During the reverent communion of the Holy Mysteries, a person feels in his soul the spiritually grace-filled gifts given to him from above from the Redeemer. At the same time, he experiences inner peace and peace of mind (5:195, 281). Such a grace-filled state of the communicant is explained primarily by the fact that the Savior of the world grants him the forgiveness of sins. "The Divine Blood of Christ," says the saint, "atones for all sins" (5:292). Worthily received Holy Gifts remove from the soul of a Christian all that is sinful and vicious. They act in the human soul as a Divine fire, burning up all the thorns of sins. If before receiving the Holy Mysteries a person was under the burden of passions and vices and even death, then after receiving them he is renewed and resurrected to a new, grace-filled life in God. However, Holy Communion produces such a salvific effect on the condition that a Christian receives it with deep heartfelt faith. Then, like a bleeding wife, he will receive spiritual healing, and "infirmity will be healed, and the fountain of pernicious passions will dry up... tormenting the soul" (4:139). By partaking of the Body and Blood of Christ, a person is most closely united with the Source of life and becomes one spirit with Him (1 Corinthians 6:17). Just as the Son of God fully took on human nature and reunited it with the Divinity, so those who partake of His Body and Blood receive the Divine Being into themselves and are united with Him. The Holy Mysteries serve Christians for "sanctification, enlightenment, renewal, joy and consolation" (5:195). Heaven with its grace-filled life dwells in the hearts of the faithful, and gradually the grace of the Holy Spirit raises the worthy communicants to such a degree of spirituality and holiness that they already here, living on earth, have a presentiment in their hearts the beginning of eternal and blessed life. Calling Christians to worthy communion of the Holy Mysteries, the Holy Father is also very sorry for those who deprive themselves of this salvific Sacrament. "Woe to those people," he says, "who have not bread and water; for from hunger and thirst they faint and die: woe especially to those souls who are deprived of the Bread of the Animal, Jesus Christ; for they fade away and have to die... The true soul is the food and drink is Christ. By this brush and drink it is quickened and lives: without this brush and drink it faints and dies" (4:132).

The Zadonsk saint does not lose sight of such an important point as the need for careful preparation for the reception of the Holy Mysteries. He confirms this necessity for the worthy participation of the faithful in the Holy Eucharist in the words of the Apostle Paul: "For fire is unworthy, burning it. Let a man tempt himself, and so let him eat of the Bread, and drink of the Chalice. For he who eats and drinks is unworthy, he eats and drinks judgment for himself, not considering the Body of the Lord" (1 Corinthians 11:28-29) (4:186). Whoever approaches the Holy Chalice unworthily despises the sacrificial love of God and thereby tramples on the holiness of the Body and Blood of Christ, "eats and drinks, according to the words of the Apostle, for his own condemnation" (1 Corinthians 11:29). Preparation for the reception of the Holy Mysteries should consist first of all in avoiding "all sin, as defilement, which defiles both soul and body" (5:293). As an example of a reverent attitude towards Holy Communion, the Holy Father cites the great Saints Basil the Great and John Chrysostom, who "trembled when approaching such a Sacrament" (5:293). A person who rejects Holy Communion withdraws from God and remains in spiritual death, but no less dangerous is the one who approaches the Holy Chalice without proper preparation (5:293). For the unworthy reception of the Holy Mysteries, a Christian who does not repent of this awaits eternal torment beyond the grave. The Holy Father in his teachings calls such people to true repentance, so that through it they may again earn the mercy of the humane God and find salvation. "How can the Most-Pure Body of Christ," the saint calls out to the sinner, "dare to take it into your hands... who by theft, robbery... Do you defile it with covetousness, beating, unclean touching, and other sinful feces? How can you receive into your mouth His Holy Body and Blood, into those lips which you do not cease to fill with slander, foul language, blasphemy, boisterousness, deceit, lies, stinging reproach, abuse, reproach, and other stench? How will you receive Christ in your heart, which is filled with malice, deceit, hatred, unclean lust, love of money, covetousness, and other evil?" (3:271).

Thus, for the closest union with Christ in the Holy Eucharist, it is not enough to be called a Christian. A holy and God-pleasing life is also needed. Without cleansing from sinful defilement, without the final forsaking of sin, it is very "dangerous... and it is frightful to approach" to partake of the Divine Food (3:266; 3:257).

