Статья 4. О должности хрістіанской ко Хрісту, Сыну Божію

§ 338. 1) Our God and the Creator, who is worshiped in three persons, when he created the heavens and the earth and all their decorations, then created the man Adam and his helper Eve: from these two the entire human race came and multiplied; all people have their first two parents. 2) The great God did not create our forefathers in the same way as other things, but with a strange and philanthropic counsel. God, creating other creatures, said: let there be, and it was like this 943 , it said, and it was; command, and 944 will be created. To create a human being, he said: let us create a human being in Our image and likeness 945. He exalted man so high above all other creatures that He created him not only by His divine counsel, but also in His own image. Know this, man, your high and wonderful nobility, the first and incomprehensible goodness of our God. You are created in the image of God 946! 3) Created by our ancestors, and in paradise, a beautiful place of sweets, made, God gave a commandment: here is every tree that is in paradise, you will cut down: this is the tree, which is the understanding of good and evil, you will not cut down from it: but in the next day you will cut down from it, you will die by death 947. 4) Our forefathers did not keep God's commandments: they bit the commanded tree 948. The evil serpent and Satan lured them to this eavesdropping and transgression of the law, before they saw their great bliss. And so they, disobeying God, their Creator, and obeying their seducer and enemy, sinned very grievously before God; for the sake of which the mercy of God and the grace with which God honored them in creation remained; they lost the image of God, and from being holy and righteous, they became impure, dirty and sinful, and fell under the righteous wrath of God and all misfortune, temporary and eternal. 5) We, their sons, have become infected with this sinful plague of our ancestors, and we are born with it, as the Psalmist sighs and laments about this: I was conceived in iniquity, and in sin my mother gave birth to me 949 , and thus with them we are subject to temporary and eternal disaster. It was necessary not only temporarily, but also eternally with them all of us to die, to drink the bitter cup of God's wrath and eternal torment in hell, and to be in the power and abuse of the devil, whose evil counsel they listened to. Repent, for sin is death, says the Apostle 950. 6) God, according to His great mercy and unfathomable goodness, did not create us according to our iniquities, but rewarded us according to our sins 951. He also promised to send deliverance to our forefathers, and salvation to them and to all extent, which is meant by those words spoken by God to the serpent: He (Christ, the blessed seed) will meet your head 952. 7) God repeatedly repeated and revealed this fatherly blessing to the human race and gracious promise to the holy patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and others; opened the prophets and commanded them to announce and preach the coming Savior, as it is written in the books of the Old Testament, in Whom the coming Savior the Old Law fathers believed, and those who believed in Him were saved 953. 8) When the time was approaching, when God determined that the Savior would come in measure and appear in measure, before His coming, a prophet was born to the barren and aged parents of Zechariah the priest and Elizabeth, named John 954. This prophet was sent by God to prepare the way for the Savior who is coming to the world, as Zacharias, his father, told him in the Holy Spirit: and you will call yourself a prophet of the Most High; go before the face of the Lord, prepare His ways 955. And God Himself predicted about it even before through the prophet: I am sending My angel before Your face, who will prepare Your way before You 956 . Why is she called the Forerunner of the Holy Church, as before the coming of Christ, as the day before the sun, she foretold and preached the approaching Sun of truth, Christ. This prophet preached Christ, who had already come to peace, saying: come, strengthen me, follow me, I am not worthy to bow down to untie the strap of His boots 957. And he pointed to Christ, saying: this is the Lamb of God, take away the sins of the world! This is it, O Nemzhe I said: the Husband is coming for me, who will be in front of me, as the first one will beat me, and so on. 958 – The coming of Christ in the world happened like this: after the conception of John the Baptist in the womb of Elizabeth, in the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to the Virgin Mary, who then had her home in the Galilean city of Nazareth; and having come to her, he first greeted her like this: Rejoice, Gracious One! The Lord is with you: blessed are you in wives! Then he announced to her: you will conceive in the womb, and you will give birth to a Son and you will call His name Jesus, etc. The Blessed Virgin, having heard about this unheard of case, said to the angel: how will this be when I do not know my husband? And when the angel answered her: The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will enlighten you, and added other words of assurance, - the blessed Virgin consented to that: this is the servant of the Lord: let it be to me according to your word! And so the Son of God, Jesus Christ, by the favor of His heavenly Father and by the inspiration and inspiration of the Holy Spirit, was conceived in the womb of a virgin flesh 959. God's favor to us sinners and the dead is celebrated on the 25th day of the church. This merciful favor of God towards us is called the Holy Church Annunciation, because the good news of the Virgin Mary and all creation from heaven to earth through the angel of God was brought and revealed. This is where our salvation began. 10) Finally, the Sun of truth shone from the Virgin's womb, the Son of God was born from the Virgin, the heavenly King appeared on earth, the Word became flesh, and the Old One was wrapped in swaddling clothes like a baby, the Invisible One appeared, and He freed all flesh to ask for His mother's milk. Christ had no sin, and therefore He had no need to wash himself from sin; but with His baptism He sanctified and established our baptism. 15) After the baptism, the Son of God was taken up by the Spirit into the wilderness, to be tempted by the devil, and was tempted by Him, and defeated the tempter 969. Stand here and feel the goodness and humility of the Son of God. Being God, He allowed an evil and unclean spirit to approach Him and tempt them in various ways; and this is how he showed that everyone who is born of water and the Spirit and begins to work for the Lord will be tempted, as Sirach says: child! when you begin to work for the Lord God, prepare your soul for temptation 970. He overcame the tempter, He overcame us, so that we may overcome Him who was defeated by His power. 16) After enduring temptation and victory, Christ came out of the desert and went to preach the holy Gospel, which the bosom of His heavenly Father brought to earth and revealed to us all His goodness and love for mankind, saying: repent and believe in the Gospel 971. 17) At the beginning of His sermon, He gathered twelve disciples from lowly and ordinary people, whom He called Apostles, so that they would be obvious witnesses of His all measure, as He Himself told them after His resurrection: We will be witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the ends of the earth 972. And the Apostle John with his brothers, other apostles, said: and the life appeared, and the exit, and we testify, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, that he came from the Father, and appeared to us, that is, Christ, the Word of the Father 973; and again: and we go out and testify, as the Father has sent the Son of the Savior of peace 974. 18) With these twelve, moving from city to city, and from city to city, and from all to all, he brought his holy Gospel and sowed the saving words of God's seed; planted faith in human hearts and showed the way to the eternal belly and the heavenly kingdom; taught true worship and worship, which is in spirit and truth 975; taught love to God and neighbor, meekness, humility, patience, mercy and other virtues. As he would say: from My works, note that the time has come, about which Isaiah prophesied: then the eyes of the blind will be opened and the ears of the deaf will hear; then the lame will jump up like a deer, and the tongue of the ash will be gushing 979. Note here, Christian: Christ did not perform miracles in the same way as the holy One does. Saints work miracles by prayer and the name of Christ, and not by themselves; Christ Himself, through Himself, as God, worked miracles. There is only one God who creates miracles. 20) The people, having heard the heavenly, saving and consoling teaching of Christ, and seeing His glorious miracles, followed Him in great multitudes, like sheep to a good shepherd, some to be healed of their ailments, others to listen to His holy teaching, and all received from Him what they desired and sought with faith. And the whole nation wanted to touch Him: how power came from Him, and He healed everything 980 . 21) Heard the voice of the good Shepherd and His lost sheep, and recognized Him. Prostitutes, publicans and other sinners came to Him, as Saint Luke says: all publicans and sinners were coming to Him, to listen to Him 981. And they accepted the healing of their spiritual wounds, the remission of sins. Thus, Christian, Christ the Son of God, living on earth and preaching the Gospel of the kingdom, may be all things to all: to those who are in the darkness of the world, insight to the blind, hearing to the deaf, speech to the dumb, healing to the weak, purification to the lepers, resurrection and life to the dead, salvation to sinners. Let us also approach Him, not walking on the earth, but sitting at the right hand of God; and let us approach with the faith of the heart, not with our feet, and having declared our sores and ailments, we will raise our voice to Him: Jesus, Son of God, have mercy on us! He will not despise us either, who has not despised anyone who comes to Him with faith. - But let's see what His people, whom He came to seek and save, repaid Him. 22) The fame of Him, as an unheard-of teacher and miracle-worker, which spread everywhere, made the Pharisees, scribes and Jewish teachers of the law jealous; for the sake of which they variously blasphemed the Son of God and sought to darken His glory; but the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness will not embrace it 982. Jealousy of the other - malice followed, and taught them to kill their Messiah; for the sake of which they sought to put Him to death, but they could not, because the time of His suffering had not yet come. 23) The Son of God foresaw that he would drink the cup of suffering from his lawless people, foretold about it to his disciples: how it pleased him to go to Jerusalem, and suffer much from the elders and bishops and scribes, and be killed, and rise on the third day 983. When the time of His saving suffering was approaching, He took three of His disciples, Peter, John, and James, and ascended a high mountain; where, as he began to pray, His face shone like the sun, and His robes were like light. Two prophets appeared there, Moses and Elijah, and talked with Him, whom the apostles also saw. Then they heard a voice, Behold the glorious glory of such a one who came to Him: This is My beloved Son, O God of good will: Listen to Him! At the voice of that Divine apostles, frightened, fell prostrate on the ground 984. Let us slow down here, dear reader, and fix our intelligent eyes on the divine glory of the transfigured Lord. When the apostles saw the glory of Christ, as much as they could see, they felt such joy and sweetness in their hearts that Saint Peter could not remain silent, but cried out to Christ: Lord, it is good for us to be here 985. The apostles saw some part of Christ's glory, and they were so happy: how much joy will be in the elect of God in the future age, when he will show them all his divine glory! Let us rejoice and see the glory of His grace, and despise the glory of this world. - We celebrate the transfiguration of the holy flesh of the Son of God on the 6th day of August. 25) When the time had come for Christ the Son of God to suffer for the salvation of the world, he rode on a donkey and went to Jerusalem. People, having heard about His coming, came out of the city to meet Him, some of them spread branches along the path along which He walked, others laid down their clothes, others held in their hands a palm tree and shouted: Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of God! Hosanna в вышных 986! Note here, Christian, with what glory Christ went to Jerusalem. For what? To free His suffering and glorious cross death. For whom? For me and you who died. From this know His precious love, which thirsts for our salvation. Also note human fickleness. The people who cried out to Christ: blessed are those who come in the name of God, then shouted at Christ to Pilate: take, take, crucify Him 987! Learn from this to despise the glory and praise of men, as those who are praised now will be cursed later. - But let's see what followed the popular cry to Christ. 26) The outcry of the people, which was done to Christ, made the scribes, Pharisees, and chief priests of the Jews to great envy and malice. For the sake of which, as before, so especially then, having gathered together, they consulted how to destroy Him, Who had come to save them; but for the sake of the people they could not do it openly, because all of them obeyed Him, obeying His disciples. Then the vessel of destruction was sought, one of the twelve ungrateful disciples, Judas Iscariot. This one agreed to their pernicious advice, and for thirty pieces of silver he sold his priceless Master, and with begging and flattery he delivered them into their hands at night 988. Note here, Christian, what the love of money does to its lovers. Judas was not afraid to sell for such a small price the priceless Christ, his Benefactor and Teacher, and thus bought himself eternal destruction. So also other lovers of money will follow, who are not afraid to do all kinds of evil in order to get rich: because the root of all evil is the love of money 989 . 27) This is how the betrayal of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, was done by the traitor: after eating the Old Law Passover and the Last Supper, which the church commemorates on Holy Thursday, the Son of God came with the apostles to the place called Gethsemane, and taking Peter, James and John, His disciples, as the chosen ones, left a few of the other apostles began to grieve and yearn 990. After them, he retreated a little, prayed to his heavenly Father with kneeling and bowing his face to the ground; and made such a prayer three times, as the holy Evangelist tells 991. Judas the traitor, because he knew that Jesus often gathered in that place with His disciples, taking the bishop and the Pharisee as servants, came there with lights and candles and weapons; he came with candles because it was night then 992. And so that it would be more convenient for him to deliver the Son of God into their hands, he gave them the following sign: whom I will kiss, that is: you have him 993. And thus approaching Christ, he said: Rejoice, rabbi (teacher)! and kissed Ego 994. And in such a way the slave and flatterer betrayed his Lord into the hands of the enemy. Then the children of Christ came, tied Him 995. The apostles, seeing such a thieving initiative, left Him and fled 996. And thus Christ was taken by the hands of the lawless and bound to Caiaphas the bishop, where the scribes and elders had gathered 997. 35) After forty days, on the Mount of Olives, which is near Jerusalem, he ascended to heaven before the apostles and sat at the right hand of God the Father 1010. - Let us stand here, beloved Christian, and marvel at the greatness of God's goodness. Look to what height the human nature has been exalted, united to the Word of God! at the right hand of God sits Christ with His glorified holy flesh. For our sake he was born on earth, lived, suffered, died, rose again, ascended to heaven, and sits in the glory of the Father, and intercedes for us 1011. Thank God for this, the benevolent one. Rejoice in your spirit and triumph, and let the whims of this world, like excrement, having spat upon it, reach the grace of God to the part of the saved, and see face to face in the glory of the reigning Son of God, whom you now see by faith. Christ, the Head of the faithful, ascended to heaven: His spiritual limbs, true Christians, will also ascend. Christ is glorified: His faithful servants are also glorified, and they will appear before Him as their King, dressed in gilded robes and elaborately decorated 1012; They will be clothed with the pure porphyry of His righteousness, like the sons of kings, and they will reign with Him forever and ever. Understand this true Christian glory, and consider the empty measure of this title, rank, glory, honor, with which the sons of this age console themselves, as nothing. You will truly recognize this when you contemplate with faith the future glory of the sons of God. May our Redeemer, the Son of God, grace us with that part. 36) Ascended into heaven, Christ sent from the Father His heavenly Holy Spirit to the apostles and to all flesh, as promised: and I will beg the Father, and he will give you another comforter, to be with you forever, the Spirit of truth, whose peace cannot accept 1013. But He Himself promised to remain with the faithful until the end of the age 1014: for if you love your creatures in peace, love them to the end 1015. 37) Holy apostles, enlightened and strengthened by the Holy Spirit, carried this indescribable wealth of God's goodness to the entire universe; They preached the Son of God, flesh according to the measure of the one who came; faith in Him was planted in human hearts, idolatry was refuted; God's tongues darkened by the darkness of ignorance enlightened; the eyes of the hearts of those who were blinded to the knowledge of the true God were opened; founded the Church of God on the face of the whole earth; one blessed herd from different languages, like wild animals, they gathered; They taught to read the Holy Trinity - the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, the one God; The fire of God's love was kindled in the hearts of the believers, and they were confirmed by the hope of life and the bliss of the future age, as it is written about them: they went out preaching everywhere, hastening to the Lord and confirming the word with subsequent signs 1016. 38) The holy church of the saving God-speaking preachers and scholars, scattered over the face of the whole earth, enlightens, instructs, builds, saves; and here is the lamentable world of this herd, in the mountain and heavenly Zion, she moves to her King and immortal Bridegroom, with the help of the Holy and life-giving Spirit, where I do not believe, but face to face it is possible to see His purest and holiest goodness. 39) After the blessed death of the holy apostles, their successors - the saints of Christ, pastors and teachers, who, with the help of God, shepherd the church of Christ with their teachings, instruct, confirm and send them forward, with the help of God, into the heavenly enclosure; and they themselves, who have preserved the faith and finished the course, are resettled there by labors and exploits, which must be until the end of the age, as the gates of hell will not overcome the faith of Christ's church built on stones 1017. In the second, he will come to judge and reward everyone according to their deeds: to bring the faithful, who remained in the faith to the end, into eternal bliss and the kingdom of heaven, to hand over the unfaithful and disobedient to eternal punishment. And so the seeds will go to eternal torment: the righteous will go to eternal life 1023. That's how all the Son's viewing will end. Then will begin blessed in heaven, pre-prosperous and miserable in hell eternity; then one will reign and rejoice without end, the other will suffer and suffer without end. Note here, Christian, that Christ, who came to call sinners to repentance, suffered and died for sinners, will also judge unrepentant sinners; and how quiet, humble, meek and merciful he was to sinners in the first coming, so much anger and fury will be poured out on unrepentant sinners, so much for those who despised His grace, so that they will cry out to mountains and stones: fall on us, and cover us from the face of Him who sits on the throne, and behold the wrath of the Lamb: as the day of His great wrath will come, and who can become 1024? § 339. You, Christian, have seen the briefly presented coming of the Son of God to peace, about which His holy Gospel tells us in detail. But know that they only hear Christ in the measure of the one who has come, and do not have true and living faith in Him, they are of no use. For the pagans also hear many things that Christ came to the world and worked miracles, but they do not believe; rather, even the devil himself with his evil angels knows about it, and they tremble at His holy name, but this knowledge is of no use to them. In the same way, the knowledge of Christ at the time of His coming is of no use to Christians who do not have living faith in Him in their hearts. And in order to have a living faith in Christ, everyone must know and acknowledge their spiritual poverty and misery, as stated above. Because true faith in Christ provides living and effective consolation for the soul. And in order to perceive consolation, one must feel sorrow, sadness and fear of judgment. Because consolation is the consolation of the sad, and medicine is given to the sick, as Christ said: the health of the physician is not needed, but the sick 1025. The true knowledge of ancestral sin and all the subsequent calamities does not allow a person to rejoice madly, but keeps him in heartbreak, fear and sadness. Think for yourself how it is possible to be happy for someone who is inside an incurable disease and obviously threatens death. The evil of the ancestral sin infected our soul incompletely with all its powers, so that man became blind in mind, disobedient in will, and turned away from God in heart. From where did it follow that he cannot distinguish between good and evil, and often chooses evil instead of good, and calls virtue a vice, and vice a virtue; rejoices at what is evil and harmful to him, grieves at what is useful to him. This pernicious darkness has enveloped the human mind. The human heart and will do not think and will anything but the opposite of the will of God, because the thoughts of a person are devoted to evil from his youth 1026. In a small child, notice this evil, how in him this evil seed sprouts its evil fruits. What self-love, anger, rage, envy and enmity are shown in him! how in anger he shouts and rages! These are the fruits of the serpent's seed, sown in the human heart. Who could know the evil that hides in the human heart, if it did not show itself through external signs? The more a person grows with age, the more evil arises from his heart; and with the multiplication of years, soul-destroying passions and lusts of the flesh multiply and rise. Here is prodigal lust, love, pride, pomp, arrogance, high-mindedness, malice, love of glory, love of money; hypocrisy, lies, cunning, flattery, trickery, slyness, concealment and all untruth and all evil are shown. All this leads the poor man to nothing but eternal destruction and death. The law was given by God in order to revive this evil and to keep man, who is going to eternal destruction; but he only showed human weakness, not healing; reprimanded*, but did not help; he showed sin, but did not take away sin; threatened with execution, but did not release the treasury. For this reason, God's holy word concluded that all have sinned and fallen short of the essence of God's glory, and in this way the whole measure has been fulfilled by God's fault 1027. And from there eternal punishment followed for all measure, according to the severity of God's truth, as the eternal and infinite God is angered and grieved by the sins of the world. No man could free himself from this heavy debt in any way, no matter how hard he tried; as God, grieved, angry and dishonored by human sin, is infinite. But it was necessary for every prisoner to be in eternal prison for his debt, and he pays God's truth with an angry eternal punishment. But no man could please God by himself, as by every nature the child of anger is born 1028, as in lawlessness it begins, and in sin it is born 1029. And the law of God, which must be perfectly fulfilled, no one could, and cannot, be perfectly fulfilled by the sin of the ancestors, who worships and is drawn to all evil - which evil is felt in their destiny and the most born-again 1030. Whence also the most holy things, torn and spurred on by this evil, fell and are falling into grievous sins, as we read in sacred and church history. And these cases show that every person can commit all kinds of sins when the grace of God does not strengthen him and help him. Learn from this, Christian, they will know your weakness, your spiritual poverty and misery. From here note how great evil, evil, which we cannot mourn to the death, the sin of Adam, the poisonous and deadly seed of the serpent, spilled over all the forces of the soul and body, - how great, I say, evil is hidden in our hearts, which we cannot get rid of, and which we cannot overcome with our own strength. A man who is not regenerated by the Holy Spirit is described terribly and pitifully in the Holy Scriptures. He is a madman in his heart: there is no God, he grows and is disgusted in his beginnings: he does not create goodness. The Lord from heaven will judge the sons of men, see if you still understand, or seek God. All of us bow down, together with the keys, I would be: do not do good, do not be one 1031. And again: the grave opened their throats, they flattered their tongues; asp poison under their lips; whose mouth is full of oaths and sorrows; their feet soon shed blood. Crushed and embittered on their way; and I will not know the ways of peace. There is no fear of God before their eyes, says the Apostle about the Jews, who had the law of God given to them, but lived lawlessly, as he adds further: we know, as the law speaks, what is in the law, let every mouth be stopped, and all the measure of God will be due 1032. If only about those who had the law of God and boasted about God, the seeds of lawlessness and corruption are spoken of, what can we say about the pagans who, like wild animals, lived and did only what pleased their senses, and what their unreasonable heart planned and desired? The darkness of terrible delusion covered and enveloped their hearts. It was not enough for them to worship the sun, the moon, the stars and other creations of God instead of God: they deified the very passions, impurity, drunkenness, anger, fury, ferocity. All this evil and abomination from original sin, which lives in the heart of a human being, occurred and spread. Every idol is nothing in itself 1033. Silver, gold, wood, animals are God's creations, and they are arranged for the benefit of the Creator; but there is an abomination before God, and it turns to man's destruction, not from himself, because good is the essence of evil in God's creation 1034, but from heartfelt human free will, as man gives and consecrates his heart to God. The sun, moon, stars, animals, cattle and every animal, as well as fire, water and other elements, bread, wine and others were created for the service of man, so that, using them, he would know the Creator and thank and serve Him. But a blinded man does in a perverse way: what he must serve, he serves, and what he must obey, that is why he subjugates his soul and heart. Because all abomination first begins inside the human heart, and then it goes outside and appears. There is no idol outside the human heart, but every idol is in the human heart. The human heart is an abominable church, full of idols and abominations. It invented all kinds of idolatry, and actually produced it. All evil and god-awful abomination is hidden there. And when it is not cleansed by faith, nothing else begins and gives birth, but only evil and godly fruits. And although many, unclean by faith and unregenerate by the Spirit, appear to be good on the outside, but on the inside they are evil, like covered graves, which on the outside appear red, but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and all kinds of impurity 1035. God judges by the heart and inner state, not by the outer. This evil, as great as a great tree, has grown up with its bitter fruits from the seed of the serpent, which he sowed in the heart of the forefather Adam, and at the conception and birth of our carnal upon our hearts, like a deadly poison, it pours out, and infects all our mental and physical powers in such a way that it is nothing else that nature can think and to do only vain, unnecessary and evil things. Now consider, Christian, that there is a man in himself apart from Christ, when he can neither think, nor will, nor do anything pleasing to God without His grace, as He Himself said to Christ: without Me you can do nothing 1036; but there is some kind of dried-out rag, which is only suitable for burning. And such a man is nothing before God, as an abomination and a stench, which His holy eyes abhor; and from there he is subject to nothing but damnation, condemnation and eternal torment. Adam plunged us into all this evil and misery with his fall, but Christ, the Son of God, came to save us from all that evil. He, appearing in the flesh, acted as an intercessor and became a mediator between God, who was angered by our sins, and the people who made him angry. He fulfilled God's law and God's will perfectly, so that he did not commit sin, nor did he find flattery in His mouth 1037. He took the sins of the world upon Himself, and since the Lamb is blameless, He will cleanse them. This is the Lamb of God, take away the sins of the world, the Holy Forerunner showed him the measure of the whole 1038. In this way, He acted as a perfect medicine against all our misfortunes and misfortunes, and as a living and known source of all true bliss. He is our liberator from captivity and diabolical powers; He is the healer of our wounds, with which we, the enemy of that one, as a robber, are mortally wounded; He is the light against our darkness; He is a healer against our infirmities; He is our wisdom against our folly and bewilderment; He is consolation against all our sorrow; He is the life and the source of life against our death; He is the justification against our sins; He is an intercessor against our slanderers; He is peace and tranquility against our evil conscience; He will defeat our enemies; He is our helper in our battle against the devil, the flesh, the world, sin and our other enemies; He is our intercessor against the wrath and judgment of God; He strengthens us in our weakness, exhaustion and discouragement; He is the way and the leader to eternal life, bliss and the kingdom of heaven. In a word, He will give us wisdom from God, truth and sanctification and deliverance 1042. We were blind, - He was wisdom for us. We were sinners - He justified us. We were filthy, - He became our sanctification. We were captives of the devil, - He did our deliverance. This supreme favor and mercy of His, as for everything, has been given to me and you, man. He is mine and yours, savior, redeemer, intercessor, helper, comforter, justification, sanctification, peace, resurrection, hope in life, at death, after death, eternal life, eternal joy, glory and bliss, when we truly, heartily and hypocritically believe in Him again. For this, thanksgiving and glory be to Him with the Father and the Holy Spirit from us unworthy. Amen § 340. There is no other way to believe in Christ than to learn from the law and heartily acknowledge one's poverty and misery, which is sin and the righteous wrath of God that follows sin, and from the Gospel, having learned the grace of God, I open to all, to Him alone, that is, to Christ, under protection and patronage they will run, they will recognize and have Him alone as the Savior and Savior from that calamity, on Him alone they will have all eternal salvation, as well as in the struggle against the devil, the flesh, the world and sin during life, at death and after death, they will steadfastly and unyieldingly affirm hope as the undoubted and unshakable foundation of eternal salvation. For the sake of clarification, consider the following example, Christian. If any monarch was angry with any city for a crime for which the citizens were subject to the death penalty; in such a distressing case, the kind monarch's son would intercede for the citizen, and to the enraged father he would plead, humbly surrendering himself to the father's will, and willingly suffer for the guilty all that the monarch would have determined, in order to bring the poor convicts into the mercy of their parent, and so would all those who came to him ran under cover and protection, brought to the king's mercy: then all the hope of their salvation and life would have been deservedly attributed to that merciful intercessor, as without his intercession all would have been inevitably executed by death. All justice was done to God, as all had sinned 1043, and therefore all were bound by God's righteous judgment to die eternally. The Son of God, Jesus Christ, interceded for all sinners. Thus, to those who accept Christ, the son of God, and believe in Him, all good things from God are humanely given: forgiveness of sins, justification, renewal, the grace of the Holy Spirit, which helps and strengthens them in their infirmities, in the struggle against the devil and other enemies, sonship, inheritance, eternal life, and etc., as the Apostle briefly concluded: He did not spare His Son, but He gave Him up for us all: how could He not give us everything through Him 1049? - The above is shown: 1) Faith directly sees and embraces Christ as all the good, the promised God to man, the guilty one, because no one can come to the Father except through Him, and receive the promised blessings from Him. And so everyone who accepts Christ with true faith also believes in God who sent Him; believe in the Son, believe also in the Father who sent Him; and thus through the Son he comes to the Father, as it is said: no one comes to the Father but by me 1050. - 2) Just as old Adam, in his fleshly birth, man conceived all evil and misery, sin and oath, wrath and death: so it is fitting for a believer in Christ to conceive from Him all good and bliss, justification, God's blessing, grace, renewal and eternal life. Just as Adam received an impure, sin-loving, greedy, angry, malicious, envious, disobedient, unmerciful, cruel, flattering, cunning, lying, hypocritical, proud, and every kind of evil heart: so it pleased him by faith to receive from Christ a heart of purity, loving, benevolent, humble, God-loving, brotherly, patient, meek, generous, merciful, obedient, simple, unflattering, and other good-natured. For like Adam we are born in the flesh, and in this birth all evil things are born with us: so in Christ we are born in the spirit, and in this birth the old man with passions and lusts is conformed to the likeness, and put on the new, created by God in truth and the image of truth 1051. And just as in Adam we died spiritually, we became ineffective, as dead, to the creation of good works: so in Christ and Christ's grace we must be resurrected spiritually, that is, to be revived by faith and His grace to the creation of God-pleasing works, yes, just as Christ raised the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too walk in the renewal of life let's start with 1052. Wherefore in a convert and a true believer in Christ, everything is shown to be different from what it was before: a different inclination, a different desire, a different thinking, different words, deeds and intentions than before, as we read in church history about many who repented and were renewed in faith, who, like a sinner waking from a dream, began the works of God to create, or rather, as if the dead had risen, they began to walk on the path of God's commandments. - 3) Hence, in one and the same Christian, there is a true war between the flesh and the spirit, between the evil nature of the old and the good nature of the new person, as the flesh lusts after the spirit, and the spirit against the flesh; they are against each other 1053. - 4) It is clear from here that a wicked and lawless life is contrary to the Christian faith, and therefore in whom it is, there is no faith in him, even if he confesses Christ and is called a Christian. Fornication and all impurity, embezzlement, theft, perjury, untruth in courts and in every matter, drunkenness, flattery, cunning, lies, malice and other similar things expel faith from the heart. Confession of Orthodox faith can be in such, because many of the lawless life right wise about the faith, many of them also preach the faith; but all such do not have the heartfelt faith that renews a person, changes him from evil-minded to good-natured, and makes him a true Christian. For one thing is knowledge and confession of faith, another is heart faith, which is said above in the first article. Chapter 2. About love for Christ, the Son of God He interceded for us before the righteous judgment of God, and became a mediator, intercessor and conciliator between God and us. We were all in debt to the King of our God, and we could not pay our debt, but we had to be condemned by the judgment of His truth to an eternal prison, and eternal torment pays 1061. He interceded for us, took our debt upon Himself, and paid it with God's truth. In a word, Jesus the Son of God has delivered us from such misfortune, which cannot be worse and more painful, and so much bliss, which cannot be better and more desirable, mercifully and quietly, without any merits of ours. All the same, Jesus did this for us not through any mediation, but by Himself. He himself, for the sake of us who have gone astray, wandered to this extent. § 342. Who does not love Christ? - True, everyone who confesses the name of Christ, confesses it, convinced by conscience itself, and must confess. And I also admit and answer: how can one not love Christ, who is worshiped and revered by angels and all holy souls with love? Christ, the only begotten Son of God, the Son according to the flesh of the Most Pure Virgin Mother of God, for the sake of our salvation he humbled himself, humbled himself, suffered such a terrible death, died such a shameful death; Christ is our justification, our hope, our resurrection, our eternal life, our glory, our helper and intercessor, the conqueror of death, hell and all our enemies? Who does not love such a high benefactor, in whom all our happiness consists, such a high and incomprehensible good? - Listen, Christian, what it means to love Christ, and this is how love is known, and take care that love is not on the tongue and lips, but in the heart, where true love has its place, so that instead of Christ's lovers, His enemies are not His. 1) A lover always wants to be together and inseparably with his beloved. This is how God, who is eternal love, because he loves a person, when a person has backslidden and separated from Him, was pleased to unite with him in the incarnation, and thus with His love will draw a person to Himself, and graciously dwells in His servants, cleansed by the blood of Christ, as it is written: you are the churches of the living God 1067. This also happens between people who love each other. Thus, a friend with a beloved friend always wants to be inseparable, not only in happiness, but also in misfortune. Why does it happen that when they part, they get sick, mourn and cry, because love does not tolerate separation from the beloved. And although true and beloved friends part in body, but in spirit, hearts and love they remain inseparable, because love unites and binds two together. Therefore, whoever loves Christ with his heart wants to be inseparably with Christ, carries his cross and follows Him, to be cursed, laughed at, embittered, and to die with Him and for Him is not denied. Thus Saint Paul, a soul bound by love to Jesus Christ, not only wanted to be bound, but was ready to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus 1068. The lover fulfills the will of the beloved so as not to grieve the beloved, because insulting the beloved is contrary to love and destroys the union of love. Thus, a good son fulfills the will of his father, a good wife fulfills the will of her husband, so as not to offend the one whom she loves with natural love. Thus, those who love Christ the Son of God are proud to fulfill His holy will. Christ's will is signified in His commandments; and so whoever loves Christ, strives to fulfill His commandments, as He Himself says: have My commandments and keep them, that is, love Me 1069. Christ's commandment is that we love one another, as it says: this is my commandment to you, that you love one another 1070. (What is loving one's neighbor, and what are the fruits of this love, is described in the chapter on loving one's neighbor in the first book). And not only our friends and brothers, but also our enemies, Christ wants and commands us to love: love your enemies 1071. This is the true love of Christ, and he knows it when he loves not only his friends, but also his enemies, according to His teaching. For even heathens and publicans and other sinners love those who love themselves, as Christ said: If you love those who love you, what reward have you? Don't the publicans also create 1072? It is true that united Christian souls filled with the love of Christ love their enemies, as it is also said about this in the chapter on love for enemies in the first book. - How does he love me, who hates me? - True; This is what a carnal, soulful, and unregenerate man answers about himself. For a carnal and self-loving person this is very difficult and almost impossible, but it is convenient for the faithful and the one born again by the grace of the Holy Spirit. Because nothing is inconvenient for faith and true love. When you love Christ, Who died for you and me as an enemy, then you will willingly and lovingly obey what He commands me and you: love your enemies. What is wrong with you because your enemy is hostile to you? Do not be hostile to him, but see what Christ, the lover of our souls, commands, and overcome the enmity of your enemy with His love, so that hatred of the enemy does not destroy the commandment of Christ, and does not offend the one who commanded it in such a way that it destroys love. Do not be defeated by evil, but defeat evil with good 1073. - Where does the enemy do bad and lawless things? Truth; but you will also do badly and lawlessly when he does not love you, but you will be hostile to him. Because the enemy of sin and its inventor, the devil, is righteous. He does evil, that evil is done to you; but you also do evil, that you return evil for evil. Where does my heart turn away from him? - Win and persuade your heart with faith and love of Christ, and do not what your heart wants, but what your faith and the commandments of Christ require of you, do. Christ is great, your lover is great; eternal truth demands that; then His holy will pleases you, even though the carnal heart, thought and mind of the blind desire against it. Therefore, we should do as He wills, and not as our passionate flesh, when we want to love Him. This is what our Christian endeavor consists in, so that we may do to us not what our blind flesh wants, but what God commands. – 3) A lover also loves the one whom the beloved loves. Thus, when you love your friend, then for the sake of your beloved friend you also love the one whom the friend loves. Alas, when you love Christ, you must love every person, your friend and your enemy. Because Christ loved everyone so much that he laid down his soul for everyone, your friends and enemies, as the Apostle says: Christ will die for everyone 1074. For this is the reason and commands us to love our neighbors, that as we love our neighbors, so that we not only do them no harm, but also do all good, as we do ourselves, that is why love for our neighbor is known. From this it follows that for the sake of Christ, who loves all, you must also love all when you want to love Christ; and this will follow, that for the sake of Christ, you will feed the hungry, give the thirsty, clothe the naked, bring the stranger into the house, visit the sick and the one sitting in prison, comfort the sad, you will not deny yourself to be happy about the happiness of your neighbor, to be sad about misfortune. This is what your love for Christ and for your neighbor, who is loved by Christ, requires of you. The fruit of love to one's neighbor is mercy to one's neighbor and charity. Hence it follows that those who do not love their neighbor do not have love for Christ; they do not love the ego if they do not benefit it. They do worse than that, who not only do not do good, but also do evil to their neighbor. These people, persecuting and embittering their neighbor, persecute and embitter Christ Himself, although they do not notice it. Embarrassing, because the slave also touches the ego of the mistress; every man is a servant of God. – 4) The lover of the beloved is careful to offend. Because insult and love for the beloved cannot be bought in a lover. Whoever loves Christ avoids all sin; and the more one who loves Him, the more he shuns sin, for the sake of that one thing, so as not to offend and grieve Him, leaving aside other reasons that can turn away from sin. - 5) A lover regrets when he himself offends the beloved, or sees another offended. Thus, one who loves Christ, when he is powerless to sin, breaks down, regrets, repents himself, and with humility and ardent confession of his sin, and self-destruction and uprooting, falls before Him without hypocrisy, and judges himself worthy of all punishment. Such a person, even if he were in hell for a crime, would praise God's truth there. This is how the Apostle Peter, the warmest lover of Christ, when he denied Christ and found out his sin by which he offended his beloved Teacher, went out and wept bitterly 1077. It is difficult for a lover to grieve a loved one, and grief cannot be without its own subsequent sorrow. For true love rejoices with the happy and cries with the crying lover 1078. - 6) The lover always carries the beloved in his heart, not materially (because it cannot be so that the whole person, both body and soul, is in our heart), but spiritually. Because love has its place in the heart and is one with the beloved. So the son of the father whom he loves, and the friend of his kind friend, even though he is absent, he embraces in his heart; for the sake of which he often remembers him, bakes, so that something bad does not happen to him, talks about him, asks and shows how his beloved is found separated from him; and she often cries that she can't see him for a long time. This action is noticed in natural love. Thus, the one who loves Christ strives to follow His excellent and divine manners: he is humble, patient, meek, not angry, loving, peaceful, simple-hearted, pure-hearted, merciful, merciful, compassionate, etc., *not for the sake of any merit*, but for the sole sake of the fact that Christ is such and has such virtues – 8) The lover is united in his thoughts, and agrees with him in everything, and what the lover is concerned about, that is what the lover is about. Otherwise, there would be no agreement and unanimity among them, if one of them thought, intended and started about something, the other about the other, which is contrary to mutual love and friendship, and therefore mutual love is destroyed and the friendship ceases. Friendship, as it has been said, cannot exist between equals. Christ wants and seeks salvation for everyone. This is true and known. That means and shows that He will come to the world, as He wants everyone to be saved and to come to the understanding of the truth 1080. For whoever loves Christ, as for his own, so also for the salvation of his neighbor. A lover with a loved one must have one thought, one care and concern. And although this duty belongs primarily to God's servants, it also applies to all Christians, because Christianity is a spiritual body. In the real body, one member cares about the other and helps, e.g. the hand wipes the hand, washes it, the eyes protect the whole body, etc.: so also in the spiritual body, that is, in Christianity, one must take care of another. This is a prayer, a council, a loving confession. Because true love wills to its neighbor what it wants for itself, and shuns its neighbor, that is what it will abhor, that is what it itself will run away from. When Christ, after His resurrection, asked the Apostle Peter: Simon Ioninus! do you love me and Saint Peter answered: Hey, Lord, You are all, how I love You? Then he said to him: feed my sheep 1081. As if the Lord had said so: Simon! if you love Me, feed My sheep. This shows how much our Lord Jesus values ​​our salvation. And it teaches that whoever wants to love Him must be concerned not only about his own salvation, but also about the salvation of his neighbor. Where does the Apostle say with regret: they all seek their own, but not Christ Jesus 1082. From this it follows how gravely the shepherds sin against Christ, who, being in the flock, are not Christ's sheep, but only shepherd themselves, for which they are subject to the terrible judgment of God, as the Lord will punish his sheep by their hands 1083. - 9) A lover of fame and honor to his beloved desires, and seeks, and rejoices when his beloved is glorified, - grieves when he is dishonored. Thus a son rejoices when he hears that his father has a good name, and a friend rejoices when his beloved friend is glorified. Because love is touched by what it sees in the beloved as its own, and thus considers the well-being and misfortune of the beloved as its own. Yes, those who love Christ seek the glory of His name in everything, and not their own, and rejoice when His holy name is glorified. The name of Christ is glorified when those who confess His name live worthy of confession, and the faith they confess with their mouths is demonstrated by good works. This is the same for a person, for example, a father, when his children live virtuously, and a mistress, when her slaves constantly turn, there is honor and glory. Because people, seeing the honest life of children, praise the father, and the constancy of the servants, they attribute honor to the mistress: they know where a good father is, that he has such children, and a reasonable master, that he keeps slaves so decently. From this it can be seen that the lives of lawless Christians are dishonored by Christ. – 10) A lover does not love the one who opposes the beloved: the son of his father’s opponent, the wife of his husband’s opponent, the friend of his friend’s opponent, he does not love. For the heart, in which love has its place, cannot be divided, but clings either to one or to the other, and cannot love opposites for the second time, but necessarily, leaving one, clings to the other, as Christ said: no one can work as two mistresses: love will love one, and hate the other: or he sticks to one, but he will start to resent his friends 1084. The measure of Christ is contrary to Christ, but whoever loves Christ does not love the measure, according to the teaching of the Apostle: do not love the measure, no matter what the measure is 1085. Peace is understood here not as heaven and earth with their fulfillment, but as carnal lust, as the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, as the Apostle teaches there 1086. Through this, Satan leads us, as Adam in Paradise through the temptation of the forbidden tree, so Christ and the obedience owed to Him. Wealth, honor, glory and pleasures of this world are a pleasant sight of our flesh; She points to him, seduced by Satan, by that ancient snake, as Eve pointed to Adam to the apple of the promised tree, and wants to turn the heart away from the love of Christ and turn to His creation, and love the creation instead of the Creator. The heart, embraced by the love of Christ, turns away from this evil council, although it seems to be good from the outside. At the same time, know, Christian, that some have wealth, honor and glory, and some love. The right name of wealth, honor and glory does not drive out the love of Christ. Because love binds the lover so tightly to the beloved that he tolerates everything better, and even death, than parting with the beloved, and death and all sorrow are more pleasant to him than separation from the beloved. This is how God's love for the human race persuaded the Son to become incarnate and die for fallen man, and this is how He appropriates him to Himself, and makes him a partaker of the Divine nature 1089 and eternal glories, rather than seeing him divorced and perishing. Likewise, a true lover of Christ would rather suffer all sorrow and all death than be separated from Christ and Christ's love. Because true and ardent love is so strong and strong that nothing can defeat it, and it cannot break the union by which it is bound with its beloved. A true lover of Christ may be bound, imprisoned, chained, broken into pieces, burned, and put to death, but he cannot be defeated. Because the power of love is spiritual, not physical, and therefore, although the body is defeated, wounded, tormented and killed, but love cannot be defeated; rather, the more he shows his strength and strength, the more he endures and suffers. Such was the love of the holy martyrs, who willingly surrendered themselves to the most cruel tortures and the most painful death, rather than be separated from the beloved Son of God; and many themselves, inflamed with zeal for the beloved Christ, came to the place of torture and before the tormentors, and of their own free will suffered for the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is strange to us, dear Christian, that people love Christ so much; but it is strange and beyond our understanding that Christ loved us sinners so much that he chose to die for us. People love the beloved Christ: we, the Apostle says, love Him as He first loved us 1090: Christ loved us, His enemies and backsliders. Be amazed at this love, Christian! Take a bite from here and see how good the Lord is 1091. Note, Christian: 1) That all these actions and fruits of love follow that the lover is united with the beloved's heart and love, and the two are one. Love makes two hearts and souls one heart and soul, not materially, but spiritually and spiritually, as Saint Luke tells about Christians, in the time of the former apostles: to the people who believed, the heart and soul were one 1092. - 2) You see how strong and strong love is, so that nothing can destroy its union. - 3) Just as without love every work is dead and useless, so with love every work comes to life and is beneficial to everyone. Nothing can be good without love, and where there is love, there is all good. - 4) True love for Christ comes from true faith in Christ and from the Holy Spirit. Because faith represents Christ to the faithful, as He is true life, true bliss, true and eternal joy and sweetness, without which true bliss cannot be. And so the heart sanctified by faith, through the grace of the Holy Spirit, is kindled to the love of the highest good, which is Jesus Christ, the Son of God, with the Father and the Holy Spirit. And the more Christ is known, His grace is felt in the heart of the faithful, the more ardent love for Him is kindled: the more goodness is known, the more it is loved. For we cannot love good without knowing it, just as we cannot know the sweetness of honey without tasting it. Where is it written: bite and see how good the Lord is 1093. - 5) From this you see that a fearless and lawless life cannot be reconciled either with faith or with the love of Christ, as Christ Himself said: do not love Me, do not obey My words 1094. Likewise, a heart addicted to moderation, as well as faith, has no love for Christ, no matter what external works a person does. Because everything that is contrary to Christ and that is arbitrary behavior drives the faith and love of Christ out of the heart. And from there it follows that the Apostle wrote: if a friend likes to be moderate, there is an enemy of God 1095. It's scary, but it's true. For how many times a man sins of his own free will, so many times he destroys the law of God and is eternal and opposes the Lawgiver; and how many times he bows and clings to the measure, how many times he extends his hand with Adam to the promised tree. For God commanded: do not love peace, nor anything in measure 1096. - 6) From this it follows that Christians who have lost faith and true love (for faith cannot exist without love), have left Christ Himself, and instead of Christ, they worship carnal lust, lust of the eyes, and worldly pride, as a triune God. - 7) One carnal, not Christian love, which only those who love their own friends and those who love themselves have. True Christian love embraces everyone, friends and enemies, with its arms. Also, where are relatives of their own, e.g. children, brothers, fathers, mothers and others of the blood are abundantly rewarded, but the poor and needy, who ask for the sake of Christ's name, are either completely neglected and sent away, or satisfied with a piece of cake - all such love themselves, their flesh and blood, and not Christ and for Christ's sake. Christian love for relatives and non-relatives has mercy; he is a relative who is poor and destitute; there she bows down and spreads her hand, where poverty is announced and Christ's name is remembered. - 8) Those who do good to others in order to be loved; and here, not for the sake of the name of Christ, but for the sake of one's own benefit, charity happens. A true Christ-lover does good to those who do not love himself, heeding the word of Christ: give to him who asks of you 1097. - 9) Here also belong those who give alms for the sake of it, so that those who receive it pray to God for them; for here too one's own benefit is sought, and not the honor of Christ and the benefit of one's neighbor. Otherwise, they would not have given, if they had not hoped for their prayers. True love does not seek its own 1098. And every work is judged from the end, that is, whether it is done for the glory of God and the benefit of one's neighbor, or for the sake of one's own benefit. Those who receive alms should be grateful to their benefactors and pray for them; but those who give should simply give, without their benefit, and look only at the poverty of the beggar, whom Christ commanded to have mercy on. And whether those who receive alms will pray or not, the alms will surely receive its reward, according to the saying: blessed are the merciful, as those who receive mercy 1099. Alms, simply, given from a pure and loving heart, prays without a voice, and prays more painfully than all men. - 10) A true lover of Christ should not only give alms, but also other good deeds, such as: meekness, non-maleficence, patience, abstinence, chastity, humility and other Christian virtues, as Christ taught by His word and example. us Even if we want to love Christ and please Him, we must live virtuously, doing what He taught us by word and deed. So that, with God's help, we, Christians, will be awakened to Christ's love, let us consider some of its circumstances, and with God's help we will learn: 1) Christ said: Love Me and be loved by My Father 1100. What a comforting word this is! The Son of God offers such great and high vows to his lover, so that a true lover of Christ has fellowship with the Father and His Son, and where the Father and the Son are, there the Holy Spirit is not separated. Friendship is nothing like mutual love - to love and love. The human mind cannot comprehend this goodness of God. God is great, immortal, infinite and incomprehensible with man, His creation and servant, He wants to have company, and He has it, who does not separate himself from it. Our communion with the Father and with His Son, Jesus Christ, the Apostle said to Christians in consolation 1101. Wherefore to those who are faithful to Him, beloved by Him and loving Him, they say: you are My friends, as long as you do, as I command you 1102. There is a high and great business with the earthly king, incomparably greater with the heavenly King. Let us love each other, dear Christian, let us show our love to Christ as well, and take communion with the Father and with His Son, Jesus Christ. – 2) Glagolet for Christ: I will appear to him Himself 1103. Who will I appear to? Man, slave and sinner. Who? The King of heaven and earth, the Lord of glory, the Son of God and the Word of the Father. I will not visit him through an angel or anyone else, but I will appear to him myself, I will visit him myself, I will come to him myself, I will appear to him myself. Whom? To My lover and the one who observes My commandments. Oh, the power and action of love, which attracts the Lord to the servant, and God to man, and the Creator to creation! O Thy goodness, Jesus! You pour love into the hearts of those who believe in You, and Your love attracts those who love You. Who can truly love without You? Our heart without You and Your grace is nothing but a withered branch that does not bear any fruit. Your love precedes everything, and kindles in the hearts of our cold love for You; and for Your grace, which we help, you give a new grace. Thus, Your goodness surrounds and precedes and follows us everywhere. - How does Christ appear to His loving souls? When He lived in the flesh on earth and preached His word, He revealed Himself to everyone, to His friends and enemies. But after His resurrection, He showed Himself to only friends, as we read. He showed Himself from heaven to Saint Stephen when he testified about Him before his enemies 1104. And this is the visible manifestation of Christ. Spiritually, He becomes His friends when He enters their hearts through His Holy Spirit and enlightens, comforts and makes them happy. He will appear to all who love Him, when He comes in His terrible glory, and will call them to His eternal kingdom, saying: come in the blessing of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world 1105. Then He will appear to His enemies, but in a different image, that is, as a terrible King and a terrible Judge, from Whose wrath they wish to hide in caves and rocky crevices 1106, and will cast them away from Himself into the eternal fire prepared by the devil and his angels 1107. Let us, Christians, open our hearts to our Lover Jesus, and let this pre-desired guest visit us with His love for humanity. He wants to come to everyone who does not close his house to Him. Here I stand at the door, and I say: if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him, and I will dine with him, and he with Me 1108. Let us open the doors of our hearts to Him now, and then He will open the doors of His kingdom to us. – 3) Again, Christ said: we will come to him, and we will make a home in him 1109. Look, Christian, what is the grace of a lover of Christ: the Holy Trinity is a home and dwelling place! The Triune God, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit graciously allows him to dwell in it! It is a great honor for people to welcome an earthly king into their home; because it is an incomparably greater advantage to receive the heavenly King into the house of one's heart, and not only to receive him, but also to have a living one, as he says: to him we will come and make our abode in him. Blessed is truly such a heart. What else can there be like peace, tranquility, joy and fun? The kingdom of God is inside him 1110. It still feels the joy in this mournful sycamore, which pours abundantly into the hearts of the elect of eternal life; it eats the very thing, if the Lord is good 1111 . Sitseva ubo imushche objetovaniya, oh love! let us cleanse ourselves of all unclean flesh and spirit, creating a sanctuary in the passion of God, the Apostle exhorts us 1112. For the Lord does not dwell in the hearts of those defiled by the impure measure of this love. What is the communion of truth with iniquity, or what is the communion of the world with darkness 1113? God is our world, and there is no darkness in Him 1114, but the measure of this love is darkness, as everything that is in measure, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes and the pride of life, there is no Father, but there is the measure of this 1115. Those who want to welcome the earthly king into their homes purify their homes, just as those who want to welcome the heavenly kings must cleanse their homes. - 4) Just as the sweetness of Christ's love attracts us, so His grace, which He has shown to us who are the only ones to love us, convinces us to love Christ. Remember, Christian, what the Son of God did not do for us, what he did not invent, what he did not endure and suffer for the sake of your poor and needy soul? What labors and illnesses did He not accept in order to bring us fallen ones to His heavenly Father? If the wrath of the earthly king, who threatened you with the death penalty, disgusted you, and instead of death he asked for your life from him, and, displeased with this high mercy to you, a noble and high honorable degree hid your exit, willingly endure all the misery for the sake of it: oh, if you would earnestly and sincerely love such a person benefactor! Because nature itself convinces us to do so. Christ, the Son of God's wrath, who threatened us all with eternal death, turned away from us when we believe in Him, and thus saved us from eternal death; above that, he brought it to the high mercy of God that he gave the region to the children of God to be believers in his name 1116, which honor is so high that all the glory of this world is like nothing before it. Because the measure of this nobility and greatness is only an empty name and title, which does not have the thing itself, which is like a bubble of water, or a puff of air, which appears to be something outside, but has nothing inside. Christian nobility is true, eternal and incomprehensible, which Christ earned for us with His blood. And say so, perhaps, how can we not love such a great Lover and Benefactor? Even a small benefactor is worthy of love, but rather a great one; whoever will save us from temporal trouble, attacks and death, will do us temporal and earthly good, how much more our Christ, O Christians, is worthy of the one who did not deliver us from temporal troubles and death, but from eternal ones; not temporal but eternal life, not temporal and earthly, but eternal honor and glory was revealed to us. Oh, how insensitive you are, sinful soul, when you don't feel this! It is truly insensitive when a person who borrows something temporarily and little (little, I say, because everything temporary is nothing compared to eternal), in the same way, you love such a benefactor, thank him, honor him, serve him, and do everything that pleases him; but Christ, Who has lent you eternally and endlessly, Whose beneficence shown to you cannot be rewarded with anything, and that which a human benefactor is not compared to you. Thus you vilely offer Christ's former incarnation, birth, life on earth, patience, humility, suffering and cross death for your sake, whose grace angels marvel at, sing about, glorify and magnify 1117. Christ did not spare Himself for your sake, but you, for the sake of His name, spare copper and silver, and even His (everything that you have is His). Christ humbled himself for you, but you do not want to leave your pride for Ego's sake. For Christ's sake, the rich man became poor, but for His sake you do not want to leave your avarice and love of money. For your sake, Christ suffered weariness, beating, spitting, crucifixion and cross death: you, for His sake, do not want to endure a reprimanding word. For your sake, he came down from heaven, so that you, exiled from paradise, could be raised to heaven; for your sake I was born in the flesh, so that, reborn by the Spirit, He would appropriate you to Himself; for your sake I humbled myself, that I might exalt you; I impoverished you for the sake of impoverishing you; for your sake he suffered dishonor and wounds, so that he would heal and glorify you; I died for your sake, so that the dead will revive you. Nothing else drew Him to this deep condescension and humility than His precious love for you and compassionate mercy. Do you neglect His great love and grace, and do not want to serve and please Him lovingly, but leaving Him, your true Lover, you give your heart to His enemy? – 5) What did you find, sinner, in your Lover Jesus that displeased you? What do you see in Him that would not attract you to His love? A person desires bliss, true and eternal bliss is His. He desires human beauty, - He is more beautiful with kindness than the sons of men 1118. We want nobility, who is more noble than the Son of God? We seek honor, who is more honorable and higher than the King of heaven? Glory be to Him, He is the incarnate wisdom of God. Is it friendship, who is kinder and more loving than Ego? Joy loves a person, he is the joy and happiness of blessed spirits and God's elect. Do you need consolation - who will comfort you, except Jesus? You need peace, - He is the King of the world, He is the peace of the soul. Seek peace - Jesus promises and gives eternal peace to souls who love Him. You desire and seek life - in Him is the source of life. You are afraid to go astray - Jesus is the way. Be afraid to be deceived - Jesus is the truth. You are afraid of death, - Jesus is the life, as he says: I am the way and the truth and the life 1119. In a word, all bliss belongs to Him, and apart from Him there is no bliss. Look and note, oh poor, sinful soul! Jesus Christ has in Himself all the bliss that can be, and bliss is true and immovable. The heavenly Father gave him to us as a healer against all our misfortunes and a source of all bliss. Read His holy Gospel as you should, and you will know the truth. If you cling to Him with heartfelt faith, you will have His justification against your sins, deliverance against your captivity, peace against your evil conscience, joy against your sorrow, consolation against your sorrow, protection against your slanderers, justification against the judgment of God, help against your enemies, refuge against your persecutors, reason and wisdom against your bewilderment and madness, strength against your weakness, life against your death - in a word, all bliss against your calamity. When Jesus is your bliss, what calamity will happen to you? If Jesus is your peace and peace, who can trouble you? If Jesus is your joy, who and what can offend you? If Jesus is your consolation, who can grieve you? If Jesus is your honor and glory, who can dishonor you? If Jesus is your intercessor, who can slander and condemn you? If Jesus is your helper and defender, who can defeat you? If Jesus is your savior, who can take you captive? Neighbor against neighbor; a traveler with goods is afraid of robbery: he will strike a person's household ego 1123; A poor man envies a rich man, a villager a citizen, a dignified man despises a mean one, a mean one resents him; the wife over the husband, the husband over the wife; the master does not believe the slave, the slave flatters and deceives the mistress. Everyone is afraid of each other. One steals, the other steals complains and curses. That slander, the second slandered aggravates the slandered one. One annoys, the other takes revenge on the one who annoyed. That's why quarrels, fights, mutual backbiting; this is followed by fights and bloodshed; hence one mourns one another, one judges and condemns one another, but all are wrong. The case comes to court; here evil will be followed by new and greater evil. They invent scathing accusations against each other, each will destroy the other, or they will plunge themselves into extreme misery. They worry themselves mentally, they also worry those whose duty it is to sort out the right and the wrong. The world is constantly agitated, like the sea, and its lovers are troubled. A lover of Christ is not like that. He, like a ship, stands in the quiet patience of the harbor, not afraid of wind, storms, or waves. Although the winds of temptation blow against him and the waves of misfortune strike him, he stands safe with the silence of patience. He is not hostile to anyone, and forgives those who are hostile, and is so quiet, calm, peaceful inside himself; he carries his treasure with him always and everywhere. He promises peace and presents his lovers with his bliss, but it is charming and false. His bliss consists in honor, glory and pleasure; but this bliss is like a dreamy reverie, or a bladder filled with air, which appears to be full and has something until the air comes out; or like a water bubble, which just as quickly appears, just as quickly disappears. Look and reason, how much the lovers of peace chase after honor and glory. But if it is difficult to find it, it is easily lost. And the greater the honor, the easier it is lost, because one has as many enemies as there are envious and power-loving hearts. Here, those who want to do everything they need to do will not lose their honor; because when they envy the one sitting on a high place, they want not to see him at that height. How difficult it is for one to protect himself from many, and even more so from those who outwardly appear to be friends, but inwardly are true and worst enemies! Therefore, they will die either by poison or by the sword, or they will fall from a height and be in prison, or, which rarely happens, in constant fear and care, it is necessary to lead an apparently bright, but in fact bitter life. This bright, but truly bitter life of glory-loving people ends most bitterly with death, which will be followed by a far more bitter second and eternal one. *Where are now the glorious universal conquerors who almost had to rule the whole world? How mortals died.* Where is their glory that filled the universe? She buried herself in the grave with them, or rather disappeared, like themselves: they were locked in a trearshyn city, which were not satisfied with the whole world; they trample with their feet the meanest ones, whom the whole world trembled at; turned to dust, who wanted to be revered as gods, so that it is impossible to know where Alexander, the conqueror of the universe, and his last slave lies. And when the stomach ends, they themselves have ended at all. But no; they would like it, but it is not given to them. It is necessary for them to pay the truth of God for everything that they have done unjustly in the world; it is only necessary to accept torture, when they became famous here and became enraged 1124. AT! when even one of them could overcome the misery in which they are now, freed, would appear in measure, he would inevitably be in a different and far better opinion than before, living in arrogant and empty pride; and to those who wish to become famous on earth and to rise to an imaginary beautiful height, he would give a healthy advice to those who strive. How would it please those who are satisfied with their lot, to conquer themselves rather than others, to command themselves rather than others, eternal glory, than to seek temporary happiness! I would truly admit that there is no greater conqueror on earth than one who conquers himself and rules over his passions. But this is a deadly human and general blindness, that we do not believe in the misfortune of others until we know it for ourselves; we chase the shadow, leaving the very thing and the truth; we seek peace and joy there, where there is restlessness and sorrow. If he is wise and blessed, he who learns from someone else's misfortune will avoid misfortune! - What is true honor and glory? There is one that Christ gives to those who love Him. To this extent, it is hidden and can only be understood by faith, but it will be revealed in the future age, when the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father 1125. People will have this glory, but it will never remain. The second part, which is the bitter measure of this bliss, is wealth. Many things, such as honor and glory, they desire and seek, but they do not get everything, but those who get it, they also get it with much difficulty, they keep it with much, they leave it with great sadness. How many such things are there, which riches, acquired by so many labors, at one time remained and remain! All wealth is subject to fire and fire and other misfortunes. But, although someone will remain in this imaginary well-being until the end, will he take it with him, based on this measure? No, he leaves everything in moderation that he had in moderation. Silver, gold, precious stones, lands, fathers, peasants, servants, horses, carriages and all the treasures of the world remain; one departs from the world as he entered it. The grave accepts and accommodates both the poor and the rich. Everything else is no longer ego, it has passed into the hands of another. Here everyone justly admits how foolish he is doing who believes happiness in wealth. And what if the wealth was collected by lies, embezzlement, flattery and other iniquities, as is the case for the most part? Then, leaving the wealth to others, he carries with himself the heavy burden of iniquity; then, instead of imaginary bliss, true misery meets him: at the very exit, a tormenting conscience, frightening with God's judgment and eternal torment; according to the outcome, the righteous reward of the deed will come. Then he will recognize the beauty and realize that he worked for the sake of profit and the benefit of others, and for the sake of his own destruction. Then the heart will recognize that it is a great beauty to collect, and not to God to be rich 1126. A rich man who abounds in money is very miserable. Miserable is the wealth that takes away from true bliss. There is no profit where there is loss of soul. It is very bad for a Christian to chase after temporal wealth, which he is soon forced to leave, and leave eternal wealth to which he is called. - What is true and unshakable wealth? That which Christ offers to us: hide your treasure in heaven, where neither worm nor aphid can come, and where it cannot be undermined or stolen 1127. This treasure of faith, which is hastened by love, is gathered here and is revealed in heaven to those who love God. There they will open the treasures of eternal blessings, which eye has not seen, and ear has not heard, and the heart of man has not sighed 1128. The third part of worldly bliss consists of indulgences, banquets, feasts, fun and everything that pleases the senses. This imaginary bliss is shown to be something as long as it is fulfilled and touches the senses; and when it comes to pass, and the feeling ceases, then instead of sweetness, true sorrow will follow. Thus, after committing carnal lusts, a gnawing evil conscience happens; for example, after banquets and drunkenness, relaxation of the limbs, increase of harmful phlegm, diseases in the head, trembling of the hands and feet, and many different infirmities occur in the whole body. I am silent about the blinding of the mind, about dishonor, about dishonor and other fruits of lust. Who does not abhor a swindler, an adulterer, and a drunkard? No one is sensible and does not praise him who often feasts. What can I say about the mental ulcers that pleasure-seekers will receive from this imaginary bliss? Pleasure is a hook with which Satan catches souls and casts them into hell, a place determined for himself. There is one that holy souls feel from the love of Christ, as they exclaim to Christ in joy and sweetness with the church: You are all desire, all sweetness, the Word of God, etc. 1131 This sweetness begins with God's sorrow and multiplies in humble tears, rejoices in sorrows, comforts in misfortunes, cheers in despondency, gives hope in despair, does not depart at death, accompanies that age, and is fulfilled there, where love will receive its perfection. - This is what the measure of this bliss consists of, that is, in honor, which lovers of eternal dishonor come to wealth, which makes its owners eternally beggars and poor; in the sweetness with which the working eternal sorrows bite! And so you see that there is a threefold bliss, it is like the one who eats and drinks something sweet in a dream, is worshiped and worshiped by all, he has found a great treasure, but when he wakes up, he feels hunger and thirst, he sees himself in contempt and poverty. All of it has come like a dream, and like a flowing message; like a ship, passing through turbulent water, there is no way to find its passage, below the paths of its procession in the waves; or like birds flying through the air, not one finds a sign of a path, etc. 1132 This is how the measure of this joy and gaiety passes away, no matter how much it was. Because the image of this world is passing away 1133. And the world will pass away, and the will of the ego 1134. Finally, it is not the true bliss that people think and affirm based on their blind minds, but that which is provided and affirmed by the word of God, which is the rule and mirror of our reasoning and Christian life. Listen, O sinful soul, to whom it ascribes bliss. It is a verb: blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, and does not stand in the way of sinners, and does not sit in the seat of destroyers, but in the law of the Lord His will, and in His law will be learned day and night 1135. Blessed are all who trust in Him 1136. Blessed are those who have left iniquity 1137. Blessed is the tongue, the Lord is his God, the people whom he has chosen for his inheritance 1138. Blessed be the understanding of the needy and the poor: on the day of wrath the Lord will deliver him 1139. Blessed is he who chose you and accepted you: he dwells in your court 1140. Blessed are those who live in Your house, O Lord, forever and ever they will praise You 1141. Blessed is the husband, who has a substitute ego with you, Lord 1142. Blessed is the man, whom the Lord will rebuke, and teach him Your law 1143. Blessed are those who keep judgment and do justice at all times 1144. Blessed man, fear the Lord, in His commandments evil will delight 1145. Blessed are those who are blameless in their ways, who walk in the law of the Lord. Blessed are those who test His testimony: seek Him with all their heart 1146. And Christ, the righteous judge, comforts: blessed are the poor in spirit: for this is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are the mourners: for they will be comforted. Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for truth: for they shall be satisfied. Blessed are the merciful: for they will be pardoned. Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers: they will be called the sons of God. Blessed are those who are exiled for the sake of truth: because that is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you, when they revile you, and seek you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely, for My sake. Rejoice and rejoice, as your wages are many in heaven 1147. Such and similar beatitudes can be seen in other places of the Holy Scriptures. Alas, you see that the word of God comforts not the rich, the famous and those who are in the joys of this age, but those who learn the law of the Lord, who trust in the Lord, the poor in spirit, who cry, hunger and thirst for the truth, the meek, merciful, pure in heart, peacemakers, exiles for the sake of the truth, who endure wear and tear for the sake of the name of Christ, etc. What else is left for you to do, how, leaving the false happiness that the sons of this age believe in honor, glory, wealth, happiness, to seek the true happiness that the word of God promises to us Christians? Even if you leave peace and cling to Christ with faith and love, He will give you this; without faith it is impossible to have true bliss; and where there is faith, there is love, because love is inseparable from faith. They professed one God, but did they work for one God? They preached and listened to the Word of God, but did they live according to the rule of the ego? Note also what is written: as any measure of this is enmity with God: for if a friend likes to be a measure, he is an enemy of God 1149. Christ will judge peacemakers, as enemies of God, and reward them according to their deeds. Chapter 3. On worshiping the passions of Christ Think of the words of such a suffering sinner against Himself, and do not be saddened by the weakening of your souls 1150. § 343. The whole life of Jesus Christ our Lord, which he began and completed on our earth for the sake of salvation, was an eternal cross. He was born in a manger and the swaddled child was placed in a manger: otherwise he would not have a place in the monastery 1151. There was no place in the abode for Him Who is heaven and earth and their fulfillment. Thus, for our sake, the proud were humbled by Him. He had just appeared in the world and did not have time to begin His life on earth, but the lawless Herod suffered persecution, and the Child, not knowing anything but swaddling clothes, mother's milk, cries and tears, was sought to be killed 1152. Godliness will not appear in time, but immediately wickedness begins to suffer persecution. - Further, as it is written, he obeys his ima, that is, his mother and his imaginary father 1153. He obeyed men, to whom angels obey with fear and trembling, and all creation works. For our sake, for my sake and for you, sinner, our Creator obeyed His creation; for our sake, I speak, who did not want to obey God, their Creator. - He was tempted by Satan, His adversary, so that He was placed on the wing of the church and said to Him: if You are the Son of God, come down from below; and he took him to a high mountain, and showed him the whole measure of the kingdom and its glory, and said to him: I will give you all this, if you fall down and worship me 1154. The Lord and the Creator of all suffered such audacity and fury from the evil spirit, which He alone could have forbidden. Suffer for our sake, man, and help us in temptation 1155. - Wandering the earth and preaching His divine word, I would blaspheme terribly in the language of the Pharisees. His divine miracles were attributed to Beelzebub, prince of Bessovsky, in 1156. Holy Ego and heavenly teaching, like blasphemy against God, were read in 1157. They spewed blasphemies at Him and hurled their tongues like stinging arrows: they have a devil, a Samaritan, a violent one, an eater and a wine-drinker, a friend of publicans and sinners, etc. 1158 One Blessed One has suffered slander and slander forever, but he will protect us from the devil's slander. He lived in poverty, so that he had nowhere to bow his head, He had a throne of heaven and earth at his feet 1159. For our sake, the rich man, became poor, so that we may be enriched by His poverty 1160. He clearly foresaw the most cruel and incomprehensible sufferings that would happen to him in due time. From where did the apostles foretell about them: that is why Jesus began to tell His disciples how it pleased Him to go to Jerusalem, and to suffer many things from the elders and bishops and scribes, and to be killed, and to rise again on the third day 1161. Here again belong the usual labors undertaken in moving from place to place, from city to city, from all to the whole, and in carrying and preaching the holy Gospel, which the bosom of His heavenly Father brought to earth, and others. Thus the Son of God toiled and sweated for the sake of the poor human soul, which Satan had seized under his power. Finally, he sold and betrayed his disciple, he left the other disciples, judged and condemned, scorned, spit on, insulted, wounded, crowned with thorns, like a thief naked, and like a cursed one, this Blessed One was hanged on a tree in the shame of all 1162. The hanged man was laughed at and cursed by passers-by in front of His eyes, and lots were cast for His clothes; they drank vinegar and bile in thirst. Thus the tortured and mocked Son of God ended His life on the cross. But even after a saving death, he was pierced in the rib in 1163. I was called a flatterer 1164. They strove to cover His resurrection, and the hands of the martyrs were filled with wages, so that they would not speak of what they had seen 1165. This is how Christ endured all His life, at death and after death, for the sake of us sinners. § 344. Even if someone fell into some great trouble, e.g. or he fell into the captivity of the enemy, or into a mortal disease, or into a mortal sin, for which he had to die according to the law, he fell; and such a good man would have been found, who had saved him from that misfortune with his own effort: he would have kept the great deed of his deliverance in unforgettable memory, and he would have diligently honored his deliverer; otherwise he would have been extremely ungrateful and insensitive. We have seen, Orthodox Christians, into what trouble we have fallen for our sins, and how, behold, Whom we have saved: how we were not saved by tarnished silver or gold, but by honest blood, like the immaculate and pure Christ of the Lamb 1166. Christ redeemed us from the legal oaths, let the oath be upon us. Because it is written: cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree. Yes, there will be a blessing in the tongues of Abraham about Christ Jesus, etc. 1167 Consider, then, how great this work of deliverance is, and the Savior should be honored by us. He humbled himself to exalt me ​​humble; impoverished so that I, a poor man, would be enriched; I suffered insults and slanders to protect me from diabolical slanders; he was bound so that he would free me from eternal bonds; I was judged and condemned, so that I would be freed from condemnation; he accepted ulcers and wounds, so that he would heal me who was wounded; I suffered insults and dishonor, so that Satan would honor me when I was insulted; He died in order to revive the dead, and as for all, so also for me, who believes in His name, the Deliverer, Savior, Intercessor and Sustainer of eternal bliss has appeared. And when this great work of the Son of God must be attracted to and appropriated by every faithful person, then he must honor it as if it had been done for his sake alone. Whence St. Chrysostom says: "Each of us righteously owes Christ so much thanks, even if he came for you alone. For he would not deny himself even to show so much attention to a single person, because he loves every person with such a measure of love, as he loves the whole universe" 1169. For the sake of you and me, Christ came to peace, for the sake of you and me, he, such a great Benefactor, should be met and honored with his own, grateful, humble, loving, obedient and patient heart. From this you see, Christian, that 1) whoever has such faith, as every Christian should have, does not want to sin against his conscience. 2) Have love for Christ and strive to fulfill His commandments. 3) The sinful and fruitless life of Christians is proof of their unbelief, even though they have faith on their lips. Even a benefactor who has done us temporary good, our conscience convinces us to love; how much more faith, when we have it, convinces us to love Christ, Who bought for us eternal and incomprehensible bliss with nothing else than His free suffering and death. And where there is love for Christ, there is inseparable obedience to Christ; where there is obedience, there is diligent fulfillment of His commandments; where His commandments are fulfilled, there is the creation of good works, because the commandments teach Him good works. And thus you see that true faith is the mother of good works, just as unbelief is the root of evil. The holy prophets foresaw this great miracle, and they were amazed. One spoke: this Virgin will receive and give birth to a Son in her womb, and will call His name Emmanuel 1177. The second, horrified by this, shouted: Lord! I heard your voice, and I was afraid. Lord! I understood Your deeds, and I was terrified. You will recognize two animals in the middle, etc. 1178 Abraham saw and rejoiced 1179 . They predicted what we are already seeing. They saw the future, we see the past; they waited, we waited; they are covered with darkness and shadow, we see openly. For this reason, it is righteous and proper for us to sing a new song: come, let us rejoice in the Lord, let us cry out to God our Savior; let us seek His face in confession, and cry out to Him in psalms 1180. Our mother, the holy church, calls us to this rejoicing: "come, let us rejoice in the Lord, telling the true secret," etc. 1181 Blessed is the Lord God of Israel! how to visit and create salvation for His people 1182. Be a helper and patron for my salvation: this is my God, and I will glorify Him; God is my father, and I will exalt Him 1183. In the same way, we should not keep silent about the truth, where it is necessary, but confess it with a fearless heart, even if it is not only honor and property, but also the stomach that will be left behind by the enemies of the truth; for this is what our faith requires of us. For it is glorious for us to confess Him and to boast about Him, whose name is holy and terrible, and it is sweet for us. Although he was conceived in a virgin's womb, he is the Holy Spirit 1187, and he is self-begotten by the Father and the Holy Spirit. He was born in the summer of the Virgin Mother 1188, but God is above all, blessed forever 1189. He was wrapped in swaddling cloths, like a baby 1190, but everywhere there is a holy garment like a robe 1191. Mladenets was brought to the church by his mother's hands in 1192, but the elder Simeon was released from the temporary to the eternal womb in 1193. Herod was persecuted, but he brought the Magi to worship Him 1194. He was baptized in the Jordan, but the Father testified from heaven to the one being baptized: This is My beloved Son, O Most Gracious, and the Holy Spirit, like a dove, descending on the baptized, confirmed the truth 1195. We were tempted by the devil, but he put the tempter to shame 1196. He lived on the land between men, but he was not separated from the fatherland 1197. 1198 He turned to the servant, but, as the Lord, he commanded the winds and the sea, and they obeyed Him; commanded the demons, and they left; commanded the dead, and they arose; commanded the blind, and they saw; deaf, and hearing was perceived; mute, and they spoke; lepers, and were cleansed 1199. He was thirsty and thirsty, but he asked for 1,200 loaves of bread. There were envious and malicious blasphemers, but they showed their heartfelt thoughts 1201. He ate with sinners, but he cleansed the sins of their penitents 1202. That ungrateful disciple was sold and betrayed for silver, but he redeemed us, for the sins of those who were sold. He grieved and longed, but he took away our eternal sorrow and longing. The lawless were bound, but our enemy the devil has bound and torn our bonds. The judgment of the unrighteous was ahead, but he saved us from eternal judgment. His clothes were taken off and he was naked, but he clothed us with the clothes of His truth. He was laughed at, dishonored, insulted, spat on, but he freed us from eternal shame, dishonor and insults. He was crowned with thorns, but he arranged a crown for us with eternal glory. He was crucified on a tree and died, but he darkened the sun, shook the earth, rejected the graves, revived the dead, frightened the centurion and those with him 1203 , led the robber into paradise 1204 , and with his death killed our death. He was buried in the grave as if dead; but by His power he arose as an immortal, and gave us the hope of resurrection to those who are dying. He lived on earth, but ascended to heaven, and sat down at the right hand of God the Father, and will come to judge the living and the dead, and to repay everyone according to their deeds, to bring the righteous into the eternal belly and the kingdom of heaven, and deliver the sinners to eternal torment 1205. Thus, believing in the crucified one, we do not deny Him to confess our Lord and God, Who, for the sake of us men and for the sake of our salvation, became a man, and thus Himself arranged for us the way of salvation. In it is our wisdom, praise, glory, life, comfort, joy, hope and eternal bliss. In this way, we show hypocrisy, and not the truth, to Christ, and in the very thing we despise Him, when we say to Him with our mouths: Lord, Lord, and we do not do what He commands, as He Himself says: what do you call Me, Lord, Lord, and do not do what I say 1208? True respect is shown not only by words but also by deeds. Here, Christians, we must show our faith to Him, as His Apostle demands of us: show us your faith, here for your sake 1209. Our faith demands from us love, mercy, compassion, humility, meekness, patience and other Christian virtues, which He taught us by word and deed. We ourselves will honor our honored Christ and our Lord. Is it too great for us to give to the one who asks for the sake of Him, Who gave us what we have (for everything is what we have, except sins), and gave Himself? Is it too much to feed the hungry, to give drink to the thirsty, to clothe the naked, to bring in a stranger, to visit the sick and imprisoned, for the sake of Him who for our sake starved, thirsted, was naked, wandered, bore our ailments, was sick and bound? Is it great for us to forgive our neighbor's sins for the sake of Him, who suffered for our sins? Is it hard for us to suffer for His sake, when He suffered terrible tortures for our sake? He, our Lord and God, was not ashamed and did not deny himself (O Thy goodness, Jesus our God!), for the sake of His servants who are useless, laughed at, insulted, spat upon, wounded, pierced, crucified and died: should we, His servants who are not the key, be ashamed of Him and His word in our family adulterous and sinful 1210, and do not tolerate that something bad happens to us, and do not follow what He taught by His word and example? Indeed, the old Adam reigns over us, not Christ. Truly, we are not Christ's, when we do not follow His word and life. Whoever does not have the Spirit of Christ does not have Ego 1211. For whoever has the Spirit of Christ thinks what Christ is; it is taught in what is pleasing to Christ; I am looking for and wanting what Christ wants; try to do what Christ requires. Even if we want to be Christ's, and honor Christ as our King, we must be wise together with Him, want and do what He wants and commands. True worship consists not only in outward appearance, but also inwardly, not only in words, confessions and ceremonies, but also in the heart, diligence, love, gratitude and obedience. Our Lord is God: we honor Him with fear and obedience. Your lover is more sincere: we honor Him with our love. Our benefactor is there: we honor His gratitude. There is our Redeemer, because He redeemed us to Himself with the price of His blood: we will honor Him with diligent work. Our teacher is: honoring Ego willingly fulfilling His teachings. Our shepherd is: we obey His holy voice 1212. Our leader is more faithful to heaven: we honor Him by faithfully and lovingly following Him. This is how we honor Christ our King, Christians. He loved us unworthy: we will also love Him, who is worthy of love, who is the consolation and joy of angels and holy souls. He honored us unworthy: we also honor Him, who is worthy of all reverence, to whom angels and every knee worship with fear and love. He sought us who were lost: let us also seek Him with faith and love. He did not spare Himself for our sake: we will not spare ourselves for His sake either. He suffered everything for our sake: we will also suffer everything for His sake, and with Him we will be glorified in His kingdom. - Lord! guide us to this path: for You are the way and the truth and the life 1213. § 347. Do Christians everywhere honor the coming and suffering of Christ? The answer Christians who have loved the Gospel of Christ and do repentance and fruits worthy of repentance are honored; but defective Christians, for example, fornicators, adulterers, drunkards, predators, fathers, money-grubbers, flatterers, tricksters, haters, evil-doers, slanderers, slanderers, and the like, are not worshiped. For what? Because 1) there can be no true worship without faith: life without lawless faith is repugnant, and the sign is unbelief. 2) No one can work as two mistresses, according to the words of Christ 1214. They work on their passions and honor them, because what their passions want, they fulfill. Alas, honoring their passions, they do not honor Christ's passions, and, working at their whims, they cannot work for Christ; to honor Christ and work for Christ is one thing. For whoever honors Christ, he always works for Him. 3) Lawless life is repugnant and hostile to the cross and suffering of Christ, because Christ suffered and died for our sins. Lawless Christians neglect this high His grace and love for humanity, and by their unrepentant life they show how deeply Christ died. As for those who cease from sin and repent, the suffering and death of Christ is not in vain, but receives its fruit, that is, forgiveness of sins, justification, and eternal intercessory life. happens And the blood of Christ, for the sake of all, in whose number they are included, is poured out, for their sake it is as if poured out; for his fruit, which is conversion, repentance, a new life and forgiveness of sins and salvation, remains in them. Although Christ will die for all, according to the teaching of the Apostle 1215, but the death of Christ benefits only those who repent of their sins and believe in Him, and the unrepentant does not receive its saving fruit. And this does not happen from the side of Christ, who wants everyone to be saved, and to come to the understanding of the truth 1216, and will die for everything; but here are the sides of those who do not want to repent and enjoy Christ's death. Just as medicine, although it is good and useful, does not benefit everyone, but only those who perceive it in a decent way: such a spiritual and life-giving medicine, the death of Christ, only heals and revives souls who accept it with a grateful heart, stop sinning, repent and believe in Christ, who heals the ailments of His faithful ones, but does not benefit the unrepentant. And this is how the blood of Christ the Son of God, shed for the sake of all, is shown in themselves in vain, when, not having true repentance, they leave themselves for the sake of which it was shed. "Grace, even if there is grace, saves those who want it, and not those who don't want it," Saint Chrysostom taught 1217. With this substance, the image of the tree of the cross, on which Christ was crucified, and the image of Christ, but Christ Himself is not honored by disobedience, disobedience and opposition, as they oppose His Word; they do not honor the suffering of Christ, which is honored not by substance, gold, silver, etc., but by heartfelt faith, love, gratitude, and patience. - How many of them go to the church and sing about Christ and His sufferings? - They sing with their mouths, but with their hearts they turn away from Him, and they turn away from Him, as Christ spoke about such people: these people approach Me with their mouths, and with their lips they hear Me: their hearts are far away from Me 1220. Because external confession and worship without internal is hypocrisy, as it was said above and will be said below. - Why do these people act so fearlessly and lawlessly? Because they do not listen to the word of God, which teaches us about God and Christ the Son of God, not with a single outward appearance, but with heartfelt faith, fear and love, and so they do what their whims please. § 348. Like work, freedom is twofold: physical and spiritual. Bodily work is when a person has a master over him, to whom he obeys, serves and fulfills his orders, which is why he is called his slave. Spiritual work is when a person works for sin, and for the sin of the devil. Sin is the work of the devil, and therefore whoever does the work of the devil works for the devil: sin is the work of the devil, as at first the devil sinned 1223; because someone is defeated, that's why he works 1224. Christ said about this slave: everyone who commits sin is a slave and a sin 1225. This work includes money-lovers, predators, thieves, fornicators, adulterers, drunkards, flatterers, liars, tricksters, wage-earners, evil-doers, and the like. This work is not excluded even by free men who are captured by some passions and allow sin to reign over them. This is what the Christian Apostle warns against such work: let not sin reign in your dead body, in which you listen to it in your desire 1226. From this it can be seen that there is physical and spiritual freedom. Bodily freedom is when a person does not work for another person, he is not subject to his authority; such are kings and princes, earthly powers are not subject. Also, there is bodily freedom when a person's body is free, not bound, not shackled, not locked in a dungeon, etc. Spiritual freedom is when a person is freed from sin and the devil's powers by the grace of God, does not allow sin and the devil to reign over him, resists his passions and lusts, subdues the flesh of the spirit, serves the only God with a free spirit. Such a person can be a slave of man in body, bound, chained, in prison, in bonds, in captivity, but in spirit he is everywhere and always free. Because no one can enslave and bind the spirit. Thus, the holy martyrs were chained in body, bound and imprisoned in prisons, but in spirit they were free. Even today, pious slaves work for their masters in the flesh, but are free in spirit. In the same way, others who live piously, even though they are imprisoned and imprisoned, remain free in spirit. As long as a person has faith and strives against the flesh, the world, the devil and sin, he has spiritual freedom, even though he is enslaved by the body. If you wish, Christian, to have this glorious freedom, always rise up against sin and the devil, your enemy, and you will be free. § 349. According to the transgressed commandment of God in paradise, our forefathers, and with them we, their children, all became slaves of sin and captives of the devil, lost spiritual freedom and royal spiritual nobility, fell into sinful hard work and fell under the devil's domain; and was proud of us, as a terrible giant and tormentor of captives. Christ, the Son of God, redeemed us from this hard work and the devil's captivity and power, and he redeemed us not with tarnished silver or gold, but with His honest blood 1227; The price for our captives is His precious blood. That is why he is called Redeemer, Liberator and Deliverer of the human race. And so he led us to spiritual freedom, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin and the devil, but would strive against these enemies, but would work for him with the Father and the Holy Spirit, as bought slaves, not under compulsion, but freely. For He does not force anyone to His work and service, as earthly masters do, but only calls. Come to Me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you, and learn from Me, as I am meek and lowly in heart, and you will find peace for your souls 1228. And so that we can willingly perform this blessed service, he promised to give us, and with faith, he gives his Holy Spirit to those who ask for grace 1229, which prepares the unwilling to earnestly desire, helps the willing to do what we want; those who marry, so that they always stay in that blessed cause and stay until the end, as the poet and saint David prays about it: Your mercy will marry me all the days of my life 1230. This creation works for us, so that we work diligently for our Creator, and for the service that these creations of His accept, we thank Him. He does not require anything for His own sake, as the all-perfectly blessed, but we do. For this reason, in order to create man, He first created the heavens and the earth and all their decorations, so that the created things would be like slaves and servants, ready to serve the man who was to be; and this is how he created man, a rational creature, so that he could use them for his needs and service, and, that is, his service to himself, he directly served his Creator, as a close and intelligent servant. See, Christian, how an unreasonable creature works for us, so that we can work intelligently for God. - 6) It is wonderful that the visible world works for us by God's command, but it is also wonderful that the holy angels serve our salvation. Оплачается Ангель Господень окрестъ бесплатно Его 1238 . Isn't the whole essence of the service spirit sent to serve for those who want to follow salvation 1239? It is fulfilled in the Old Testament, but also in the New there is a lot of such service. An angel announces to the Holy Virgin that the Son of God is coming to the world, and that she is giving birth to the flesh of the one 1240. An angel appears to Joseph, Eya's betrothed, 1241. Zachariah's angel appears and heralds the conception of the Forerunners 1242. An angel heralds the birth of Christ the Savior of peace to the shepherds 1243. Angels sit on the tomb of the resurrected Christ and preach the resurrection to women 1244. Angels at the ascension of the Lord meet the apostles and announce to them the second coming of Christ 1245. Angel brings Peter out of prison 1246. The angel said to Philip: get up and go to noon, etc. 1247 An angel appears to Cornelius the centurion 1248 . Church history tells about the same. "A guardian angel is given to every faithful one, and he will see the face of the heavenly Father," said Basil the Great in 1249. These holy and blessed spirits serve our salvation, may we diligently serve their Lord and ours, and thus be saved. Hence, Christian, marvel at God's goodness and humanity, that he commanded not only the visible creatures to serve our needs, but also the invisible ones, His holy servants, protect us and surround us. From this know the Christian honor and high nobility, that the servants of God Almighty are sent to serve them. It would be a truly great thing if the earthly king, sending his faithful subject away from himself, ordered his servants to escort him home, so that no evil would happen to him on the way, since it is an incomparably greater thing that the heavenly King, after the baptism of his faithful servants on the way of this world, gives them his servant, holy angels, for the sake of their protection, so that under their protection they may come to their heavenly homeland, even though He Himself does not depart from them, according to the saying: I am with you always until the end of the age 1250. It is truly impossible to overlook God's goodness and humanity towards man. A wretched man, a sinner, a lawbreaker, and an apostate of God, by the grace of the Son of God, by faith in Him, is conformed to the high mercy of God. Oh, God and our Creator are very good! Your love meets us everywhere, wherever we turn. A man is truly blind when he does not see; ungrateful when he sincerely does not acknowledge it, repentant when, having left God, his Lord, his Benefactor and Provider, he works the measure of evil and sin. For the sake of which, once, as by the word of God, so by his conscience, he will be exposed and condemned, because he sins against the word of God and his conscience. - 7) And it is auspicious to work for Christ. For the sons of this age are better freed to work for a high master than for a mean one, - for a good one, than for an evil one, - for a wise man, than for a fool, - for a meek, merciful man, than for an angry and cruel one: who is higher than the king of heaven? Who is better than Jesus? Who is wiser than the Son of God? Who is more meek and merciful than Christ? He is the King of those who reign and the Lord of those who rule, He is eternal goodness, He is God's impersonal wisdom, He is meek and lowly in heart. What else is left for us, sinners, how to give ourselves to Him and surrender ourselves to sweet work? – 8) People will look for easy work rather than hard work. It is easy for Jesus to work. They don't command *He carries stones, they don't command* they tear up mountains and do other similar things to His slaves; no, we don't hear anything like that from Him, but what? love each other 1251 . Why is it easier to love? It is difficult to hate, because hatred is painful; but loves sweetly, because love makes you happy. He himself testifies to this: his good is mine, and my burden is light 1252. Let us, dear Christian, take upon ourselves the good yoke of Christ, and bear His light burden, and follow Him. 9) People want to work and work will rest. Christ promises us eternal peace, an eternal Sabbath, which we will celebrate incessantly and without end, not on earth, but in heaven 1253. 10) People want rewards for work and hard work. Christ promises us eternal reward in His kingdom. Thus says the Lord: We will eat those who work: We will drink those who work; се работающий We will rejoice; those who work, we rejoice in the joy of the heart 1254 . 11) Those who work for Jesus also have their reward here. For true virtue in itself is rewarded to those who possess it. Where there is true virtue, there is love; *where is love*, there is a good and calm conscience; *where there is a calm conscience*, there is peace and tranquility; where there is peace and tranquility, there is consolation, joy, fun and sweetness. - So, Christian, the work of Jesus is our duty, because He is our God, Creator, Lord, Redeemer and Provider. Glorious to us, because He is the King of kings and the Lord of lords. Sweet, because his yoke is good, and his burden is easy to eat. Desired, because it has a great and indescribable reward. Let us work with a sincere heart, and we will receive His reward with those who work in His vineyard 1255. § 351. The Christian work that they send to their Lord and King Jesus Christ consists of: 1) True, living and heartfelt faith in Christ. This is the work of God, may you believe in Him whom the Father has sent, says Christ 1256. The Father sent His Son into the world, so that the world may be saved by Him 1257. The work of God is done by those who accept Him as the one sent by the heavenly Father and believe in Him wholeheartedly. And what is accepted and believed with the heart, is confessed with the mouth, where it is necessary and the honor of His name demands it, as the Apostle says: with the heart the truth is believed, but with the mouth it is confessed for salvation 1258. – 2) It consists in a feat against the devil and sin. Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, when Moses brought Israel out of Egypt, and freed him from his work, chased after him, although he still wanted to enslave himself 1259: this is how the devil chases after us Christians, whom Christ the Son of God freed from his work, and wants to enslave himself again. If anyone loves peace, the love of the Father is not in him: as everything that is in peace, lust of the flesh and lust of the eyes, and pride of life, is not the Father's, but the peace of this is 1261. This is how the holy martyrs, when they were tormented by servants of the devil, enticed and persuaded to idolatry, gave them the following answer: "We are Christians, we work for Christ, we are servants of Christ: we will not eat idols." In the same way, we, Christians, should answer to him, when Satan uses evil thoughts, as his servants, to sin and the creation of his evil will, to answer him: "We are Christ's servants, we must work for Christ; We do not listen to you, and we will not accept your evil advice. How many times, dear Christian, do thoughts against God arise in your heart, whether it is for carnal impurity, whether it is for exaltation in honor and for the love of glory, desire for filthy lucre, robbery, theft, evil-doing, revenge and bitterness, etc.: so many times do you own the battle and exploits against the enemy your soul Truly understand that this is the evil counsel of our enemy, Satan, who opposes Christ and prevents our salvation. Because Christ turns us away from sin, and he leads us into sin, and so he wants to catch us again in his net, and he will conquer the kingdom of Christ in his power; because all those who work sin are in the power of the devil, and therefore have no right in the kingdom of Christ God 1262. Even if an evil thought arises in you and wants to plunge you into sin, then answer like the martyrs: "Christ redeemed me to Himself, I am Christ's: I owe Christ and work with faith and truth." In short, those who want to be in the kingdom of Christ, to work for Him and truly call Him their King, Lord and God, must not be a slave to sin, as everyone who commits sin is a slave to sin 1263. No one can work as two housewives 1264. - 3) Worker for Christ, who, rejecting the heavy yoke of Satan, burdened with sins, wears the good yoke of Christ, according to His words: take My yoke upon you 1265. The good yoke of Christ means that His commandments are holy and light, as His commandments are not heavy 1266. What is easier, how does he love, as it is said above? He commands us to love one another: I command you to love one another 1267. But from love, all good deeds will flow like the source of a stream; Love is the root of good deeds 1268. Even if someone has true Christian love, he wears Christ's yoke and fulfills His commandments, and thus works for Him. - 4) Faithful servants of Christ must seek the glory of their Lord, so they turn away from evil and do good to such an end that the name of their Lord may be glorified from there, so that their deeds will be pleasing to their Lord; otherwise she cannot be pleased. How can a deed that is not done for the sake of Christ be pleasing to Christ? Every deed, whatever it is, whether good or bad, is judged in the end. Although a good deed may appear to be good, when it is not done for the sake of a good end, it cannot be good, but evil. For example you give alms for the sake of the fact that a person may have praise: outwardly you do a good deed, but inwardly it is evil, because you do it for the sake of your own vain glory, and not for the sake of Christ. For this reason, one should not only do good deeds, but also do good, that is, for a good end, which is the glory of God. - 5) Faithful servants of Christ must always work for their Lord, in good times and bad times. For a true and faithful servant must not be separated from his master: so also Christ's servant must always be with Christ, his Lord, and work steadfastly for Him. Otherwise, it is a hypocritical and untruthful work when in our prosperity we love Christ and work for Him, but in our prosperity we grumble, grumble, and turn our hearts away from Him. We must be unyielding servants of Christ, and follow Him everywhere, as He Himself wills us: whoever serves Me, let him follow Me 1269. - 6) Faithful servants of Christ must be humble, meek and patient. It is a shame for slaves not to be humble, patient and meek when their master is humble, patient and meek: it is also a shame for Christians to be proud when their Lord Jesus Christ is humble in heart, and they are angry and take revenge when their Lord is meek and long-suffering. Where do these virtuous people learn from? He commanded them: learn from Me, as I am meek and lowly in heart 1270, for slaves must obey the manners of their masters. - 7) Christ's servants must be faithful to the end, as the Lord Himself says to them: be faithful even to death, and I will give you the crown of the belly 1271. Because every work receives its perfection from the end, not from the beginning. In the end, everything is done. A good beginning is praiseworthy, but without a good end, praise remains. It is glorious to defeat the enemy from the beginning, but the final victory accomplishes all the work. It is the same in the Christian cause: it is praiseworthy to strive against sin and the devil, and to defeat him, but without final victory there is nothing. For this reason, one must work hard in this blessed cause to the end. § 352. Christians, where do many work for men, something like: subjects of monarchs, slaves of their masters? Answer: 1) They work for men with their bodies, but with their spirit for the one Christ, their King, they work with the Father and the Holy Spirit, and therefore they are free; because no one can enslave the spirit. As those who are chained in bonds, sitting in prison, captives, in bondage in body, but in spirit in freedom, there are godly ones, while godliness is found in truth. 2) True and faithful servants of Christ and man must work, but for the sake of Christ, who teaches: render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to the Gods of God 1272. And the Apostle says: obey every human authority for the Lord's sake 1273. Even if someone works for his mistress for the sake of Christ who commanded, then he works not for man, but for Christ the Lord. Whoever fulfills whose will and command, that is why he works. And so he who listens to God's commandments works for his mistress, then he works for God, and not for man, because he listens to God's commandments, and not for man's. Just as a slave works for his master, not because he is an honorable man, but because the king ordered him to work, and he made him a slave, and so, obeying the king's commands, a slave works for his king, and not just for the master, but for the sake of the king: so also Christians should work for the man to whom the essence is subordinated, not simply, but for the sake of the Lord who commands: obey, and so on. This is what the Christian faith requires, which frees the whole person and enslaves him freely to the one God. I say freely, because God does not force anyone to work for Himself, as stated above. Oh, what kind of slave is obliged to listen to his mistress until she orders him to do something that is not against the royal laws; and when it is contrary to what is commanded, then the faithful servant of the monarch must not listen to him: so also the faithful servants of Christ must listen only to their masters, which is not contrary to their King Jesus Christ. In the opposite case, Christ's commandment should be preferred, because obedience is more pleasing to God than to humans 1274. This is what the holy martyrs, faithful and chosen servants of Christ did. The impious kings commanded them to give tribute, and they did; they ordered it to go to war, they went; ordered to work, worked; ordered the meal to be served, served; ordered to dig ore, dug; they ordered the stones and earth to be carried, they were carried; ordered to be imprisoned, imprisoned, imprisoned, did not resist; they ordered to undress from time to time, they undressed; commanded, and in other respects, contrary to God's law, they obeyed. And when their command came to the contempt of God, and they were commanded to worship idols, then they boldly opposed the impious command, they did not want to listen to their masters, heeding the commandments of the one true God: I am the Lord your God: let no gods be before you, but Me 1275. And so the saints showed that we must obey and serve a human ruler as long as his command is in accordance with God's command, or it is not against it. Even if your master commands you to do what is in accordance with God's law, God will command you; and so, when you obey your master in that, you obey God and work. Moreover, consider whom you fear when you work diligently for your master, God or your master, man? When you fear God, Who commanded to obey the authorities, and thus work for the sake of God's mistress, then you work for God, Whom you honor with fear, and not man; and when you fear a man's master, so that he does not punish you for negligence, then you truly work only for a man, and not for God. Because you work for man not for the sake of God, but for the sake of human fear. For every man, for the sake of whom he does what he pleases, and to whom he pleases, therefore he works, because working and pleasing are one. And so, when you work for a mistress in order to please him, and not for God, you work for a person, and not for God. In the same way, everyone who, after sin is removed and a good deed is shown, does not do it for the sake of pleasing God, but to please people - such a person pleases not God, but people, and works not for God, but for people, the slave is a man's servant, not the Lord's. Because every work is from the disposition of the heart and the end is judged by God. Thus, all those Christians are human slaves, not God's, who listen to the edicts of monarchs, fearing civil taxes, not God. Thus, judges who call themselves Christians are human slaves, not God's, who do not touch wages and observe the truth not for the fear of God, but for the fear of man. For all such, if they were not afraid of civil punishment, would do as they please, but the fear of the civil court restrains them from this. And therefore, forsaking God, they work for man, or rather sin, and with sin, the devil, and are inwardly evil and unrighteous, although outwardly they are recognized as good, and unfaithful to God their Lord, like pagans, who do not know the true God, because they do not have faith, which teaches to do everything for the sake of God. And those who are not afraid of the civil court, and break the law, have already lost human fear and shame, are in extreme delusions, and in their malice surpass the very heathen politicians, who obey common human morals and observe what the monarch's decrees command. In a word, everyone who obeys a man, a monarch and his mistress, not for the sake of God, but for the sake of their fear or reward, then he does not work for God, but for man, not God's slave, but for man, he does not please God, but men, because his work does not come from faith. A faithful servant of Christ, passing everything, for the sake of the one God, works for the monarch or his mistress, looking at the command of God, because God commanded to obey the authorities. Such a person, even if there was no temporary reward for correctness, or punishment for malfunctioning, will serve his mistress sincerely, fearing the wrath of God for malfunctioning. § 353. Do not all Christians work for the one Jesus Christ? - Answer. You saw above who works for Christ. Christians who sincerely believe in Christ and show their faith by obedience, then all work for the one Christ; and those who do not listen to Christ and do not fulfill His commandments, do not work for Him. True and not hypocritical work cannot be done without obedience. Because to work for a mistress and not listen to her is contrary to the mind and includes a contradiction in itself, such as being a slave and not being a slave, serving and not serving, honoring and not honoring, loving and not loving, etc. - For whom and where do such Christians work? - They work according to their carnal whims and passions, and in them the devil himself, as they do his evil will and listen to him. - Is it scary and disgusting to work for the devil, the adversary and the enemy of God? - Really scary and disgusting, but true. For he who obeys whom he works for, says the Apostle 1276. - In what way do they obey and work for him? - In his evil deeds, in pride, avarice, embezzlement, theft, cunning, lies, quarrels, fornication, adultery, impurity, drunkenness, malice and other similar deeds. - Where did Christ save Christians from the work of the devil? - He truly delivered, as it was said above, but they themselves returned under his heavy burden, and, leaving their Lord, to whom, as slaves, they had to work with faith and truth, followed Satan. - Where are they not slaves of Christ? - Just as Christ is the Lord and King of all creation, and rules over all good and evil, so all people, good and evil, are His slaves. But those who faithfully work for Him are His faithful and good servants. Christ spoke to such: good servant, good and faithful! O little one, you were faithful, I will set you above many: enter into the joy of your Lord 1277. And those who do not listen to Him and do not work for Him, they are also His slaves, but evil, unfaithful and unruly. About such people they say: throw an unchained slave into the darkest darkness: there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth 1278. - What do they need to do, so that they will be freed from the heavy power and work of the devil, and work for Christ, the King and Lord of all? - Answer. One must sincerely turn to Him with repentance and regret and pray to Him to free them from this yoke and accept them into His gracious kingdom. He, who is merciful and loves people and does not want the death of a sinner, will not seek the one who comes to Him 1279, because even now He calls everyone: come to Me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you, and learn from Me that I am meek and lowly in heart, etc. 1280, - and until the end of the age he will call and receive those who come to him. For this, thanksgiving and glory be to Him with the Father and the Holy Spirit forever. Amen Chapter 5. How a Christian must follow Christ with faith and love Christ suffered for us, leave us an image, so that we may follow in His footsteps: Do not commit sin, nor find flattery in His mouth; If we rebuke the opposite, he will not rebuke, suffering will not stop; he will betray the judge righteously 1281 . The image I gave you, yes, as I created you, and you create, says Christ 1282. Whoever serves me, let him follow me, Christ said 1283. § 354. Just as we come to Christ and His grace to our heavenly Father God, not with our feet, but with our heart and faith, not by changing our place, but by changing our heart and mind for the better: so we follow Him not with our feet, not by going from place to place, but by faith, love, liberation and change of our life. Many, during His fleshly life on earth, followed Him with their feet, but turned away from Him with their hearts; rather, many quarreled and were angry with Him, such as the scribes, Pharisees and other His enemies. Even today, many Christians approach Him with their mouths, sing to Him, praise Him and say to Him: Lord, Lord, but with their hearts they stand far from Him; they want to be glorified with Christ, but they don't want to be reviled. But the holy faith, which unites the faithful with Christ, demands that the faithful always and everywhere, as a member of the head, be unseparated, that is, from here he carried his cross and followed Him, and in the future age reigned with Him in glory. § 355. Christ, the Son of God, our Lord, while living on earth, not only earned for us the grace and blessing of His heavenly Father, as has been repeatedly said above, but also taught us by word and deed how to please God, to live holy and in a Christian way: because we did not know ourselves what that God-pleasing life was. consists of For, according to the testimony of the Holy Scriptures, the Lord from heaven will judge the sons of men, see if there is still understanding, or seek God. All of you bow down, all of you are keyless; Don't do good, don't do anything 1284. For this reason, the Son of God appeared on earth in human form, and lived holy and blameless among people, so that no sin would be committed, and no flattery would be found in His mouth 1285. And He gave His holy life to us in an image to imitate Him, and in that, as in a clean mirror, we often look and believe in Him, the impure, to our souls are better, we wipe them away, as He says: I have given you an image, but as I have created you, so do you 1286. He revealed love, humility, patience, meekness, mercy, and other properties of His holy heart, so that we may do the same things that we see in Him, as He says: learn from Me 1287. Whence also the holy apostles present the life of Christ to us as an example: Christ suffered for us, leave us an image, and let us follow in His footsteps 1288. And St. Paul said: let this be wise in you, as it is in Christ Jesus, etc. 1289 Notice and pay attention to what Christ Jesus created. He is so great and high that there is no one greater and higher than Him, because He is God; but how deeply He humbled Himself for our sake! Look at this living image of humility and learn from it. Let this be wise in you, as it is in Christ Jesus. And the more vice in a person decreases, the more the opposite virtue increases: the more pride decreases in someone, the more humility increases; the more impoverished malice, hatred, envy, avarice, ruthlessness, impurity, the more meekness, love, generosity, mercy, purity increase. Even if someone wants to follow Christ, humility, meekness, patience, love and other His divine manners, then he must leave his pride, malice, revenge, anger, impatience, hatred, envy and other soul-damaging properties of an old man. - How can that be? - Answer. That's how it's done. Does the desire for impurity, fornication and adultery arise in your heart? - Your heart desires this; and you yourself are your heart, because the human heart of the whole person is enclosed in itself, and there is no other thing than the person himself, reasoning inwardly and outwardly with all his inclinations. Deny this evil lust, and deny the lust of the one who lusts after you, and follow the most pure and holy Christ with purity and chastity. Pride rises in your heart, and like a snake, it raises its head and wants to bite you? Deny this abomination, as everything that is high in man, is an abomination before God 1292 - and follow the humble Jesus with humility. Does your heart burn with anger, malice, revenge? Deny that, and follow meekly the meek and unrepentant Lamb, Christ Jesus. Does envy and hatred begin in your heart, like a pernicious child from the seed of a serpent? Deny that evil, put it to death inside you, and follow the man-loving Son of God with love. Will the shame of dishonor and the fear of death arise for the sake of truth? Your flesh is glory-loving and weak. Be refreshed in faith and spirit, deny your weakness, look at Christ who was reviled, dishonored, laughed at, spat on, crucified for your sins, and follow Him with love, who suffered for your sake. This is how one must renounce oneself first, and this is how one should follow Christ. Even if we want to follow Christ, we must get rid of the old man, that is, pride, love of money, love of glory, lust, anger, malice, revenge and other things, and love and follow humility, patience, meekness and love of Christ. Our old man is horrified by dishonor, abuse, abuse, bonds, prisons, banishment, exile. But when we want to be Christians, to follow Christ, we should not listen to an old man, but for the sake of Christ, we should despise dishonor and other things that happen to us, looking at Him, as He was not ashamed to be insulted and suffer other passions for our sake. Our old man is terrified of death; but even in that, may our faith strengthen us, and our belly not be spared, where there is need, for the sake of Christ, Who laid down His soul for us 1295. He preceded us with humility, patience, meekness, and compassion, and showed us the way from earth to heaven; that is why they look to Him, follow Him, and follow Him in that way, and, leaving the old man who leads us away from that path, denying himself and leaving behind, we must follow that Head of faith and the Doer 1296. Christ was born in the flesh: we must also be born in the spirit. Christ has grown up: we must also grow spiritually, and not always be infants about Christ. Christ was tempted by Satan 1297: we must also be tempted by him, and by Christ's power he will overcome him. Christ came out to preach his holy Gospel, and taught the truth, and testified to the truth, as he himself said: I was born for this, and for this I came to the world, and I testify to the truth 1298, it is also our duty, when it is appropriate and where it is appropriate, the truth is not silent, for the word of truth is not to be feared to bear witness, and to confess with the mouth what we believe in the heart. The enemies of the truth hated and persecuted Christ for the sake of the truth: it follows us, who confess the truth, to suffer the same way, because the way does not love the truth. Christ stood up to death, and to death the godfathers, for the truth: so we should also stand for the truth to the very death, stop lying mouths, and rebuke lies and untruths. This is how Christ suffered and entered into His glory, as he tells us: was it not fitting for Christ to suffer and enter into His glory 1299? That is how we should follow Him and with many sorrows enter the kingdom of God, opened by His blood and death 1300. For there is no other way to that kingdom, except the way of narrow, sorrowful and cross, as the wide gate and the broad way lead to destruction 1301. - How will you get rid of yourself? this is an impossible task. Answer: 1) Christ does not command you to completely deny yourself: because it is necessary to feed the hungry flesh, to drink the thirsty one, to clothe the naked one, to soothe the tired one, because without that we cannot live. It is necessary to keep and protect your stomach. 2) For the honor of His name, in case of need, both our flesh and our belly should be despised, as He did not spare Himself for our sake. And without such needs, you will take care of yourself and your stomach. For example when it is necessary for us to lose our belly, or to sin against Him, in such a case we must deny ourselves and lose our belly before sinning against Him. Besides, he must protect himself and his stomach. 3) When Christ commands to renounce, then this renunciation is understood as the renunciation of our wickedness and evil will, as stated above; because without that we cannot please and follow Him. 4) The truth is that we cannot get rid of our evil spirit and overcome it with our own strength. For he will defeat his evil spirit, that is, he will defeat himself and get rid of himself, which is impossible by our own strength. Why should we seek help from God Himself, who can do everything 1302. From where it is commanded to pray, ask, seek and push. However, diligence is also required on our part, because God helps those who work hard, not those who lie down and are discouraged. § 358. Reasons for which we must renounce ourselves and follow Christ: 1) That when you do not want to renounce yourself and your wickedness: do you still want to turn to Satan, his works, his service and his pride, which we renounced at the baptism of the saint and entering Christianity, and promised to serve God as a saint and the truth? Having joined Christ by faith, do you still want to break this saving union? Having learned the way of truth, how long do you want to go back to the true holy commandments, and show yourself a parable: a dog returns to its vomit, and a pig, having washed itself, goes to the slaughterhouse 1303 - and thus falls into the hard work of the devil, from which the Son of God redeemed you with His blood and set you free? Do you still want to be under God's wrath and oath? For the whole seed, who does not want to hate himself and his bad character, renounce, mortify, and follow the good character of Christ, will follow without fail. He who does not accept his cross and follow Me is not worthy of Me, says Christ 1304. And again: just as Me and My words will be ashamed of this generation of adulterers and sinners, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels 1305. Are you ashamed of Christ's humility, patience, meekness, and want to be in peace with pride, malice, honor and glory? Be ashamed of the words of Christ, which teach humility, patience and meekness; therefore, not following His humility, patience, and meekness, but also Christ Himself, you are ashamed. Are you ashamed of Christ Himself? He will also be ashamed of you before the holy angels and all His chosen ones. For if you do not have the sign that you are Christ's, the sign of Christ's slave is: faith, love, patience, meekness, etc. Woe will be to those whom Christ will be ashamed of, deny and say: I do not know where you are from 1306. I do not know you, because in your pride you did not know Me in My humility. What will follow this terrible sentence? The most terrible voice: depart from Me, all you who do unrighteousness: there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth 1307. - 2) Look and think how much the sons of this age work and strive for the sake of temporary good, they do not think anything difficult and inconvenient for themselves, in order to get what they intended and desired. The warrior is not afraid and goes against the enemy with bullets, cannonballs, swords and other weapons that threaten obvious death, so that the monarch he serves may earn honor and glory. The merchant is not afraid of foreign countries, filled with robberies and other dangers, he wanders in order to gather a perishable treasure. It is not difficult for a villager to burn in the hot sun all summer, and then to shower himself and toil for the sake of the desired fruit. What do ambitious people not do? What favors are not shown to princes, nobles, and other high-ranking persons? Not only they themselves, but also their servants are pleased, caressed, enslaved, so that they get the desired honor. Everyone's hope of temporary bliss so strongly encourages and convinces them to take up all kinds of work and endure adversity. How the hope of future eternal and indescribable bliss will not encourage you to the feat, when you look at it with faith! I tell you the truth, Christian: the whole world with all its glory, honor, magnificence, wealth and other pleasures disgusts you. Dishonor, abuse and insult for the sake of Christ for your honor. There is no doubt about it for those who look with faith to the future glory of the sons of God. It depicts the word of God in different ways, and presents it to us as consolation and spiritual joy. But Saint Paul, the seer of God's unspeakable mysteries, concluded in brief words: what eye has not seen, and ear has not heard, and the heart of man has not sighed, what God has prepared for those who love Him 1308. And Christ speaks of His elect: then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father 1309. Temporal good, no matter how great it is, and no matter how long we have it, it is necessary, with the loss of this belly, and it will remain, and often even before the end it departs from us, nevertheless people seek it with such eagerness: even more, for the sake of obtaining eternal bliss, which God promised to those who love Him, nothing burdensome and uncomfortable should be owed to us. they know how, even though it seems sad to our flesh, especially when God Himself has promised to help us, and helps those who work hard and seek Him. Everything is possible for the one who believes and truly wants 1310. - 3) Imagine to yourself the image and character of both - old Adam and Christ, for our sake a former man, and think carefully: who is better to follow? Pride, high-mindedness, envy, malice, impurity, backbiting, gluttony, greed, cunning, flattery, lies, and other abominations are the characteristics of the old Adam. The cattle and animal nature of an old man is the nature: the ferocity of a lion, the cunning and cunning of a fox, the greed of a wolf, the uncleanliness and gluttony of a dog, the malice of a basilisk, etc. And which morals are especially divided in the wordless, they are found in a single old man. Such an abomination hides in an old man, and in such cases it shows itself with similar fruits. You yourself, seeing this disposition in your neighbor, abhor it, although you have the same in your heart; because we carry this evil in our hearts, as if it was born with us. Now turn the eyes of your heart to the character of Christ, who vividly describes His holy Gospel to us. In Him there is an ardent love that embraces all, friends and enemies, a heart that longs for salvation for all, the deepest humility, meekness and long-suffering to blasphemers, a sanctuary more than the purest world, favor to those who ask, mercy to the poor, compassion to the suffering, mercy to to sinners, goodness and condescension to all. Who wants to see God the heavenly Father? We see Him in Christ. Do we want to know His divine nature, how generous, merciful, long-suffering and many-merciful He is, how He longs for our salvation? In Christ, His only begotten Son, we will learn. I offer this to you about our Savior, Christian, not for the purpose of praising Him - He is the highest of our praises, Whom the heavenly powers praise, and the sun does not require proof to his world - but to introduce you to His Divine nature and excellent character, which by itself draws and attracts our hearts to love and imitate Him, and so, leaving an abomination of an old man, you were able to follow him with faith and love. We must look at this divine goodness with faith, and, as if looking into a mirror, we wipe away the vices from our faces, looking at it, wash away our sins and vices, which is better for our souls, by repentance, by giving up our evil character, and thus, with His help, we are renewed into a new person. Not just because it is soul-saving, as it was said above, but it is also sweet to follow Christ, the most good, merciful, merciful, humble, long-suffering, meek, and all the heavenly virtues are a treasure and a living image. Yes, let us renounce our wickedness, as they stink, and follow this divine and sweet fragrance. Christ is our teacher and mentor, who teaches and directs us on the path of truth: for we must learn from Him what He teaches us in word and image of a blameless life, and abide in His words, if we want to be His disciples, as He Himself said: if you abide in My words, you will truly be My disciples 1313 . Christ is the light of measure 1314: if we do not want to be in darkness, we must follow the Holy One so that darkness does not overwhelm us 1315. Christ is the bridegroom of faithful souls: all the faithful must cling to Him with faith and love, do His will. Christ is the truth and life 1316: we must cling to Him if we do not want to be deceived and die. - This will follow from what was said, that although Christ is the head of the faithful, it is not His limbs that are not united by faith and love to Him. Those who do not follow Him are not united to Him. They do not follow Him, as they do not imitate humility, patience, meekness and other divine morals. If Christ is the leader to heaven, then those who do not follow Him are inevitably led astray. If Christ is our shepherd, then they are not His sheep who do not listen to His voice: for My sheep, He says, listen to My voice, and I know them, and they come to Me 1317. Although Christ is our teacher and mentor, those who do not learn humility, patience, meekness, etc. from Him are not His disciples. If Christ is holy, those who do not follow Him will inevitably walk in darkness; because it is necessary to be in the darkness without exception, who withdraws from the world. Even Christ is the bridegroom of faithful souls, lest those who stray away from Him commit adultery. Even if Christ is the truth, those who do not adhere to Him are always deceived and deceived. If Christ is life, then the dead are those who are separated and separated from Him, as the saying goes: those who separate themselves from Thee will perish 1318. Find out, beloved Christian, how we need to follow Christ, so that only this is necessary 1319; on the contrary, how dangerously they depart from Him, Who alone has life and bliss. Let us shake off the pain, depression, and sinful burden, and run after Him, so that He may lead us to His heavenly Father to see face to face His holy kindness 1320. For without Him we cannot come there, as it is said: no one comes to the Father but by Me 1321. - 5) Therefore, we need Christ's love, and with love we follow Him who loved us. Loving us, He came down from heaven and came to the world; loving us, the high one humbled himself, the Son of God was pleased to be called the son of man and to be, God to appear in the flesh and live on earth, our King and Lord to come to us vile, poor, wretched and rejected slaves and talk to us in the eyes of a slave, and the image of humility, patience, meekness and love to us show, bear the cross and be crucified on the cross for our sake. May His divine and most ardent love draw us into His footsteps. Christ, suffer for us, leave us an image, and let us follow in His footsteps 1322. He freed us to suffer outside the gate. Therefore, let us go out to Him outside the camp, carrying His weariness 1323. That is, let's go out of this world, not with our body and feet, but with our hearts; let us leave behind us the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, as our kin, and with patience let us go on the feat before us, looking to the Head of faith and the Author of Jesus 1324. Therefore, glory, honor and thanksgiving be, with the Father and the Holy Spirit forever. Amen A brief explanation of this article. And God spoke to us in His Son, as the Apostle wrote: in many ways and in many ways God spoke as a father in the prophets, in the last days He spoke to us in His Son 1327. Even if someone fulfills a duty to Christ, he also fulfills a duty to God; and whoever leaves his duty to Christ leaves his duty to God. Because he does not honor the Son, he does not honor the Father who sent Him 1328. One cannot believe in God who does not believe in Christ the Son of God. One cannot love, honor, and work for God who does not love, honor, and work for Christ. And such a person, who does not have faith in God, is godless, although he confesses God with his mouth; because a person should have God-fear in his heart. 3) This duty to Christ the Son of God is understood, since He appeared in the flesh, suffered passion and death on the cross for our sake. Otherwise, the office that belongs to God also belongs to him, because Christ is God, the second Person of the Holy Trinity, who is worshiped with the Father and the Holy Spirit. 4) We cannot fulfill our duties to God and Christ the Son of God by ourselves, because the flesh always desires the spirit 1329. For this reason, we should diligently pray for God Himself to help us unfailingly with His grace. 5) Whoever does not shy away from the duty of Christ, the Son of God, as his Redeemer, Deliverer and Savior, to give together with the Father and the Holy Spirit, is ungrateful, and walks in blindness and error, and will inevitably perish when he does not realize and turn to God. Because there is no one who is weak, there is no one who is blind, let him be forgotten by the cleansing of his ancient sins 1330. Genesis 1, 3, 6, 9, 11, 14, 15, 20, 24. Mf. 3, 16, 17; Mk. 1, 9–11; Lk. 3, 21, 22. Mf. 21, 7–9; Mk. 11, 7–10; Lk. 19, 35–38; In. 12, 14, 15. Lk. 24, 7, 21; 1 Cor. 15, 4; Deyan. 10, 40. Mk. 16, 19; Lk. 24, 51; Deyan. 1, 9–11. Mf. 12, 29; Ps. 67, 19. Song 9th voice of the 2nd; Song song 5, 16. Mf. 9, 34; 12, 24; Mk. 3, 22; Lk. 11, 15. Mf. 26, 65; Mk. 2, 7; 14, 64; Lk. 5, 21. In. 8, 48, 52; Mk. 3, 22, 21; Mf. 11, 19; Lk. 7, 34. Conversation on the post to Gal. 2, 20. On Christmas Eve. Mf. 15, 30, 31; 17, 17; 9, 25, etc. Conversation on the 18th to Rome In the word about virginity and on Ps. 68th, vol. 1. Qty. 3, 9, 10; Ef. 4, 22–24.