29. THE SERMON OF PATRIARCH MOSES ABOUT THE PURSUIT OF APOSTLES, ABOUT THE REWARD FOR THE FAITHFUL, THE LOVE TO JESUS CHRIST AND ETERNAL LIFE, 18.06.2006
First Sunday after the Holy Trinity Day
Glory to Jesus Christ!
Dear brothers and sisters. Today we have heard the Apostle (Hebrews Õ²:33 - Õ²²:2) and the Gospel (Matthew Õ:32-33, 37-38, Õ²Õ:27-30)about the doings of saint people. They were persecuted. Even after they were killed some of them were still alive, because Holy Spirit returned to them, they came to life again, healed their wounds and they continued their life.
We have heard in the Apostle today that such miracles happened with people. But it is only because they believed in Jesus Christ, followed Him. By their faith and serving they were directly relevant to God, the Creator of the Universe and life-giving energies that gave life to everything in this world. There is no wonder, but if you want to follow Jesus Christ you should do like He said: "And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or lands, for my name's sake, will receive a hundredfold and will inherit eternal life." That is, who will deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow the Lord, will inherit eternal life. Who is planning to live for his own sake, like egoist - that one will lose it. But if you give your life to God, you will find it in the eternal existence, where is the eternal life in the heavenly worlds of multidimensional God's Kingdom. Also God said such words: "Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me." Because any love on earth cannot be greater than the love to God Himself. Because only the person, who loves God, becomes happy, calm, blessed, beneficial and makes right steps in the life. He who loves father or mother, brother or sister, more than God, constantly makes erroneous steps, and dedicates his life to one person. He idealizes this person, makes an idol of it and worships this person more than God. And when he loses this person, he loses all sense of his own life and doesn't want to live any more. And Lord warned: "You shall have no other gods before me.You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is on the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.You shall not bow down to them or serve them; for I the LORD your God"(Deuter. V:7-9), that is you shall create nothing that is more than God on the earth, beneath the earth or above the earth. God must be EVERYTHING for us - it is our life, it is our breathing, we have come from Him, we will return to Him. We have only met in different bodies here; we temporally have such parents, such relatives. These all are only temporal forms of communication; we shouldn't sell ourselves for it. If we are careful, wise and worth to be saved, we will meet our relatives on the heavens, in case we will have a desire to do it. God should be above all. And the faithful souls first of all followed God, they did not built houses and their lives for themselves but for God, gave their lives not in their names but in the name of God. And Christ said: " And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell" (Matthew Õ:28).. It means: be afraid of dissoluteness, be afraid to serve evil or evil people, be afraid of being lickspittle for the sake of material welfare. Be afraid of such things. Don't be afraid to lose material things if you take care to be with God. Because if we are with God, He will give us everything we need in this life and our main reward is waiting for us in the future eternal life with God. Jesus taught: " Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on.Instead, seek his kingdom, and these things will be added to you" (Luke Õ²²:22,31).
Our life on the Earth is a moment in the time of eternity, you blink and it has gone. We should not lose this time. If we are graced by God to be in His Church and to start building an invisible world of His Perfect Holy Church, internal purity, where is communication with His Angels, with Him, so Holy and Strong, we should be grateful for it. We should be happy in our heart, put on haughty airs before others. We should be worthy of it and to carry this heavy cross, which God puts on everyone. It is put on us for our spiritual growth. Together with it we struggle against the darkness, which is in this world, we struggle against the darkness, which is in human consciousness and the darkness, which is in us. Because this darkness, devil, doesn't sleep. The devil wants to oppress our soul all the time, to obscure our mind, to lead us to the hell. We must remember about it. If we love God above all, do for Him everything and serve Him, we will be a hard nut to crack for devil and we will carry the cross given to us by God with dignity. Everything is possible with God. God will always be with us.
Amen.
Glory to Jesus Christ!
Apostle (Hebrews 11:33-12:2)
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33 who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions,
34 quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, from weakness were made strong, waxed mighty in war, turned to flight armies of aliens.
35 Women received their dead by a resurrection: and others were tortured, not accepting their deliverance; that they might obtain a better resurrection:
36 and others had trial of mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover of bonds and imprisonment:
37 they were stoned, they were sawn asunder, they were tempted, they were slain with the sword: they went about in sheepskins, in goatskins; being destitute, afflicted, ill-treated
38 (of whom the world was not worthy), wandering in deserts and mountains and caves, and the holes of the earth.
39 And these all, having had witness borne to them through their faith, received not the promise,
40 40 God having provided some better thing concerning us, that apart from us they should not be made perfect.
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1 Therefore let us also, seeing we are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us,
2 looking unto Jesus the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising shame, and hath sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
Gospel (Matthew 10:32-33,37-38, 19:27-30)
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32 Every one therefore who shall confess me before men, him will I also confess before my Father who is in heaven.
33 But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father who is in heaven.
37 He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.
38 And he that doth not take his cross and follow after me, is not worthy of me.
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27 Then answered Peter and said unto him, Lo, we have left all, and followed thee; what then shall we have?
28 And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, that ye who have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit on the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
29 And every one that hath left houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or children, or lands, for my name's sake, shall receive a hundredfold, and shall inherit eternal life.
30 But many shall be last that are first; and first that are last.
