The Way of Christ

Archpriest Nikolai Deputatov

The teaching of our Lord Jesus Christ is the true light of life, the promise of a life most perfect, joyous and free. The Savior came to awaken the spiritual strengths of humankind and to see that the given gifts are not buried and that humans will not be cowardly and meek slaves, but with the freedom of sonship would work in the field and vineyard of his Father. God wants a love from people that is not coerced, but one that is free, the most profound and sincere communion with Him. He is our way, truth and life. A Christian lives by His love, is nourished by His blessings and in His light sees the light of life. To Him he brings his joys and sorrows, troubles and doubts, his delights and his fears…

The way of Christ can never be easy and free like other ways that lead to destruction. The way of Christ, to this very day, remains narrow and the gates to Christ’s Kingdom are hard to see. It is imperative for a Christian to renounce himself, to leave everything behind, without looking back in order to do work for the sake of the Lord. The purpose of a Christian life is to work with God in the task of establishing the Kingdom of God. It is to live in this world by God’s truth, in word and deed and to be its heralds and to courageously fight off the temptations of the world, placing all sorrows and worries into God’s hands, purifying weaknesses and sins by His holiness, His love…

Christ — "is not of this world." That is why the world hates Him, and with Him, all His disciples (John 15:18-19). The Lord foretold His Apostles banishment, suffering and martyrdom — and all this was fulfilled. "All those desirous of living devout lives in Christ Jesus, will be persecuted. But malicious people will prosper," foretells Apostle Paul (2 Tim. 4:12).

A proud and conceited person is not capable of accepting Christ’s teaching. Only he who subjugates and humbles himself, like a child, is capable of accommodating it. "To humble oneself "means to become meek, forgiving, devoid of any kind of violence and pride. And "the world" in every way will abuse and persecute this voluntary child.

Christ brought the world life and joy, but the adversary brought — suffering and sorrow. While there is sorrow and suffering in the world, they will be the lot of every unhypocritical servant of Christ. A Christian cannot be fully happy in this world, because every fault in a loved one becomes the source of sorrow.

In every age there have been people, who during their lifetime, and quite often after death, were recognized as being righteous. And when one examines the heartfelt confessions of these bearers of the light of Christ, one is astounded at their sincere, profound admission of their own sinful state, their powerlessness and impoverished spirit. If the saints openly admitted their powerlessness and impoverishment and in this state went to meet God, so then, for our spiritual growth, we must refrain from all kinds of evil, by exercising goodwill, by fasting, by prayer and recognizing our own insignificance.

Complacency and self-assurance are not indicative of holiness and perfection, but of pride, short sightedness and spiritual limitations. The beginning of humility, in the words of the Savior, which likens the believer to the Teacher, is an endless source of the realization of the inter-relationship of the sin and suffering in this world. In one’s spiritual life, a Christian should be childlike, not wondering about his own growth; a lily of the field, not admiring its own beauty or a bird, not worrying about tomorrow.

A believer always humbles himself because he does not consider anyone lower than himself, always repents because he distinctly sees the splendor of God’s way and is conscious of his distance from God. The believer constantly sheds tears because he recognizes his powerlessness….And in knowing his own weakness, he constantly purifies himself and strives for perfection. Nor a Christian can be revengeful because revenge tears a person away from the all-merciful and meek Savior.