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In the name of the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit.
Glory to Jesus Christ!
Today we have heard the Gospel, where Jesus told the parable about the prodigal son (Luke XV:11-32). We have heard about the son, who did not want to live with his father, to listen to his commandments, to accept his laws. We have heard about the son, who wanted to try to live alone; but he did not have the moral background and we could see that his life turned out to be bad.
At first he asked his father to divide all property in equal parts between them. And father did it. He divided everything in two parts: one for older son, leaving him in the house, and another part for younger son. And the youngest son took all property, he thought that he could live the way he wanted to. And he went far away. He wasted, squandered, spent on drink all money and he stayed without a penny. But then famine arose in that far land. And those men, who seemed to be his friends, his drinking buddies, left him. He stayed alone and nobody wanted to help him. He had the only thing to do - to find a job.
And he started to watch pigs, to feed them. Those pigs ate different grass and pods. He also wanted to eat those pods, at least something, but he was not allowed to do it. So, he was starving, and he was told: "When you earn money, you will buy some food and then will eat, but not now". And he thought: "I will starve to death till the time, I get my money".
But when he came to himself, he thought, "How many of my father's hired servants have more than enough bread, but I perish here with hunger! I will arise and go to my father!" Do you heard what did he say? "I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, "Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants." It is so, because he wasted everything. But when he decided to do so his soul started to heal. And he went to his father.
So, we are alike to this prodigal son. We try to live alone not thinking about the God's laws, we ignore and offend Him with such doings. We also offend His angels, who love us, who want to serve us, but they can't do it, because we ignore God. We ignore God's commandments and the angels leave us. So we become poor, hungry, exhausted with our sins. And in this parable is the example of how you should comprehend your mistakes and confess sincerely. You should not pretend being righteous, you just have to confess sincerely before God, that God want to accept your confession. It must be sincere, like that prodigal son had.
But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him. It means that father always waited for him. And as soon as he appeared far off, father saw him through the window. Yes? He run towards him, not waiting that son would fall down before him on the knees and would kiss his sandals. Father run and embraced him and kissed him, he was very happy.
This is the way Our Heavenly Father loves us, He is always ready to embrace us only if we confess and leave all bad doings, Satan, laziness, egoism - everything, what prevent us from being God's children. And as soon as we will leave behind all bad things and turn our heart to God, God will accept us, he will embrace and kiss us.
This is what we have to understand. And we also must comprehend that each of us has the free choice. It is clear that God the Father is very merciful, but the God's justice also exists. If we do the sincere confession, we confess, we ask to renew the power of our soul, sanctify it, God will always do it, coming towards us: embracing, kissing and feeling happy that we are redeeming.
And here the father said: "Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet. And bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate." And it seems that it is rather unwise father's generosity, that he makes advances to his son, who wasted a half of all money, who committed adultery, drunk, sinned. And the father meets him like that only because the son confessed, because he returned home.
So, think about it like mother and father: if your son is bad, but he confessed and has started to return to the true life, would you have tears in your eyes, would you hug him, would you accept him in your home, forgiving and forgetting everything bad, if he does it sincerely? He is not pretending that he confesses he does it with understanding: 'I want to change my life. I want to confess, I do not want to be bad in the future. I do not want somebody suffers because of me. I do not want to cheat, to act craftily. I want to become Your son." That is the Son of Truth, The Son of God.
And the great gladness has happened in the father's house. The older son returned from his work and was surprised: "What is the joy in my father's house, where there was grief? What music and happy voices are heard there?" And he was told that the youngest son returned, that he confessed and father accepted him back and made the party in his honor.
The older son became angry and thought: "Why did the father not punish him? Why did the father not drive him out? Why did father accept him?" He did not want even to enter the house. And it was also clear because he was always near father, he always worked honestly, righteously; he did not move back from father's words, he was obedient son. And when the father went out and said: "Oh, my son, come in." The older son answered: "Look, these many years I have served you, and I never disobeyed your command, yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might celebrate with my friends." So he advanced arguments and said it justly.
Do you see? Here the justice was appealing to God the Father. The justice was talking through the older brother. The Church did not really thought about it, they just considered that he did the wrong thing. And why it is so? He did the right thing. He said justly to his father: "Why? I am always near you. I work, I do not betray you. And you have never praised me, you have not given me even a goat. But you gave him the good calf and made such party for him". And here God the Father answers to the voice of justice: "It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for this your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is found." Is it the thing to be glad to? Do you understand?
And here we can see what God shows in this parable: He is not only just, He is merciful. His mercy is even greater, it surpasses justice. Do you hear? Mercy is greater than everything else, it surpasses justice, but if the son really becomes alive, if he really confesses. If you really return to God, but not manipulating, you will understand - God the Father is merciful. But if you know that He is merciful and you start to manipulate His mercy, you will not be forgiven. Do you understand?
