Homily for Meatfare Sunday on the Dread Judgment #
Homily for Meatfare Sunday on the Last Judgment
Matt. Pericope 106, Ch. 25:31–46
“O Lord… enter not into judgment with Thy servant, for in Thy sight shall no man living be justified.” (Ps. 142)
Dear brothers and sisters!
We now stand at the threshold of the Great Fast, a time of preparation for eternity, for the new life in the Kingdom of God. The season of repentance and forgiveness is approaching. Just as the Israelites, led by the Lord, traveled from Egyptian captivity to the Promised Land, so too the Great Fast is a journey toward the promised land of our salvation—to Christ’s Pascha, to the Resurrection that has conquered death. Along this path, let us support one another, strengthening the weak with patience and relying on the help of the strong. Let us move forward, week by week, toward the great Paschal joy, trusting in the power of God, which is made perfect in weakness, making the impossible possible and transforming us—earthly and sinful—into new people, children of the Kingdom of God!
Last Sunday, in the Parable of the Prodigal Son, the Lord revealed His boundless mercy and love for those who sin and repent. Today, the Gospel places before our spiritual eyes the image of the Last Judgment.
“I will sing of mercy and judgment: unto Thee, O Lord, will I sing” (Ps. 100), says the psalmist David, pointing to the mercy and patience of God, which precede the Judgment, where every person will receive according to the deeds of this earthly life. At this Judgment, we will all stand before the awesome Judge as defendants, filled with fear and trembling over our actions and thoughts.
In the Gospel, the Lord reveals to us mysteries beyond human understanding—events that will take place at His Second Coming. As the Apostle Peter writes: “The heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up” (2 Pet. 3:10).
According to the word of God, after a person dies, divine judgment is pronounced upon him. “It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment” (Heb. 9:27), says the apostle. But this is not the final judgment. It only temporarily determines the state of the soul after death until Christ’s Second Coming. The final verdict will be rendered at the universal, worldwide Judgment, where all the nations of the earth will appear. This last and ultimate Judgment, fearful and decisive, is called the Last Judgment.
Before this Judgment takes place, there will be a general resurrection of the dead—of all who have departed this life since the foundation of the world. At the command of the Almighty, all the dead will rise in a transformed state and stand before the Judgment. “The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live” (John 5:25). The prophet Ezekiel, speaking by the Holy Spirit, prophesied of the resurrection of the dead: “Thus saith the Lord unto these bones; Behold, I will cause breath to enter into you, and ye shall live…”
Those who are still alive at the hour of the Last Judgment will be changed in an instant. Christ, the Son of God, the King of heaven and earth, will come to judge the world in all His glory and majesty, surrounded by the hosts of holy angels.
This terrible final day of the world will be preceded by an increase of evil on earth to such an extreme degree that many people, forsaking the true God, will worship the Antichrist and submit to him. Then the Lord Himself will descend from Heaven with great glory and power to vanquish the Antichrist and to punish those who, by their wicked deeds, have provoked His wrath. They, like a withered and barren tree, will be cast into the fire, while the righteous will be made heirs of the Heavenly Kingdom. The world will be judged by a righteous Judge, incorruptible and impartial, for whom not only sinful deeds but also sinful and lawless thoughts are an abomination. Who would not tremble before such a Judge, who has the power to cast each of us into Gehenna!
Together with us, our loved ones will also await their sentence with trembling. The fear of judgment, upon the countless multitudes standing trial, will fill all with unimaginable dread and dismay. The Last Judgment will be a terrifying revelation of an immeasurable number of sins, which will be laid bare in all their shame, all their hideousness and depravity. It will be terrifying because of the multitude of witnesses and accusers who will testify against our sins and iniquities. Every sinful deed and thought that we sought to conceal in this life will be made known before the witnesses of the Judgment. What despair and horror, what shame and disgrace await us at that hour—if we do not repent! Before the eyes of the whole world, before the angels, before our parents and acquaintances—before all—our sins will be revealed.
