Patristic Wisdom: Looking to the Fifth Sunday after Pentecost

But as you abound in everything—in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in all diligence, and in your love for us—see that you abound in this grace also. I speak not by commandment, but I am testing the sincerity of your love by the diligence of others. For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich. (2 Cor 8:7–9)

See again his exhortation accompanied with commendations, greater commendations. And he said not, “that you give,” but “that you abound; in faith,” namely, of the gifts, and “in utterance,” the word of wisdom, and “knowledge,” namely, of the doctrines, and “in all earnestness,” to the attaining of all other virtue. “And in your love,” that, namely of which I have before spoken, of which I have also made proof. “That you may abound in this grace also.” See that for this reason it was that he began by those praises, that advancing forward he might draw them on to the same diligence in these things also. See how constantly he humors them, how he avoids offensiveness and is not violent nor compulsory; or rather what he says has both these, with the inoffensiveness of that which is uncompelled. For after he had repeatedly exhorted them and had greatly commended the Macedonians, in order that this might not seem to constitute a necessity, he says,

“I speak not by way of commandment, but as proving through the earnestness of others, the sincerity also of your love.”

“Not as doubting it,” (for that is not what he would here imply,) “but to make it approved, display it and frame it unto greater strength. For I, therefore, say these things that I may provoke you to the same forwardness. And I mention their zeal to brighten, to cheer, to stimulate your inclinations.” Then from this, he proceeded to another and a greater point. For he lets slip no mode of persuasion but moves heaven and earth in handling his argument. For he exhorted them both by other men’s praises, saying, you know “the grace of God which has been given in the Churches of Macedonia;” and by their own, “therefore that you abound in everything, in utterance and knowledge.” For this has the power to sting man more that he falls short of himself than that he does so of others. Then he proceeds afterward to the head and crown of his persuasion.

“For have in mind,” says he, “ponder and consider the grace of God and do not lightly pass it by, but aim at realizing the greatness of it both as to extent and nature, and you will grudge nothing of yours. He emptied Himself of His glory that you, not through His riches but through His poverty, might be rich. If you believe not that poverty is productive of riches, have in mind your Lord and you will doubt no longer. For had He not become poor, you would not have become rich. For this is the marvel, that poverty has made riches rich.” And by riches here he means the knowledge of godliness, the cleansing away of sins, justification, sanctification, the countless good things which He bestowed upon us and purposes to bestow. And all these things accrued to us through His poverty. What poverty? Through His taking flesh on Him and becoming man and suffering what He suffered. And yet he owed not this, but you owe to Him.

John Chrysostom, Homilies on the Epistles of Paul to the Corinthians 17

God Doesn't Love You As You Are

Such people are often tripped by thoughts like this, and they say to themselves, “If it were possible to do this, God would not be threatening us, He would not say all those things through the prophets to discourage people, but He would have come to be indulgent to everybody and pardon everybody, and after He came He wouldn’t send anyone to hell.” Now because he is unjust he wants to make God unjust too. God wants to make you like Him, and you are trying to make God like you. Be satisfied with God as He is, not as you would like Him to be. You are all twisted, and you want God to be like what you are, not like what He is. But if you are satisfied with Him as He is, then you will correct yourself and align your heart along to that straight rule from which you are now all warped and twisted. Be satisfied with God as He is, love Him as He is.

He doesn’t love you as you are, He hates you as you are. That’s why He is sorry for you because He hates you as you are and wants to make you as you are not yet. Let Him make you, I said, the sort of person you are not yet. What He did not promise you, you know, is to make you what He is. Oh yes, you shall be what He is, after a fashion, that is to say, an imitator of God like an image, but not the kind of image that the Son is. After all, there are different kinds of images even among men. A man’s son bears the image of his father and is what his father is because he is a man like his father. But your image in a mirror is not what you are. Your image is in your son in one way, in quite a different way in the mirror. Your image is in your son by way of equality of nature, but in the mirror how far it is from your nature! And yet it is a kind of image of you, though not like the one in your son which is identical in nature.