Moreover, a Christian must not only approach the Holy Chalice with a clear conscience, but also, after accepting it, strictly watch his thoughts and actions, direct his spiritual gaze to the saving haven of Christ, into which, in the words of the Holy Scriptures, "nothing can enter the defilement" (Rev. 21:27). In his sermons, the saint calls on communicants to shun sin, "like a serpent that gnaws at the soul" (1:109). By worthily receiving this greatest Sacrament, a person saves his soul from spiritual death; it is overshadowed and spiritualized by the grace-filled power of the Holy Spirit, which is necessary in the struggle against sin, worldly temptations and the devil. In this way, the inner, mysterious union of the soul with the Savior is accomplished, and this union of love is no longer able to destroy "neither death, nor life, nor sorrow, nor sorrow, nor sorrow, nor persecution" (Romans 8:35, 38). Such a person can say in the words of the Apostle Paul: "I do not live for this, but Christ lives in me" (Gal. 2:20).

All the above-mentioned Sacraments, by their grace-filled means, regenerate man, spiritualize and reunite him in the closest way with the Source of Life – God. Without accepting them, no one can free his soul from sinful defilement, both ancestral and personal; hence, without them spiritual life is impossible, without them there is no sanctification, and therefore there is no salvation (John 3:3; 6:53; 20:23).

The other three Sacraments – Marriage, Priesthood and Anointing of the Sick – do not apply to all Christians. Thus, the Sacrament of Priesthood is given by God through the Church through episcopal ordination only to worthy persons who lead their lives in a holy and God-pleasing way, who have no canonical obstacles to its acceptance.

In the sacrament of the priesthood, the Christian receives the authority to secretly act, teach, and guide believers on the path to salvation. Pointing to the divinely ordained and lofty nature of this Sacrament, the Holy Father says that "the priesthood is a mystery, in which through episcopal ordination a special authority is given from God to priests to serve and act in office the Divine Mysteries" (1:4). The Saviour directly transferred the fullness of spiritual authority to His apostles, and they, in turn, invested with this authority the bishops, who also possess the fullness of the grace-filled hierarchical apostolic ministry. It is they who have been given the authority to ordain presbyters and deacons. The Holy Father makes the following demands of the bearers of the priestly rank: "The person who accepts this mystery... let him not be a bigamist, or a widow. Let him who is born not of manifest fornication. Let him not be defiled by abominable sin, much less by open sin or known by many; let him not be defiled by murder... Let us have a contented mind, knowledge and prudence in the structure of the Divine mysteries. Let him have his rods intact, which is necessary for this work, that is, he will not be blind or deaf and so on, according to the rule of the 78 holy Apostles" (1:5).

The Sacrament of Marriage, God's blessing to those who enter the path of family life, is the mysterious union of husband and wife in the image of the union of Christ with the Church. The purpose of marriage as a sacrament is to consolidate the union of love of spouses, to make it spiritual and sacred. In it, the grace of the Holy Spirit is given to the newlyweds, sanctifying and helping them in the matter of giving birth to and raising children. A marriage, properly performed, remains in force until the end of the life of the spouses. The Holy Father considers the condition for the truth of this Sacrament to be "the consent of both to accept matrimony with themselves, and to preserve love with each other, in which they do not leave the other to one until the end of their lives" (1:4). This condition is at the same time the highest goal of a marriage union that unites two persons together. The saint also gives instructions on how to prepare for the reception of this Sacrament and in what cases it cannot be performed. "Let those who wish to enter into marriage prepare themselves for pious deeds, and let them confess their sins, and let them commune of the Divine Mysteries, three or four days before the wedding." In addition, the newlyweds must have "the right intention, not to marry in a bestial way and not for the sake of carnal pleasure, but so that the human race may increase to the glory of God, according to the blessed birth and according to the pleasing upbringing of children." St. Tikhon also points out the obstacles to entering into a marital union. These include: spiritual and carnal kinship, marriage not by consent, but by compulsion (1:4), the fourth marriage, as well as the age or age of one of the spouses (1:18). Thus, the sacrament of marriage has as its goal to spiritualize the newlyweds and thus strengthen in their hearts oneness of mind, walking the holy path to achieve their salvation.

