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Matthew 7:1. “Judge not, lest ye be judged,”
“Judge not, lest ye be judged. By whom you judge, you will be judged (Matthew 7:1,2). Lord, grant us not to judge the living, much less the dead. You are the only righteous Judge, as Creator and Lawgiver, of the living and the dead. And grant us to strictly judge ourselves and ask the deceased for forgiveness and forgiveness of sins, voluntary and involuntary, for the deceased" [6, 104].
“He who is without sin among you, be the first to throw a stone at her (cf. John 8:7). Are you without sin, why do you condemn your neighbor and breathe hatred towards him? You say: she does nothing, eats bread for nothing; What are you doing, are you doing a lot? How are you doing? Don't you often, when you have the strength, spend time in inaction and laziness? – Judge not, lest ye be judged (Matthew 7:1). Let the brother be guilty against God, well, God will judge him; but why would you hate him? This shows that you are jealous not for God, but for the devil, for hatred is his business; guilty against you - forgive his debts against you: forgive us, you say, our debts, just as we forgive our debtors (Matthew 6:12). “The more you forgive others who sin against you, the more you will be forgiven” [8, 557].
“Let us assume that even among the poor there is no sin; all people are sinners, and among them there are actual drunkards and parasites. But I will say the word to these strict judges - not mine, but the Lord's, what will they say to him? With what judgment you judge, you will be judged, and with what measure you use, it will be measured to you (cf. Matthew 7:1). Are you pure and righteous before God, judging the lesser brethren so strictly? And you, I would tell them, are eternal conscientious workers, abstinent, chaste, uncorrupted to the depths of your heart, uncovetous, your wealth was acquired by righteous labors, your conscience does not convict you of lies, untruths, bribes, idleness, idle games that feed self-interest, envy, vanity, rivalry, mutual enmity and hostility, feasts, all kinds of luxury, etc.? And you dare to raise an eyebrow and condemn the lesser brethren to go on hunger strike and almost starve to death? But do the poor have an iron nature, made of steel, and not servile and weak, like all of us, that they are not allowed to drink, eat, or warm themselves in a warm corner, after being frozen in the cold for several hours” [9, 29].
“My brothers! When you are sick, first of all, bring repentance to God for your sins, resort to the Almighty Physician - eat His Life-Giving Body and Life-Giving Blood. There is a secret and close connection between sin and illness. But the scribe sat and thought in his hearts, “Why is this one speaking blasphemous words?” who can forgive sins except God alone? (Mark 2:6–7.) To the crafty, envious and ambitious scribes, that is, to the learned Jewish teachers, the good deed of Jesus Christ seemed blasphemous and confused them. So now, brethren, the evil man is led into temptation by good deeds: you go to church to pray to God, read holy books, move away from entertainment, amusements, shows, companies; They say: what a hypocrite. You give alms, they say: he breeds parasites. But isn’t it better for these crafty people to look at themselves for what they are, rather than to judge and condemn others? We must remember the words of the Righteous Judge: do not judge, lest you be judged (Matthew 7:1). Jesus Christ, as the Knower of the Heart, exposed the evil thoughts of His opponents.
He said to them, “What are you thinking in your hearts?” what is more convenient; Say to the paralytic: are your sins forgiven? or say: Arise, and take up your bed, and walk (Compare: Mark 2:8, 9)? [9, 82].
“When a stranger comes to the altar during the Liturgy - to stand in the altar - do not be indignant at him in your heart, do not judge him and do not say to yourself: why did he come here? Is there no place for him in the church - along with other believers? He is not worthy to be here, but judge yourself sincerely and say: I am more unworthy than him, due to my sins, but the Lord allows me to stand at His very throne. And you will do what is right. Your heart will calm down from confusion, and the Lord will give you a testimony in your heart that you have done a thing pleasing to Him, having sincerely condemned yourself. – Judge not, lest ye be judged (Matthew 7:1). Be patient with everyone (1 Thess. 5:14)” [10, 359].
Matthew 7:2. “For with the judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”
“The truth of God demands that those who pray with all their hearts be heard. Faithful is He who said: Whenever you measure, it will be measured back to you (Matthew 7:2). You gave God your heart in prayer - and He will give Himself to you. Or: ask, and it will be given to you (Matthew 7:7; Luke 11:9)” [2, 90].
“Never give up prayer or conversation with God during life - and God will not leave you at death and after death. He will fulfill His words: you measure accordingly, and it will be measured back to you (Matthew 7:2)” [2.159].
“As the Lord is righteous and love righteousness!” (Ps. 10:7). I, humble, many sinners, preached the word of God at the order of my superiors in the cathedral church. With God’s help, my preaching went on successfully for a whole year: the listeners, as you know, were pleased with it, and the censors - two archimandrites - were also very pleased, to the point that one of them exalted my conversations with praise. I willingly worked on the matter. God, well-intentioned, conscientiously. But what did envy and malice do to me later? Or better yet, not to me, but to the word of God? Having spoken for another year, I had to continue the work of preaching without grumbling, I willingly accepted this, although it was not entirely legal to force me to practice this for another year. I spoke, as usual, for consideration of my conversations, compiled as before. in good faith. What do anger and envy do? They smear my work and scold me as much as possible, ordering me to remain silent. Reluctantly, I accepted the pressure of human malice and, out of grief, did not know what to do: justify myself or remain silent.
I thought it best to remain silent. I thought: after all, the Lord will faithfully fulfill His Word: Vengeance is Mine, I will repay (Rom. 12:19). Or: measure accordingly, and it will be measured back to you (Matthew 7:2; Mark 4:24). So what? Soon, soon the Lord would take revenge on my worst enemies for me before I even thought about it. In print, in the hearing of the whole world, He exposed the untruths of my judges, and they should blush for themselves in the face of all the people who blow, as if on a horn, about their vile untruths! Glory to Your justice, O Lord! Your word has been fulfilled: Vengeance is Mine, I will repay (Rom. 12:19). And: measure accordingly, it will be measured back to you (Matthew 7:2)” [2, 194–195].
“The trouble we have is from sin: it furrows and tears at our soul throughout the entire course of our lives, even when doing good deeds. – Sometimes people complain that bosses or ordinary people forget all the good things they have done and remember only the bad and only pay for the bad. But the word of the Savior is true: measure accordingly, and it will be measured back to you (Matthew 7:2; Mark 4:24; Luke 6:38). You forget God’s blessings to you, but look and grumble at His punishments, which, although severe, are all beneficial in their consequences. Don’t complain if they forget your goodness, and only see your evil, which is truly evil. “That’s why we need a Savior, Who would constantly save us from sin in this life, and who would completely deliver us from it in the future” [2, 209].
“You insulted Christ: you gave the beggar a small 2-kopeck coin and said: “Your happiness.” Is this a joke, or what? Did you submit a lot? “When you measure accordingly, it will be measured back to you (Matthew 7:2)” [2, 289–290].
"By having judged your friend, you have condemned lice for yourself (Rom. 2:1). If you measure accordingly, it will be measured back to you (Matthew 7:2; Mark 4:24). You should never condemn others for any weaknesses or vices, because the one who condemns is often punished by God with permission to do the same thing that he condemned in others. All people have weaknesses, and you are the same person and can very easily be subjected to the same weaknesses, and when you are exposed, you will be judged in the same way as you judged others, even more harshly. “Measure accordingly, it will be measured to you,” said the Savior” [2, 380].
“Deny yourself sensual pleasures in the hope that instead of them you will receive higher, spiritual, divine pleasures. Show every kindness to your neighbor in the hope that, according to the righteousness of God, it will be measured to you, according to every measure [Cf.: Matt. 7:2 ] that the good you have done to your neighbor will sooner or later return to your bosom, just as the evil you have done to him will either immediately or soon return to your bosom. Remember that we are one body. We are many in one body [1 Cor. 10:17]. Remember that God is righteous to the highest degree, to the last iota” [5, vol. 1, 167].
“Do not allow the devil to plant anger and enmity towards your neighbor in your heart, do not allow it to nest in your heart in any way; otherwise, your malice, although not expressed in words, but expressed only in your gaze, can infect your brother through the sight and soul (for nothing is as contagious as malice, especially it conveniently infects those who have an excess of undormant malice in their hearts), fanning the spark of malice in him into a whole flame. Be careful: if you measure according to measure, it will be measured to you [Cf.: Matt. 7:2]. It is not hidden, and it will not be revealed; below it is hidden, and it will not be known, and it will come into manifestation [Lk. 8:17]" [5, vol. 1, 198].
“You, filled with all unrighteousness, thirst to endure all unrighteousness from people, so that the judgments of God’s righteousness may appear on you in this life [Cf.: Rom. 2:3]. You measure accordingly to your Lord and to your neighbor, so that it may also be measured to you [Cf.: Matt. 7:2]. Always keep in mind the example of the greatest Righteous Jesus Christ, the Son of God, Who, with His righteousness, suffered all the unrighteousness of people against Him, was lifted up on the cross and put to death by a most shameful death” [5, vol. 1, 218].
“God grant that our fraternal union with our deceased relatives and those we know does not cease beyond the grave, so that love does not go out even after death, but burns with a bright flame - and the always sincere memory of the deceased always remains in us until our death. With what measure we measure, it will be measured to us [Wed: Mk. 4:24 ; Matt. 7:2]" [5, vol. 2, 502].
