Homily for the Sixth Sunday of Matthew
Matthew 9:1-8
(Delivered on July 31, 1949)
Matthew 9:1-8
(Delivered on July 31, 1949)
"Then behold, men brought on a bed a man who was paralyzed, whom they sought to bring in and lay before Him. And when they could not find how they might bring him in, because of the crowd, they went up on the housetop and let him down with his bed through the tiling into the midst before Jesus. When He saw their faith, He said to him, 'Man, your sins are forgiven you'” (Luke 5:18–19).
What an amazing event! What boldness! After all, when they dismantled the roof, clay and dust fell on the heads of everyone, including the Lord Jesus Christ. Any other person in His place, of course, would have been indignant, but the Lord did not utter a single word of reproach. Instead, He gave them the greatest blessing by healing the unfortunate man and forgiving his sins.
Look how these people acted. After all, they literally went straight to the Lord, not thinking that they were undertaking a completely unprecedented deed, for their hearts burned with ardent faith in the Great Wonderworker. And so it happened. In other cases, too, the Lord healed the sick according to their faith, and more than once approved of the great boldness with which those in need of His help approached Him. Think of the pagan Canaanite woman. When the Lord Jesus Christ passed by her, she fell on her knees before Him and begged: "Lord, my daughter is severely demon-possessed, heal her." But He did not answer her a word (Matt. 15:22-23). She followed Him relentlessly, and her request became more and more earnest. In the end, the apostles said to the Lord: "Send her away" (Matt. 15:23). But the Lord answered: "It is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the little dogs." She said: “Yes, Lord! But little dogs also eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table” (Matt. 15:27). The Lord was amazed at the extraordinary depth of her faith, love, and hope, and He answered her, "O woman, great is your faith! Let it be to you as you desire." And her daughter was healed from that very hour (Matt. 15:28).
We must always approach God with great boldness. In prayer we should be like the Canaanite woman, waiting with unrelenting faith to receive what she asks for. We must be like a small child who, with outstretched hands, reaches out to his mother with his whole being, waiting for help. We should be like the poor man who is dying of hunger and who has come to seek compassion from a man known for his mercy.
Thus, in order for our prayer to be accepted by God, two conditions are needed: deep faith in the infinite mercy of the Lord, excluding all doubts and hesitations, and perseverance.
From our first words, we will not be given what we ask. The Lord Jesus Christ said the following parable to His disciples: "Which of you shall have a friend, and go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves; for a friend of mine has come to me on his journey, and I have nothing to set before him’; and he will answer from within and say, ‘Do not trouble me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give to you.’ I say to you, though he will not rise and give to him because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence he will rise and give him as many as he needs" (Luke 11:5-8).
And we also know the Parable of the Unfortunate Widow who was oppressed by an evil man and who persistently, day after day, went to the judge, asking for protection. This judge was evil: he did not fear God and was not ashamed of people. For a long time he drove this widow away from him, and she kept coming to him. At last, he grew tired of her, and he said: "Though I do not fear God nor regard man, yet because this widow troubles me I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me." Then the Lord said, "Hear what the unjust judge said. And shall God not avenge His own elect who cry out day and night to Him, though He bears long with them?" (Luke 18:4-7).
What does it mean to pray without ceasing? Don't we have enough everyday affairs? Can we engage in only one prayer? This requirement seems impossible. But the Lord does not demand anything impossible from us. To pray without ceasing does not mean only to stand at prayer and make prostrations. You can pray everywhere and always; it is only necessary that we always have a prayerful disposition in our hearts, so that it is constantly filled with contrition for our unworthiness and sinfulness and fear of the greatness of God, Whom we anger. And if this holy disposition never leaves us, then we will pray always and everywhere, in the midst of all our worldly affairs, that our hearts may be directed to God.
We are all much less busy than the holy prophet David, who was the king of Israel and was constantly faced with many state affairs. It would seem, when would he pray? But see how he prayed: "My tears were my bread day and night" (Psalm 41:4). Day and night he prayed to God. "I am weary because of my sighs, I wash my bed every night, I water my bed with tears" (Psalm 6:7). He sang praises to God and prayed in the middle of the night, being burdened with labor all day: "At midnight I arose to praise You for Your righteous judgments" (Psalm 118:62). Should we not find time to send up sighs and shed tears to God?
It is necessary to pray not only with the words of memorized prayers. It is necessary that the mouth speak out of the abundance of the heart (cf. Matt. 12:34), so that in silence, from the depths of the heart, we send up prayers to God, like Saint Hannah, the mother of the prophet Samuel. She was barren and suffered from it. And then one day she went to the Jerusalem temple and, kneeling, prayed that the Lord would grant her a son, and made a vow to dedicate this son to Him. She did not utter words, only her lips moved softly. With all her fiery spirit, she strove for God and did not retreat in her petition.
