16. Прощение долгов ближнему – спасение

Today's Gospel (Matthew 18:23–35) teaches us to forgive offenses. Let us listen to the Lord and resolve to fulfill this holy. His commandment. – Why especially? - Because this is the closest and most reliable path to salvation. If you want to be saved, forgive everyone and everything you have against anyone, and you will be saved: for this is what the Lord says: “If you forgive men their sins, your heavenly Father will also forgive you” (Matthew 6:14). – And whoever’s sins have been forgiven, what more could he wish for? – The Holy Prophet David says: “Blessed are those who have abandoned iniquity, and those who have covered themselves with sin. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin” (Ps. 31:1-2). Blessed is, therefore, saved. – And the word prophesied by the Prophet Moses from ancient times is fulfilled over such: do not go overseas to seek salvation: the word is near you in your heart. – Let me add: a verb with which all-forgiveness is spoken in the heart, “if anyone gives reproach to anyone” ( Col. 3:13 ). In everyday life, you constantly have clashes, constant cases of resentment and disturbances of the peace of heart - imaginary or real insults. “And this is what is almost inevitable, what naturally attacks us, the Lord wants to turn us into the purchase of salvation and the acquisition of pardon. Every minute you are insulted: every minute you forgive, and every minute you will enter deeper and deeper into the realm of Divine mercy, into God’s all-forgiving mercy - and with this pardon, like some kind of clothing, you will be clothed, protected and protected from everything that harms the cause of salvation in you. Nothing is so powerful in the face of the Lord as forgiveness of offenses; - for it is an imitation of one of the closest acts of God’s mercy to us. “And we are not tempted by anything so easily as by anger and the desire for revenge through perky words, and often in deeds.” - It has become, every minute, we are losing instead of gaining, which is given into our hands. If I had forgiven, I would have gained peace within myself and mercy from the Lord. “If you don’t forgive, your inner anxiety increases, and you don’t expect mercy from the Lord.” Why do we not always forgive, but more often indulge in outbursts of anger, frustration and indignation? I suppose - from inattention to the cost of forgiveness. – What is given by forgiveness goes unnoticed, while deprivation from resentment seems so obvious. From a proud heart comes the thought: why should we forgive, and we do not forgive. - Restore, in moments of resentment, in your thoughts and hearts the undoubted promise for forgiveness - a promise incomparably more valuable than the greatest losses that a person’s offense can cause. Then, no matter what offense we encounter, an inspiring voice will come out of the heart: there is something to forgive for, and we will forgive. We forgive, and we will be forgiven; we will still forgive, and we will still be forgiven; - and so on incessantly. – The one who forgives will himself walk under the forgiveness of God, or in the arms of Divine mercy and love. – Is there anything we can seek forgiveness for? Oh so many! “Let us hasten to forgive, so that we may be forgiven.” – And all the more willingly, since what we forgive is insignificant; and that for which we will be forgiven is so valuable that it cannot even be compared with that. In the current parable, our sins against God are valued at ten thousand talents, and the sins of others against us are valued at a hundred denarii. - According to our account, approximately, put it in 1000 rubles, and this in a penny. - Buy 1000 rubles for a penny! “If the possibility of such an acquisition had opened up somewhere in everyday life, I wouldn’t have been able to stop anyone: everyone would have rushed there.” “But no, even the most calculated, acquisition on earth is as sure as the promise of the Lord, and no assessment in earthly things is as accurate as the comparative assessment of our sins and insults inflicted on us: for it is spoken by the God of righteousness.” - So, remember the sins for which you have been forgiven, or seek forgiveness, and - either out of gratitude for the mercy received, or in the undoubted hope of receiving the mercy desired and sought - farewell, - farewell with a wide, open, generous heart. Let the insult humiliate you somewhat, or cause some damage. – After all, the Lord sees everything. “He sees the movement of your heart, observes its inclination towards forgiveness, is consoled by the accomplishment of forgiveness there, and values ​​your sacrifice at such a price as you cannot even imagine.” Remember the legend about one monk who did not live so strictly, but did not condemn anyone when he saw something bad, and was not offended when he suffered something from anyone. “When he was dying, the brethren surrounded his bed with sorrow, but he had a bright face and a joyful heart. – They asked him, what does it mean that you are in such a state? “He answered them: forgive me, fathers and brothers!” – I am a sinful and careless monk; but in my life I did not condemn anyone and did not have sorrow for anyone; - and then the Angel of the Lord came to me and said: you did not condemn, - the Lord does not condemn you either. You have forgiven, the Lord forgives you too. “For the sake of these words, my heart wants to jump out of joy.” “That’s how he died.” See what a reward. How can one say: why should one forgive? In addition to the visible order, there is an invisible one, besides the present world - the age to come. When would we move there in thought and heart; We would have different thoughts, different speeches, different deeds - so different that people of this century, looking at us, would begin to consider us violent. – According to the spirit of the world, whoever is not demanding and forgives everything is considered to have no dignity; but in reality, it is the dignity to forgive. He who forgives according to the commandment of the Lord and Christian hope is a man of another, better world. From there he receives suggestions and observes the local rules. Those who look at him from the earth and from the earthly side do not know how to understand him. – He fulfills in action what the Apostle indicated: “If anyone thinks that he will be wise in you in this world, let him be, for he will be wise” (1 Cor. 3:18). Of course, it is not suddenly possible to acquire such a deep and abundant peace that it absorbs every blow of insult. But start from the lowest, and you will ascend to the highest. The first degree of non-offense, non-grudge and, therefore, forgiveness is the silence of the lips. Start with this. When they offend, overpower yourself, remain silent, and imitating the Prophet David, who says about himself: “I was confused and did not speak” (Ps. 76:5). Do this once, - another time it will be easier to remain silent. - The more often you remain silent, the less embarrassment you will face insults. Established non-embarrassment will bring peace; and peace will be reborn into a peace that surpasses all reason. Then you will be in the face of insults that a solid wall against the blows of grains of sand, tossed by the winds. - This is what you will come to when you begin to overcome yourself with silence? - If you do not begin to overcome yourself, you will become more and more irritated - and you will reach such a tendency to anger that every little thing will drive you crazy. - You can’t gain anything without work; If you want moral kindness, work on your heart. The Lord provided him with such a property that repetition of actions facilitates the work of performing them and protects his disposition towards them. – Frequent forgiveness of grievances will not only impart ease of forgiveness and the skill to do so; - but he will even develop a thirst for insults, for the Lord’s sake, in which the one struck on the cheek substitutes another, the one deprived of a robe gives up the swearing, and the one forced to go the race walks two together. “This is a height that seems unattainable for us, but which, however, one who has begun to forgive properly, ascends easily, naturally, without much effort.” Forgiveness is the most attractive virtue, immediately bringing reward for itself in the heart. With this in mind, let us bless the Lord, who has given us a way to rise to such a height, and let us pray that He will grant us the strength and intelligence to forgive, so that we may be forgiven and be worthy of blessed mercy and forgiveness. Amen. 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