“God is inexhaustible for people in His gifts. For 7370 years [written in 1863] He has abundantly nourished all creatures. Contentment and joy are visible everywhere, only the greedy rich people grab too much into their hands and hold back the gifts of God in their treasuries, which could abundantly feed hundreds and thousands of poor people. - Human! Believe firmly in the inexhaustibility of God in His gifts and willingly crush your bread to those who are hungry [Isa. 58:7 ]; The more you give, the more God will send you. This is God’s law: if you measure according to measure, it will be measured to you [Cf.: Matt. 7:2]" [5, vol. 2, 554].
“The Lord God shared, so to speak, His endless life with us: we are all deified by His Most Pure Flesh and Blood, united with the Divine. Az reh: you are gods and sons of the Most High [Ps. 81:6]. (Our Father, Who art in heaven). Shouldn't we, according to His will, share what serves to support our soul and body: our mind, our knowledge, our material property, with our neighbors, while He Himself promised us not impoverishment, but an increase in the talents entrusted to us and increased by us? With all measure it will be measured to you [Matt. 7:2]. If God accepted us into the communion of the Divine, into the communion of His Flesh and Blood, then we must have everything in common, without indulging in idleness and parasitism, i.e. the rich should help the poor, give alms if possible, receive the strange, visit the sick, console the sad, instruct the ignorant, admonish the erring, forgive offenses, remembering that we are all Christ’s. And Christ will reward everyone and everything. Be hungry, and give Me food... [Matt. 25:35 ] and so on.” [5, vol. 2, 449].
“The saints fulfilled the word of the Lord; The Lord fulfills their word; They did for Him, He did for them. Measure with due measure, the Lord Himself said, it will be measured to you [Matt. 7:2]. That is why the Lord quickly fulfills the prayers for us saints” [5, vol. 2, 550].
“The edge of sorrow, which you thrust innocently into someone else’s heart, will also enter your heart, according to the strict law of retribution: measure according to the least measure, it will be measured to you [Matt. 7:2]. If you don’t want grief, don’t do it to someone else” [5, vol. 2, 316].
“When we pray, we must remember that we are members of each other and must pray for everyone, just as the Lord’s Prayer does. The apostles are an example of this, as are all the saints. If you remember this and pray for others, then the holy angels will pray for us, as members of one Kingdom of Christ, one Church, one body. When you measure accordingly, it will be measured back to you [Matt. 7:2]" [5, vol. 2, 530].
“If someone treated you somewhere proudly, then remember if you treated someone proudly in the same way: measure with measure, it is said, it will be measured to you (Matthew 7:2); and do not have indignation and enmity towards that person, but blame yourself and consider his act as retribution for your pride: in the image of those who sin, it is said, they suffer (Wis. 11:17). - You sinned with pride: you will suffer from the pride of another - may you hate pride in yourself and in others and may you learn humility. For you cannot see the stench of pride in yourself, but in others you can easily see how disgusting it is. “Do not pay for pride with pride, for arrogance with arrogance, but conquer evil with good (Rom. 12:21), conquer pride and arrogance with meekness and humility” [8, 677].
“Do not allow the devil to instill in your heart malice and enmity towards your neighbor and do not allow it in any way to nest in your heart, otherwise your malice, although not expressed in words and deeds, but expressed only in your gaze, can infect through the sight and soul of a brother or sister, for nothing is as contagious as malice (especially it conveniently infects those who have an excess of dormant malice in their hearts), and fan the spark of anger in him into a whole flame. Be careful: if you measure just enough, it will be measured to you (cf. Matthew 7:2). There is nothing in secret that will not be revealed, below it is hidden, and it will come into manifestation (Cf.: Mark 4:22; Luke 8:17)" [10, 290].
“If you do not love your enemies... then God will not love you... In every measure you measure, it will be measured to you (Matthew 7:2)” [10, 431].
“If we pray sincerely, with all zeal, bringing every word to the heart, then we notice: the Lord fulfills every word of our prayers, grants all petitions that lead to salvation. And if not sincerely, without sympathy, then it deprives us of many spiritual and even material benefits. Measure with due measure, He says, and it will be measured back to you (Matthew 7:2). In your hands, so to speak, all the blessings of the Lord are in your hands - and through fervent prayer you can receive everything” [10, 465].
“Let your silver be with you to destruction, for you did not covet the gift of the Holy Spirit to acquire silver (cf.: Acts 8:20). The gifts of the Holy Spirit are priceless and unsellable. - Equally, the human soul is priceless and unsaleable. - For a hungry soul, do not spare anything; ten, a hundred, a thousand, a million times throughout your life, do not spare anything for a brother, for the soul brother is priceless: it is worth every earthly, transitory treasure, being itself eternal and of Divine origin... - Leave him his debts without number, and countless sins will be forgiven you (Matt. 6:12).
“Everyone, hate your brother, there is a murderer (1 John 3:15), and I am this murderer, Lord! From now on I want to love everyone, despite any pretexts for hatred, plausible and unseemly, because they are all empty pretexts. - Help, Lord: without You I can do nothing (Wed: John 15:5). Even if you take everything from me, Lord, but grant me to preserve love, give me the strength to forgive everything, and to preserve love, so that otherwise I will not destroy my soul forever. Amen.
Love is poured out in the voluntary giving of something that belongs to us as a gift to our neighbor. Because of what trifles, because of what dream, we often hate our brother, as if we have some right to hate him, and we ourselves become more guilty than our brother, even if he has sinned in something, because we hate him: for hatred is the greatest sin, it is murder. - Oh, when we learn to work for the Lord of our belly and the Judge of the whole world - with a pure heart! When pure love, indestructible love, settles between us! When we begin to place all our hope, all our sorrow on our Heavenly Father, who cares for us (Cf. 1 Pet. 5:7), His children! - Father! Father! Father! How can we forget You and Your Providence, the Nourisher of every creature? - How long will we despise the words of Your Son: measure with the least measure, it will be measured back to you (Matthew 7:2) and: seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness: and all these things will be added to you (Matthew 6:33), - Father! Give me the strength to place all my hope in You! Grant me to despise demonic dreams and not obey them” [11, 442].
Matthew 7:3. “And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not feel the plank in your own eye?”
Matthew 7:5. "Hypocrite! First take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see how to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.”
“Remember the saying of Holy Scripture: do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good [Rom. 12:21]. They are rude to you, they irritate you, they breathe contempt and malice at you - do not repay the same, but be quiet, meek and affectionate, respectful and loving towards those who behave unworthily in front of you. If you yourself become embarrassed and speak with emotion, rudely, contemptuously and, therefore, without any love, then you yourself are defeated and those who offended you have the right to say to you: doctor, heal yourself [Lk. 4:23 ], or why do you see the mote in your brother's eye, but do not feel the plank in your eye?.. First remove the log from your side [Matt. 7:3, 5]. Do not be surprised if rudeness from those who insult you is often repeated to you, for they will notice your weakness and will deliberately irritate you. Do not be defeated by evil, but overcome evil with good.
Show the one who insulted you that he did not offend you, but himself, take pity on him from the heart, that he is so conveniently overcome by his passions, that he is mentally ill, show him the greater meekness and love the more rude and irritable he is, the more he hates you - and you will surely defeat him. – Good is always stronger than evil and therefore is always victorious. Remember also that we are all weak, we are extremely easily overcome by any passion, and therefore be meek and lenient towards those who sin against you, knowing that you yourself often suffer from the same illness as your brother; forgive your debts to your debtors, and the Heavenly Father will also forgive you your debts, unlike the great debts of your debtors. Be always calm, sublime, unobtrusive, strong in spirit, simple and kind in heart - and you will always triumph over your enemies. Rebuking the wicked wounds him. Do not reprove the evil, lest they hate you...; tell the righteous, and he will apply [Prov. 9:7–9 ]” [5, vol. 1, 125].
“When reprimanding subordinates for their faults, carefully refrain from zeal, irritability and embarrassment and be meek, loving, sedate and calm. If the person subject to correction is offended, meekly notice to him that you do not at all have the intention of offending and irritating him, but sincerely wish him good and order in his business, that it is not him that disgusts you, but the disorder that he creates. Do not insult his pride and human dignity by elevating yourself in his eyes and humiliating him; if you have this weakness (pride), it is better to stop correcting others and heal yourself first: first take the plank out of your spiritual eye, and then see to remove the mote from your brother’s spiritual eye [Matt. 7:5]. Otherwise, you will only irritate your neighbor and will not bring him any moral benefit. Be meek and condescending to others when making comments about their shortcomings, remembering that you yourself have shortcomings, and great shortcomings.
You accuse another, let’s say, of drunkenness, but if you yourself drink or if you don’t drink, you feast on food, indulge in gluttony, become satiated, because you sin just like him. Correct yourself from gluttony, and then you will speak strongly against the drunkenness of others. You accuse another of negligence in service, and you yourself, perhaps, are also negligent. Doctor, heal yourself [Lk. 4:23]" [5, vol. 2, 563].
“I have seen and heard people who, with slyness and gloating, talk about some dark spots in the life and activities of great and even holy people, and because of these dark, imaginary or true spots, they condemn a person’s entire life, calling him a hypocrite and almost an apostate. They will present you with facts - only these facts are as dark and doubtful as their suspicious, crafty soul is dark, which from someone else’s stain, from someone else’s sin, from someone else’s weakness wants to extract for itself an imaginary justification for its vicious deeds. But they will not justify themselves, but rather bring condemnation upon themselves for the fact that they see a blight in their brother’s eye and condemn him; but they do not sense logs (truly logs) in their eyes [Matt. 7:3]. You say: in this holy father or in this pious man there are such and such sins. So what? He is a man, and no man is without sin. If we say that we are not imams of sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us [1 Jn. 1:8]. But are you without sin? If not, why are you throwing a stone of condemnation at your brother?
If I began to analyze your life, according to the word of God, then I would condemn you in your own words of countless and grave sins: in pride, and in arrogance, and in unbelief, and in covetousness, and in adultery, and in misinterpretation of the word of God and the commandments of God, and in coldness towards your faith... and you never know what. I would find that perhaps your whole body is dark, because your heart's eye is deceitful. Oh! How disgusting I am with this devilish gloating about my neighbor’s sin, this hellish effort to prove his true or imaginary weakness. And people who do this still dare to say that they respect and try with all their might to fulfill the law of love for God and neighbor! What kind of love for one’s neighbor is there when even in great and holy people they deliberately want to see and look for dark spots, for one sin they denigrate his whole life and do not want to cover up the sin of his neighbor, if he really exists? They forgot that love covers everything [1 Cor. 13:7]. How much evil these moral worms do to themselves and others!
They undermine the legitimate respect for a famous person in many, darken her light for them, distract them from imitation of her and confuse their souls with thoughts of condemnation, and they harm themselves by accepting from the devil the poison of condemning their neighbor. Brother! Who are you to judge a foreign slave? his Lord stands or falls. It will become: for God is strong to establish him [Rom. 14:4]" [5, vol. 2, 387].
“The priest, as a doctor of souls, must himself be free from mental illnesses, i.e. from passions to heal others; as a shepherd, he must himself be shepherded in green pastures, evangelical and patristic, in order to know where to feed the verbal sheep; he himself must be skilled in fighting mental wolves in order to be able to drive them away from the flock of Christ; must be skilled and strong in prayer and abstinence; should not be bound by worldly lusts and pleasures, especially covetousness, love of fame, pride; in a word, he must himself be light in order to enlighten others, spiritual salt in order to protect others from spiritual corruption, and he himself must be free from the corruption of passions. Otherwise, every spiritually sick person can say to him: doctor, heal yourself [Lk. 4:23 ] in advance, and then I will let you heal yourself. O hypocrite, remove the first log from your hair, and then you will see that the mote has been removed from my mind [Cf.: Matt. 7:5]" [5, vol. 2, 305].
"Loving human glory more than the glory of God (John 12:43). My God! How much we torment ourselves because of our love of glory! How we torment ourselves simply because we do not love the glory of God! So they surrounded me with vain words, they attributed to me, right or wrong, this or that bad quality, this or that passion: and I seethe with anger, malice and vengeance at who offended me unfairly or justly, as if the one who offended me - this, like me, is a weak creature - deprives me, in fact, of my good name, deprives me of happiness, even, as it were, deprives me of my very life; then I forget my God, Who alone is the God of glory and who alone in justice gives glory or dishonor to everyone; I do not pay attention to the ulcers of my heart, to the scabs of sin with which it is all covered, to the abomination of my iniquities, committed secretly and openly before the God of glory, Who alone is the Judge and the Rewarder (Cf.: Heb.
11:6) mine, leading all that is manifest and hidden; I do not judge myself unmercifully, impartially, as I should, I do not consider myself the most sinful of all, worthy of all reproach, trampled upon by everyone - but I look only at the sin against me of my brother, who, perhaps, through the machinations of the enemy, insulted me: for we all walk among his snares. – I see a mote in his spiritual eye, but in mine I do not see a log (See: Matthew 7:3); I have no compassion for the Lord suffering innocently on the cross, Who innocently endured slander and slander during his lifetime and was completely innocently ascended to the cross - the most shameful execution of man. - My God! How crazy and unfair we are to ourselves when we hunger for human glory like treasures, like food, and don’t remember, don’t care about the glory of God! How much internal torment corrupts our soul; what a disorderly, unhealthy turbulence of the blood there is! How much harm is there for our professional pursuits if we are not able, through the power of faith and heartfelt prayer, to overcome in ourselves the feeling of hatred and vengeance towards the offender! - Oh, my brothers!
Let us love the glory of God: and then human glory will be an empty sound for us; then we will have in our souls constant, deep peace and an ever-present sense of our high dignity as Christians - sons and heirs of God and joint heirs of Christ in the future life (cf. Rom. 8:17) - dignity, before which all earthly dignity is insignificant, as temporary and transitory. - Zealous for the glory of God, we ourselves will desire, as a good thing, human condemnation, as a worthy retribution for our vices, depriving us of the eternal glory of God, as a corrective punishment sent to us by God for our sins, as a cure, as an antidote to the sinful poison that has infected our entire heart and is gradually corrupting our soul, destined for blissful immortality and union with God. – The Righteous Lord punishes us in this world not always directly, but often through the same people with whom we live and before whom we reveal our passions and sinful inclinations.
And people who wrongfully or righteously offend us become, against their will, our own benefactors, revealing hidden passions in us and giving us a reason to correct ourselves. And so we will accept all slander and slander from people as the mercy of God” [8, 265].
“There are people who speak with ridicule about people who are at times subject to fits of anger: they talk about convulsions on their face or the expression of anger on the face itself, about the color or pallor appearing on their face under certain circumstances, and so on. But I feel sorry for such people (both of them), slaves of demonic cunning and their passions, and I am ready to quickly pray for them as if they were weak, for those who are angry are weak, and those who condemn are also weak: both of them sin through enmity. I admit that I myself often have waters of anger (cf. Ps. 68:2), impatience and irritability that reach my soul, and I am ready for no reason to be angry in my heart with my brother, even sometimes with a baby, or because of some stupid reason. “Who are you, my brother, to judge a stranger’s slave?” (Rom. 14:4). Aren't you the son of Adam and Eve? Hasn't the damage affected your being? Are you not corrupted by all sorts of passions? Do you not see a bitch in your brother’s eye, but in your spiritual eye you do not see even a whole log (cf. Matt. 7:3) that has overwhelmed and darkened your soul?
- So, friend, first remove the thorn from your hair, and then see clearly to remove the knot from your brother’s hair (cf. Matthew 7:5). – Remember what the Lord said about all people: you are evil (Luke 11:13) and that no one is good, except one God (Matthew 19:17). – Listen also to what the Lord said: the rain came down, the rivers came, the winds blew, and the church was questioned (Matthew 7:27). Do you know what this means? - But here’s what: rain and rivers are a manifold malice of the devil, constantly rushing towards our hearts due to our inattention and oversight: it is called rain because of its frequency and insight into our soul, and a river - because of the great eroding power with which the devil’s malice rushes to our hearts. – The winds are the spirits of wickedness in the heavens (cf. Eph. 6:12), which, like stormy and destructive winds, howl and roar in our soul in the actions of various passions. Questioning that church: these rain, rivers and demonic winds unanimously rest on our soul, which is likewise called the church. - So you see, friend, what happens to a poor man?
How can he firmly resist such strong temptations if he does not have firm faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and has not learned to overcome demonic temptations through sincere prayer? Shouldn't we feel sorry for him, shouldn't we pray like brothers? “Isn’t this what the Lord points to when he says: love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you and pray for those who harm you (Matthew 5:44)” [10, 472].
“Everyone is his own master: because every person is the image of God, endowed with reason and freedom; everyone has a conscience, and we must be careful not to see a bitch in our brother’s father (Matthew 7:3), not to worry about him to the point of pettiness, because this would be an insult to his reason and free will and a desecration of the image of God, especially not to point out to him when he satisfies hunger and thirst: for even animals, by one natural instinct, know how to eat and drink - as much as they need - not only man, being reasonable. So, we must abandon this restless and petty concern for our neighbor living with us. God Himself, acting all in all (1 Cor. 12:6), guides everyone in everything. And we must know ourselves - let our hearts not be burdened with gluttony and drunkenness (Luke 21:34)” [11, 400].
Matthew 7:6. “Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet and turn and tear you to pieces.”
“Have the same attention and respect for every word that you have for a living person, and firmly believe that the Word of God is alive and active, like a living being, like an Angel, and, due to its spiritual subtlety, passes to the division of soul and spirit, members and brains, and is judged by the thoughts and thoughts of the heart [Heb. 4:12]. The Word of God is God Himself. - So, when you speak, believe that you are dealing with living, and not with dead, beings, with active, and not with inert and powerless ones. Know that you must speak every word with faith and confidence. – Words are living beads. Do not cast your pearls before swine [Matt. 7:6]" [5, vol. 2, 475].
“Oh, how comforting, my brothers, to think and be sure that in heaven there is such an everlasting, zealous and never-sleeping Intercessor and Intercessor for us sinners before God! What cannot She intercede for the Christian race, which always blesses, glorifies, magnifies Her? Yes, everything can be interceded, however, only by those Christians who have not fallen asleep in sinful death, who themselves with faith stretch out their hands to Her with a prayer for help, or in the prayer of doxology and thanksgiving, who themselves try to live like a Christian, to fulfill Christ’s commandments and, although they sin due to human weakness and some kind of oblivion, they soon rebel, learning the flattery of sin, and again take up good deeds, for their salvation.