“I consider the multitude of evils I have committed, wretched as I am, and I tremble at the fearful day of judgment,"—so was sung yesterday in the service at church. The Last Judgment will be terrifying not only in its revelation of sins but in its consequences, for its sentence will be decisive and final. For the unrepentant sinner, it will forever shut the doors of the Kingdom of Heaven, establishing an unbridgeable chasm between them and the righteous. The fate of sinners is dreadful—to endure eternal, endless torment.
We often grow accustomed to hearing and speaking about the Judgment of God with a certain calmness, even indifference, as if it does not concern us personally. Some who are hardened in sin may even comfort themselves with the thought of God’s mercy, continuing in their sins, saying, “The Lord will forgive all; He will not condemn me to destruction.” No! Just as the Lord has shown great mercy in working for our salvation, so too will He be strict and just in judgment, for the Kingdom of God is closed to all impurity. “There shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth” (Rev. 21:27). No one will enter who lacks the bright and pure wedding garment.
Brothers and sisters, let us imagine for a moment that this terrible hour has already come, and we are standing before the judgment seat of God, exposed in all the sins we have ever committed. Where will we turn our gaze? Will we lift our eyes upward in fear and trembling—only to see thousands upon thousands of angels and archangels bearing witness against us? Will we cast our eyes downward—only to behold the horror of the fiery river, surging and ready to consume us? Will we look to the right or to the left—only to see the countless multitudes of the righteous and the sinners, standing in awe and humility as they await the final, dreadful verdict of the Judge? Will we dare to look forward—only to meet the gaze of the terrible Judge Himself? Let us reflect upon this!
In the Book of Revelation, Saint John the Theologian says that at the Judgment, the wretched and unrepentant sinners, unable to bear the sight of God’s wrath, will plead for the mountains and the rocks to fall upon them and hide them. “And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of Him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb” (Rev. 6:16).
At the Judgment, we will see the face of the Lord—He whom we have offended with our sins, whom we have wounded with our passions and lusts, whom we have reviled with unworthy words and thoughts. We will behold Him and be seized with dread, realizing whom we have angered and insulted, whom we have pierced with wounds. The Gospel says: “They shall look upon Him whom they have pierced” (John 19:37). How terrible that sight will be! “And they could not answer Him” (Gen. 45:3), says the Holy Scripture.
People have already witnessed the power of God’s wrath in the flood that covered the entire earth, in the fire from heaven that consumed cities filled with the abomination of fornication. The time of Christ’s Second Coming, the time of Judgment, is called by the apostle the Day of Wrath. The divine Chrysostom, considering the turned-away gaze of the Judge as more terrible than the torments of darkness and hell, says: “Both Gehenna and its torments are unbearable. But even the darkness of Gehenna is nothing compared to seeing that meek countenance turned away and that merciful eye unable to bear the sight of us… God does not threaten us with Gehenna in vain; He does not make it certain only to prove a point, but so that through fear we may become better.”
At the Judgment, not only our great sins will be brought forth, but even the smallest ones. There we will not be able to hide or deceive, as we do now. Everything in which we have sinned—even the slightest thought, the smallest error—will be laid bare. “We shall suddenly see,” says Basil the Great, “all our deeds standing before us and appearing to our minds in the very form in which each was said or done.”
Let us ask ourselves: will we have any defense at the Judgment? In this life, God has given us the simplest way to obtain forgiveness of all our iniquities and sins—sincere confession and repentance. If we neglect this, we will have no justification before God. What verdict are we expecting? With horror, we may hear: “Depart from Me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels” (Matt. 25:41). O terrible Judgment of God! Wretched and miserable unrepentant sinner—whence and whither dost thou go? From the paradise prepared for thee—to hell; from the light of glory—to darkness, eternal fire, and torment; from God—to the devil! How dreadful it will be to hear: “Depart from Me!”
