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Question How holy. Tikhon talks about the divine origin and importance of the hierarchy, or the power of the clergy? Rep. Every Christian should be like a shepherd for his subordinates: a master is to his household, a master is to his slaves and peasants, a superior is to his monastic brethren, a boss is a shepherd to his subordinates. For everyone, according to their Christian position, undertakes to instruct their subordinates on the path of salvation and to present themselves as an example of pious living and have an answer to give for them on the day of judgment of Christ. However, according to the general Christian voice, bishops and presbyters, especially, are called shepherds, and God’s word ascribes this title to them and entrusts into their hands the flock of Christ’s verbal sheep, redeemed by the blood of Christ... Without the title and election of the right one, no one should enter into the pastoral ministry, as the Apostle says: no one accepts honor for himself (hierarchical and priestly), but he who is called from God, like Aaron: so Christ did not glorify Himself to be the High Priest, but said to Him: You are My Son, today I have begotten You (Heb. 5:4, 5). And St. The Forerunner teaches: a person cannot receive anything unless it is given to him from heaven (John 3:27). Just as the prophets and apostles were immediately chosen by the voice of God and called into the great work of their ministry, so those who want to enter into their work must wait for the calling and election of the Church and the chief leaders of the church, to whom the government of the church is entrusted; and without that, no one should interfere with this great matter. The wise Sirach admonishes: do not seek superiors for yourself (Sir. 3:21). Consequently, those who, without such election, enter into that (hierarchy and priesthood, as it is in schismatic views) do bad, and those who, through bribery or the intercession of nobles and princes, seek this through bribery or intercession do bad. They don't know what they are looking for... By this they show that they either consider themselves capable of such a great and difficult task, that is, to shepherd the flock of Christ and keep them from the devil’s snares (this is arrogance), or they want to graze rather than be shepherded. They must be wary lest this word of Christ befits them: Do not enter through the doors into the sheepfold, but trespass elsewhere, that is a thief and a robber (John 10:1). Question With what qualities should people be elected to hierarchical and pastoral ranks? Rep. It is appropriate to choose 1) those who are intelligent and teaching, so that they can instruct on the path of salvation, admonish and console those under them; 2) virtuous people, yes, what they teach people, they themselves show by their deeds: such teaching, confirmed by a virtuous life, will be strong, real and useful to people. The Apostle Paul demands these qualities from a shepherd (1 Tim. 3:2–4; Titus 1:7–9); It behooves a Bishop to be without blemish, like God’s builder, not pleasing to himself, not daring, not vain, not angry, not a drunkard, not a murderer, not filthy acquisitive; but to the one who loves hospitable people, who loves kindness, who is chaste, righteous, reverent, self-controlled, who adheres to the right word according to teaching, may he be able to console those who resist in sound teaching and to reprove those who resist. Question What is the position of shepherds 7? Rep. 1) They must listen to the reading of the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make them wise for salvation through faith, even in Christ Jesus (2 Tim. 3:15; 1 Tim. 4:13, 16). The Apostles and Prophets were directly enlightened by the Holy Spirit (2 Pet. 1:21). Pastors entering into their positions must adhere to their scriptures, study in them day and night, and draw teaching from them... and pray to Christ God to open their minds to understand the scriptures. 2) He is a good shepherd who teaches, and what he teaches, he shows in himself (to the shepherds, the chief shepherd Christ says: Matt. 5:16 and 1 Tim. 4:12). A shepherd must have a clear and unsightly conscience before God, and an example of good deeds before people... Shepherds who teach, but do not create, are decently likened to pillars placed on the road, which show the way to the city, but do not move from their place; they are likened to bells that call people to church, but do not enter themselves... 3) Shepherds should not flatter, which especially happens before nobles, princes, the famous and the rich; but to bear witness to truth and righteousness everywhere... and if there is a need, to endure everything for the truth, no matter what the world, which hates the truth, imagines for them (Matthew 10:28, 32, 33)... 4) Shepherds have the duty to act wisely in their teaching, look and reason, where is the Gospel comforting, where is the legitimate frightening teaching to offer. It is bad and useless, and even more harmful, to offer a consoling word where fear is needed, and to thunder there where consolation is needed... For the sake of the fearless, the fear of God is needed, yes, having awakened from the sleep of sin, they will repent; For the sake of the contrite and sad, the plaster of consolation of the Gospel is needed, so that they may be confirmed in faith and receive living consolation in their hearts... We see an example of this in the writings of the prophets, the Apostles and their followers, the holy fathers... 