The prayers of the Mother of God help such Christians a lot, but the prayers of the Mother of God are not effective for those who are careless in prayer and in every good deed, who through negligence fall from one sin to another, from one vice to another, for the gifts of God's grace are perceived by us through faith, through our own desire and search for them: God does not cast his pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet (cf. Matt. 7:6 ). However, what am I saying: not valid? - No, even for them the prayer of the Mother of God is valid, for She also asks Her Son for them, so that He would suffer them more and more, will they not wake up from their sinful sleep, will they not recognize the abyss of evil in which they are mired, will they not wish for heavenly help, will they not sigh to God? And how many She raised with Her prayers from the depths of sin! – An example of this is the Venerable Mary of Egypt, who from the greatest harlot became the greatest righteous woman, equal to the angels. It was the prayers of the Mother of God that made her wake up from a sinful sleep, flow to repentance and decide to change her life” [9, 298].
Matthew 7:7. “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you;”
Matthew 7:8. “For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.”
Matthew 7:9. “Is there a man among you who, when his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone?”
Matthew 7:10. “And when he asks for a fish, would you give him a snake?”
Matthew 7:11. “If you therefore, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask Him.”
“Ask and it will be given to you (Matthew 7:7; Luke 11:9). So, it will certainly be given to the one who asks. Why is this so? Precisely because we turn to God in prayer; and whoever turns to God surely changes morally for the better, and to such people the Lord gives His gifts” [2, 41].
“Until now there was a great flaw in your prayer: you wanted to receive what you asked for at once and did not receive it right away, weakening in faith and prayer; again pray constantly, relentlessly with growing faith: Press... and it will be opened to you (Matthew 7:7)” [2, 88].
“Ask, seek... press (Matthew 7:7), - says the Savior. Why exactly is it necessary to ask, why does God, who knows our needs in advance, not give us without our request? - Because a rational being must know and feel its constant dependence on God, must know that all its natural gifts are from God, as from the Source of all good things. Therefore, it is necessary to ask so that it does not consider the gifts of the Lord to be its own and does not become proud of them. - For this The goal is that a rational being should be grateful to its Creator and Benefactor for everything. Give thanks in everything: this is the will of God in Christ Jesus (1 Thess. 5:18) 1" [2, 189].
“When you ask some kind, merciful person who does good for something, you think during the request itself: he will certainly do what I ask of him, because he is so merciful and kind. Do the same, be sure to do the same when you ask the Lord God in prayer, unless, however, your prayer is worthy. Will God not fulfill our just requests? Ask, says the Savior, and it will be given to you (Matthew 7:7; Luke 11:9). Human mercy is only a weak shadow of God’s mercy: Even if you are evil, beings..." (Cf. Matthew 7:11)" [2, 361].
“You have gone far in your judgment of Father Paul: return to that initial judgment that you had about him on your first meeting with him. In general, always judge condescendingly, humbly about his apparently unseemly actions: he is your boss: measure according to your measure, and it will be measured back to you (Mark 4:24). You are proud and therefore you look too strictly and haughtily at his every action. Try to judge Father Matthew in the same lenient way” [2, 383].
“If God gave us existence - the greatest gift of goodness, if after we fell away from Him and fell from life to death, He gave us His Son to regenerate us, to bring us to life, then how small are all the other benefits that we ask Him in prayer, so that at the first sincere word of faith He can grant them to us, if they are essential for us, and how inexcusable we are when we doubt receiving them from God in prayer! The Savior said directly: ask, and it will be given to you [Matt. 7:7]" [5, vol. 1, 58].
“Great encouragement and consolation, and great hope are given to those praying by these assuring words of the Lord: ask and it will be given to you... and further - who is the man of you whose son, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone for food? .. [Matt. 7:7, 9]. If others ask me for something and I, although evil due to the depravity of nature, listen to the requests of others, their words move my heart to mercy and help, and my hand to giving, then will not my words, my sincere petition move the most humane Womb of the Lord to mercy and help to me, although a sinner, but still His creation, the work of His hands? If earthly fathers are good, then how much more so is the Heavenly Father? If I am good, isn’t God, the Source of goodness, even more good? Even if you are wicked, you know how to give good things to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask Him [Matt. 7:11]. Confirm your faith and hope in God through the earthly relationships of fathers to children. After all, we are all children of the Heavenly Father, the One, in truth, Father of all creatures” [5, vol. 1, 121].
“Our hope of receiving what we ask for during prayer is based on faith in the goodness and generosity of God, for there is a God of mercy and generosity and a Lover of mankind, and at the same time we remember the previous countless experiences of goodness and mercy both in other people (in Holy Scripture and in the lives of saints) and in us. Therefore, for the success of prayer, it is also necessary that the one praying has already received what he previously asked for and firmly believes in it in his heart. Often through our prayer we receive what we ask for, especially for the salvation of our souls; we must attribute this directly to the Lord, to His grace, and not to any chance. Where can chance be given place in the Kingdom of the Sovereign God? Without Him, nothing truly comes to be, just as without Him nothing could come into being [Jn. 1:3]. Many do not pray because it seems to them that they have not received any gifts from God through prayer, or they consider prayer an unnecessary matter; God, they say, knows everything before we ask, and they forget what is said: ask, and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; push, and it will be opened to you [Matt. 7:7].
Our petitions (prayers) are needed precisely to strengthen our faith, by which alone we are saved: by grace we are naturally saved through faith [Eph. 2:8 ]; O woman, great is your faith [Matt. 15:28 ]! This is why the Savior forced the woman to ask intensely, in order to arouse her faith, to strengthen it. Such people do not see that they do not have faith - the most precious asset of a Christian, which is necessary like life - that they are perpetrating lies [Cf.: 1 John. 1:10 ] God by unbelief and are the children of the devil, unworthy of any mercies of God; that they are perishing. It is also necessary that the heart burns during prayer with the desire for spiritual blessings, with love for God, who is clearly contemplated by the heart in His extreme goodness for the human race and is ready to listen with fatherly love to all his prayers. If you are wicked, you know how to give good things to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good things to those who ask Him [Matt. 7:11]?” [5, vol. 1, 18].
“Like every word of the prayer: have mercy on me, O God, the Master hears and fulfills every word (experience), if only they speak from the heart; so are all the words of other prayers, even our own, sincere prayers. O benevolent Master! Glory to You! Ask and it will be given to you, seek and you will find, press and it will be opened to you. Whatever you ask is accepted... [Matt. 7:7, 8]. Only in the simplicity of your heart, pray without a doubt” [5, vol. 1, 273].
“I will write thanksgiving to the Lord my God, the God of my salvation! Before confession during Holy Week, the enemy stopped me, striking my heart with tightness, confusion and evil despondency. But so I prayed with all my heart with undoubted faith to Him, the God of my salvation, and said: God, all-merciful Father! You, by Your only begotten Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, said: ask, and it will be given to you... for everyone who asks receives it... or who is there a man from you whose son, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone to eat? How much more, your heavenly Father will give good things to those who ask Him [Matt. 7:7–11]. By faith, having embraced in my heart what You have spoken, I appeal to You: give me now Your Holy Spirit, may I strengthen my heart to undertake the work of confession, to a prudent decision or binding of human consciences, to patience and complacency, to a kind and edifying treatment of my spiritual children. So what? O God of mercy! I conducted the entire confession perfectly: calmly, kindly, edifyingly, without any burden or restless haste. I glorify the merciful right hand of the all-good Heavenly Father.
So you always need to strengthen yourself with heartfelt prayer to the Heavenly Father for every spiritual feat, as our Lord Jesus Christ prayed before appearing to the human race, before the election of the Apostles, before His sufferings” [5, vol. 2, 413].
“When, during prayer, you doubt the possibility of fulfilling any of your requests, then remember that on the part of God everything is possible to grant you, except for direct evil, which is characteristic only of the devil - that the very word or your very request for something is already a sure guarantee on your part that its fulfillment is possible: for if I can only think about something, whether it is possible for me or impossible, then this “something” is certainly possible for Lord, for whom one thought is already a deed, if He deigns to carry it out; Yes, and for you this good already exists in word and only does not exist in deed; - but to bring the petition to fulfillment, He has the Creator Son and the Holy Spirit as a Finisher. – To the ability to accomplish everything add His infinite goodness, according to which He is the ever-flowing Source of both being and all the gifts of being. He is the God of gifts, the God of mercy and generosity. Ask, and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; press, and it will be opened to you [Matt. 7:7].
– Add to this the wisdom of God, which in its gift knows how to choose for us the best good, the most appropriate to our spiritual and physical state. “On your part, what is required is firm, undoubted confidence in the possibility of your request being fulfilled for the Lord, and also that your request is certainly good, about something good, and not about something bad.” – He will give, it is said, good things to those who ask Him [Matt. 7:11]" [5, vol. 2, 478].
“When you pray to the Lord and ask Him for yourself or other spiritual, heavenly, material, earthly benefits, then for complete confidence in receiving what you ask for or in general the good that is most beneficial for us, according to the wisdom and goodness of God, keep in your mind and heart the following words of the Savior: ask and it will be given to you, seek and you will find it, ask and it will be opened to you: for everyone you ask accepts, and seek, it will find, and it will be opened to the one who interprets. Or who is a man from you, and if his son asks for bread, food will he give him a stone? or if he asks for fish, will he give him food for a snake? If you are wicked and know how to give good things to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask Him [Matt. 7:7–11]" [5, vol. 2, 378].