An equally important Sacrament in the matter of salvation and healing of spiritual and bodily infirmities of a person is the Sacrament of Anointing of the Sick. It, like all other Sacraments, has a Divine institution. The Saviour of the world, sending His Apostles to preach, commanded them to heal every sickness and infirmity in people (Matt. 10:1), and the Apostles, according to the commandment of Christ the Saviour, "anointed with oil many sick things, and healed them" (Mark 6:13). The holy apostles, after the ascension of the Son of God to heaven, transferred this authority to the Church of Christ in the person of its clergy. The Holy Father, relying on the words of the Apostle James: "If any man be sick in you, let him call the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, having anointed him with oil in the name of the Lord: and the prayer of faith shall save him that is sick" (James 5:14-15), says that "the Anointing of the Sick is a mystery, in which through the anointing with oil sanctified through the priestly prayer, the remission of sins, the salvation of the soul, and the health of the body are given to the sick" (1:5). For the celebration of this Sacrament, in accordance with the canons of the Church, as the Holy Father says, a sevenfold number of clergymen is required, expressing the fullness of the Divine gifts, although he does not deny – in extreme cases – a smaller number of priests. The saint first of all advises those who receive the sacrament of Unction to purify their soul through the sacrament of Repentance. St. Tikhon attaches great importance to the perfect words: "Holy Father, Physician of souls and bodies...", after the pronunciation of which "this mystery is accomplished" (1:5).

In this way, through the seven Holy Sacraments taught by the Orthodox Church, the Christian is given the grace-filled power of the Holy Spirit, which sanctifies and strengthens him on all the paths of earthly pilgrimage, from the cradle to the grave mound. That is why the Holy Church of Christ is the only grace-filled hospital in which its spiritual members receive from the Loving Heavenly Father everything necessary for their salvation.

4. The grace of God and its salvific action

Divine grace, which is abundantly poured out on believers in the Holy Sacraments, is that special power of the Holy Spirit which is given to a Christian for the sake of the redemptive feat of Christ the Savior and which accomplishes the spiritual rebirth of a believer. This Divine power helps a Christian at every step of his earthly life, as the Lord Jesus Christ says: "... without Me you can do nothing" (John 15:5).

According to the teaching of St. Tikhon of Zadonsk, this "grace and mercy have been earned to us by the Only-begotten Son of God, the Heavenly Father gives us this grace, the Holy Spirit accomplishes it" (4:296). It was in the great work of Jesus Christ's redemption of the human race from the devil, hell and death that the incomprehensible grace of God was revealed (5:154).

Grace is an act of God's greatest love for sinful man. It is given to him only by the goodness of God, and on a person thirsting for salvation it is poured out like a flowing river or a life-giving spring (4:352). Without the grace-filled help and support of His Creator, man cannot live a single minute (5:285; 2:182). The power of grace-filled help in the matter of man's salvation is so great that it is given a primary place in this matter. It helps a person in the struggle with demons, restrains him from sinful actions, and assists in the victory over the passions. In addition, it not only assists the Christian in all the paths of his life, but also helps in the acquisition of virtues (2:305). Without its salvific action, the soul becomes poor, blind and sickly (2:118; 2:23). For a person seeking salvation, the grace of the Lord is the main food that strengthens his spiritual strength. Just as food serves as the surest means for the maintenance of a person's physical strength, so grace nourishes and gives life to the immortal soul (4:330; 5:163). The grace of God can also be likened to a garment that warms and covers the nakedness of a person's soul (2:106). However, the action of God's grace depends on the state of the Christian's soul. If a person leads a sinful life, then grace cannot dwell in his soul. Such a soul can be likened to a dead body, which not only remains motionless, but also decomposes and emits a fetid smell (2:101, 118, 235). Deprived of grace, a person becomes spiritually powerless in the struggle against sin. His every effort will remain in vain until divine help comes to him (5:166), the power of grace that drinks the soul with life-giving juices, just as the sap of the vine revives the branches of a tree (4:41-42). Only with the assistance of grace can the moral norms and principles that were inherent in it before the Fall be restored in the soul of a Christian.