5) For pastors, since they cannot accomplish anything without God’s help, they must earnestly pray to God, both for themselves, to help them in their difficult task, and for the people entrusted to them, so that He enlightened the eyes of their souls to the knowledge of the truth and directed their hearts to do His will, and preserved them from the wiles of the devil. The holy Apostles did this, as we read in their epistles; the shepherds, their successors and church teachers created. The current clergy should do the same. 6) Although all Christians are subject to all kinds of persecution, pastors are especially subject to this. since they destroy the kingdom of the devil by preaching the word of God, reveal the darkness of its charms, and take away human souls at his hands: then the devil is especially furious at them and rebels, and institutes all persecution through evil people, as his true weapon. Therefore, good shepherds need to prepare themselves for patience, and always, like a ship on the sea, expect storms and disasters and carry what they find with a patient heart... May the chief shepherd Jesus Christ himself and the holy Apostles be in their image!.. In the Apocalypse we read that Christ says to every angel - the bishop of the seven churches: I know your works (Rev. 3:15). What does this mean? Nothing other than the fact that Christ oversees every shepherd, and notes his deeds, plans and undertakings, and writes them down in His book... Again we read that Christ, when, after rising from the dead, asked Peter three times: Do you love Me? From this it is clear that shepherds, when they want to show their love for Christ, must show it by tending His sheep with love for Him and for them. Question How does Saint Tikhon talk about Jesus Christ, about His Divine and human nature? Rep. Oh, blessed are the eyes that have seen Christ Jesus! Kings, prophets, and righteous people wanted to see him: never before has he appeared in Israel (Matthew 9:33). For this Jesus Christ is the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. This is the one who appeared in a bush that was burning and unburnt, and spoke with Moses. This is the one who divided the Red Sea and led Israel through it. This is the one who spoke with Moses on Mount Sinai and gave him His law... This is the one who led His people into the promised land, boiling with honey and milk. This is the one who sent prophets into the world. He himself came to us, came in an image similar to us. God appeared in the flesh... (1 Tim. 3:16). As much as man is honored by God in creation, so much is he who fell in his restoration exalted. God Himself came to seek and save him. In creation He honored man with His image, and He Himself came to save the fallen and lost. From the human race He received and united to Himself animate flesh, and became a man; and our Lord became like us and became our brother, as He Himself says: I will proclaim Your name to My brethren. All the nations will hear this, and let us worship Him, the God who has come to us (Heb. 2:12; Ps. 49:2). We see, continues Saint Tikhon, in St. Gospel, that the infant Son of God was sought to be killed and with His Holy Matter evaded the villainous hands, fled to Egypt and there hid from them for some time... We also see that Jesus, the Son of God, in the flesh which, for the sake of our salvation, he received from the most pure Virgin Mary, grew up like other people, and, having come to perfect age, was baptized in the streams of the Jordan, sanctifying the waters with His touch, and establishing the saving sacrament of our Baptism, the mysterious bathhouse of our rebirth. Question What does this show? Rep. That Jesus Christ, our Savior, is a true man, and although by His divine power he could not only preserve Himself without evading, but also defeat murderers with His righteous judgment? but he did not want this, as if he had come into the world to save, and not destroy, human souls, and to give us an example not to give room to anger, and to give in to those who hate and offend us. We see Jesus Christ in St. Gospel that He, after His baptism, was led by the Spirit into the wilderness and was tempted by Satan. Question What follows from this? Rep. 1) That our Redeemer is God and man; 2) that everyone who is born of water and the Spirit will be tempted by the devil. For if an evil spirit dared to tempt Christ the Son of God, will he leave Christians?.. It is hard to fight with people, far more difficult is to fight with evil spirits (Eph. 6:12). Question What else shows us about Jesus Christ? Tikhon? Rep. We see, he says, in St. Gospel that our Lord Jesus Christ, after being tempted by an evil spirit, went out to preach to St. The Gospel, which He brought from His Father from heaven, and having gathered twelve disciples... taught everyone to know His heavenly Father, and to please Him with faith and truth... and presented Himself to everyone as an image. Nothing was seen in Jesus Christ but the deepest humility, the most ardent love for humanity and for the heavenly Father, inscrutable meekness and mercy... This is our God, and appeared on earth, and from the living of man... Thy procession was seen, O God... Thou wast seen to eat and drink, like a man, giving food to all flesh, - was seen You were approachable to sinners, unapproachable to Cherubim and Seraphim. The eyes of men have seen You, upon whom the ranks of the Angels do not dare to look. Your voice was heard, like the voice of the Son of God, the voice like the Only Begotten of the Father and our God incarnate. We saw Your divine and beautiful virtues, which you left for us, poor sinners, to imitate... Let us love them, let us love His humility, love, meekness and all His sweet disposition. Question What else does Saint Tikhon pay special attention to in the history of Jesus Christ? Rep. We see, he says, in St. The Gospel that our Lord Jesus Christ worked and toiled for our sake, and completing the work of our salvation, walked from city to city and to various places... The Almighty and All-Powerful One worked and toiled! He who sat