“You wish for yourself or for someone else or for everyone some kind of spiritual good, and the Lord has long, long before you, wished it for you and others and is ready to grant it, if only there was a readiness to accept the divine gift, if only those who were in any way worthy to accept it, because God is infinite goodness, infinite goodness and is always ready to bestow any good, and often gives before the petition and in any case can create according to the abundance of what we ask or understand [Eph. 3:20]. Therefore, with hope and boldness I always ask the Lord for spiritual and even material blessings, when these latter are needed, and the Lord gives according to His true promise: ask, and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; push, and the door will be opened to you; For everyone who asks receives it, and everyone who seeks finds it, and it will be opened to the one who asks [Matt. 7:7, 8]" [5, vol. 2, 443].
“When you pray for something to the Lord, or the Most Holy Theotokos, or the Angels and saints - ask for their intercession for yourself or for other people before God - then take the words expressing your petitions, your needs, for the very things, for the very thing that you ask from the Lord, and believe that you already have a sure guarantee in receiving the subject of your petitions in the very words by which this subject is signified. For example: you ask for health for yourself or someone else: take the word - health - for the thing itself, for the deed itself; believe that you already have it by the mercy and omnipotence of the Lord, for the very word, the name, in an instant can be deeded by the Lord, and you will certainly receive what you ask for for your unshakable faith. Ask, and it will be given to you [Matt. 7:7]. Whenever you pray, if you ask, believe as you receive, and it will be done for you [Mk. 11:24]" [5, vol. 2, 476].
"I can’t dig, I’m ashamed to ask (Luke 16:3). This is the trouble and important loss, that you are ashamed to ask, but you must ask. Ask, and it will be given to you (Matthew 7:7); after all, you are unhappy, and pitiful, and poor, and blind, and naked (Apoc. 3:17). I cannot dig, but I need to dig, I would dig in the depths of my soul, and dig would be a real treasure - an immortal soul buried by passions, that soul that was created in the image and likeness of God and which is completely suppressed by worldly lusts and pleasures" [6, 69].
“In order not to be servile to passions and the devil every day, you must set yourself a goal, constantly keep it in mind and strive for it, conquering all obstacles in the name of the Lord. What is this goal? The Kingdom of Heaven, the divine palace of glory prepared for believers from the foundation of the world. But since the goal is achieved by known means, it is necessary to have these means at one’s disposal. What are these means? Faith, hope and love, especially love. Believe, hope, love, especially love, despite any obstacles, God most of all, and every neighbor as yourself. You don’t have the strength to keep these priceless treasures of the human spirit in your heart, fall more often to the God of love, ask, seek, ask: you will receive, you will find, it will be opened [See. Matt. 7:7, 8], - He who promised is faithful. Walking, sitting, lying down, talking, studying, at all times, pray with your heart for the gift of faith and love. You have not asked yet, as you should, with fervor and constancy, you did not have a firm intention to acquire them. From now on say: Behold, vol. 1, 55.”
“Knock, and it will be opened to you (Matthew 7:7). Knock on the door of God’s mercy, no matter what sin you sin, no matter how fiery the enemy’s arrows are, no matter how strong his stubbornness in your heart: and it will surely be opened to you. I knocked: and the doors of God’s mercy have always been opened to me. Always remember this when you pray to the Lord or His Most Pure Mother, or the saints.” [8, 592].
“The infants Pavel and Olga, through the infinite mercy of the Lord and through the prayer of my obscenity, were also healed from the spirit of infirmity that possessed them. Pavel's weakness was resolved by sleep; Little Olga received peace of mind, and her dark face became clear. Nine times I went to pray with bold hope, hoping that hope would not disgrace (Rom. 5:5), that it would be opened to the interpreter (Matthew 7:8), that at least for persistence the Lord would give me what I asked, that if the unjust judge finally satisfied the woman who troubled him (See: Luke 18:2-5), then how much more will the Most Righteous Judge of all satisfy my a sinful prayer for innocent children, that He will look upon my work, upon my walking, upon my words of prayer and my kneeling, upon my boldness, upon my hope. That’s what the Lord did. He did not put me to shame, a sinner. – I come for the tenth time: the babies are healthy. He thanked the Lord and the Most Swift Intercessor. – May 13, 1862” [10, 358].
“When you ask the Lord for anything, immediately contemplate His gracious and generous Hand, who gives you His gifts, Who from the abundance of God has given and continues to give everything to everyone, and to doubt whether you will receive what you ask for or not, consider it madness, similar to that about which the prophet said that he said in his heart: there is no God [Ps. 13:1]. So, asking some kind and generous person for help, we present his giving hand in advance, for earthly benefactors, in the likeness of their All-Good Father, are good and generous and give what we ask immediately after our request, as it is said: who is a man of you, whose son, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone to eat? or if he asks for fish, will he give him food for a snake? If you, being wicked, know how to give good things to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask Him [Matt. 7:9–11]" [5, vol. 1, 118].
“If I, an evil person, know how to do good, then You, Lord, Innumerable Goodness, how much more will You give good things if I ask them from You. If you have done evil, you know how to give good things to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask Him (Matthew 7:11). Ask the Lord without any doubt for blessings, especially spiritual ones” [2, 107].
“If you, being wicked, know how to give good things to your children, how much more will your Heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him (Matthew 7:11). You hear what the Savior says; always firmly believe that at your request the Holy Spirit always descends on the Holy Gifts during the Liturgy” [2, 329].
“Do not miss opportunities to pray for a person at his request or at the request of his relatives, friends, admirers or acquaintances. The Lord looks with favor upon the prayer of our love and our boldness before Him. In addition, prayer for others is very useful for the person praying for others; it cleanses the heart, affirms faith and hope in God, and kindles love for God and neighbor. When praying, say: Lord! It is possible for You to do this and that to Your servant; do this to him, for Your name is the good Lover of Mankind and the Almighty. If we, being evil ones, know how to give good deeds not only to our children, but also to strangers, how much more do You give all kinds of good things to those who ask you [Cf.: Matt. 7:11]" [5, vol. 1, 202].
“If the Church compiled and handed over for general use prayers and hymns to the Triune God and His saints, this means that God hears our prayers and is always near those who pray. But for the most part people pray as if God were not with them, or as if He were not listening. Let us give the Lord at least the attention that good parents show to the requests of their children, at least the providential and attentive love that good parents have for their children. This is what the Lord Himself teaches. If you, He says, are wicked, and know how to give good things to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good things to those who ask Him [Matt. 7:11], therefore our petitions will be fulfilled if we pray with all our hearts. Right. Daily experience” [5, vol. 1, 109].
“If you doubt that you will receive the benefits you ask from God, then remember how even you, being angry and stingy, and not rich, and not omnipotent, give to the needy, those who ask you, or even give to them before asking, knowing only their need. How much more will your Heavenly Father, all-good, all-rich, wise, all-powerful, give good things to those who ask Him [Matt. 7:11]" [5, vol. 2, 394].
“As the body breathes air, so the soul breathes the mercies of God. - Just as fathers and mothers consider it an ordinary, as if natural, necessary task - to serve their children bread or fish every day - our most ordinary food, and do not give them a stone instead of bread, or a snake instead of a fish, although they are evil and wicked by nature - then how much more, is not the Heavenly Father infinitely more gracious, the essence of Goodness, and how much more, He will not give good things to those who ask Him [ Matt. 7:11 ]? – Just as there is an abundance of water on earth, and everyone drinks it, comes and scoops it up for free, so the Lord is like the Ocean of spiritual waters, come and draw up every spiritual blessing with the help of true, firm and shameless faith. Just stretch out this heartfelt drawer, and you will certainly draw up abundantly the water of life, forgiveness of sins and peace of conscience. But be afraid of doubt: it deprives you of the means to draw all the mercy of God” [5, vol. 2, 481].
“God is the most movable and accessible Being in His bounties for His creatures, especially rational ones. If air and light, by their subtlety, are easily movable and communicable to everything that is capable of receiving them into themselves, then the Lord of all, the Omnipresent, All-Good, Infinite, Almighty Spirit, is not more movable and communicable into infinity than these inanimate, unreasonable, material creations? ABOUT! How helpful is the Lord to those who believe and seek Him! The Spirit breathes wherever it wants, and you hear His voice, but do not know where it comes from or where it goes [Jn. 3:8]. If human nature is intelligible, then how much more so than God's? If father and mother give what is necessary for their children, they are evil people by nature, how much more will your Heavenly Father give good things to those who ask Him [Matt. 7:11]. Don’t forget about charity and communication. Have fellowship with one another [Heb. 13:16 ; Wed: 1 John 1:7]" [5, vol. 1, 216].
“Believe and always firmly remember that wherever you appear with the cross of the Lord - at prayer services or on other occasions - it always sanctifies the air and everyone who touches it. Believe also that during all prayers, molebens, especially during church services, and even more so during the liturgy, the Lord quickly pours out His blessings, through the prayer of you or other priests, on all those who sincerely pray and has mercy on them with His God’s royal mercy. If you are wicked and know how to give good things to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask Him [Matt. 7:11]" [5, vol. 2, 578].