In the same silence, with all his heart, the holy Prophet of God Moses prayed, asking God to abolish the terrible punishment prepared for the people of Israel – even his lips did not move. And the Lord said: "Why do you cry out to Me" (Exodus 14:15)? The fiery, silent prayer of his heart ascended to God like a loud cry.
And how do most of us pray? Our prayer is usually only a mechanical repetition of memorized words, and in this spirit we do not pray at all and do not think about what we are asking. We ourselves do not hear our prayers, so how can God hear us?
God does not hear and does not fulfill those prayers that are displeasing to Him, which are directed to harm people, for example, when we beg for the punishment of our enemies or when we unconsciously ask for something harmful to our neighbor. He did not even fulfill the prayer of the holy Apostle Paul, who confessed: "And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure. Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me. And He said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me" (2 Corinthians 12:7-9).
When we are weak, we are strong and have boldness towards God. We must always remember this and ask the Lord only for true spiritual blessings, and not for what we, in our error, consider to be good. The Lord knows better than we do what is good for us, He gives us what we deserve.
When the heavy punishment – the Babylonian captivity and the destruction of Jerusalem – was intended for the people of Israel for apostasy from the True God and worship of the Astartes and Baals, then the Lord said through the mouth of the prophet Jeremiah: "Run to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem; see now and know; and seek in her open places if you can find a man, if there is anyone who executes judgment, who seeks the truth, and I will pardon her... You have stricken them, but they have not grieved; bou have consumed them, but they have refused to receive correction. they have made their faces harder than rock; they have refused to return... How shall I pardon you for this? Your children have forsaken Me and sworn by those that are not gods. When I had fed them to the full, then they committed adultery... Shall I not punish them for these things?” says the Lord. “And shall I not avenge Myself on such a nation as this?" (Jeremiah 5:1, 3, 7, 9).
But we must not be discouraged. We know that when the Lord condemned the destruction of the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, the righteous Abraham, hearing about this, began to beg the Lord for mercy: "Will you not spare these cities, if there are even fifty righteous men?" And the Lord was ready to have mercy. "Is it possible that if there are forty, twenty, even ten righteous men, you will not spare them?" The Lord was ready to spare Sodom and Gomorrah even for the sake of ten righteous men. But not even ten righteous men were found (see Gen. 18:20-33).
We must pray tirelessly, despite the fact that the Lord is slow to fulfill our petitions, remembering the words of Christ: "Ask and it will be given you; seek and you will find; knock and it will be opened to you; for everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened" (Luke 11:9, 10). Let us tirelessly knock at the door of God's mercy, offering prayers not only for ourselves, but also for those who never pray. And the Lord will hear our prayers and reward us according to His immeasurable mercy. Amen.
Source: Translated by John Sanidopoulos.
What an amazing event! What boldness! After all, when they dismantled the roof, clay and dust fell on the heads of everyone, including the Lord Jesus Christ. Any other person in His place, of course, would have been indignant, but the Lord did not utter a single word of reproach. Instead, He gave them the greatest blessing by healing the unfortunate man and forgiving his sins.
Look how these people acted. After all, they literally went straight to the Lord, not thinking that they were undertaking a completely unprecedented deed, for their hearts burned with ardent faith in the Great Wonderworker. And so it happened. In other cases, too, the Lord healed the sick according to their faith, and more than once approved of the great boldness with which those in need of His help approached Him. Think of the pagan Canaanite woman. When the Lord Jesus Christ passed by her, she fell on her knees before Him and begged: "Lord, my daughter is severely demon-possessed, heal her." But He did not answer her a word (Matt. 15:22-23). She followed Him relentlessly, and her request became more and more earnest. In the end, the apostles said to the Lord: "Send her away" (Matt. 15:23). But the Lord answered: "It is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the little dogs." She said: “Yes, Lord! But little dogs also eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table” (Matt. 15:27). The Lord was amazed at the extraordinary depth of her faith, love, and hope, and He answered her, "O woman, great is your faith! Let it be to you as you desire." And her daughter was healed from that very hour (Matt. 15:28).
We must always approach God with great boldness. In prayer we should be like the Canaanite woman, waiting with unrelenting faith to receive what she asks for. We must be like a small child who, with outstretched hands, reaches out to his mother with his whole being, waiting for help. We should be like the poor man who is dying of hunger and who has come to seek compassion from a man known for his mercy.
Thus, in order for our prayer to be accepted by God, two conditions are needed: deep faith in the infinite mercy of the Lord, excluding all doubts and hesitations, and perseverance.
From our first words, we will not be given what we ask. The Lord Jesus Christ said the following parable to His disciples: "Which of you shall have a friend, and go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves; for a friend of mine has come to me on his journey, and I have nothing to set before him’; and he will answer from within and say, ‘Do not trouble me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give to you.’ I say to you, though he will not rise and give to him because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence he will rise and give him as many as he needs" (Luke 11:5-8).
And we also know the Parable of the Unfortunate Widow who was oppressed by an evil man and who persistently, day after day, went to the judge, asking for protection. This judge was evil: he did not fear God and was not ashamed of people. For a long time he drove this widow away from him, and she kept coming to him. At last, he grew tired of her, and he said: "Though I do not fear God nor regard man, yet because this widow troubles me I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me." Then the Lord said, "Hear what the unjust judge said. And shall God not avenge His own elect who cry out day and night to Him, though He bears long with them?" (Luke 18:4-7).
What does it mean to pray without ceasing? Don't we have enough everyday affairs? Can we engage in only one prayer? This requirement seems impossible. But the Lord does not demand anything impossible from us. To pray without ceasing does not mean only to stand at prayer and make prostrations. You can pray everywhere and always; it is only necessary that we always have a prayerful disposition in our hearts, so that it is constantly filled with contrition for our unworthiness and sinfulness and fear of the greatness of God, Whom we anger. And if this holy disposition never leaves us, then we will pray always and everywhere, in the midst of all our worldly affairs, that our hearts may be directed to God.
We are all much less busy than the holy prophet David, who was the king of Israel and was constantly faced with many state affairs. It would seem, when would he pray? But see how he prayed: "My tears were my bread day and night" (Psalm 41:4). Day and night he prayed to God. "I am weary because of my sighs, I wash my bed every night, I water my bed with tears" (Psalm 6:7). He sang praises to God and prayed in the middle of the night, being burdened with labor all day: "At midnight I arose to praise You for Your righteous judgments" (Psalm 118:62). Should we not find time to send up sighs and shed tears to God?
It is necessary to pray not only with the words of memorized prayers. It is necessary that the mouth speak out of the abundance of the heart (cf. Matt. 12:34), so that in silence, from the depths of the heart, we send up prayers to God, like Saint Hannah, the mother of the prophet Samuel. She was barren and suffered from it. And then one day she went to the Jerusalem temple and, kneeling, prayed that the Lord would grant her a son, and made a vow to dedicate this son to Him. She did not utter words, only her lips moved softly. With all her fiery spirit, she strove for God and did not retreat in her petition.
In the same silence, with all his heart, the holy Prophet of God Moses prayed, asking God to abolish the terrible punishment prepared for the people of Israel – even his lips did not move. And the Lord said: "Why do you cry out to Me" (Exodus 14:15)? The fiery, silent prayer of his heart ascended to God like a loud cry.
And how do most of us pray? Our prayer is usually only a mechanical repetition of memorized words, and in this spirit we do not pray at all and do not think about what we are asking. We ourselves do not hear our prayers, so how can God hear us?
God does not hear and does not fulfill those prayers that are displeasing to Him, which are directed to harm people, for example, when we beg for the punishment of our enemies or when we unconsciously ask for something harmful to our neighbor. He did not even fulfill the prayer of the holy Apostle Paul, who confessed: "And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure. Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me. And He said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me" (2 Corinthians 12:7-9).
When we are weak, we are strong and have boldness towards God. We must always remember this and ask the Lord only for true spiritual blessings, and not for what we, in our error, consider to be good. The Lord knows better than we do what is good for us, He gives us what we deserve.
When the heavy punishment – the Babylonian captivity and the destruction of Jerusalem – was intended for the people of Israel for apostasy from the True God and worship of the Astartes and Baals, then the Lord said through the mouth of the prophet Jeremiah: "Run to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem; see now and know; and seek in her open places if you can find a man, if there is anyone who executes judgment, who seeks the truth, and I will pardon her... You have stricken them, but they have not grieved; bou have consumed them, but they have refused to receive correction. they have made their faces harder than rock; they have refused to return... How shall I pardon you for this? Your children have forsaken Me and sworn by those that are not gods. When I had fed them to the full, then they committed adultery... Shall I not punish them for these things?” says the Lord. “And shall I not avenge Myself on such a nation as this?" (Jeremiah 5:1, 3, 7, 9).
But we must not be discouraged. We know that when the Lord condemned the destruction of the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, the righteous Abraham, hearing about this, began to beg the Lord for mercy: "Will you not spare these cities, if there are even fifty righteous men?" And the Lord was ready to have mercy. "Is it possible that if there are forty, twenty, even ten righteous men, you will not spare them?" The Lord was ready to spare Sodom and Gomorrah even for the sake of ten righteous men. But not even ten righteous men were found (see Gen. 18:20-33).
We must pray tirelessly, despite the fact that the Lord is slow to fulfill our petitions, remembering the words of Christ: "Ask and it will be given you; seek and you will find; knock and it will be opened to you; for everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened" (Luke 11:9, 10). Let us tirelessly knock at the door of God's mercy, offering prayers not only for ourselves, but also for those who never pray. And the Lord will hear our prayers and reward us according to His immeasurable mercy. Amen.
Source: Translated by John Sanidopoulos.
