Message

This message is a compilation of various works of St. Macarius the Great, compiled after his death. Let it be known to your prudence that for a perfect and sanctified husband it is necessary that not only he himself be in God, but also God be in him, as the Lord says: “Whoever will be in Me, and I will be in him” (John 15:5). God's man must dwell in the Divine tabernacle, and erect this tabernacle on the holy mountain of the most pure Divinity, so as not only to be embraced, but also embraced by the glory of the One who does not allow the dark power of passions to prevail over him. For in those who are worthy, for the sake of holiness and the dispassion that is characteristic of them, the Savior dwells, so that, just as He Himself is dispassionate, so He can make those who received Him dispassionate, unstormable and unbearable by every wind. And some are not only far from the mysteries of Christ, but also “drunk their friends with muddy corruption” (Hab. 2:15), they contain the truth of God in untruth, “in them, as it is said, the rational of God is manifest.” For, “having become vain in their thoughts” and darkened by their foolish heart (Rom. 1:18-21), they say that they are natural and God Shameful passions are innate to us, I mean the pleasure of corruption, unjust irritability, obscene anger, driven not by God, and all the like. Therefore, leaving them and their sayings as deviations from the truth, we recognize the autocracy of freedom given to us by the One who created us, so that it depends on us to strive for the best and refrain from the worst. For a truthful Judge would not punish us possessed by passions if He Himself were their Creator. Away, away, I beg you, with this teaching, don’t let it even enter your mind! For this absurd and foolish opinion is disgusting to any pious understanding. God is the creator of the purest and most beautiful natures, as the Holy Spirit declared at the creation of peace; for he says: “Everything is good” (Gen. 1:31). Jeremiah, lamenting and perplexed about shameful passions, says: “The Lord does not say, who is yours? speech and speed. The Lord has not commanded that evil will not come from the mouth of the Most High,” but good (Lamentations Jer. 3:36–38). And therefore, in the Gospel, intelligent forces offer the Lord the question: “Lord, did you not sow good seed in your village? where do these “tares” come from (Matthew 13:27)? In another place, the Savior himself says about them: “every garden that My heavenly Father does not plant will be uprooted” (Matthew 15:13). And that every planting of God is beautiful, Paul testifies to this, in which Christ says: “Because every creature of God is good” (1 Tim. 4:4). So, know that the passions hidden in us are not our own, but alien. For it is said: “Cleanse me from my secrets, and spare Thy servant from strangers” (Psalm 18:13–14); and: “strangers rose up against me and the strong ones sought my soul” (Psalm 53:5); and: “Lord, judge those who offend me, overcome those who fight me” (Psalm 34:1). What does this “secret” mean, or these “offending” and “fighting”, or these “strangers”, if not evil spirits opposing Christ’s virtues? Consider more precisely that the Law clearly cries out for purity in the inner man. “Thou shalt not take,” he says, “the name of the Lord Thy God in vain: for the Lord will not cleanse the heart of him that takes His name in vain” (Deut. 5:11). Therefore, the Apostle exhorts, clearly saying: “Let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness” not only of the flesh, but also of the spirit (2 Cor. 7:1); and in another place he says: “sprinkle your heart from the evil conscience” (Heb. 10:22); and again: “May your body, spirit and soul be preserved completely and blamelessly” (1 Thessalonians 5:23); and: “You will be a child of God blameless” (Phil. 2:15). Therefore, all those who wish to be worthy of sonhood must have not only an immaculate body, but also an immaculate soul, like the one who said: “make my heart blameless in Your justifications, so that I will not be ashamed” (Psalm 119:80). For those living under the law, fulfilling only carnal justifications, maintain external purity, and those living under grace desire inner peace in holiness, obeying Rex: “Unless your righteousness comes out more than the Pharisee and the scribe, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:20); because the Pharisees, being blind in mind, cleanse the “outside of the glass” (Matt. 23, 25); just as now the new Pharisees, like them, with an unskillful mind, decorating the outer man, justify themselves, while the Holy Spirit does not obey their spirit, that they are children of God, as he obeys the Apostle, who says: “The Spirit itself obeys our spirit, for we are the children of God” (Rom. 8:16). They do not want to show in themselves growth in the sanctity of the inner man, but are confident only in carnal merits; they do not know that “all the glory of the king’s daughter is within” (Psalm 44:14). Each of us is, as it were, like a mental fig tree, on which the Lord seeks the inner fruit, and not the leafy decoration (Matthew 21:19). Therefore, whoever defends shameful passions as natural, and not accidentally entered into a person, has exchanged “the truth of God for a lie” (Rom. 1:25); because, as I said before, the Undefiled and Pure made His image like Himself; “But through envy the devil brings death into the world” (Wis. 2:24). So, since the human race, having been conceived