“God is the most movable and communicable Being, that is, for His creatures, especially rational ones. If air and light, by their subtlety, are so easily movable and communicable to everything that is capable of receiving them into themselves, then is the Lord of all, the Omnipresent, All-Good, Infinite, Almighty Spirit, not more movable and communicable into infinity than these inanimate, unreasonable, material creations? - ABOUT! How beneficial the Lord is to those who believe and seek Him! The Spirit breathes wherever it wants, and you hear His voice, but do not consider where it comes from or where it goes (John 3:8). If human nature is intelligible, then how much more so than God's? If a father and mother give what is necessary for their children, they - humans - are evil by nature, then how much more will the Heavenly Father give good things to those who ask Him (Matthew 7:11). – Do not forget about charity and fellowship (Heb. 13:16). – Communication of imams to each other (1 John 1:7)” [10, 334].
Matthew 7:12. “So in everything, whatever you want people to do to you, do so to them, for this is the law and the prophets.”
“What do the Law and the Prophets want from us? Not much: whatever you want, let men do for us, so let us do (cf. Matthew 7:12)” [2, 296].
“As you wish, let people do to you, so do you to them (Matthew 7:12). You, for example, traveling around the world, would like all foreigners and people of other faiths to receive you with cordiality and treat you with generosity and affection and not make you any difference from themselves, do not separate themselves from you, as from a Russian and Orthodox. Do the same with others, no matter who they are. were: Catholics, Lutherans, Anglicans, Mohammedans, Jews or pagans: receive everyone with joy, do not be alien to anyone. God cleanse him, do not defile him (Cf.: Acts 10:15 - For such a way of life and behavior you will receive the great grace of the One who said: I pray that they all may be one: as You, Father, are in Me, and I am in You, yes. and they will be one in Us (John 17:20, 21) - Do not be one with them in the thoughts that separate them from our faith and the church, for fellowship in this sense is like-mindedness of wickedness” [8, 629].
“So, if you strive with all your might to live in mutual love for your neighbor, do not give reasons for disagreement, do with everyone as you want others to do with you (cf. Matthew 7:12), what you do not want for yourself, you do not want for others, if you provide all possible help to those in need and do all this for the sake of the Savior’s commandment - then you love God and your neighbor, because You love your neighbor for God, seeing in him the image of God, you love him out of obedience to the commandment of God. Will you also say: teach me how to more often show me love for my neighbor - this image of God, in whose person God Himself deigns to accept His services? – I answer: there are many different manifestations of love and mercy towards one’s neighbor. The image of mercy is varied, says Chrysostom, and this commandment is broad (Wed: Ps. 119:96). A guest has come to you - receive him kindly, affably, treat him cordially and with love: and you showed love; welcome the stranger into your home, treat him, give him peace, comfort him: and you showed love; If someone asks you to walk a mile with him, go further (cf.: Matt.
5:41): and you will show love; forgive the offense to the one who offended: and you will show love; give to a beggar: and you will show love; lend: and you show love; visit the sick: and you will show love; intercede for orphans from insults: and you will show love; visit a widow in sorrow: and you will show love; intercede for the weak before the strong: and you will show love; intercede for the weak: and you will show love; comfort the sad: and show love; instruct the ignorant: and you will show love; Give advice to your neighbor in difficulty or in danger: and you will show love.
Do this, if possible, often, not counting your mercies, as God sends you His mercies without counting, do it for the sake of the commandment of the Lord, out of love for the Lawgiver; show unquestioning, hasty obedience to all His commandments when He sends you occasions to do so; also: do not attach your heart to anything more than God - let your Creator and Benefactor prevail in your heart over everything earthly - before earthly parents, wife, children, benefactors, relatives, friends, before all people, before all things and pleasures - and you will love God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength and with all your thoughts, and your neighbor as you love yourself (Cf.: Matt. 22:37, 39; Lev. 19:18; Manage in love in this way - and you will receive an eternal life” [10, 171].
“You don’t value me very much, dear brother, when you, without sparing for me two or three slices of bread, two or three glasses of sweet tea or wine - two measures, spared a third slice, a third glass or a third measure. So another guest, friend, relative, acquaintance has the right to say and will tell you, noticing your stinginess, your greed, your change in face due to the fact that he consumes a lot of the gifts of God from your meal with appetite. “Think how offensive it would be for you if they started treating you like that.” – But whatever men will do to you, so do you to them (Matthew 7:12). – Don’t spare decay and water for your brother” [10, 433].
“Respect for the dignity of a person requires that we trust him as ourselves, in his words and especially in his actions, and not offend him by distrust and suspicion, and whims over him (over his deeds). “Whatever you want people to do to you, so you do to them (Matthew 7:12) - If you want people to have trust in your actions, you should also have trust in the actions of others” [10, 55].
Matthew 7:13. “Enter at the narrow gate, for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and many go in through it.”
Matthew 7:14. “For strait is the gate and narrow is the way that leads to life, and few find it.”
“September 17. Holy martyrs Sophia and her daughters Faith, Hope and Love. What lesson do the saints celebrated today, the martyrs, teach us? The lesson is that for all people who inherited sin from their forefathers and lost holiness and the Kingdom of God through sin, the path to holiness and the eternal Kingdom is narrow (cf. Matt. 7:14), full of sorrows, suffering, deprivation, illness, the path of martyrdom, for this is what the Truth of God requires, expecting from us repentance, faith, humility, patience, obedience to the Truth of God, which we rejected by surrendering all sorts of lies. – The path to the Kingdom and eternal life is the path of the Cross, indicated to us by the Savior, our God, who suffered for us. So, everyone who bears the names of Sophia, Faith, Hope and Love, all female and male, do not forget that you must achieve the Kingdom of God through faith, repentance, patience, obedience, abstinence, spiritual and physical labors” [4, 61].
“From the grave of despair and despondency, my soul has been lifted up,” the saints of God pray. So the saints of God have been taken possession of by the devil’s despair and despondency! What happens to us sinners? Oh! And the enemy constantly gives us heartfelt embitterment, humiliation and fierce despondency! We must constantly turn to the Lord and be with Him every minute so that it does not take possession of us the enemy's bitterness and despondency. - There is also another way to get rid of the enemy of despondency: the vast path of the world (cf. Matthew 7:13) - just indulge in the pleasures of the world, and despondency will leave you, at least for the time of pleasure; and then it will draw you to these pleasures, and they will become a need for you: you will find joy and joy in them and only in them, but God save every Christian. in order to get rid of the devil’s despondency by this means, it is better to follow the narrow path (Cf.: Matt.
7:14) and endure despondency and seek frequent help and deliverance from the Lord Jesus Christ, who gladdens those who labor for His sake with His salvation, rather than go down onto the wide and smooth path of the world and there buy freedom from the spirit of despondency with the pleasures of the flesh. The enemy, with the spirit of despondency, drove many from the narrow and saving path onto the wide and smooth, but disastrous path" [8, 544].
“A remarkable phenomenon in nature: when you plant a plant in a large, wide pot or tub, the plant goes to the root: it grows thick, produces many branches and grows poorly upward, producing few and small leaves and flowers. And when planted in a small pot: then the root is small, and the plant quickly grows upward, produces good leaves and flowers (if the plant produces flowers). Isn't that what happens to a person? When he lives in spaciousness, abundance and contentment, then he grows in his belly and does not grow in spirit, in sprouting, does not bear the fruits of good deeds; and when he lives in cramped conditions, in poverty, in illness, in misfortunes, in sorrows, in a word: when the animal side of him is suppressed - then he grows spiritually, grows flowers of virtues, ripens and bears rich fruits. That is why the path of those who love God is hard (cf. Matthew 7:14)" [11, 174].
Matthew 7:16. “By their fruits you will know them. Do they gather grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?”
“The life-giving Mysteries put my inner life in order, into a state of peace - what, besides the Mysteries, can one fervent prayer or the most decisive living aspiration of thoughts and hearts towards God with faith and hope do. Glory to my God, truly and essentially present in the life-giving Mysteries! The touch of the life-giving Mysteries, accepted with faith and a grateful heart, is always life-giving for my soul. This is all the more palpable because some kind of force is often applied to my heart, confusing, poisonously gnawing and deadening the soul - and it always touches as a result of doubt, disbelief in the known truth: this last force is the power of the devil - a murderer. From their fruit, the Savior said, you will know them (Matthew 7:16). Faith is sweet, peaceful, life-giving for the heart; unbelief is bitter, painful, murderous.
To the priest. Whether you are a believer or an “unbeliever,” whether you are heartily convinced or not, all services, prayers during services and all sacraments are an everlasting, unchanging, life-giving shrine.
The light of faith disappears imperceptibly from the heart, as well as hope, love and all virtue, just as the Kingdom of God comes imperceptibly to a person - in his heart. Unbelief, despair, enmity, all sins and passions also enter the soul imperceptibly, gradually, easily. It is easy to lose the Kingdom of God, but more difficult to gain it. Therefore, you need to watch your heart with all your eyes.
Moses calls paradise on earth a paradise of sweetness. And our current paradise of sweetness is Jesus, the Sweetest in the heart.
To the priest. A priest must have a sense of his own dignity, otherwise he will be low both in his own eyes and in the eyes of others.
There is an area almost limitless in its space, an area of needs and sorrows, inaccessible to the charitable activities of living people living in the world and who do not have the gift of spiritual, heavenly consolation. This entire area is full of invisible, but real, blessings sent down from God, His Most Pure Mother and His saints. – The importance of heavenly help is great – and many do not want to resort to it out of pride and unbelief.
