The word that a disciple of Christ should be meek and not be angry quickly

The divine voice of the Lord in the Gospels, fulfilling the law and not destroying (Matthew 5:17), teaches us not to be angry with our brother (Matthew 5:22), and with this addition to speech it completes the saying: “Thou shalt not kill” (Matthew 5:21), removing the very root of murder and cleansing the heart from the inside, and not the hands from the outside. He did not impose the same kind of punishment as the law, which is oppressive immediately, but punishment according to a judicial sentence, saying: “That whoever is angry with his brother without a cause is liable to judgment” (Matthew 5:22). The punishments imposed by Christ do not come quickly, as in the law; but, although there is a long delay in rewards corresponding to justice, however, afterward comes a terrible punishment. Since he commands more, he also endures more, desiring purification of the heart, which can only be accomplished with difficulty. Therefore, even if we are carried away by anger, we do not immediately punish, since if we immediately punished, then there would be no return through repentance. Therefore, He delays the punishment so that we have time to repent, so that the one who was angry with his brother yesterday would repent today and make an agreement with himself not to be angry with his brother anymore, so that we might be partly like God. He removes us from what alienates our life from likeness to God and leads us, after this state, to beauty in accordance with nature; After all, we are led to harmony with nature and to communion with the divine Spirit, and constant life with God, competing regarding such great things. Let us pay attention to ourselves and let us not destroy with our contempt the work of becoming like God because the Lord is slow to come, let us not give ourselves freedom in the matter of transgressing the words of God, let us not leave the competition, falling into despair, as unable to achieve this likeness to God, but let hope be inherent in us for the sake of Him who gave the command and grants the strength to fulfill the command. Let there be no contempt and carelessness, because as a result of His long-suffering, a more terrible punishment awaits us. As long as He endures, seeking correction, He will be equally indignant if we do not correct ourselves, and will quickly overtake us as those who acted impudently in relation to grace. But rather let all the works of this age be neglected by us than the divine command. Many of those anger people who are sensitive to anger and easily become irritated. A person who is afraid of the command of the terrible King, who ordered not to be angry at all, will treat with contempt everyone who wants to irritate him; He, further, will easily tolerate those who insult him with words, will show patience in relation to those who want to insult him with deeds, and will turn the other cheek to the one who strikes him on the cheek, and will nobly endure from the attacker a shameful word uttered for the sake of cursing, having for himself the amazing consolation that for this he will be called blessed, also in order to be obedient to the Lord and extinguish anger at his brother, and to avoid the punishment for such sin punishments. For this reason, Christ exhorts us to free ourselves from bodily excitement, to avoid the love of money and to move away from the love of glory, to give absolutely no place to pleasure, so that as a result of something like this we do not destroy our souls and become alien in relation to the Holy Spirit. How can a person who has learned to despise money be irritated by money, even if someone wants to steal it from him? And how will one who does not strive for glory become irritated because of glory? Therefore, take off your worldly clothing and put on spiritual things; put off the old man in order to put on the new: therefore this is called regeneration and is proclaimed in the divine scriptures. After all, our salvation requires a change in our previous state so that we become different from what we are now, so that we cease to be what we are now, and begin a different life that we led before the crime. You were not the same with God as you were from childhood, and you did not have the same way of thinking after God’s creation as after human birth. Therefore, listen to the Lord who swears and be afraid: “Truly I tell you,” He says, “unless one is born again, he cannot” enter the Kingdom of Heaven (John 3:3). Therefore, start a new life, leave the life worn out in sins; Let yesterday's adulterer become chaste today; the one who yesterday immoderately indulged in drunkenness, today let him fast; throw away what was bad that came after, so that you can again receive what was good from the beginning. It is not enough to spend time with a calm spirit and without anger. Anyone who wants to live in the image and likeness of God must be despised by everyone, become the subject of ridicule and disrespect, both in words and in deeds. For this reason, He commanded not to repay evil to the offender, so that by rewarding the offender, you would not destroy the nature of meekness. Therefore, do not imagine that you have the right to take revenge on those who offend you. Remember Paul’s holy instructions: “Do not dream,” he says, “about yourself; Do not repay anyone evil for evil” (Rom. 12:16-17). It is not good to become an avenger, nor to seek retribution for oneself. but place the retribution for you on God, who takes revenge on the offenders without anger. “Do not avenge yourself...,” says (Scripture), “but give room to the wrath of God. For it is written: “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord” (Rom. 12:19). Do not say: God rewards, I will reward too; consider what Christ showed you when he came into the world in order to reveal a saving way of life, and be jealous of Him in order to be saved. He did not come as a Judge and Avenger to those rebelling against Him: out of kindness, He did not seek any benefit for Himself, but accomplished salvation for the world. The kindness of Christ overthrew the insolence of the devil and the meekness of the Lord overcame the wild rage of the evil one. And you, therefore, offer yourself this role model. He was not angry with those who insulted Him, but, hearing about Himself: “a Samaritan” and “he who has a demon,” he mercifully and meekly answered those who said: “There is no demon in Me; but I honor My Father, and you dishonor Me. However, I do not seek My glory: there is a Seeker and a Judge” (John 8:48–50). So, do not avenge yourself, but wait for the Judge. If the Judge himself, who came in human form, did not repay, although he could, he awaited God’s judgment [“Being slandered,” it is said, “He did not slander each other; while suffering, he did not threaten, but handed it over to the Just Judge” (1 Peter 2:23)], then do the same and imitate the Lord, who endured godless insolence even to the cross and offers salvation to those worthy of destruction. He said to the Father: “forgive them this sin, for they do not know what they are doing” (Luke 23:34). The brother offended, he appeared unworthy of brotherhood; but do not destroy the brotherhood. The brother appeared as an imitator of Joseph’s brothers, prepared fratricide, showed himself to be an enemy against his brother, showed an excess of malice, offends, he himself is not offended in anything. But do the opposite, so that you also say, as psalmist David: “with those who hate peace... I am at peace” (Ps. 119:6-7). Conquer the evil with good, encourage him to do good, dissolve the anger of meekness, show him that he unfairly persecutes Christ who is in you, find out that you do not deserve persecution. But he is incorrigible and does not change with your meekness. Even animals change before human meekness, and he is more savage than animals. Do not be quarrelsome with such, and do not oppose anger with anger; but avoid, just as a wise pilot avoids dangerous rocks; beware, like “a deaf asp who stops his ears and does not hear the voice of the exorcist” (Ps. 57:5-6). Do not lose time, “for the days are evil” (Eph.5:16); live in wisdom, knowing that you are a stranger and a stranger on earth and an exile, like all your fathers (Lev.19:34). In the same way, you were sent as a sheep into the midst of wolves, like the apostles; do not be a wolf instead of a sheep; when competing with wolves, beware as much as you can, so as not to destroy the treasures of righteousness; beware of those who steal; being wise as a snake, beware of evil intentions; If the wolf harms you, if he intends to tear you apart, then get ready to endure it, remembering the one who says: “They count us as sheep doomed to the slaughter” (Ps. 43:23; Rom. 8:36), looking at the Lord Himself, Who “like a sheep was led to the slaughter, and like a lamb before its shearers is silent” ( Isa.53:7). The time for your victory will come when you overcome, enduring adversity together with Christ. The Lord did not contradict or cry out, no one heard His voice in the streets. And the apostle says that he is ready to “punish all disobedience when... obedience is completed” of those who obey (2 Cor. 10:6). God is long-suffering, and so are you, because if Christ now suffers while you suffer, then for Christ’s sake the servant of Christ must also endure. Call upon Him, and He will exact vengeance soon, put an end to the wickedness of sinners and guide the righteous “God is a righteous judge, and [mighty and long-suffering]” (Ps. 7:12); But He is patient in order to turn us to Himself. To him be glory forever. Amen. This conversation, classified in Min's edition as Spuria, is included in volume 1 of this edition. Since it was not published in volume 1 of our publication, we place it at the end of volume 2. The paragraphs in the text were arranged by us. – Editorial staff of “ABC of Faith”