in iniquities and born in sins (Psalm 50:7), became alienated from the mother’s womb, and from the mother’s womb remained in error, after sin began to reign from Adam until the coming of Christ; then, having mercy, the Lamb of God came to take away the sins of the world with His own power, having first bound the strong and then plundered the vessels he had collected for booty, according to what was said: “thou hast taken captivity,” and also: “thou hast taken captivity” (Psalm 67:19). We must take care to be freed from captivity, and to put on “the image of the heavenly, as we have put on the image of the ring” (1 Cor. 15:49), and present “our servants to righteousness in holiness”, as they presented to sin (Rom. 6:19). We believe that we, who walk without stumbling in the light, must see the wonders of God, like the one who said: “Open my eyes, and I will understand Your wonders from Your Law” (Psalm 119:18). For just as in the sensual, he who walks in the light does not stumble, so in the mental, he who abides in perfect holiness does not think evil, does not reason evilly. For there is no “fellowship between light and darkness, nor the laying down of the church with idols” (2 Cor. 6:15-16). Therefore, recognize yourself as the church of God, and try not to depict mental idols in your heart. For every passion operating in the soul is an idol; why it is beautifully said: “Whoever is overcome, he also has work to do” (2 Peter 2:19). If we have become enslaved to carnal passions, then we are clearly not enslaved to the Holy and impassive Spirit; because no one “can work for two masters: you cannot, it is said, work for God and for mammon” (Matthew 6:24). The Church of God is holy, without “defilement or defect or any such thing” (Eph. 5:27); “The Holy Spirit will run away” from flattery, “and will be taken away from unreasonable thoughts, and will not enter into an evil soul” teaching (Wisdom 1:4-5). Therefore, being convinced that our whole law is written in the heart with the finger of God, “not with ink, but with the Spirit” of God (2 Cor. 3:3), let us accept the truth of the Lawgiver, who said: “I am the truth” (John 14:7), who performs the circumcision of the heart, and in the understanding of the worthy writes the law of His goodness, as the Prophet says: “I have given My laws into their hearts, and I will write them on their minds” (Jer. 31-33). All those who care to enter into the “chosen race”, into the “royal priesthood”, into the “holy tongue”, into the “chosen people” (1 Peter 2:9), conveniently accept into themselves the effectiveness of the life-giving Spirit. Therefore, ask and pray that we too may be worthy, although not for long, to begin the uniform righteousness of life in Christ. For such a soul, having put aside the “ice of the face” (Psalm 43:16), and no longer possessing bad thoughts, and not committing fornication with the evil one, without a doubt, enters into communion with the heavenly Bridegroom; because it itself is uniform. Stung by love for Him, she “desires and ends” (Psalm 83:1), desires, I dare say, so much beautiful mental and mysterious unity with Him through the imperishable union of communion in the shrine. Truly blessed and happy is such a soul; as if she had been overcome by spiritual love, she worthily became ignorant of God the Word. Therefore, let him say boldly, let her say: “Let my soul rejoice in the Lord: for he has clothed me with the robe of salvation, and the robe of gladness; As a bridegroom, place a crown on me, and as a bride, adorn me with beauty” (Isaiah 61:10). For the King, having desired her kindness (Psal. 44:12), honored her with the name not only of the church of God, but also of the daughter of the Tsar and the queen: the church of God, as adopted by the Holy Spirit, the daughter of the Tsar, as having received adoption from the Father of lights, and the queen, as united with the Divinity of the glory of the Only Begotten. For how did the Lord, one in essence, for the sake of building human salvation, take upon Himself, in an allegorical sense, many names? Why in one place is it called a stone (1 Cor. 10:4) and a door (John 10:7), in another an ax (Luke 3:9) and a path (John 14:6), and also a vine (John 15:1) and bread (John 6:35)? - A stone - because of its steadfastness in its strength and its inaccessibility; - a door, because through Him we enter into eternal life; - with an ax, because He cuts off the roots of vice, - with a path, because He leads those worthy to the knowledge of the truth, - with a vine, because through Him the wine bears fruit, gladdening the heart of man; and equally – with bread, because it strengthens the heart of the verbal creature. And in a similar way, the blameless soul, having assimilated itself to God the Word, being simple in itself, through many successes in spiritual virtues, is also awarded gifts. I said this because the name of the bride is, of course, not only threefold, but there are many of these names. And know that this work lies ahead of us until we enter into the sanctuary of God, “to God, who rejoices in our youth” (Psalm 44:4). For the Savior desires that we, while still in the flesh, should be made worthy of His dispassion and be filled with holiness, and then we could boldly say: “We walk in the flesh, we do not fight according to the flesh: for the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but we are strong in God against destruction; Therefore, here we must still nail sinful