If I partake of the life-giving Mysteries unworthily, with doubt, sin will throw me far from God, and I need a lot of tears and sighs in order to again draw closer to God and have boldness before Him. But if it is worthy, then I cleave to Him more firmly, I become firmer in love for Him, then lightness and joy are in my heart all the time from one Liturgy to another, until new reinforcement, if I watch over myself” [2, 119–120].
"By their fruit you will know them (Matthew 7:16). From the vague burning of passions and every sin felt in my heart, I conclude that the cause of it is always the devil, because although he is varied in his actions, he is always the same in one thing - in the confusion, anxiety, painful burning of his actions and in compulsion to new sins. He is strengthening to establish his dominion in me in all possible ways: by instilling thoughts of unbelief, blasphemy, etc., so that if you do not have time to repel his onslaught and do not defeat him with the weapon of faith and the word of God, he will gain access to your heart and will torment it, because his passion is to torment us, to confuse us, to upset us. In this case, the most beautiful and most effective remedy against him is the introduction of the crucified Christ into the heart by thought, from the very moment the crucified Christ is introduced into the heart, he leaves it. and – the excruciating, burning pain of the heart, combined with embarrassment, passes” [2, 163].
“How to recognize the actions of the evil spirit in a person? By their fruit you will know them (Matthew 7:16), said the Savior. If you grumble and blaspheme, then you certainly have a demon” [2, 217].
“I don’t know how a sane person can hesitate in any divinely revealed truth, revealed by Jesus Christ, witnessed by the Apostles, sealed with the blood of a countless host of martyrs, preached by saints, saints and all saints - life-giving for the heart. And yet, there are unfortunate ones who hesitate, really hesitate, shaken by some kind of heavy, like a stone, gnawing like a viper, killing like the devil, internal suggestions, seduced by some unknown, invisible flatterer, merciless killer. What does this mean? Why then am I so senseless, stupid, ugly and, on top of that, gloomy and despondent? Oh, I know why. Know them by their fruits [Cf.: Matt. 7:16]. From such terrible consequences in my soul I conclude the cause, and from the traces of the murder I find the murderer. This is what my enemy, the devil, does. Murderer! - He kills my soul with doubt and unbelief, torments me. But I am also unreasonable, allowing myself to obey the suggestions of a liar, a murderer, an opponent of God and men.
When you notice in yourself any mental resistance to God, doubt about the Trinity of Persons of the Divine and Their relationships, and the like, believe that you are an enemy of God and man. You have long believed in the Holy, Consubstantial, Life-Giving and Indivisible Trinity, you have long been using Her mercies, Her life. Her peace and all the blessings, and stand for Her until death against the common enemy” [5, vol. 2, 523].
“To doubt the Divinity of the Holy Spirit means to doubt your life, for the Holy Spirit revives and nourishes everyone spiritually, serves as a spiritual sun, air, food and drink for the soul; - means to abandon prayer, for we pray with the Holy Spirit, - from truth and holiness, for the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth and all that is holy, - from all spiritual consolation in sorrows and illnesses, for the Holy Spirit alone is the true and only Comforter with the Father and the Son, - from faith, for faith is given by the Holy Spirit, - from hope and love, for hope and love are given by the heart also from the Spirit Holy: the love of God has been poured out into our hearts by the Holy Spirit given to us [Rom. 5:5], - from spiritual and bodily strength, for the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of strength and strength, - from wisdom and intelligence, from the fear of God, from his breath, for He is the Breath, the air of the soul; in a word, it means dooming oneself to moral insignificance and killing oneself. Do not pay attention to doubts about the truth, they are the breath of the spirit of the evil one, the spirit of lies - a murderer. By their fruit you will know them [Matt. 7:16]. Doubt about the truth is always deadly to the soul.
All truth is the breath of the Spirit of God: the word of God, the creations of St. fathers and teachers of the Church, words and creations, the deeds of every pious and truth-loving person” [5, vol. 2, 406].
"From their fruit you will know them (Matthew 7:16). From the fruit of the liturgy - sweet, blessed, life-giving - the most pure Mysteries of the Body and Blood of the Lord, you will know that it is from God, that it is the inspiration of the Divine Spirit, and this Most Holy Spirit, life-giving, breathes in all its prayers and sacred rites. What a wonderful living tree this is Liturgy! What fruit! Even the leaves of the tree for healing with the tongue (Apoc. 22:2), not only fruit. For whoever has not received great spiritual benefit, peace and sweetness in the soul from one reverent presence at the divine liturgy! And what produces good fruit, such is the law of things, such is the creative law."
"Either you create a good tree and its fruit is good: or you create an evil tree and its evil fruit (Matthew 12:33); for a tree is recognized by its fruits. The food of figs comes from burrs, or from bushes (thorns) clusters (grapes) (Cf.: Matt. 7:16). - The Catholic Church has not had a single saint since the time of separation from the Eastern, but the Orthodox has always had and has many saints glorified by God in it” [4, 62],
“Look where you look: “how will it end?” The beginning and the end are the grace of God. Look and judge by the fruits, as indicated in the Gospel: “By their fruits you will know them” (Matthew 7:16). And look for fruits in yourself, and they will and should be in you. Remember that peace is from God; the enemy cannot give peace of mind; his job is to confuse, not to pacify” [7, 27].
“From their fruit, it is said, you will know them (Matthew 7:16). If, praying with faith to the Lord or the Lady or the Angels or the saints, you feel peace of heart during and after prayer, then it is a sign that the Lord or the saints heard you and gave you the desired good. From their fruit you will know them. Peace of heart also confirms the truth that the Lord is in every place, and the saints by His grace are in the Spirit The Saint hears our prayers” [8, 587].
“Your faith and fidelity to the Lord, His Most Pure Mother and the Holy Church are often tempted by the devil, who rushes to your heart with a river of blasphemous and nasty thoughts. Be strong and take courage: this is a time of confession and martyrdom for you. – From the fruit you come to know the devil (Wed: Matt. 7:16, 20). Do the bushes eat the grapes, or do the figs come from the thorns? (Wed: Matthew 7:16; Luke 6:44). - So, by the blasphemy of everything holy, by the confusion of the heart, by the darkness, crampedness and connection of your entire being, you recognize the devil nesting in your heart, this father of lies (See: John 8:44). – When blasphemous and nasty thoughts attack the soul, we learn how firm and pure and reasonable our faith is. Oh! Sometimes it is like a reed shaken by the wind (cf. Matthew 11:7) - and for me, a sinner. “If God’s grace had not supported me, I would have fallen in demonic darkness” [10, 464].
Matthew 7:17. “So every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit.”
Matthew 7:18. “A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit.”
Matthew 7:19. “Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”
Matthew 7:20. “Therefore by their fruits you will know them.”
“When the devil is in our heart, then there is an extraordinary, killing heaviness and fire in the chest and heart; the soul is extremely embarrassed and darkened; everything irritates her; feels disgust for every good deed; he interprets the words and actions of others in relation to himself crookedly and sees in them malicious intent against himself, against his honor, and therefore feels deep, murderous hatred towards them, is furious and rushes to revenge. By its fruit you will know it [Cf.: Matt. 7:20]. There are days when an evil spirit disturbs me” [5, vol. 1, 31].
“False thoughts in faith immediately expose themselves, kill the life of the heart - a sign that they come from a liar, a dreamer, who has the power of death - the devil. True thoughts show their truth in practice: they enliven the heart - a sign that they come from the life-giving Spirit of God, the Life, which proceeds from the Life-Father and rests in the Life-Son. By the same token you will know them by their fruit [Matt. 7:20]. Do not be indignant and do not remain in confusion and bewilderment when murderous thoughts crowd in your head and oppress your heart, your soul: they are false, they are from the devil - murderers. Drive them away and don’t ask where they came from, these uninvited guests: you will instantly recognize them by their fruits. Don’t enter into competition with them, they will lead you into such a labyrinth that you won’t even get out, you will get confused and exhausted” [5, vol. 2, 411].
“August 12. The Roman popes worked for more than a thousand years in favor of arrogance and pride and all kinds of lies, and not for Christ, not for His Church, inventing many false teachings - about the primacy of the pope in the church, about infallibility, about unleavened bread at the Liturgy, about communion in one Body without Blood, about purgatory, etc.; They have piled up so many new, unheard of dogmas (about the Immaculate Conception) that it is impossible for anyone to be saved, but only for those who profess the Catholic faith and for those who recognize Catholic lies to be the truth. A good tree produces good fruits, but an evil tree produces evil fruits. By their fruits you will recognize them (cf. Matthew 7:17, 20). Do not be arrogant, Catholics, God himself condemned you in lies, like Christ of the Pharisees and Sadducees and the high priests of the Jews (See: Matt. 16:1-12). It’s not for nothing that the Jews and Poles act together, in the same spirit” [4, 43].
“When you doubt the truth of the words of any holy father, for example John Chrysostom in his Divine Liturgy, or when performing other Sacraments you doubt the words of prayers and the devil will confuse and weaken your heart, remember the words of the Savior in the Gospel: food can a good tree create evil fruit (cf. Matthew 7:18)? Or the words of the Apostle: food can make one and the same source sweet and make water sweet (cf. James 3:12)? Or the words of the Savior: by their fruit you will know them (Matthew 7:20). And Saint John Chrysostom showed only good fruits in his life and works: the voice of his contemporaries and the works of his pen reveal in him a completely holy man. The Holy Spirit Himself glorified him even after death, making his body incorruptible and miraculous, like a church of a soul completely sanctified by His grace. Remember also the words of the Savior to the disciples: I will pray the Father, and he will give you another Comforter, that he may be with you forever (John 14:16). You will guide him into all truth (cf. John 16:13).
