Homily for the 18th Sunday after Pentecost. -Met. Korniliy (Titov)
Dear brothers and sisters!
During today’s Divine Liturgy, the reading from the Apostle began with the words: “Brethren, he that soweth sparingly shall also reap sparingly; and he that soweth bountifully shall also reap bountifully” (2 Cor. 9, 7). With these words, the Apostle instructs us that Christians should generously give alms to their neighbors, not being stingy in doing good, for such generosity will be returned with abundance sent from God.
Every good deed done for a neighbor according to the Lord’s commandment is like a seed sown in the ground, which in due time will surely bear fruit. He who does little good for his neighbor will receive a small reward from God, or none at all if he does not help others. But he who does much good or gives alms generously will receive a great reward from God. Such is the law of God’s gracious recompense, which determines reward and punishment according to our deeds, as the Apostle teaches: “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that every one may receive the things done, whether good or evil” (2 Cor. 5, 10).
Brothers and sisters! The Apostle teaches us to give alms generously, willingly, and with love, for “God loveth a cheerful giver” (2 Cor. 9, 7). Let us, in doing good to our neighbors, imitate God, Who ensures that the one who sows generously receives a worthy harvest, and Who commanded us: “Be ye merciful, as your Father also is merciful” (Lk. 6, 36). The Apostle says: “God is able to make all grace abound toward you” (2 Cor. 9, 8). And that He is indeed able, we see also from today’s Gospel.
Once, at the very beginning of His earthly ministry, the Lord came to the shore of the Sea of Gennesaret to preach the Gospel. A great multitude of people surrounded and pressed upon Him. Everyone wanted to hear what the Lord was saying, but because of the crowd, many could not hear His teaching. At that time, there were fishermen on the shore who had just returned from an unsuccessful night of fishing and were mending their nets. The Lord approached them, sat in Simon’s boat—the future Apostle Peter—asked him to push off a little from the shore, and began to teach the people from the boat.
Let us note, brothers and sisters, the extraordinary zeal the people always showed in listening to the Word of God, surrounding Christ, sometimes forgetting their fatigue and hunger. Should we not also listen to and read the Word of God with the same zeal and love? This Word is so necessary for our salvation. “Blessed are they that hear the Word of God and keep it,” says the Gospel (Lk. 11, 28). In the Word of God is the source of comfort, the true light that enlightens and fills our souls with inexpressible joy. “How sweet are Thy words unto my throat, more than honey to my mouth!” exclaims King and Prophet David about the Word of God (Ps. 118). But it is not enough to merely hear the Word of God; we must also fulfill its commandments.
When the Lord finished teaching the people, He told Simon Peter to sail into the deep and let down the nets for a catch. It was a time of day when fish were not caught in that place, and they had caught nothing even during the favorable nighttime. But, showing humility and obedience to the Teacher’s command, Peter said: “At Thy word I will let down the net.” And, to the great astonishment of the fishermen, they caught a vast multitude of fish. Like a horn of plenty, the fish poured forth from the depths of the sea, tearing their nets, and even with the help of other fishermen, they could not manage the catch, so that their boat began to sink.
This miraculous “horn of plenty” can also, by God’s will, open at any time to those who humbly obey the Lord’s commandments, as the Apostle Peter did. “And God,” as the Apostle says, “is able to make all grace abound toward you, that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work” (2 Cor. 9, 8).
God created the world “very good” for the joy and prosperity of all creation. With His providential hand, He fed the Israelites with manna from heaven when they came out of Egyptian bondage. He performed the miracle of feeding a multitude with five loaves and two fish, for those who came to hear His divine teaching. So too, in any place and at any time, God sows goodness with a generous hand for the salvation of man, so that what He has bountifully sown may bring forth rich fruits in us: faith, good deeds, gratitude, and humility. In His generosity, the Lord teaches: “Without Me ye can do nothing” (Jn. 15, 5).
And when Simon the fisherman saw the miraculous catch, he suddenly realized Who was with him in his frail boat. Awe and reverence seized him, for God had drawn near, and he met Him face to face. Then Simon, forgetting the fish, fell at Jesus’ knees and said: “Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man” (Lk. 5, 8). The Lord replied: “Fear not; from henceforth thou shalt catch men.” After these encouraging and calling words, Simon and his companions, “immediately,” that is, at once, pulled both boats to shore, left everything, and followed Him.
And later, in the Kingdom of God, this great obedience to the Lord’s word was rewarded with a great gift—the Apostle Peter received the keys to the Kingdom of Heaven. So, if we desire to receive abundant gifts, we must sow generously, even giving to God our last, as the Gospel widow gave her last coins, relying solely on God’s help and trusting wholly in His mercy.
The Lord comforted Simon and, at the same time, entrusted him with the difficult and lofty apostolic ministry, saying: “Thou shalt catch men.” Let us note that the Lord finds a similarity between the work of fishermen and the ministry of apostles. Indeed, the world lay before the apostles like a vast and boundless sea, with its unknowns and storms. At the Lord’s word, like small boats, they set out into this dangerous world to courageously endure all trials and, through their preaching, carry the Word of God to all corners of the universe, catching souls for salvation in Christ’s Church.
These good fishermen, at the word of Him who called them, left their nets and boats that very hour—that is, all their possessions, and even their loved ones—and followed Christ without hesitation: “And they immediately, leaving the ship and their father, followed Him” (Mt. 4, 22). Such should be the true disciples of Christ, that is, all of us Christians; we must completely give ourselves to Christ, detaching and separating ourselves from all that is worldly.
With a generous hand, the apostles sowed the Word of God, preaching salvation through repentance and the Kingdom of Heaven. “Go ye into all the world, and preach the Gospel to every creature,” the Lord commanded the apostles. They carried into the world the fullness and truth of the Holy Spirit, Who spoke through their mouths: “For it is not ye that speak, but the Spirit that speaketh in you,” Christ told them (Mt. 10, 20). By God’s grace, through the preaching and labors of the holy apostles, Christ’s Church was established. Through their saving nets, we were drawn out of the depths of perdition—that is, through their preaching, we received the opportunity to hear the word of salvation and become Christians. Let us thank them with all our hearts for this generous sowing, for the labor through which the glorious and all-praised apostles toiled so greatly for the salvation of the world.
We heard in today’s Gospel of the awe of the Apostle Peter when he suddenly realized Who was beside him. We too should fear the carelessness with which we sometimes approach God in prayer. We must always come to Him with a contrite spirit, a humble heart, and an awareness of our spiritual poverty, remembering the commandment: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of God” (Lk. 6, 20). We must urge ourselves to stand in prayer to God as if with the outstretched hand of a beggar, asking for His mercy, knowing we have no rightful claim to it. We must stand before God’s eyes in humility, as the Gospel publican did, beating his breast and not daring to lift his eyes, beseeching the Lord: “God, be merciful to me a sinner!” (Lk. 18, 13). We must approach God, realizing we have no right to this meeting and that if it happens, it is only by His boundless mercy.
But often, we do not approach God in this spirit, nor do we live mindful of His constant presence. We come to church as if demanding that God grant us a prayerful mood or deep spiritual experiences. When we call upon the Lord: “Come and dwell in us,” often God does not draw near to us, by His mercy alone, because meeting Him would be a judgment before which we could not stand in our sinfulness. And if He did draw near, He might say to us: “You called Me—what do you bring before Me? Where is your wedding garment of good deeds and repentance?” And we would be left speechless, trembling, and condemned. Therefore, we must seek God and await a meeting with Him, understanding that by right we have no place where He is, relying in this meeting only on His mercy and love, which extend to all the ends of the earth, to the good and the evil, the righteous and the sinners. Let us humbly recall more often the profound words of the Apostle Peter: “Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man.” And when we approach prayer, let us do so meekly, as if standing at His door and knocking with a trembling hand—hoping that the Lord will open, show us the path to salvation, and enter our lives, purifying and sanctifying them.
Brothers and sisters! Let us strive in love, faith, and purity toward a life that would make it possible for us to meet the Lord face to face and hear from Him at the Last Judgment, not a stern and condemning voice, but a merciful and joyful one: “Inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world” (Mt. 25, 34).