passions to the cross, according to the prayer of the Prophet: “Nail my fear to Thy fear” (Psalm 119:120). For by flesh and blood, about which the Apostle says that “they cannot inherit the kingdom of God” (1 Cor. 15:50), we should not understand this visible body (it was created by God), but the wisdom of the flesh, aroused by the spirits of evil acting “in the sons of disobedience” (Eph. 2:2); because the ascetics who are perfect in Christ “have no struggle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual malice” (Eph. 6:12). Therefore, if we recognize that this action is not natural, but the action of opposing forces, then, having taken upon ourselves the whole armor of Christ against them, we will be able to “stand against their wiles” (Eph. 6:11); because the Savior gives us the power to “tread on the serpent and the scorpion and all the power” to resist (Luke 10:19), so that, while still in the flesh, we can boldly say: “If I see untruth in my heart, let the Lord not hear me” (Psalm 65:18); and: “I have flown without iniquity and have corrected myself” (Psalm 58:5), that is, without any carnal passion I comfortably live in heaven, striving for what is intended, for “the honor of the highest calling” (Phil. 3:14). For, having become alien to all passion, we can boldly say: not only “have I kept the faith,” but also “have passed away” (2 Tim. 4:7). You must not only believe in Christ, but also suffer with Him, according to what was said: “For it was given to you, not only to believe in Christ, but also to suffer for Him” (Phil. 1:29). Believing only in God is characteristic of those who think earthly things, not to say even the unclean spirits who say: “We know Thee who art the Son of God” (Mark 1:24; Matt. 8:29). For both are “enemies of the cross of Christ, and their end is destruction. Whose belly is God, and whose glory is in their cold, even those on earth are wise” (Phil. 3:18, 19). Do you see that not only the apostate powers, but also those who think earthly things are the enemies of the cross? Only those who have crucified themselves in this world and bear the wounds of the Lord on their own bodies can suffer and be glorified with Christ. Those who have learned to philosophize correctly and have delivered their souls from the defilements of vice should know exactly the purpose of philosophy, so that, having recognized the work of the procession and the end of the course, everyone will reject arrogance and the thought of merit, according to the commandment of Scripture, having renounced their soul and life, keep in mind one wealth, which God has assigned to those who love as a reward for their love for Christ, calling to it all those who have decided to willingly accept the feat; and for them to complete such a feat, a sufficient parting word is the cross of Christ; carrying it, with joy and with good hope we must follow in the footsteps of the Savior God, having made His economy a law and the path of life, as the Apostle himself said: “Be imitators of me, as I was of Christ” (1 Cor. 11:1); and again: “Let us strive with patience for the fight that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the Author of our faith and Finisher of our faith. He who, instead of the joy that was set before Him, endured the cross, being careless about its shame, but sits at the right hand of the throne of God” (Heb. 12:1-2). We must be afraid that, having exalted ourselves with the gifts of the Spirit, and turning some success in virtue into a reason for arrogance and boasting, before we reach the hoped-for end, we will not weaken in our striving, through arrogance we will not make the previous work useless for ourselves, and we will not appear unworthy of the perfection to which the grace of the Spirit has attracted us. Therefore, one should not in any way weaken the effort in work, abandon the upcoming feats, and if what has been done before, limit jealousy; but, according to the Apostle, it is necessary to bring “the things that are behind” into oblivion, and “to the things that are before” to stretch out (Phil. 3:13), and to crush the heart with worries about labors, having an insatiable desire for truth, which alone must be hungered and thirsted by those who strive for perfection. They must become humble and filled with fear, as though they are still far from the promised blessings and have fallen far short of the perfect love of Christ. For whoever desires this love and looks at the heavenly promise, whether he fasts, remains in vigil, or is zealous for some other virtue, does not exalt himself with previous merits, but, filled with Divine desire, and unflaggingly fixing his gaze on the One who calls him, no matter how much he struggles in anything, considers everything small in comparison with what he strives for, and until the end of this life he uses everything efforts, applying work to work, and virtues to virtues, until he presents himself as worthy before God for his deeds, without having, however, the thought in his conscience that he has become worthy before God. For this is the highest merit of wisdom - when a person who is great in deeds humbles himself in heart and condemns himself for life, putting down his self-conceit through the fear of God, in order to enjoy the promise to the extent that he loved it by believing, and not to the extent that he labored. since the gifts are great, it is impossible to find worthy works. But faith and hope must be great, so that reward is measured