You see: the Holy Spirit is always with us – especially the shepherds (and the flock), and He guides us into all truth” [10, 162].
Matthew 7:23. “And then I will declare to them: I never knew you; Depart from me, you workers of iniquity."
“Glory to the Most Holy, Consubstantial and Life-Giving Trinity! When the devil pinches my side with displeasure, hatred of my neighbor because of something worldly, carnal, and it becomes hard, painful for me, I stand up and lift my heart’s eyes to the Trinity and say: Father, Son, All-Holy Soul, have mercy on me, and I myself look at the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, as the very essence of the Most Holy Trinity, which is essentially present everywhere, even in the word one, - you see, the enemy will immediately and easily become and run away from the all-powerful, ever-worshipped Name, like smoke will disappear. Glory to Thee, Holy and Consubstantial, and Life-Giving, and Indivisible Trinity [vocal. on the bike eve]! Holy Trinity! teach me to despise everything earthly, teach me to place peace, contentment, bliss in You alone! And so as not to make me proud, because of the gracious attention of the Most Holy Trinity to me and the salvation She gives me, let me remember that She graciously listens to every worm, every chick.
I also remember that some Christians, who have created many powers in the name of God, will one day hear from the Lord the words: Depart from Me, I do not know you [Matt. 7:23 ; Matt. 25:12 ], for his unevangelical life. Holy Trinity! save me from pride and teach me humility! You kindly and quickly listen to me and save me; I can be proud of this mercy. To turn your endless goodness and mercy into an excuse for self-praise, supposedly I myself was worthy of such attention, as having done some good! Cover me, most merciful Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Soul, with Your shelter from all sin” [5, vol. 2, 389].
"The Pharisee became a praying person (Luke 18:11). What does the all-seeing, all-righteous, terrible, judging Eye read in the Pharisee's soul, for the Pharisee prayed not out loud, but secretly, to himself? God, I thank You that I am not like other people (Luke 18:11) and so on. Under the Pharisee you can to understand everything that is arrogant, arrogant in its title, rank and intelligence, vain learning, wealth, beauty, strength, successes and with pride and contempt looking at sinful, but humble and repentant humanity in the soul, whose inner eye, enlightened by the light of grace, is turned inward, into the depths of the heart, and contemplates the entire abyss of sin, all the corruption that it brought into our nature is sin, all guilt before the justice of God, all our punishment from the Divine judgment and, humbly recognizing our sins, cries out from the depths of a humble heart for mercy: Be merciful to me a sinner (Luke 18:13).
This is what the righteous Eye saw, what the righteous Eye read in the heart of the publican: It saw, It read in one ignorant pride and arrogance, and in the other (the tax collector) the humble consciousness of many sins and the sinner’s irresponsibility before the highest Truth: God, be merciful to me, a sinner. What countless numbers of Pharisees see the Divine Eye, especially in the present time - a time of godlessness, a time of worship of one’s own mind, one’s own writing talent, a time of worship of gold and silver idols, a time of seeking power over subordinates. You pathetic, senseless, short-sighted, blind people! You do not assume and do not think that all your judgments, frivolous, malicious, all your passions are inscribed with an indelible incisor there, in heaven, in the book of God’s eternal destinies, and even in your consciences - and all will be revealed at the national court and will bring you unbearable shame and righteous condemnation.
Now you are hiding from human judgment and from your conscience and doing lawless deeds with impunity, spending time in games, carnal pleasures or idleness and ridicule - not a single thought will be hidden there. Consider your sins here while there is time for repentance. The doors will soon be closed, and you will knock in vain and say: Lord, Lord, open to us (Matthew 25:11). The answer will be to you: depart from Me, you workers of lawlessness, I know you (Matthew 7:23). You are the first here everywhere - you will be the last there, i.e. in hell. The last, these repentant publicans, will be the first. On this universal threshing floor, the shovel will sweep away all the chaff and burn it with unquenchable fire, and will gather the wheat into the heavenly granary. So let the unjust do more unrighteousness; let the wicked be still defiled, and the righteous still do righteousness, and the holy still be sanctified. Behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to reward everyone according to his deeds (Apoc. 22:12).
What will you do, unbelievers, unprepared, relaxed, corrupted to the marrow of your bones, when the Last Judgment of God befalls you by accident, like the Japanese war, like the Russian revolution? Then they will not give you time to enter the house to take what you need; one is taken and the other is left (Matthew 24:40)” [6, 91].
Matthew 7:24. “Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and does them will be likened to a wise man who built his house on the rock.”
Matthew 7:25. “And the rain fell, and the rivers came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house, and it did not fall, because it was founded on rock.”
Matthew 7:26. “And everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand;”
Matthew 7:27. “And the rain fell, and the rivers overflowed, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and he fell, and his fall was great.”
“The winds blow and rest on the church (cf. Matthew 7:25), that is, evil spirits against human souls. The inevitability of this; it is necessary to stand on the rock of faith” [3, 367].
“The evil one tries to scatter prayer like a mound of sand; he wants to make words like dry sand, without connection, without moisture, i.e. without warmth of heart. Prayer - sometimes there is a church on an arctic fox, sometimes there is a church on a stone [Cf.: Matt. 7:24, 26]. Those who build on the sand are those who pray without faith, absent-mindedly, with coldness - such prayer crumbles by itself and does not benefit the one praying; those who build on stone are those who, throughout the duration of prayer, have their eyes fixed on the Lord and pray to Him as if alive, talking with them face to face” [5, vol. 1, 17].
“There is no mental work without a previously drawn up plan, in the likeness of the Lord All-Creator, who first conceived the world and its plan and then created the universe through His Son and completed it with the Holy Spirit. – Writing an essay without a plan is presumptuous. - Who knows from you, if you want to build a house, won’t you first consider it, if you have enough money to complete it [Cf.: Lk. 14:28]. You must first see your entire work with the intelligent eyes of your heart, with all its main thoughts. “To do the opposite means to walk along an unknown road, voluntarily blindfolding yourself” [5, vol. 2, 590].
“There is no doubt that the devil in the hearts of very many people sits with some kind of heartfelt lethargy, relaxation and laziness towards every good and useful deed, especially the deed of faith and piety, which requires heartfelt attention and sobriety, and spiritual labor in general. Thus he strikes the heart with lethargy and the mind with dullness during prayer; Thus, he strikes the heart with coldness and inaction of the heart when it is necessary to do good, for example, to sympathize with the suffering, to help those in trouble, to console the sad, to teach the ignorant, to guide the erring and vicious on the path of truth. We must constantly listen to our heart, drive away from it the darkness of laziness and petrified insensibility, see that it always burns with faith and love for God and neighbor and is ready for all labors and self-sacrifice for the glory of God and for the salvation of our neighbor. Not lazy with diligence, fervent in spirit, working for the Lord [Rom. 12:11].
The devil sits in our hearts with unusually strong irritability; We sometimes become so sick with pride that we do not tolerate the slightest contradiction, material or spiritual obstacle, we do not tolerate a single unsmooth, rude word. But then we must endure when the waters of anger and impatience reach our soul. Through your patience gain your souls [Lk. 21:19]. The rivers came, and the winds blew, and they questioned that church [Matt. 7:27]. What will happen to her, what will happen to a person, when the devil throws the hand of his temptations at him and blows the wind of his wiles on him? If a Christian stands firmly on the rock - Christ, then he does not fall, but if he stands on the sand of his wisdom and passions, then he falls greatly [Cf.: Matt. 7:24–27]" [5, vol. 2, 418].
“Just as in the sea, lake or river, every particle of water is connected with other particles and surrounded by them, or as in the air, every particle of air is surrounded by others and connected with them, so all of us, earth-born creatures, are surrounded by God on all sides, and the pure among us or those who are being purified are connected with Him and are everywhere in Him. We are all earth-born - like water, like air, like a many-branched tree, we form one whole, although often torn apart by the envy of the enemy by pride, irritability, enmity, strife, pride, heresies and schisms, envy, stinginess, unsociability, malice, contempt and other passions. On the other hand, the devil and his angels are one with each other, like dark, malignant, poisonous water or fiery, suffocating, murderous air. They surround us and are trying to break into our soul due to its inattention and various addictions in order to darken, outrage, embarrass, burn and torment us in every possible way.
So, for example, sometimes you walk in the clean, fragrant air, and suddenly the stench from a garbage pit or from human eruptions strikes your sense of smell in the most unpleasant way, and you would rather pass this place in order to breathe in the beneficial air again, just like the demonic stench. The Lord Himself likens the dark hordes of demons to air and water when He says: the rain came down, and the rivers came, and the winds blew and attacked that church (that is, on a person, they fell on the human soul), and did not fall: it was founded on stone [Matt. 7:25]" [5, vol. 1, 103].
“The enemy at deliberate times strongly draws my heart with fiery tightness to doubt, despondency, embarrassment, fear, anger, blasphemy, irritability, pride, contempt, envy, stinginess, gluttony, fornication, or painfully clings my heart to smart clothes, to money, to a beautiful home. What to do? – Have Jesus Christ in your heart and trust in Him, love Him alone with all your heart. The rivers came and the winds blew... on the rocks (Matthew 7:25)" [11, 91].
1 Sol 5 – approx. email editors.
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