“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing,

but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.”

Beware of false prophets,

who come to you in sheep’s clothing,

but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.

This warning of Christ is highly topical too. Today many shepherds of the Church are no longer servants of Christ, but servants of the antichrist. Naturally, this is not outwardly recognized. They really wear sheep’s clothing and use psychological methods to manipulate people. They speak of love, compassion, listening, discerning, welcoming, accompanying, and all this is actually a trap of ravenous wolves baring their fangs and tearing up naïve and often sincere deluded souls. These shepherds only talk about love, but they avoid true love – the cross of Christ.

“Enter by the narrow gate;

for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction,

and there are many who go in by it.”

Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate

and broad is the way that leads to destruction,

and there are many who go in by it.

Jesus’ advice is very serious. It concerns each of us. Heeding this earnest counsel brings forth the fruit of eternal life and eternal happiness in the kingdom of heaven. The gate which leads to life, however, is narrow, and unfortunately many do not know it, do not want to seek it, and if it is pointed out to them, they boycott it to their temporal and eternal detriment. On the other hand, Jesus warns of the wide gate and the broad way that leads to eternal destruction. It is a tragedy and a painful reality that there are many who have chosen this broad path of life that ends in destruction. This broad way does not bring true happiness and true peace in this life, but unrest of the soul and uncertainty. Then at the hour of death comes despair which is followed by eternal damnation. This is not an exaggeration or just some scaremongering; this is a serious warning from our Saviour to walk the narrow way of which He said: “I am the Way, the Truth and the Life.” “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.”

“Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them,

for this is the Law and the Prophets.”

“Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.”

These words remind us of a very important rule for our personal life, for our relationships with those closest to us as well as for our relationships with other people. We usually want others to do something and we are sad when they do not do what we would like them to do or we reproach them for it. Or we even make a gloomy face because they are unable to guess our wishes. This is the picture of the old self. We should learn our lessons from this unsound thinking, and learn true self-criticism instead. We have to assume that the other person is just as unsound in his thinking. If our thinking was vertical, in other words if we sought first the kingdom of God and the salvation of our soul and communicated with God in prayer, we would also seek the kingdom of God within us first and prefer it to temporal and passing values such as human glory, recognition, excessive wealth, vanities, etc.

“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find;

knock, and it will be opened to you.”

“Do not give what is holy to the dogs;

nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet,

and turn and tear you in pieces.”

“Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye,

and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.”

“Judge not, that you be not judged.

For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged;

and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.”

“Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.”

Jesus lays down principles even for the mundane matters of our daily life. These are common worries, worries about the future, about food, about finances, about health, about yourself and your family, worries about your house, etc. Jesus gives a simple instruction that we should not worry about tomorrow, because each day has enough trouble of its own. So we should focus on the day that is given to us and live it according to the will of God. Jesus says, “Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.” In another place, Jesus says that we should watch because we do not know when death will come. Death will relieve us of all worries. Scripture tells us to redeem the time. Worries rob us of peace. If we are overwhelmed by worries, we need to set proper priorities and distinguish what needs to be done first in a given situation, and then do it, and put aside what is not so relevant or even what is unnecessary.

“Therefore do not worry about tomorrow,

for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.”

“Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness,

and all these things shall be added to you.”

“No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other,

or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other.

You cannot serve God and mammon.”

The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is clear, your whole body will be full of light.

If you have bad eyes, or your eyesight is failing, you suffer. If you lose your sight, you are in complete darkness and see nothing of the material world.

A particular kind of look or facial expression may reflect an inner harmony or disharmony. A gloomy face, an evil look, an envious or lustful eye conveys sin and disharmony or spiritual bondage that enslaves man.

Nowadays, with the help of so-called modern psychologies, even the greatest criminal can easily create an artificial smile or pretend kindness, but it is unnatural and fake. Sooner or later it will be unmasked.

We have three kinds of sight or eyes – physical, mental and spiritual. With our physical eyes we see the material world. Mental sight is our reason and we can use it to discover the invisible realities, such as abstract, mathematical or even logical truths. In the light of reason, we can also recognize moral laws, which are reflected in the sphere of mutual relationships.

“The lamp of the body is the eye.

If therefore your eye is clear, your whole body will be full of light.”