by them, and not by labor. The basis of faith is spiritual poverty and immeasurable love for God. I think that enough has been said for those who, in accordance with the purpose of their hope, have decided to live wisely. Now we must add to what has been said how they should treat each other, what kind of labors they should love, so that they can complete their course together until they reach the city on high. Whoever resolutely does not honor what is recognized as worthy in this world, renounces his relatives, renounces all lower glory, meaning heavenly honor, and is spiritually united with his brothers in God, he must renounce his soul along with the world. Renunciation of the soul consists in not seeking one’s own will in anything, but rather correcting one’s will, making one’s superior the word of God for oneself, and using him as a good helmsman who guides the entire fullness of brotherhood in unanimity to the pier of God’s will. There is no need to acquire or call anything your property, separating it from the common, except for the clothing that covers the body. For if someone does not have any of this in himself, but is distracted by worldly concerns about himself, he will be careful about the common needs, and diligently, with pleasure and hope, will begin to fulfill the orders of his superiors, like a benevolent and simple-minded servant of Christ, devoted to what serves the common needs of the brethren. This is what the Lord demands, and this is what the Lord exhorts, saying: whoever of you wants to be first and greatest, let him be last of all, a servant of all, a slave of all (Matthew 20:27-28). Therefore, it is necessary that the service should not be rewarded by people, and that the servant should not bring any honor and glory, so that, according to what is written, he would not turn out to be a people-pleaser, who works feignedly before his eyes, but to work not for people, but as for the Lord himself (Eph. 6:6), and to walk the narrow path. He who willingly took His single yoke upon his neck and carries it to the end, strives towards the end with pleasure, with good hope. Therefore, one must subordinate oneself to everyone and serve the brothers, becoming like a debtor who took a loan from them, placing on the soul the concerns of everyone and fulfilling the duty of love. But even those in leadership in the clergy, bearing in mind the importance of the care entrusted to them, and discussing the tricks of malice that plot against the faith, must strive in a manner worthy of their leadership, and not plot about power. Because this is the danger. And some, thinking of ruling over others and guiding them to heavenly life, without noticing it themselves, destroyed themselves with high thoughts about themselves. Therefore, in the matter of leadership, primates should work more than others, and think of themselves more humbly than those under their command, present an example of service to their brothers in their lives, and look upon those entrusted to their superiors as God’s pledge. For if they do this, forming a sacred face with obligingness, and openly giving instructions according to the needs of each, in order to maintain the rank appropriate to everyone, and secretly in their thoughts, as beneficent slaves should, observing humility and faith, then they will gain a great reward for themselves through such a life. They should take care of their subordinates like good educators of young children entrusted to them by their fathers. Educators, keeping in mind the properties of children, on whom they act with blows, on some with admonition, on some with praise, and on others with something else, doing this not out of mercy or out of hatred towards them, but as is characteristic of the case, and as the character of the child requires, so that the children become honest in this life. Likewise, we must, putting aside all hatred of our brothers and all stubbornness, compare the word with the strengths and disposition of each. Reprimand for one, admonish for another, console another, in accordance with the needs of each, using medicine according to the example of a good doctor. For the doctor, depending on the suffering of the patient, uses either light or strong medicine, is not burdened with anyone requiring healing, but considers art both with wounds and with the strength of the body. And you apply yourself to the needs of the matter, so that, having well trained the soul of the student who turns his gaze to you, his virtue will be presented to the father as bright and the soul will become a worthy heir of his father’s gift. If you do this to each other, both superiors and those who recognize them as your teachers, and you will begin, some with joy to obey orders, and others with pleasure to raise the brethren to perfection, “doing more honor to one another” (Rom. 12:10); then on earth you will live an angelic life. Let no arrogance be noticeable in you, but let your host be united by innocence, like-mindedness, and an insidious disposition towards each other. Let everyone be convinced in himself that he is worse not only than the brother living with him, but also of every person. He who knows this will truly be a disciple of Christ. For “he who exalts himself will humble himself; he who humbles himself will be exalted” (Luke 18:14); and one more thing: whoever “wants to be older in you, let him be the least of all,” “and servant of all” (Mark 9:15). “For even as the Son of man did not come to let them serve Him, but to serve and to give His soul redemption for many” (Matthew 20:28). And the Apostle says: “For we preach not to ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord: but for your own sake Jesus’s servants” (2 Cor. 4:5). Therefore, knowing both the fruits of humility and the harm of arrogance, imitate the Master. Loving each other, for mutual good, do not be afraid of death or any other punishment, but in the same way that the Savior walked among us, and you, going to Him, as if in one body and one soul, hasten to the highest calling, loving God and each other; because love and fear of the Lord are the first fulfillment of the law. Therefore, each of you must lay fear and love in your soul as an unshakable and solid foundation, and water your soul with good deeds and prolonged prayer; because love for God is usually born in us not simply and not by itself, but after many labors and great worries and with the assistance of Christ, as wisdom said. For it is said: “If you have sought it as if it were silver, and tried it as if it were treasures, then you will understand the fear of the Lord, and you will find the knowledge of God” (Prov. 2:4-5). Having acquired the knowledge of God and having understood fear, you will conveniently succeed in the next, that is, in love for your neighbor. When the first and great labor is applied, then the second, like less, follows the first with the slightest labor. And without the first, the second cannot be pure. For whoever does not love God with all his soul and with all his heart, will he correctly and without flattery take care of love for his brothers, without fulfilling love for that for the sake of which he makes care of love for his brothers? Whoever is such, has not given his whole soul to God, has not yet been moved to the love of God, the inventor of sin conveniently takes possession of him, as if unarmed, either by stumbling him with evil thoughts and making the commandments of Scripture seem burdensome to him and serving his brothers intolerable, or by bringing him to arrogance and arrogance by the fact that he serves slaves like himself, and convincing him that, since he has fulfilled the commandments of the Lord, he has become great in heaven. And this is no small mistake; because a committed and diligent slave must entrust the judgment of commitment to the Master, and not make himself, instead of the Master, a judge, writing down praises for his life. For if he himself becomes a judge, having rejected the true Judge, then he will have no reward there, having attributed praise to himself and being filled with conceit before His judgment. According to Paul’s saying, it is necessary for the “Spirit” of God to “submit to our Spirit” (Rom. 8:16), and not for our judgment to evaluate our deeds. For it is said: “Do not praise yourself for this skillful one, but God praises him” (2 Cor. 10:18). And whoever does not wait for His judgment, but anticipates it, seeks human glory, acquiring honor from the brethren through his own labors, and doing what is characteristic of infidels. For the unfaithful is the one who, instead of heavenly honors, pursues human honors, as the Lord Himself says in one place: “How can you believe, receiving glory from one another, and seeking not the glory that is from the one God” (John 5:44)? It seems to me that they are like those who “clean the outer of glassware and dishes,” but on the inside are full of all sorts of vices (Matthew 23:25). Therefore, be careful that nothing like this happens to you, but, with your souls fixed on grief, and having one concern to please the Lord, do not lose the remembrance of heaven, and do not accept the honors of this age; So flow, not divulging your exploits in virtue, so that the one who inspires the desire for earthly honors, and having found little, and thereby catching your mind, from pursuing the true, casts a person into vain and full of flattery, - not having found either the time or access to catch the souls that are in grief, perished and remained dead. For death is to the devil if vice is not carried out and is ineffective. When the love of God is in you, let other things necessarily follow: brotherly love, meekness, unhypocrisy, duration of prayers and zeal in them, in a word, every virtue. And since this acquisition is great; then in order to acquire it, great labors are also needed, undertaken not to show off to people, but to please the Lord, Who knows the unseen, and to Whom one should always direct one’s gaze. It is necessary to examine the interior of the soul and protect it with pious thoughts, so that the opponent does not find access or opportunity for malicious intent. It is necessary to exercise the exhausted parts of the soul and raise them to the knowledge of good and evil. The mind that follows God knows how to exercise the soul, moving with itself every soul to Him, with love for God, with the hidden understanding of virtue and the deeds of the commandment, healing the rotten and combining with the strong. Since the only protection and healing for the soul is to remember God with love and always hold on to good thoughts: then let us not put off such care; whether we eat, whether we drink, whether we rest, whether we do anything, whether we speak, so that everything in our power will contribute to God’s glory, and not our own, and our life will not have any filth or uncleanness due to the slander of the evil one. Moreover, for those who love God, the work of fulfilling the commandments is convenient and pleasant; because the love of God makes the feat easy and desirable. That is why the evil one is striving by all means to destroy the fear of the Lord in souls and to weaken the love for the Lord with lawless pleasures and pleasant lures, trying to overtake the soul when it is not clothed in spiritual weapons and is not guarded, and to corrupt our labors, instead of heavenly glory, instilling in us earthly glory, and overshadowing what is truly beautiful with what seems good to those deceived by dreams. For if he finds the guards careless, he knows how to choose the time - to interfere with the works of virtue and sow his tares along with the wheat, that is, slander, arrogance, vanity, desire for honor, discord and other products of malice. Why, one must stay awake and watch the enemy everywhere, so that if he uses some shameless trick, he can repel him before he touches the soul. Remember constantly that Abel sacrificed the firstborn sheep and their fat to God, and Cain brought the fruits of the earth, but not the first fruits; and it is said: “God has regard” for Abel’s sacrifices, but “he has not heeded” the gifts of Cain (Gen. 4:5). What is the use of this legend? It teaches that everything that is done with fear and faith is pleasing to God, and not anything of great value that is done without love. And Abraham received the blessing from Melchizedek in no other way than by bringing the first fruits and the main thing of property to the priest of God. And the main and best thing in property is called the soul itself and the mind itself, which is why we are commanded not to skimpily offer up praises and prayers to God, and not to offer anything ordinary as a gift to the Master, but with all love and zeal to devote to Him what is best in the soul, or rather, the whole soul itself, so that always feeding on the grace of the Spirit and accepting the power of Christ, it is convenient for us to complete the course of salvation by doing it is easy and pleasant for oneself, even when it extends beyond the demands of truth; because God himself will help us in our zealous labors and accomplish works of righteousness through us. And let’s end the word here. As for the parts of virtue, which of them should be revered as the highest, and which one should be practiced before the others, also which of them is second, and how the other parts follow one another, there is no need to talk about this; because they are all equally honest with each other, and one through the other raises those who practice them to the very top. Thus, simplicity conveys obedience, obedience to faith, faith to hope, hope to service, service to humility, and from humility it receives meekness and leads to joy, joy to love, and love to prayer. And thus, depending on each other and being in connection with each other, they raise the one who holds them to the most desired peak; as well as on the opposite side, wickedness, through its own members, reduces its friends to extreme malice. Most of all, you should remain constantly in prayer; because she is, as it were, the leader of the face of virtues. Through it we ask God for other virtues. He who is constantly in prayer, as it were, enters into communion with God, and is united with Him by mysterious holiness and a certain spiritual effectiveness and ineffable disposition of the heart. For here, having already received the Spirit as a guide and supporter, he is inflamed with love for the Lord, and burns with desire, not finding satiety in prayer, but constantly kindled with love for the Good and feeding his soul with zeal, according to what was said: “those who eat me will still hunger, and those who drink me will still thirst” (Sirach 24, 23), and in another place: “Thou hast given joy to my heart” (Psalm 4:8). And the Lord said: “The kingdom of heaven is within you” (Luke 17:21). What kind of kingdom does He mean within us? Isn’t this, of course, the joy that is given to souls from above by the Spirit? For it serves, so to speak, as an indication and guarantee of the eternal joy which the souls of the Saints will enjoy in the expected age. Therefore, the Lord comforts us with the effectiveness of the Spirit in all our sorrow, in order to save us and impart to us spiritual blessings and His gifts. For it is said: “Comfort us in all our sorrow, for you are able to comfort us in all sorrow” (2 Cor. 1:4); and: “my heart and my flesh rejoiced in the living God” (Psalm 83:3); and: “As with fatness and ointment may my soul be filled” (Psalm 62:6). All this conjecturally depicts the joy and consolation provided by the Spirit. Since it is shown what goal of piety should be assumed by those who decide to lead a God-loving life, namely, spiritual purity and instilling the Spirit in themselves by rousing themselves to good deeds; then each of you, having prepared your soul in accordance with the indicated goal, and having preferred love for God to everything else, let him devote himself, according to God’s will, to prayers and fasting, remembering the one who exhorts to pray without ceasing (Col. 5:17), and remaining in prayer and the Lord’s promises, according to what was said: how much more will God “execute vengeance on those who cry out to Him day and night?” (Luke 18:7). For it is said: “a verb and a parable, as it is fitting to always pray and not be cold” (Luke 18:1). And that diligent prayer grants us many things, and infuses the Spirit Himself into our souls, this is clearly shown by the Apostle when he encourages us and says: “Praying with all prayer and supplication at all times in the Spirit, and continually watching with all patience and prayer” (Eph. 6:18). As soon as one of these brothers devotes himself to this part, that is, to prayer, then he takes care of the beautiful treasure, and with a right conscience, befitting only a lover of a glorious crown, he never sins arbitrarily in thought, and not out of necessity, as if against the will, repays the debt, but satisfies love and spiritual desire, and makes obvious to everyone the good fruits of his constancy. But it is necessary that others give him time and rejoice in his constancy in prayer, so that they themselves may become partakers of good fruits, when by the very fact that they enjoy such a life, they become accomplices of it. And the Lord himself gives those who ask the strength to pray as they should, according to what has been said: he gives prayer to the one who prays (Job 22:2). Therefore, one must ask the Lord and know that it is better for one who is in prayer, in such an important matter, to strive with great diligence and with all his might in the struggle; because great victorious rewards also require great work, and the malice of such ascetics, especially everywhere, builds intrigues, trying and caring about this, trying to turn them away from diligence; This is why there is sleep and heaviness in the body, delicacy of the soul, despondency, negligence, impatience and other infirmities and consequences of vice, from which the soul perishes, gradually being plundered and handed over to the power of its enemy. Therefore, the thought, like a wise helmsman, must listen to prayer, not in the least paying attention to the confusion of the evil spirit, not being overwhelmed by its waves, but directly looking to the heavenly pier, and returning the immaculate soul to God, who entrusted it to you and demands it back. According to Scripture, it is not good and acceptable to fall to your knees and prostrate yourself on the ground, following the example of others who prostrate themselves during prayer, while the mind wanders away from God, but to, having removed from oneself all laziness of thoughts and all unrighteous thoughts, devote one’s body and soul to prayers. And the superiors, with all diligence, should assist him with their advice, nourish in the praying person the desire to achieve the intended goal and thoroughly cleanse his soul. In this case, the fruit of virtues shown to the sick person is useful not only to those who have succeeded, but also to those who are still infancy and need to learn, comforting them and encouraging them to imitate what they see. The fruits of sincere prayer are: simplicity, love, humility, constancy, kindness and everything like that, which the work of one who is diligent in prayer, before eternal fruits, grows here throughout life. Prayer is decorated with such fruits. And if he does not have them, then his work is in vain. And not only prayer, but also every path of wisdom, if it grows from what has been said above, truly is the path of truth and leads to the right end. And whoever is deprived of these fruits is left with an empty name, and he is likened to the holy fools, who in times of need had no oil in the bridal chamber, because they did not have light in their souls - the fruit of virtue and a spiritual lamp in their minds; why, the Scripture rightly called them fools for their loss of virtue before the bridegroom came, for which it closed the doors of the heavenly palace for these poor people. Scripture did not credit them with the merit of zeal for virginity, because the effectiveness of the Spirit was not found in them; and very fair. For what is the use of cultivating a vineyard if there are no fruits in it for which the farmer labors? What is the gain from fasting, prayer, vigil, when there is no peace and love and other fruits of spiritual grace, which the holy Apostle lists? For for the sake of them, the lover of the high country bears all the work, with them he is attracted by the Spirit, and by partaking of grace, he bears fruit, and with joy enjoys the work that spiritual grace accomplished in his humility and care for deeds. Therefore, the labors of prayer and fasting and other works must be endured with great pleasure and good hope, and the flowers and fruits of labor must be recognized as the actions of the Spirit. For if someone begins to impute them to himself and attribute everything to labor, then instead of these pure fruits, arrogance and some kind of wisdom will grow in him. And these passions, like some kind of rottenness, arising in frivolous souls, corrupt and destroy work. What should one do who lives for God and trusts in Him? – It is with pleasure to remain in the deeds of virtue, and to place the deliverance of the soul from passions and the hope of ascending to perfection to the highest degree of virtues on Him and entrust oneself to His love for mankind. He who has made himself so comfortable, and has trusted in what he has tasted of grace, easily goes through the process, despising the malice of the enemy, as if he had already become alien to passions and delivered from them by the grace of Christ. Just as those who, out of carelessness about what is good, introduce evil passions into their nature and joyfully spend their lives in them, without difficulty satisfying them, as if some innate and