, when he proved this about the Father, is said here about Christ. As above, revealing the same thing, he said: “Or is the God of the Jews only, and not of the languages? To her also of the tongues, ... because there is only one God” (Rom 3.29–30), so here he says: “For he is the Lord of all, rich in everything and in all who call on Him.” You see how (the apostle) proves that God greatly desires our salvation, so much so that He even considers it His riches. Therefore, even now the Jews should not despair and think that they cannot be forgiven, even if they wish to repent. He who considers our salvation to be His wealth will not cease to enrich himself, since pouring out the gift on everyone is also enrichment for Him. And since the Jews were especially embarrassed by the fact that they had previously enjoyed an advantage over the entire human race, and now, for the sake of faith, they are overthrown from their throne and have no advantage over the rest, then (the apostle) repeatedly points to the prophets who foretell them of such equality. “Whoever believes in Him,” it is said, “will not be ashamed,” and again: “Whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” And so that there are no objections, the word “everyone” is added in both places. There is nothing worse than vanity. It was precisely this that destroyed the Jews most of all. That is why Christ said to them: “How can you believe, since you receive glory from one another, and do not seek glory that is from one God” (John 5.44)? Vanity, together with death, excites great laughter and, before future punishment, brings on countless disasters here. And if you want to know this, without touching yet heaven, from where vanity brings us down, and Gehenna, into which it plunges, we will consider everything that it produces here. And really, what could be more harmful, more shameful and heavier than vanity? That this disease causes losses is proven by the useless and vain expenditures on theaters, stadiums and other equally unnecessary entertainments, such as the construction of magnificent and luxurious houses and all sorts of other unnecessary structures, which now cannot even be described. Everyone knows that a wasteful person, who loves pomp and suffers from the disease of vanity, necessarily becomes a thief and a covetous person. To deliver food to this beast, he lays his hands on other people's property. And what about property? This fire consumes not only money, but also souls, preparing not only present, but also future death. Vanity is the mother of Gehenna, it strongly ignites hellfire and the poisonous worm. Everyone knows that it extends its power over the dead, and what could be worse than that? All other passions cease with death, but vanity continues its action even after death and tries to show its properties over the deceased body. When dying people make sure that magnificent monuments are erected for them, on which all their property must be spent, and they try to show extraordinary splendor in the coffin; When people, during their lifetime, insulted beggars who approached them for one ovol or a piece of bread, and when they died, they prepared abundant food for the worm, then what power will you find more painful than this disease? From this same evil impure love is also born, since many are drawn into adultery not by the beauty of their faces, not by the lust of copulation, but by the desire to boast: I seduced so-and-so and drew her into fornication. And is it necessary to talk about other vices that grow from here? I would rather be a slave to many barbarians than to one of vanity, since the barbarians do not command captives what vanity commands its subordinates. Be a servant of all, it says, whether they be greater than you or lesser. Don’t worry about your soul, don’t worry about virtue, laugh at freedom, sacrifice your salvation, and if you do any good, then do it not to please God, but for show to people, so that you can receive a crown from them; If you give alms or fast, endure the labor, but try to destroy the benefit. What could be more inhumane than such demands? This is where envy, arrogance, and love of money originate - the mother of all evils. A crowd of slaves, barbarians dressed in gold, parasites, flatterers, silvered chariots and much more, which is even more ridiculous, are used not for pleasure and benefit, but out of sheer vanity. Yes, you say, everyone knows that this passion is evil, but how we can avoid it is what needs to be said. The main thing is that if you completely convince yourself that this illness is serious, then you will make the best start towards correction, because the patient immediately looks for a doctor, as soon as he first finds out that he is sick. And if you are looking for another way to avoid (the evil that results from this), then look unceasingly to God and be content with the glory that comes from Him. If you notice that this passion incites you and encourages you to tell your brothers about your merits, then first of all think that no benefit will come from this story for you, extinguish the absurd passion and tell your soul: this is how long you have been tormented to talk about your merits, and you could not remain silent, but declared to everyone - what benefit does this have for you? There is no benefit, but great harm to everyone - the loss of everything that you collected with great difficulty. And after that, think about the fact that the verdict and judgment of the people are erroneous, and that they will soon disappear. For an hour they are surprised, but as soon as the time has passed, they forget about everything; They stole the crown given to you by God, but they failed to save theirs for you. Even if the human crown remained with you, it would be a great pity to exchange it for the crown of God; and when that too is gone, what excuse will we have for giving away the imperishable for the transitory and losing such great blessings for the praise of a few? And even though many have praised you, they are all worthy of regret, and the more, the greater the number of people who do this. If you are surprised by what was said, listen to how Christ Himself confirms this: “Woe to you,” he says, “when all men speak good to you” (Luke 6.26). And quite rightly so. If in any art artists should be chosen as judges, then how can you entrust the assessment of virtue to the crowd, and not to the one who is most knowledgeable in this, who can both approve and crown? So, let us write the word of Christ on the walls, on the doors and in our hearts, and we will constantly say to ourselves: “Woe to us when all men speak good to us,” because the very ones who speak well of you subsequently condemn you, calling you vain, ambitious, partial to human praise. But that's not how God works. When He sees that you love His glory, then He will especially praise you, be surprised and tell you about you. But a person is not so, but, considering you not free, but a slave, and often pleasing you with false praise consisting of empty words, usually steals your true reward and subjugates you more than a bought slave. After all, masters have slaves so that they obey them in what is ordered, and you serve without orders. You don’t even expect to hear anything from them, but as soon as you find out how you can please them, you do everything, even if they don’t order. What kind of hell will we be worthy of, who please bad people and serve them before they are ordered, and do not listen to God at all, despite the fact that He commands and exhorts us daily? If you love fame and praise, then avoid human praise and then you will gain glory; Avoid human approval and then you will receive many praises from both God and people. After all, we usually glorify the one who despises glory most of all, we usually praise and marvel at the one who places praise and surprise at nothing; if we do this, then much more the God of all. And when God praises and glorifies you, who could be happier than you? In fact, just as there is a difference between glory and dishonor, such is the difference between heavenly and human glory, or better yet, much more, ad infinitum. If human glory is incomparable, shameful and ugly, then judge what its vileness will be when we compare it with heavenly glory. Just as a prodigal woman, being on the housetop, gives herself to everyone, so do the slaves of vanity, or rather, they are even more vile than harlots, because harlots often neglect some of those who love them, and you offer yourself to everyone - fugitives, robbers, and swindlers. With the help of such and similar persons, you stage spectacles that excite praise; and those very ones, each of which in itself, in your opinion, is worth nothing, you, when they are collected together, prefer to your own salvation, thereby showing that you are more dishonest than each of them. How are you not more dishonest, how quickly do you need their praise and are not satisfied with yourself if you do not gain glory from others? Besides all this, tell me, don’t you understand that, being a famous person and known to everyone, you have countless accusers if you sin, but remaining in the unknown, you will be safe? Yes, you say: that’s why countless people are surprised at my merits. But the misfortune is that the disease of vanity harms you not only when you sin, but also when you show merit, and in one case it exposes you to countless reproaches, in the other it deprives you of all your reward. It is disastrous and full of all dishonor to love glory in civil affairs, and when the same passion takes possession of you in spiritual matters, then what excuse will remain for you, who do not want to give God the same honor that you yourself demand from your family? After all, the slave looks into the eyes of the master, and the hireling pays attention to the owner of the work, who must pay the wages, and the student looks at the teacher, but for you everything is the opposite: you, leaving the God and Master who hired you, look at your brothers, although you yourself know that God will remember your merits in the future, and man remembers only in the present; a spectacle is prepared for you in heaven, and you gather spectators on earth. Where a fighter strives, he waits for approval for himself, but you, striving for what is above, are concerned to receive the reward below. What could be worse than such madness? Let us, if you wish, look at the crowns themselves: one consists of arrogance, another of envy of another, one of ridicule and flattery, another of money, another of slavish service. Just as children, while playing, lay wreaths of grass on each other and often, having crowned someone without him noticing, laugh at him from behind, so now those who praise you often laugh among themselves, placing grass on you. And even if it were only grass, their crown causes us great harm and destroys all our merits. So, having judged its insignificance, avoid harm. How many people do you think there should be praising you? A hundred people or twice, three times, four times more, even, if you want, ten times, a hundred times more; let there be, if you like, two, four, ten thousand applauding, but they are no different from cawing crows, and if you imagine the sight of angels, then these applauding people will turn out to be more insignificant than worms, and their approval is weaker than cobwebs, smoke, dreams. Listen to how Paul, who accurately recognized human glory, not only does not covet it, but also turns away, saying: “Let me not boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Gal. 6.14). So, you too should be jealous of this praise, so as not to anger the Lord. And by seeking human praise, you dishonor not only yourself, but also God. Being a painter and having a student, you yourself would not be indifferent if he did not show you works of his art, but put the picture on display for ordinary spectators. If this is offensive to his brothers, then it is much more offensive to the Lord. And if you want to know what other motives there are to despise human glory, then be filled with lofty thoughts, laugh at what is visible, grow in love for true glory, be filled with spiritual thoughts, tell your soul, as Paul said: “Do you not know how imams judge angels” (1 Cor 6.3)? And having aroused her by this, reason with her and say: do you, who judge the angels, really want to be judged by the unclean and praised, as they praise dancers, actors, animal fighters and riders who strive for precisely such praise? And you try to be above these cliques, imitate the desert dweller John, find out how he despised the crowd of people and, seeing flatterers, did not pay attention to them. When all the inhabitants of Palestine gathered around him, marveled at him and were amazed, he did not boast of such an honor, but rebelled against them and, turning to the numerous people as to a child, struck them with such reproaches: “serpents, the generation of vipers” (Matthew 3.7). Although they converged and left cities for him to see this sacred head, nothing softened John - he was so far from glory and free from all pride. And Stephen, seeing that again the same people do not honor him, but are furious and gnashing their teeth, placing himself above their anger, says: “Stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart” (Acts 7.51). And Elijah, in the presence of the army, the king and all the people, said: “How long will you keep churches on both your hills” (1 Kings 18.21)? But we flatter and please everyone, buying themselves their respect with this servile service. As a result of this, everything changed, we were deprived of the grace of the first centuries, the works of Christianity fell into decay and everything was neglected for human glory. So, let us eradicate passion, and then we will fully recognize freedom, we will find a haven and silence. After all, the vain are like those overwhelmed by waves, always trembling, afraid and serving so many masters. And whoever is outside this painful power is like those who have reached the pier and enjoy complete freedom. But this is not the case with the vain man, who, no matter how many people he may know, has just as many masters and is forced to serve everyone. How can we free ourselves from this painful slavery? If we love another glory, the true glory. Just as those in love with a beautiful face are usually distracted from this love by another face that is more beautiful than the previous one, so those addicted to human glory can be distracted from it by the glory that has shone from heaven. Therefore, let us turn our gaze to this last one, recognize it exactly, so that, marveling at its beauty, we may avoid the shame of worldly glory and enjoy many pleasures, constantly being comforted by the glory of heaven, which may we all be worthy to achieve by the grace and love of our Lord Jesus Christ, with whom to the Father and the Holy Spirit be glory, power, honor, now and ever, and to the ages of ages. Amen. You might be interested in: