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Glory to Jesus Christ, dear brothers and sisters!
Dear brothers and sisters, we are getting closer and closer with every liturgy, with every day getting closer to the Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ.
It is great holiday for the Earth, "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life (John, III: 16) that is: believes in His teaching, which he brought from God. For He himself came from the truth, the God of truth, to teach us to follow the eternal life.
There are many teaching in the world, but they are far from the truth. There are those that are very close, similar to the Truth, but does not belong to Truth. And that is why Christ is coming again to earth to teach people the true faith. Although the Jews thought that they are doing everything correctly and have true faith, but He comes to testify that they have no sincere belief, that they have no deep understanding of the depth of that faith, you should know to be saved. So when He came, He was always saying: "Truly, truly I say to you." He told a lot and told many parables. He spoke so in order to we, blockheads, on earth realize stay away from our sins so that we be fed up with them and begin to follow Him. He spoke in parables with some people, to other He was saying all things directly.
So today we have heard the parable in which He told that the master has prepared a great banquet (Luke, XIV :16-24) And so when you, as a host or a hostess, have prepared a big dinner, you always hope that guests will visit you and will be grateful to you for that. And you'll have a good time, rest, joy, fun. And for that you sacrifice your welfare, you prepare a lamb or pig. That will cost you something in order to make a chic, to be nice people, to eat, to talk with friends, etc. And when the master has prepared a banquet, he sent servants to call people, "Come, for everything is now ready!" But we hear that those who were invited always found some reason to refuse. One said: "I have bought a field, and I must go out and see it". So he found a more interesting thing to do for himself, some vanity and refused.
The second said: "I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come". So he also found a more interesting occupation, than go to the banquet. And in the same time he offends the master, it causes pain to he who invited him, who hoped that now he would make a feast and you would come to me.
The third said: "I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to examine them", meaning that everyone from three is looking for a reason to refuse. And we can also belong to the number of such unwise men - as the Lord has prepared a great dinner for us and calls us, and we are looking for reasons not to come to this dinner. How, then, the master feels? He feels angry! And being angry, he again said to his servants: "Go out quickly to the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in the poor and crippled and blind and lame, compel people to come in, that my house may be filled". And they went to call all those they could find. Very often those who think that are to be saved, are not saving. And so the Lord says: "while the sons of the kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth". (Matthew VIII:12) Do you understand?
For example there are bad priests in churches, and they may think that are already saved. Or there are even some Protestant denominations, which say they are already saved. Meanwhile the devil does not sleep, every minute he can throw you into such sins from which you cannot climb anymore and just will go to hell. How can you say that you are already saved? No, we should work hard every day to save our souls. We should hear every day this invitation of the Lord and go to His banquet.
I see you as those who accept the invitation of the Lord, because every time you go to lectures, take knowledge, every time you go to the Divine Liturgy and receive the Holy Communion. I see you as following: God has called you - and you have come. He rejoices that you are in His house and that you have are at his banquet. And we should rejoice because of this too and understand that this is a great grace for us. We do not want to watch TV, hang out somewhere, look for golden domes, but we try to seek for truth, which comes to us and which God teaches us. Painful Truth, but it is genuine Truth that is given for us to be saved. And listening to it, we should take it into our hearts and use in our lives, otherwise we will not be saved. And the Lord says: who puts the authority of parents above My words is not worthy being My disciple. For every parent has influence on children. But if you have confided God, you should follow Him and hate this material world. Only such a person can be the disciple of the Lord. He, who will leave his lands and all the wealth, he can be My disciple. Because he is not attracted no more to wealth, to money, to politics, to interest of this world. He is attracted only to the interests of the Universe, where he will go back to the Heavenly Father. And then he opens his soul to the teachings of God. And because such a person opens the soul, the light of God flows, he applies these teachings to practice and he feels happy. He feels that there is God in him, that he is worthy of God, because he has abandoned the material world for the sake of unity with God.
And a person, who does not know how to deny all that and wants to have material things - and serve money and God, cannot be happy. Such a person divides into two. So the Lord said: "You cannot serve God and money!"(Luke, XVI: 13) Do you understand? You should go and try to serve God. Not in the monasteries, because there is no service, because God does not hear their prayers without good deeds, but here in the world - by the service of preaching and doing and good deeds. Every person should create his/her own monastery. That is, should bear individual service before God, follow Him. Do you understand? Christ said heavy words, right? But He said them. And today they have been read from the Gospel of Luke, chapter XIV. Yes? And they are still have to be somehow explained to people for them to read and understand the depth of His words not be attracted to anything that seems more important than God. A son died, and parents cannot live without him. Yes, it's hard trial, but they worship an idol, they put a huge monument to him, they hate everyone, because their son is not among the live people. It is clear, these people are unhappy, it is clear, they will not be saved. Yes? They are unhappy because they have no God, they have only hatred.
And so the Lord says to us not to be attracted to material things. Moreover, we are the passers-by in this world, we are strangers. We come to this earth and go away from this earth. But where? God grant that not where is moaning and gnashing of teeth. God grant that where our Father is in heaven, where God's light is. God grant that we return there wiser, more spiritual, having passed tough trials on earth, but still following the Lord our God. Do you understand? Do not be afraid of anything; do not be afraid of losing someone, because everything is in God's hands - hair does not fall in vain from the human head. Do not lose heart when we lose, and thank God. And pray for the souls, if they are your neighbors, so that they will go in Heavens. Do you understand? Feel that you are a child of God, that God loves you and try to be attracted to all the virtues of God, which God preaches here.
