НАГРАДА

The Lord knows our innermost thoughts, and when He sees that we desire what is due and show sanity in ourselves, He stretches out His hand to us and rewards us before our labors, thereby rousing us to greater zeal. And this can be seen in the lives of all the righteous. Knowing the weakness of human nature, He, so that we do not lose heart in hard work, often gives us help and rewards in the midst of our labors, both making our work easier and intensifying our zeal.(1) Let us, husbands, at least imitate our wives and not show ourselves to be worse than them; Let us take care not only to spend all our wealth on our own pleasures, but we will also take care of the charity of those in need, and we will do this with zeal and pleasure. A farmer, throwing seeds into the ground, does it not with sorrow, but with joy and cheerfulness, and leaves his seeds in the ground with such confidence, as if he were already seeing the sheaves. So you, beloved, do not look at what the poor man receives from you and what costs he puts you into, but imagine that Another accepts from your hands what you do for the poor man standing in front of you, and this Other is not some ordinary person, but the Lord of all, the Lord of all, the Creator of heaven and earth. And your expenses become an acquisition and not only do not reduce your estate, but increase it even more, if only you do it with faith and joyful zeal. I will say about the highest good: in addition to other gains from such expenses, you are also given remission of sins: and what can compare with this good? So, if we want to be enriched with true wealth, and along with wealth to receive forgiveness of sins, then we will transfer our property into the hands of those in need, we will send it to heaven, where neither a thief, nor a robber, nor the crime of a slave, nor anything else can harm our wealth. That country is above all such evil. Only let us do this not out of vanity, but according to the commandments of God, trying not to gain praise from people, but from the Lord who is common to all: otherwise we will incur costs and lose gains, because the wealth transferred to heaven by the hands of the poor, becoming inaccessible to all other slander, can be destroyed by vanity alone. Just as moths and worms harm clothing, so the wealth collected in heaven by alms is harmed by vanity. That’s why I beg you: let us not only do alms, but let us also do them with caution, so that for small things we may receive great benefits, for corruptible things – incorruptible things, for temporary things – eternal things, and so that, in addition to all this, we will be able to receive remission of sins and eternal ineffable benefits (1). We, who always live in sins and vices, if we ever do any small good, then, following the example of reckless slaves, we calculate with great pettiness and with strict accuracy determine the reward, if only the deed deserves some kind of payment. But you will receive a greater reward if you work not in hope of a reward. After all, talking about this and accurately calculating are activities more characteristic of a mercenary than of a prudent servant. Everything must be done for Christ, and not for reward. That is why He threatened Gehenna and promised the Kingdom so that we would love Him. So, let us love Christ as much as we should love: in this is the great reward, in this is the Kingdom and joy, pleasure and glory and honor, in this is light, innumerable bliss, which neither words can express nor the mind comprehend (11). You might be interested in: