Prophet Obadiah; Ven. Barlaam and Joasaph; Our Holy Father Philaret, Metropolitan of Moscow (1867)

Grace to you and peace from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ, ⁴who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us out of this present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father— ⁵to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.

⁶I marvel that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ to a different “good news”, ⁷but there isn’t another “good news.” Only there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the Good News of Christ. ⁸But even though we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you any “good news” other than that which we preached to you, let him be cursed. ⁹As we have said before, so I now say again: if any man preaches to you any “good news” other than that which you received, let him be cursed.

¹⁰For am I now seeking the favor of men, or of God? Or am I striving to please men? For if I were still pleasing men, I wouldn’t be a servant of Christ.

As they went on the way, a certain man said to him, “I want to follow you wherever you go, Lord.”

⁵⁸Jesus said to him, “The foxes have holes and the birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.”

⁵⁹He said to another, “Follow me!” But he said, “Lord, allow me first to go and bury my father.”

⁶⁰But Jesus said to him, “Leave the dead to bury their own dead, but you go and announce God’s Kingdom.”

⁶¹Another also said, “I want to follow you, Lord, but first allow me to say good-bye to those who are at my house.”

⁶²But Jesus said to him, “No one, having put his hand to the plow and looking back, is fit for God’s Kingdom.”