The righteous say that he who does not forget the torments shall not suffer them. “The remembrance of Gehenna keeps one from falling into Gehenna,” confirms Saint John Chrysostom. In the Paterikon, there is a parable: “A certain ascetic was greatly tempted by lust, but God, wishing to deliver him from temptation, placed a thought in his mind—to bring his hand near a flame before giving in to sin. He could not bear the pain and immediately pulled his hand away. Then he thought to himself: ‘I cannot endure the flame of a mere candle, yet if I fall into sin, I shall burn forever in the flames of Gehenna.’ And he cried out: ‘Get thee hence, Satan!’ Thus he overcame the flesh, put the devil to shame, avoided sin, and saved his soul.” He who remembers the torments can escape them!
“I consider the multitude of evils I have committed, wretched as I am,"—we sing during the days of the Great Fast. What shall we do, brothers, when we are guilty of an immeasurable multitude of sins? How shall we escape the fierce torments, the utter darkness, the unbreakable bonds, the sorrows, and the lamentations? What shall we do when we are dragged into the torments of Gehenna, where there is no longer mercy, no longer repentance, no longer forgiveness? “For the prophet David saith: ‘Who shall stand before Thy wrath?’” (Ps. 75). Therefore, brothers, let us correct ourselves before the dreadful hour arrives—let us strive now toward the labor of fasting and repentance, that we may not weep forever in the life to come. The life that the Lord has given us for the salvation of our souls is melting away with each passing moment, and we are unceasingly drawing near to the Last Judgment and the recompense for all our deeds. Before death overtakes us—of which we know neither the day nor the hour—let us bring forth tears and repentance for our sins.
On the eve of Meatfare (Cheese) Week, it is fitting to remind ourselves that according to the Church’s rule, this is a time of moderation in food and drink. The service for Cheesefare Week calls it “the vestibule of repentance, the forefeast of abstinence, the week of purification.” During this time, let us not defile ourselves with gluttony and drunkenness. This week was established by the Holy Church to prepare us for fasting and repentance, to remind us with contrition of our sins. Do we observe this holy ordinance of the Church? In the world, Cheesefare Week is commonly called Maslenitsa, which has now been turned into a kind of pagan festival. There is no mention of abstinence—only feasting and entertainment. How often these days become a sinful revelry, a work of darkness: singing, dancing, drunkenness, wild disorder, and pagan customs, for which an account will be given before God. Even some Christian Old Believers among them—take part in these things, forgetting their high calling.
Brothers, let us leave behind these unchristian customs and spend these days of preparation for the Holy Fast in temperance. Let us observe Cheesefare Week as the Holy Church teaches: “Let us put away all indecent amusements and evil customs, remembering the Last Judgment and the tradition of our forefathers” (from the homily for Cheesefare Week).
“When the Son of Man shall come in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then shall He sit upon the throne of His glory.” Thus does the Holy Gospel speak of the beginning of the Last Judgment: He will sit upon the throne of His glory to render judgment and to expose all sinners in their deeds of unrighteousness (Matt. 25:31). “And before Him shall be gathered all nations: and He shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats.” The righteous (the sheep) the Lord will place on His right hand, while the wicked (the goats) will stand on His left. And to those on His right He will say: “Come, ye blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.” But to those on the left, He will say: “Depart from Me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels.”
By comparing the righteous to sheep, the Lord reveals their meekness and humility. And by likening sinners to goats, He shows their arrogance and waywardness. Just as goats wander on cliffs and steep places, so too do sinners walk along the edges of spiritual abysses, following the paths of iniquity, constantly endangering their souls and neglecting the way of salvation set forth in the Law of God. Meekness in sheep and stubbornness in goats are according to their nature, and in this they have no freedom of choice. But the righteous and the sinners each make their own path; they freely choose good or evil, and for this reason, they will give an account before God at the Judgment for all their deeds.
For what does God reward the righteous who stand at His right hand? For their good works, for their love of mankind and their mercy. For He Himself has said: “A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another; by this shall all men know that ye are My disciples” (John 13:34).
By calling the righteous sheep, the Lord testifies that they are like Him in virtue, in their willingness, like Christ, to lay down their lives for the sake of goodness, as it is written: “He is brought as a lamb to the slaughter” (Isa. 53:7). Those who inherit the eternal Kingdom possess love for their neighbor as the highest fulfillment of all virtues. Through this love, the righteous show mercy to those in need, defend the oppressed, support the weak, visit the sick and those imprisoned, care for one another—in every way manifesting their love and compassion. The Lord receives the righteous into His Kingdom, yet these people, having done deeds of love, never expected to be singled out by the Lord. They are astonished—how is it that He attributes to Himself what they did for others? To act according to the law of love was so natural to them that they never gave it thought. Goodness had become part of their very being—it was not mere obedience to an external command but an innate movement of the soul.
Therefore, anyone who performs acts of mercy should ask themselves: do I do this from my heart, or merely out of a sense of duty, expecting a reward? If it is only out of obligation and law, then it is far removed from the mercy of the Lord!
But let us also turn our attention to those who failed to show love toward others. When Christ speaks to them about this, they do not even understand Him: “Lord, when saw we Thee an hungred, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto Thee?” (Matt. 25:44). They simply never noticed anyone around them because their hearts were cold and indifferent. They lived their entire lives only for themselves, calculating and practical, but ultimately, their lives were wasted—empty and foolish!
Let us ask ourselves—how do we treat our neighbor? Do we know how to love the Lord through our love for others? The Apostle John said: “If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar” (1 John 4:20), for we cannot love the unseen God if we have not learned to love the living person beside us. And if our heart is closed, hardened, and withdrawn—if it recoils at the very thought that our neighbor might demand too much of us, perhaps even our very life—how then can we speak of love for God? We must first learn to have a warm, attentive, and compassionate heart toward our neighbor; only then will it be opened as a pure heart, capable of seeing God. “Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God” (Matt. 5:8), says the Lord.
The Lord will indeed judge us according to our faith, but a faith proven by works, “for faith without works is dead” (James 2:26). The Lord expects the fruits of faith—acts of love and mercy toward our neighbor. This means showing pity when we see someone in misfortune, if we have the means to help them; it means compassion for the poor and the orphaned. Even if we are not wealthy enough to clothe and feed others, we can at least offer a kind or comforting word, pray for the sick, the destitute, and those in prison—and even more so for the soul imprisoned in the dungeon of sin. We can guide the young onto the right path with good words and by our own example. “Have nothing to give? Then comfort with a tear,” says St. Gregory the Theologian.
We are condemned not only when we refuse a request for help but also when we fail even to notice the suffering and needs of those around us. Our eternal destiny depends on what we have done or failed to do for our brother. We should not wait until we are asked for help; rather, we should come of our own accord, before the call is made. The Last Judgment is, in a way, anticipated here on earth, where we are tested on our compassion and love for Christ, who, through the voice of the Evangelist, declares that it is impossible to love God without loving our brothers: “If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar” (1 John 4:20).
Saint Ephraim the Syrian exhorts us to always be prepared to meet the Judge: “Let us go before His face with confession, repentance, prayers, fasting, tears, and hospitality. Let us go before Him before He comes visibly and finds us unprepared. Let us not cease offering repentance, let us ceaselessly entreat Him and ready ourselves to meet the Lord—all together, men and women, rich and poor, servants and free, elders and youth.”
Brothers and sisters! Having heard how and for what we will be judged by the Lord, let us commit ourselves to works of mercy and compassion toward our brethren in Christ, so that at the Last Judgment, they may intercede for us before Christ—that through our deeds of mercy, He may recognize us and we may hear from Him those joyful words: “Come, ye blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world” (Matt. 25:34). May God grant this to us, to whom be glory forever. Amen!