on the throne of His glory walked the earth on foot! From here let us learn - not to live in idleness, but to live in good labors - not in the pomp and pride of this world, but to support ourselves in humility. We know about Jesus Christ, as the God-man, that while He lived on earth, He had no place to lay His head, as He Himself testifies (Matthew 8:20)... He Whose earth and its fulfilment had no place to lay His head. He could have everything, but he did not have His own house. So He humbled Himself, so He became poor for our sake, being rich in mercy. Let us learn from His example - not to seek wealth and rich houses in this world, but to be content with what we have and what God has given us from His mercy... Question What else touching and instructive does the saint indicate? Tikhon in the history of Jesus Christ? Rep. We see in St. In the Gospel, the Voronezh saint says in his Zadonsk solitude, that all the poor who approached Christ with petition and faith received from him what they wanted. The lepers came and were cleansed; the blind came and saw; the lame came forward and were corrected. He healed the paralytic, delivered those possessed by demons from demonic torment, and performed other glorious and supernatural miracles. Question What will follow from this? And what does this tell us? Rep. 1) That he is the Messiah and Savior of the world, Who was promised by God and preached by all the prophets... He appeared in Israel like this (Matthew 9:33). Previously, God appeared in Israel in different ways: here God appeared in human form and in human nature. Previously, God worked miracles through the prophets and His chosen servants, and spoke through the prophets: here He works miracles by Himself and speaks in His face. 2) May we also approach the heavenly physician Jesus with faith... We are blind: the mind is blind in the knowledge of God and His will; let us cry with the blind: have mercy on us, son of David! (Matthew 9:27). We are deaf: sin has deafened us, and we do not hear the sweet messages of the Lord; Let us cry with the deaf: Jesus, Son of God, open the ears of our souls... Our souls are angry with evil: the demon is great and fierce - it is sin. Fierce demon - pride, malice, anger, lust, etc. Let us therefore cry out with the Canaanite woman: Lord, have mercy on us; not the daughter, but the soul and flesh are raging fiercely. Question Jesus Christ, as we see in St. Gospel, he entered houses by invitation and ate what was offered: what should one think about this? Rep. Oh, blessed are those houses which the Heavenly King visited, and, giving food to all flesh (Ps. 135:25), ate food in them! Let us also turn to Him, open the houses of our hearts and humbly ask Him to visit us too, humble and sinners. He Himself is ready and glad to come to us if He sees a free and ready place for Himself in our souls. Behold, I stand at the door and understand: if anyone hears My voice, I will come down to him and dine with him, and he with Me (Apoc. 3:20). Question What else does Saint Tikhon specifically point out in the history of Jesus Christ? Rep. Christ our Lord, while living on earth, innocently endured much reproach and blasphemy from His people, with all meekness... Our sins are guilty of this; For our sins, with which we have annoyed our God, the merciful Jesus, our deliverer, endured all blasphemy... Moreover, the blinded world does not love righteousness and truth. Christ the Lord, the eternal truth, both created and spoke the only truth; therefore we hated and blasphemed. Sick eyes do not like light; - witnesses to this are the prophets, the apostles, all the faithful saints - ancient and new. The very same Jesus Christ whom He came to save, and who were waiting for Him, to whom He showed great benefits - they did not accept - and not only did not accept, but were angry with Him and sought to kill Him... This is how envy and malice blind! The scribes and Pharisees knew from prophecies that it was necessary for Christ to come when the prince became poor from Judah (Gen. 49:10). The prince became poor because of Judas and Jesus Christ came, but they did not understand. They knew that He had to be born in Bethlehem Judea (Mic. 5:2): Jesus was born there, but they did not understand. They knew that the Messiah Christ would be born miraculously, from a Virgin without art, from a Bride without a bride: behold, the Virgin will conceive in her womb, Isaiah prophesied, and will give birth to a Son, and they will call His name Immanuel (Is. 7:14). This is how Jesus Christ was born. So the Son of God became incarnate from the Holy Spirit and from the Virgin Mary, and became man. They knew that the Messiah, whom they were expecting, would perform glorious signs and wonders unheard of. Jesus Christ performed glorious signs and wonders. Therefore, the nations, seeing them, exclaimed: “No one has appeared in Israel like this” (Matthew 9:33). But blinded by envy and malice, they did not accept Him. Oh, fierce evil - this envy and malice! Question What does Saint Tikhon say about the saving suffering of the Lord Jesus Christ? Rep. Let us see, he says, how and what the Lord suffered for us: sold and betrayed by his betrayer Judas, He was bound, bound, led to a lawless council, was abandoned from the disciples: all who left Him fled! (Matthew 26:56). He was tried by a lawless judge, he was ridiculed and mocked, he was buffeted and struck on the cheek, he was condemned to death. He, who has death and the life of everyone in his hand, was led to Pilate the hegemon, and slandered before him as a libertine; He who taught the truth and preached the kingdom of God and the way to it, was led from Pilate to Herod, and was also slandered before him, and mocked and mocked by him, and again returned to Pilate; and so through the hills of Jerusalem, the Lord