characteristic voluptuousness for them, bearing fruit from covetousness, envy, deceit and other assets of resistant malice: so the true workers of Christ, through faith and labors in virtue, reap the fruit with unspeakable pleasure from the grace of the Spirit, blessings that are supernatural for them, without difficulty perfect in themselves unflattering and unchanging faith and unshakable peace, true goodness and everything else, as a result of which the soul, having become better than itself and stronger than the malice of the enemy, prepares from itself a pure abode for the venerable and Holy Spirit, from Whom having received the immortal peace of Christ, it is united with the Lord and cleaves to Him. And having received the grace of the Spirit, clinging to God and becoming one spirit with Him, she not only easily accomplishes the deeds of her own virtue, without fighting the enemy to overcome his slander, but, most importantly, she takes upon herself the sufferings of the Savior, and enjoys them more than peace-loving people, honor from people, further glory and dominion. For for Christians, who through good living and through the gift of the Spirit have come to the measure of the spiritual age of the grace given to them, and glory and joy and all pleasure, the highest pleasure is to be hated and driven out for the sake of Christ, to endure every insult and shame for their faith in God. For such a person, with his complete hope of receiving a share in the resurrection and future blessings, every insult, beating, persecution and all other suffering, even to the cross, serve as joy, peace and a guarantee of heavenly treasures. For it is said: “Blessed are you when all men reproach you and destroy you,” and say every evil word against you who lie to Me for my sake. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is many in heaven” (Matthew 5:11–12). And the Apostle says: “not exactly, but we glory in our sorrows” (Rom. 5:3); and in another place: “Sweetly I will glory in my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. In the same way, I will find grace in weaknesses, in annoyances, in troubles”, in prisons: “for when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Cor. 12:9-10); and again: “like God’s servants in patience” (2 Cor. 6:4). The very grace of the Spirit embraces the entire soul and, filling the monastery with joy and strength, makes the Lord’s suffering sweet for the soul, taking away the feeling of present illnesses with the hope of the future. Therefore, as those who, with the assistance of the Spirit, are preparing to achieve such high power and glory, so live, lifting up every labor and achievement with joy, in order to prove yourself worthy of the coming of the Spirit and the inheritance with Christ, never becoming exhausted or weakened from negligence, so that you yourself do not fall, and for others you do not become the authors of sin. If some, not yet having in themselves the effectiveness of the highest prayer and the diligence and strength required by the work, are poor in this virtue; then let them make up for obedience in others, serving, to the best of their ability, diligently, working diligently, pleasing others with pleasure, not because of a bribe to earn honor, not for the sake of human glory, not getting tired of labor due to effeminacy or negligence, serving not as someone else’s body and someone else’s soul, but as the servants of Christ, as their own wombs, so that your work before God turns out to be pure and unflattering. In discussing diligence for good deeds, let no one present as an excuse that he is not able to perform deeds that save the soul; because God does not command His servants to do anything impossible, but has shown so much abundant and rich love and goodness of the Divine that He gives everyone the opportunity, according to his will, to do something good, and no one who has diligence is left without the opportunity to be saved. “Whoever,” it is said, “will give a cup of cold water to drink, only in the name of the disciple, Amen, will he not lose his reward” (Matthew 10:42). What is more easy to fulfill than this commandment? A cup of cold water is followed by a heavenly reward. And look, what immeasurable love for humanity! It is said: “Before you have created one of these, you have created Me” (Matthew 25:40). What is commanded is of little importance, but the acquisition of obedience is great, and is richly rewarded by God. Therefore, He does not require what is beyond His strength; but whether you do something small or great, the reward follows you, in proportion to your will. If you do it in the name of God and out of the fear of God, then the gift is bright and inalienable; and if you do it for show and for human glory, then listen to what the Lord himself says with an oath: “Amen, I say to you, they will receive their reward” (Matthew 6:8). Therefore, so that the same does not happen to us, he proclaims to his disciples, and through them to us: see that you do not give alms, or your prayer, or your fasting before men; Thus, he commands us to turn away and flee from these mortals and the praises given by mortals, this fading and fleeing glory from us, and to seek that one glory, the beauty of which cannot be expressed and the limit cannot be found, with which we too can be made worthy of those unspeakable mysteries about Christ Jesus our Lord. Glory to him forever and ever! Amen. 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