In what way should we grow up spiritually? In patience to develop wisdom. And pray: "God, give me forgiveness and love for all, to all to everything." Yes? But we should not have attraction to the material world, we should not be attracted to this land, to anything. As Jesus called one rich man, who loved to listen to the word of God. And the rich man asks: "What should I do to be saved?" Jesus answers: "Obey the commandments of God." He says, "I keep them." Jesus then teaches this rich man: "Then sell your property, distribute money to the poor, and come, follow me." The rich man became scared of such a prospective: "How could I do this? My father was working hard to earn all that wealth. No, God, I cannot." (Luke, XVIII :18-23) And he went away being very sad to those cows, to land, to those potatoes, which would be rotten over some time, and nothing good from it would remain. You see, he followed decay, temporary things, followed his wealth, which could be taken away of him every minute, having denied the eternal teachings, having denied be a disciple of Jesus. Do you understand? And so God says, " For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God" (Luke, XVIII: 25). As it is very hard to enter the Kingdom of God for those who are attracted to wealth.
But at the same time it shows demonic souls. They want to be with God in some way, but material wealth is above spiritual wealth, spiritual joy and spiritual happiness for them. They cannot unbend themselves from the stake, to which they have fastened themselves to the ground, they cannot unbend, stretch their wings and fly. They do not even know what it is - feel spiritual flight, do not understand how to stretch their wings. As these wings are the wings of love to neighbor. I do not call you to leave something now, etc. But I call you to understand the essence of these things and always prepare yourselves to that. And we say: "Maybe God wants too much from us, maybe God does not think for us?" No, I say, He does think, because if a person is attracted to something, the devil inflicts a trial to this thing. And if he knows that you have a raw spot, he'll beat you there. You see?
If you are afraid of losing something or someone, devil will take away it from you. He will deprive you of a thing you are afraid to lose. Remember this and work on it. As what you are afraid to lose, you will lose that. Therefore rely in everything on the will of God. Whether that is your wealth, if God wants, it will be with you. It will be multiplied, if you can do good deeds with that. If they will destroy you spiritually, they will go away from you. Whether it is your family - rely on the will of God. There is a holy will of God to everything. God has given a certain assignment to everyone and everything, has blessed everyone to come into this world. And if He will need, He knows whom and when to call from this world, for this soul not to perish as it could d. Or, maybe, it has already risen to a certain height, and perhaps it is the highest possible that the soul could do in this world. For God sees the future and sees that this soul will fall tomorrow. Then He immediately takes it until this soul would lost what it had already reaped. Do you understand?
Be wise - do not be attracted to what will destroy you. Neither of those traditions that are not connected with God, because there are many traditions that are contrary to God and are not possible to perform. And these traditions are very much present in the Orthodox Church: in Ukrainian, in Russian. Try every day to follow God in all your feelings, thoughts, try to communicate with your God's Angel. Remember this teaching: "Angel, my guardian" - constantly check your mind, your feelings. We must control, for a dark angel not to give us all sorts of false opinions, which may lead to destruction. Work on yourselves every day until you live. Then you make the most of - a lot more of what can be done. Everyone has its own goal - to save his life in the correct way to be in Heavens. In such a way you will serve Ukraine and serve humanity with patience, with good deeds, and with holy prayers, with holiness which God sees and accepts as gold gems as diamonds to His treasure box in Heavens - our prayers for Ukraine. Do you understand?
Let's love this land that God has given to us, our people, but follow only God. Neither politics, nor anything else, only God. Politics and everything else -
it is vanity, and you see it. Who does not see - will see. God is eternity, which blesses us, sanctifies and gives eternal life with Him. Glory to God, Glory to God, Glory to God, Glory to God.
In the name of the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit, Amen.
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Apostle (Colossians 3:4-11):
3
4 When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will
appear with him in glory.
5 Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual
immorality, impurity, passion,
evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.
6 On account of these the wrath of God is coming.
7 In these you too once walked, when you were living in
them.
8 But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath,
malice,slander, and obscene talk
from your mouth.
9 Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the
old self with its practices
10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in
knowledge after the image
of its creator.
11 Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and
uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian,
slave, free; but Christ is all, and in all.
Gospel (Luke, 14:16-24):
14
16 But he said to him, "A man once gave a great banquet and
invited many.
17 And at the time for the banquet he sent his servant to say
to those who had
been invited, 'Come, for everything is now ready.'
18 But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said
to him, 'I have bought
a field, and I must go out and see it. Please have me excused.'
19 And another said, 'I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I
go to examine them.
Please have me excused.'
20 And another said, 'I have married a wife, and therefore I
cannot come.'
21 So the servant came and reported these things to his
master. Then the master
of the house became angry and said to his servant, 'Go out quickly to the
streets and lanes of the city,
and bring in the poor and crippled and blind and lame.'
22 And the servant said, 'Sir, what you commanded has been
done, and still there
is room.'
23 And the master said to the servant, 'Go out to the
highways and hedges and
compel people to come in, that my house may be filled.
24 For I tell you, none of those men who were invited shall
taste my banquet.'"
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