of glory was led hither and thither with ridicule, and asked for death, was crowned with thorns by the soldiers, spat upon and beaten with a cane, truly the King of heaven and the Lord of glory; was led to crucifixion and carried the cross, burdened with the sin of the whole world, the Lamb of God; and the Son of God was taken outside the city to be crucified and die on the cross. Brought to the place of execution, having neither form nor kindness, more beautiful in kindness than the sons of men (Ps. 45:3), He was nailed naked to the cross, and His hands and nose were dug up by lawlessness... (Ps. 21:17). Finally, he ended all his sufferings with death, the death of the cross. Glory to you, Christ God! from Your suffering came consolation to us, Your death is our life, Your wounds healed us, Your bonds loosed us. Question Like St. Tikhon speaks about the union of two natures in Christ? Rep. (Part 12, l. 125). We believe that in Christ two natures, Divinity and humanity, are united in one person, but not merged. And therefore Christ our Lord is a perfect God and a perfect man, who suffered for us. But he suffered and died according to human nature, and not according to Divinity. For the Divinity is impassive, cannot endure, have illnesses and die. For it is always certain in its all-perfect bliss. Christ our God suffered with His soul and His body; and His Divinity remained dispassionately in His suffering. Beware, Christian, of attributing illness and suffering to Christ’s Divinity. Read and listen with attention to the verses of the Church that are sung on Wednesdays, Fridays and on Sundays, and you will see this for yourself: Christ is our Lord, since God, both when he walked on earth in human humble form, and when he suffered for us - and then, I say, on the throne of His glory with the Father and the Holy Spirit was worshiped and glorified. Let us add a few questions and answers about this dogma from the Catechism of St. Demetrius of Rostov. Question How many natures do you confess in Christ, the Son of God, who became man for our sake? Rep. I confess two natures - one Divinity and one humanity: the Divine nature is the Divinity itself; and human nature is body and soul. Question How many creatures do you confess in Christ? Rep. I confess two beings, one - consubstantial with the Father, according to Divinity, and the second - consubstantial with the Mother, according to humanity. Question How many wills, that is, desires, do you confess in Christ? Rep. I confess two wills - Divinity and humanity. It is the Divine will to cleanse the lepers, just as Christ showed the Divine will and the Divine action, saying to the leper: I will, be cleansed (Matthew 8:3). The will of man is to ask, and let him drink, as on the cross. Question How many actions are there in Christ? Rep. I confess two actions - Divine and human. There is a Divine action - to save all people and to come to the knowledge of the truth. Human action is to travel and work hard, and so on. Question How many hypostases do you confess in Christ? Rep. I confess one Hypostasis (i.e. person) of God the Word, as He is the one Son of God and the Son of the Virgin. Question Does Christ have a human hypostasis? Rep. He has not, since there are not two Sons, and not two Christs; but there is One Christ, the Son of God and the Son of the Virgin. Question How many births of the Son of God do you confess? Rep. I confess two Christmases - the first is eternal, childless, incorporeal: for the sun rose from the Father, as light comes from the sun. Second - finally, from the holy Virgin Mary, the Great, Eternal, Co-originating, Invisible, Incomprehensible in Divinity, Nameless, Knowing the hearts of all people, God was born. Question Why did the Son become incarnate, and not the Father or the Holy Spirit? Rep. May He preserve the property of His hypostasis, even as He was the Son in heaven and the Son on earth. This is how Saint Tikhon depicts the state of humiliation of Jesus - Christ! Christ our Lord suffered both in soul and body. In my soul I had sadness, pain and unspeakable horror: and they began to be terrified and tormented, and they said to them (the apostles): My soul is sorrowful (Matthew 26:37, 38). Dishonor, reproach, ridicule from the lawless ineffably stung His most pure soul; because that blasphemy concerned the entire Person, which is God and man. For Christ is perfect God and perfect man. His Most Pure soul was wounded all the more because in Him God was blasphemed and mocked... Added to the increase in the illness and humiliation of the Lord Jesus was that He was rejected from His people and suffered: He came to His own, but His own did not receive Him (John 1:11). Rejected from those to whom He was promised, who were waiting for Him... Moreover, he suffered in the glorious and eminent city of Jerusalem, before a multitude of people gathered for the holiday of Easter; and for greater humiliation, he was hanged between two evildoers: and with the lawless was counted one holy and righteous... (Is. 53:12). Glory to Your passion, Christ! Glory to You, Son of God, with Your Compassionate Father and Your Most Holy Spirit! Amen. Question As depicted by the saint. Tikhon's humiliation of Christ? Rep. It happens that a person, according to his merits and according to the laws, is condemned to death, and they take him outside the city, and a lot of people follow him, and so they accept execution at a certain place. From this disgrace, Christian, turn your mind and reflection to the terrible and terrible disgrace of Christ’s saving suffering. Thus Christ, the Son of God, was judged and condemned to death; but unrighteously and innocently he was led to death, like a sheep to the slaughter, and many people followed him (Acts 8:32; Luke 23:27). And outside the city he was taken to the place of death and there, between two villains, he suffered the cross and death penalty. A terrible and touching disgrace! The Son of God and Lord of glory, like a villain, was condemned and led to death and accepted the death penalty! From whom? from His evil servants. For whom? For His indecent servants... Where? Outside the gates of Jerusalem! Before whom? Before the eyes of God, angelic and human... For this, we send eternal thanks to Him, the Author of our life, together with the Father and the Holy Spirit! You, Christian, always remember that time of humiliation and exhaustion of Christ, in which our bliss was established! Remember the time in which God, in human form and in the form of a slave, appeared on earth for our sake and lived, spoke among sinners, ate, drank and talked with sinners; this time in which he endured blasphemy and persecution from His evil servants; this time of exhaustion of Christ, in which, for our sin, I grieved, grieved, was horrified and poured out bloody sweat; into which he was sold and betrayed by a flattering and ungrateful disciple, and was abandoned from other disciples; in which he was bound, brought to trial, condemned and condemned to death, scolded, spat on and strangled; in which they cried out to Him: take Him, take Him, crucify Him (John 19:15); in which he was imputed with the lawless and, for our salvation, died on the cross: and strive to follow and please your Redeemer with faith, love, humility, meekness and patience, and you will reign with Him forever, in His eternal glory (Secret. spiritual convict and his execution, abbreviated.). Question What does a Christian need to know about the state of the glory of Jesus Christ? Rep. Saint John of Damascus, in his Exposition of the Orthodox Faith, says this about what followed the resurrection of Jesus Christ: after the resurrection from the dead, Christ laid aside all his infirmities, I mean, corruption, that is, hunger, thirst, sleep, fatigue, etc. For, even if He ate food after the resurrection; then - not according to the requirement of nature (for He no longer hungered), but according to the economy of salvation, in order to assure the truth of His resurrection and show that the very flesh that suffered was resurrected. But He did not put aside a single part of human nature; but has both a verbal and rational body and soul, free and active. Both with soul and with body He ascended into heaven, and sits at the right hand of the Father, desiring our salvation, and accomplishing it, both as God and as man. As God, He provides for everything, preserves everything, controls everything; as a man, He remembers His earthly life, sees and knows that all rational creation worships Him. For His holy soul knows that it is hypostatically united with God the Word, and together with him it receives worship as the soul of God, and not as a simple soul. And His ascent from earth to heaven and descent again to earth are the actions of a limited body; In the same way he will come to you again, it is said, in the same way you saw Him going into heaven (Acts 1:11)... Ascended into heaven and seated at the right hand of the Father. When we say that Jesus Christ sat bodily at the right hand of God the Father, we do not mean the right side of the Father in place: for unlimited - how can he have the right side in place? Creatures limited by space have the right and left sides. And so by the words: at the right hand of the Father we mean the glory and honor of the Divinity, which the Son of God, as God and Consubstantial with the Father, had before the ages, and in which, having become incarnate in the last times, He will sit bodily, after the glorification of His flesh. For He, together with His flesh, receives one worship from all creation... We worship the Son of God with the Father and the Holy Spirit, incorporeal before His incarnation, but now He became incarnate and became man, but does not cease to be God!.. Question How holy. Does Tikhon, in a state of humiliation of Christ, show His glory? Rep. Even, he says, he was conceived in a virgin’s womb, but from the Holy Spirit, and is co-originating with the Father and the Holy Spirit... He was wrapped in swaddling clothes, like a baby, but he is also clothed in light, like a robe. The baby was brought into the church with his mother’s hands, but he released the elder Simeon from the temporary belly to the eternal belly... He was persecuted by Herod, but he brought the wise men to worship Him. He was baptized in the Jordan, but the Father testified from heaven to the one being baptized, and the Holy Spirit, like a dove, descending on the one being baptized, affirmed the truth. I was tempted by the devil, but I put the tempter to shame. He lived on the earth among men, but was not excommunicated from the bosom of the Fathers. He turned into a slave (i.e., in human form); but, as the Lord, He commanded the winds and the sea, and they obeyed Him; commanded the demons, and they departed; He commanded the dead, and they rose... He was hungry and thirsty, but he fed many thousands with five loaves... He was blasphemed by the envious and evil, but he knew the thoughts of their hearts... He yawled with sinners, but cleansed their sins. From an ungrateful disciple, a piece of silver was sold and betrayed for thirty; but He redeemed us, sold under sin. He was bound from the wicked, but he bound our enemy the devil. The unrighteous man faced judgment, but he delivered us from eternal judgment. He was stripped and stripped of His clothes, but He covered us with the garment of His righteousness. He was ridiculed, dishonored, mocked, spat upon, but he freed us from eternal shame and reproach. He was crucified on a tree and died, but he darkened the sun, shook the earth, opened coffins, revived the dead, and by His death put to death our