So, here was the sincere confession of the son and the sincere gladness of God the Father. He is in the same way is happy for each of us, when we sincerely confess in our sins: "Oh God, forgive us, because we are sinful." We really live on this earth, which is full of evil, which is deprived of the laws of life. We live according to wrong laws, the laws of rulers of the world, the laws of governments, in whom there is no salvation. In them there is no salvation. Is it true? They offer the laws, which were offered by cursed Lenin, Stalin and other bastards.
Where has Ukraine gone? How much it has been suffering, how many deaths happened for the sake of "light communist's future". Millions of souls were destroyed, they were good, pious. There were intellectuals, clergy. It was ruined by the rulers of this world, who created their own laws and they continue to create them. And we still have the candidates for president who are kindred spirits to Lenin and Stalin; we also have others, who wanted to be elected. So, we should make our choice very attentively. We must understand that our president is our future, our destiny. What we choose, that we will have in future.
So to be in Holy Spirit, whom and how we want to build out life, not to hope for the ruler of this world, but hope for God's Son, we should confess sincerely, pray to have clean hearts, which should not be dirty. That you will understand the sermons, which are told to you. And the Saint Spirit of Truth will talk with you through your conscience very clear and your soul would not suffer. So now, my dear, the time comes for this confession, time for realization, how it was with prodigal son, that Our Father has everything for us. And there is the presence of Angels, who love us, who help us. We make the photos with them during our prayers; they have the shapes of beautiful big balls or other bodies. Or they can be taken also when we work near our Temple it is really active prayer, it is called redeeming prayer. Because the person prays not only with his/her words but with doings as well.
God is sending His Angels to us, He will send them, He will protect us, He will strengthen us, because the time is not easy now. This time is not spiritually easy for Ukraine and for the world. And we feel it subconsciously, at the level of a soul. We still can't understand some things, it is vague, but time will come and everything will become clearer. Because it is not the time for you to see the whole picture, because you are still weak, because your dark angels are not sleeping. And you can let a word slip out and the dark powers will know where to hit, how to react; it is trying anyway. God is all-powerful, He has created the Universe, He will not let you die with His strong hand. So the knowledge is given you step by step, the knowledge of the future and how to build this future. Everything depends on your spiritual growth, on your devotion to Lord and His servants. The same as that prodigal son, who tried the life without God, he has understood everything very quickly that it is better to be with Father. To be even a servant, even a slave, but with God the Father than to be a great master in the lands evil father - fallen angel.
God loves all of us and blesses to get ready to Lent, which will start very soon in few weeks. So, get ready, confess, and pray to enter this Lent like a worthy man. Let's ask pardon one another, let's ask pardon before God to enter Lent with a clear conscience.
God loves and blesses all of us.
In the name of the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit.
Glory to Jesus Christ!
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Apostle (1 Corinthians, 6:12-20):
6
12 "All things are lawful for me," but not all things are
helpful. "All things are lawful for me," but I will not be dominated by
anything.
13 "Food is meant for the stomach and the stomach for
food"-and God will destroy both one and the other. The body is not meant
for sexual immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body.
14 And God raised the Lord and will also raise us up by his
power.
15 Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ?
Shall I then take the members of Christ and make them members of a
prostitute? Never!
16 Or do you not know that he who is joined to a prostitute
becomes one body with her? For, as it is written, "The two will become one
flesh."
17 But he who is joined to the Lord becomes one spirit with
him.
18 Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a person
commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against
his own body.
19 Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy
Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, 20 for you
were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.
20 for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your
body.
Gospel (Luke, 15:11-32):
15
11 And he said, "There was a man who had two sons.
12 And the younger of them said to his father, 'Father, give
me the share of property that is coming to me.' And he divided his property
between them.
13 Not many days later, the younger son gathered all he had
and took a journey into a far country, and there he squandered his property
in reckless living.
14 And when he had spent everything, a severe famine arose in
that country, and he began to be in need.
15 So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of
that country, who sent him into his fields to feed pigs.
16 And he was longing to be fed with the pods that the pigs
ate, and no one gave him anything.
17 "But when he came to himself, he said, 'How many of my
father's hired servants have more than enough bread, but I perish here with
hunger!
18 I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him,
"Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you.
19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat me as
one of your hired servants."'
20 And he arose and came to his father. But while he was
still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and
embraced him and kissed him.
21 And the son said to him, "Father, I have sinned against
heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son."
22 But the father said to his servants, "Bring quickly the
best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his
feet.
23 And bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat
and celebrate.
24 For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost,
and is found." And they began to celebrate.
25 "Now his older son was in the field, and as he came and
drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing.
26 And he called one of the servants and asked what these
things meant.
27 And he said to him, 'Your brother has come, and your
father has killed the fattened calf, because he has received him back safe
and sound.'
28 But he was angry and refused to go in. His father came out
and entreated him,
29 but he answered his father, 'Look, these many years I have
served you, and I never disobeyed your command, yet you never gave me a
young goat, that I might celebrate with my friends.
30 But when this son of yours came, who has devoured your
property with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him!'
31 And he said to him, 'Son, you are always with me, and all
that is mine is yours.
32 It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for this your
brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is found.'"
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