death. He was buried in a tomb as if he were dead, but by His power he rose up as if he were immortal, and gave us hope for rebellion. He lived on earth, and ascended into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God the Father... In Him is our wisdom, praise, glory, life, consolation, joy, hope and eternal bliss (From the books. VII, Chapter 3). He did his job and left. Saint Tikhon, in his Zadonsk solitude, stopping his reflection on these simple words, outlined in detail the entire ministry of Jesus Christ to the human race. We hear that on various occasions one says this word about another: he did his work and went away. This word is said when one asks another: where is such and such a person? Christian! We can and must speak this word about Christ, our Savior, then especially when those who do not believe in Him and those who do not know Him ask us: He finished His work and departed. Our Lord Jesus Christ completed the work of our salvation in the midst of the earth and departed, ascended into heaven and sat at the right hand of the Father. Question How did He accomplish the work of saving us? Rep. since Saint Tikhon, in the above-mentioned article of his spiritual treasures collected from the world, explains the subject historically, according to the order of the Gospel; and here we need an answer about the threefold ministry of Jesus Christ: then, instead of the words of St. Tikhon, we present the answer of the descriptor of his life and collector of his works - Eugene, Metropolitan of Kyiv. “After baptism from John and after a fourty-day fast, the Lord entered into the fulfillment of His redemptive offices,” says the Kiev archpastor. He had to teach the world the ways of salvation, bring a cleansing sacrifice for it, and gather for Himself a gracious, eternal kingdom from the faithful on earth and in heaven. Therefore, three titles were assigned to Him: prophetic or teaching, priestly and royal. 1) Prophetic. His first work was to announce to the world the coming of the gracious kingdom of God, and to call everyone to repentance; and therefore His first sermon was the voice: the time is fulfilled and the kingdom of God is drawing near: repent and believe in the Gospel (Mark 1:15). With this preaching He went around towns and villages, explaining that faith in Him would compensate for the lack of fulfillment of the law, and that this very fulfillment would be the fruit of faith; denounced the scribes and Pharisees for their misinterpretation of the commandments, and for respecting more rituals than the spiritual, true service of God. This was His proclamation and teaching. For for this purpose I was born, He said, and for this purpose I came into the world, that I might bear witness to the truth (John 18:37). 2) The high priestly title, in the person of our Lord Jesus Christ, is the title of propitiator before God and cleanser of human sins. This cleansing sacrifice, brought by Him for us to God, was not oxen, not lambs and goats, as it was in the Old Testament, but He Himself, who gave Himself for us - an offering and sacrifice to God in the aroma of fragrance. Even at baptism in the Jordan, John the Baptist, indicating His people, predicted this predestination, saying: Behold, the Lamb of God take upon yourself, that is, cleanse, the sins of the world (John 1:29). This great prayer of Jesus Christ belongs to the high priestly title: Father! The hour has come, glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You (John 17:1). St. says a lot about the high priesthood of Jesus Christ. the apostle Paul in his letter to the Hebrews (Heb. 7, 8, 9, 10). 3) From the fulfillment of both these titles came His eternal reign over the faithful. Even at the conception of His humanity, the Angel predicted to the Virgin Mary, His mother, that the Savior born by Her would reign in the house of Jacob forever, and there would be no end to His kingdom (Luke 1:33). He Himself later revealed to His disciples that everything had been handed over to Him by His Father, that all authority in heaven and on earth had been given to Him (Matthew 11:27, 28:18). But He did not seek an earthly kingdom, and when in one case the people wanted to make Him their king; He dodged uphill. He even assured that His kingdom is not of this world (John 18:36), and He will reveal His royal glory to the world when, at the end of the whole world, He comes to the clouds, surrounded by His angels and saints, and, sitting on His throne, gathers all the tongues before Him. Question The Christian position in general towards God is explained in the article: God (see above). Here we will briefly explain what duties St. Tikhon indicates especially to the Lord Jesus Christ? Rep. The Christian position towards Christ the Son of God consists of: 1) faith in Christ; 2) in love for Christ the Son of God; 3) in honoring the passion of Christ; 4) in prayer to Him; 5) in the work due to Christ and 6) in following Christ with faith and love (Book VII, ch. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. v. 4). I) Believing in Christ is nothing other than learning from the law and heartily acknowledging one’s poverty and damnation, which comes from sin and the sin of the subsequent wrath of God; - from the Gospel, having come to know the grace of God, open to all, to Him alone, that is, Christ, to resort to the protection and patronage of His One, as the deliverer and Savior from one’s calamity, and to have in Him alone all the hope of eternal salvation; also - in the feat against the devil, the flesh, the world and sin - during life and after death, to steadily and relentlessly establish all hope in Him, as the undoubted and unshakable foundation of eternal salvation. Thus, those who believe in Christ the Son of God are lovingly given from God: remission of sins, justification, renewal, the grace of the Holy Spirit, helping and strengthening in weaknesses and efforts of virtue, sonship, inheritance, eternal life, etc., as the Apostle briefly concluded: He who did not spare His own Son, but gave Him up for us all; Rom. 8:32)?.. Just as from the old Adam man received in his carnal birth all evil and misfortune, sin and oath, anger and death: so it is fitting for a believer in Christ to receive from Him all good and blessedness, justification, grace... Just as from Adam we received an unclean heart, sin-loving, money-loving, angry, spiteful, envious, disobedient, unmerciful, cruel, evil, deceitful, hypocritical, proud and all kinds of evil: thus it is fitting for us, by faith in Christ, to receive a heart that is pure, loving, willing, humble, God-loving, brotherly, patient, meek, generous, merciful, obedient, simple, unflattering, and so on... II) Question What motivations for the love of the Lord Jesus Christ does St. Tikhon represent? Rep. We will point out these from many here. The first is the very name: Jesus, that is, the Savior, attracts our hearts to love Him. For there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved, except the name of Jesus (Acts 4:12). We are all like sheep that have gone astray; man has gone astray from his way (Isa. 53:6). He, like a good shepherd, sought us out and took us on His shoulder and brought us to His heavenly Father. All of us, like travelers, from the devil, like a thief, were naked and mortally wounded: He bowed down to us, so poor, with His mercy, and bowed down to those who lay, and became our neighbors, being merciful for His help, He stretched out His hand to us and raised up those who were lying, and healed those who were wounded with the oil of His mercy (Lk. 10:30–35). We were like captives, bound by the bonds of our enemy. He, as mighty in strength, bound our enemy, tore our bonds to pieces (Ps. 115:7) and restored the captivity of our souls. We were like criminals and apostates, rejected from the face of God. He stood up for us before the righteous court of God, and between God and us he became a mediator, intercessor and reconciliator. We were all debtors of our talent to our king God, and we could not pay our debt; According to the judgment of His righteousness, we should have been imprisoned in eternal prison and paid with eternal torment. He stood up for us and took on our debt and paid it off with the truth of God... Yet Jesus Christ did this to us, not through any mediation, but by Himself. He himself, for the sake of us who were lost, wandered in this world... He himself lived in poverty for the sake of our poverty. He Himself, for the sake of us, bound by sin, was bound... He Himself, for the sake of us who died, died on the tree of the cross, and by His death put to death our death; and with His cross he opened the doors to God’s mercy, to eternal life and bliss... This means the name: Jesus, beloved by the angels, comforting and sweet to us sinners and wondrous to all creation!.. Second St. Tikhon’s excitement for the love of Christ Jesus is this: what have you found in your lover Jesus that is displeasing to you? What do you see that would not attract you to His love? Does a person desire bliss? True and eternal bliss is with Him. Does a person desire beauty? He is more beautiful in kindness than the sons of men (Ps. 44:3). Wants nobility? Who is more noble than the Son of God? Looking for honor? Who is more honest and higher than the King of Heaven? Is it glory? He is the hypostatic wisdom of God. Is it friendship? Who is more kind and loving than Him? Does a person like fun? He is the joy and gladness of the blessed spirits and the elect of God. Do you need consolation, peace and quiet? Who will comfort you but Jesus? He is the King of the world, spiritual peace is He, and He has eternal peace for souls... Are you afraid of getting lost? Jesus is the way. Are you afraid of being seduced? He is the truth. Are you afraid of death? He is life (John 14:6). III) Question What third duty to Christ Jesus does St. Tikhon indicate? Rep. Veneration of the saving passion of Christ. The entire life of Jesus Christ, our Lord, which He began and accomplished on earth for our salvation, was always a cross. There was no place in the monastery for Him Whose heaven and earth and its fulfillment are... He lived in poverty, so that he had no place to lay his head (Matthew 8:20); finally sold and betrayed by His disciple, judged and condemned, bitten to death, mocked, crowned with thorns and, cursed by the evildoer, He who is blessed (2 Cor. 11:31), hanged on a tree in disgrace to all. Question How is Christ’s saving coming and suffering honored? Rep. 1) By faith, when we honor Him as the only deliverer, Savior and defender, sent to us by the heavenly Father. Understand, says the Apostle, the messenger and holy confession of our Jesus Christ (Heb. 3:1). 2) With everlasting memory, when we remember with love and gratitude this great work, begun and completed for our sake... For this purpose, St. The Church presents to us the most noble sacraments of His saving vision for remembrance and celebration. For this purpose, on boards and on other substances we depict His glorious deeds, such as: the Annunciation, the Nativity of Christ, the Epiphany, the crucifixion, etc. 3) With grateful praise, singing and doxology, when we remember His wonderful and saving deeds with gratitude and sing of His goodness: be filled with the spirit, speaking to yourself in psalms and songs... chanting and singing in your hearts your Lords (Eph. 5:19). Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men! Our mother St. often calls us to this praise and singing. Church: Come, let us rejoice in the Lord, telling the real mystery (from a verse on R. Chr.). Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, Who visited and brought deliverance to His people (Luke 1:68)! 4) The saving Jesus - Christ’s coming and suffering is honored by oral confession, when we fearlessly confess our faith, which we have in our hearts, with our lips, where it is due; We are not silent where the honor and glory of His name demands it; We are not ashamed to call Him born of a Virgin and crucified on the cross by our God, although this is a temptation for the Jews and madness for the Greeks; but to us Christ is God's power and God's wisdom (1 Cor. 1:23, 24). 5) since our faith and the word of God teach us that Christ suffered for our sins (Isa. 53:5); then there is no greater veneration for the Son of God, who suffered for our sins, than when, out of love for Him, we hate sins and shun sins. And the more we hate sins and move away from sins; all the more do we love and honor Him, so that without this there cannot be true veneration, but feigned and hypocritical: for where sins are not forgiven, there is no true repentance; where there is no true repentance, there is no faith in Christ, there Christ is not revered, but rejected and despised. Hear this, sin-loving soul! Finally, 6) we will honor Christ, who suffered for us, when, hating sin, we follow His holy word and His example of immaculate life, as He himself said: whoever serves Me, let him follow Me (John 12:26). What kind of reverence is there for the master when the slave does not listen to him, for the father when the son does not obey him? So we show not true, but hypocritical respect to Christ when we say to Him with our lips: Lord, Lord, but do not do what He commands. IV) Question What is the fourth position towards Christ, the Son of God? Rep. Prayer and supplications to Him. Arise, my soul, arise! Fall down to the incarnate and crucified Son of God and reverently look at Him, lying in the manger of Bethlehem and then hanging on the cross; sigh to Him with Saint Tikhon: “Jesus, Son of God, have mercy on me! Attract me, so that I may come to You. I am imprisoned, O Lord, and darkness surrounds me: bound with many bonds. Break the bonds, so that I will be free. Destroy the darkness so that I can see Your light. Bring me out of prison, so that I can come to You. Let my ears hear You. Let my eyes see You. Give me a taste and give you a taste. Grant to my sense of smell the fragrance of Thee. Let my nose come to You. Give my lips to speak about You. Give my heart to fear and love You. Take what is mine from Me and give me the will to do Your good will. Take away the old and give us the new. Rtsy word, and everything will be. For Your word is deed. I believe, Lord, help my unbelief.” V) Question What is the fifth office towards Christ, the Son of God? Rep. (§350) So that we work diligently for our Lord Jesus Christ. For 1) you carry your own, but His (1 Cor. 6:19, 20). And He bought us not with silver and gold, but with His honest blood. Our entire composition is our soul and our body is His. Therefore, soul and body must be dedicated to his service, according to the word of the Apostle (1 Cor. 6:20). We belong to Him by right of creation: He is our creator and Lord, but we are the work of His hands (Ps. 119:73). Him according to the power of holy baptism, in which, denying Satan and his works, they promised Him to work faithfully with the Father and the Holy Spirit. 2) All creation works for Him, as for His Lord: all work is for You, O Lord (Ps. 119:91): for we, as His intelligent creatures, must give this calling, and He, as our Lord, must work. 3) All creation, according to His command, serves us: the sun, moon, stars shine for us; fire warms us, clouds water us, water gives us drink, the earth brings us fruits, etc. This creation works for us, so that we work diligently for our Creator, and thank Him for the service that is acceptable from His creation. 4) It is wonderful that visible light, by the command of God, works for us; but what is more wonderful is that the holy angels also serve our salvation (Ps. 33:8; Heb. 1:14)... The holy and blessed spirits serve our salvation, so that we diligently serve their Lord and ours, and thus we are saved... The work of the Lord Jesus Christ is a must: for He is our God, Creator, Redeemer and Provider; – glorious: for he is the King of kings and Lord of lords, sweet: for His yoke is easy and His burden is light; – desired: for it has a great and ineffable reward. Let us therefore work for Him with all our hearts in His vineyard. VI) Question What sixth office to Christ Jesus does St. Tikhon indicate? Rep. Following Christ... If anyone wants to follow Christ, he must first deny himself; He must renounce his evil behavior and follow the good behavior of Christ. How is this done? Like this: does the lust for uncleanness, fornication and adultery arise in your heart? Renounce this evil lust, and with your lust the one who lusts you, and follow in purity and chastity the most pure and holy Christ. Does pride rise in your heart and, like a serpent, lift up its head? Renounce sowing abominations, for all that is high among men is an abomination before God (Luke 16:15), and follow the humble Jesus in humility. Is your heart inflamed with anger, vengeance, malice? Deny this and follow in meekness the meek and gentle lamb - Christ Jesus. Does envy and hatred begin in your heart, like a destructive child from the serpent’s seed? Deny this evil, put it to death within yourself, and follow the love of the philanthropist Son of God. Shame of dishonor and fear of death of truth arise? Be encouraged by faith and spirit: look at Christ, mocked, mocked, spat upon, crucified for your sins, and follow Him with love... And this - that is: to crucify the flesh with passions and lusts - to put off the old man and put on the new... By shepherds we mean bishops and priests.