Augustine, “Discourse on the Ten Strings of the Harp”

HT: Roger Pearse

Patristic Wisdom: Looking to the Fourth Sunday after Pentecost

We then, as workers together with Him also plead with you not to receive the grace of God in vain. For He says: “In an acceptable time I have heard you, and in the day of salvation I have helped you.” Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation. We give no offense in anything, that our ministry may not be blamed. But in all things we commend ourselves as ministers of God: in much patience, in tribulations, in needs, in distresses, in stripes, in imprisonments, in tumults, in labors, in sleeplessness, in fastings; by purity, by knowledge, by longsuffering, by kindness, by the Holy Spirit, by sincere love, by the word of truth, by the power of God, by the armor of righteousness on the right hand and on the left, by honor and dishonor, by evil report and good report; as deceivers, and yet true; as unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and behold we live; as chastened, and yet not killed; as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing all things. (2 Cor 6:1–10)

“Now is the acceptable time,” says the Apostle, “now is the day of salvation.” This is the time for repentance; the next life, for recompense. Now is the time to endure; then will be the day of consolation. Now, God is the Helper of such as turn aside from the evil way; then, He will be the dread and unerring Inquisitor of the thoughts and words and deeds of men. Now, we enjoy His longanimity; then, we shall know His just judgment, when we have risen, some unto never-ending punishment, others unto life everlasting, and everyone shall receive according to his works. How long shall we defer our obedience to Christ, who has called us to His heavenly Kingdom? Shall we not rouse ourselves unto sobriety? Why will we not recall ourselves from our accustomed way of life to the strict observance of the Gospel? Why will we not place before our eyes that fearsome and manifest day of the Lord, when the kingdom of heaven will receive those who, because of their works, take their place on the right hand of the Lord, but the gehenna of fire and eternal darkness will envelop those who, because of their lack of good works, have been rejected and placed at the left hand. “There,” He says, “shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”…

That man, indeed, is in danger who does not throughout his whole life place before himself the will of God as his goal, so that in health he shows forth the labor of love by his zeal for the works of the Lord, and in sickness displays endurance and cheerful patience. The first and greatest peril is that, by not doing the will of God, he separates himself from the Lord and cuts himself off from fellowship with his own brethren; secondly, that he ventures, although undeserving, to claim a share in the blessings prepared for those who are worthy. Here, also, we must remember the words of the Apostle: “And we helping do exhort you that you receive not the grace of God in vain.” And they who are called to be brethren of the Lord should not receive in a wanton spirit so great a divine grace nor fall from so high a dignity through negligence in doing the will of God, but, rather, obey the same Apostle, saying: “I, a prisoner in the Lord, beseech you that you walk worthy of the vocation in which you are called.”

Basil of Caesarea, The Long Rules Preface, 34

Patristic Wisdom: Looking to the Third Sunday after Pentecost

For we know that if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed with our habitation which is from heaven, if indeed, having been clothed, we shall not be found naked. For we who are in this tent groan, being burdened, not because we want to be unclothed, but further clothed, that mortality may be swallowed up by life. Now He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who also has given us the Spirit as a guarantee. So we are always confident, knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord. For we walk by faith, not by sight. We are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord. Therefore we make it our aim, whether present or absent, to be well-pleasing to Him. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad. (2 Co 5:1–10)

Paul is saying that people are yearning that when they rise again they may be clothed in the promised heavenly glory. They are earnest in their prayers that they should not be excluded from the glory which is promised. This is what being found naked means. For when the soul is clothed in a body it must also be clothed with the glory which is its transformation into brightness.

Death comes from the earth but resurrection from the heavens, as long as there is a change into glory. There will be, but only if on departing out of this body we are clothed in Christ, because everyone who is baptized in Christ puts Him on like a garment. So if we have remained in the form and faith of our baptism, we shall be found with our body stripped, but not naked, because Christ dwells in our inner selves, and when we are clothed (or when the Holy Spirit has been given to us), we shall be worthy of being clothed in the promised glory of heaven. The promised brightness will fall on the person whom He sees as having the sign of adoption.…

Paul is right to be of good courage, because relying on the promise of God and knowing that it is much better to be in that other place than it is to remain in this world, they are willing to leave the body and rest until the day of resurrection under the throne of God. [He] is saying that we must do this and put our energy into good works in order to please God, whether we remain in this life or go to stand before the judgment seat of Christ. If we keep up our self-discipline, we will be pleasing both here and there, because someone who is pleasing here will hardly be displeasing there. If, on the day of Christ’s judgment, we are going to receive what we have done in the body, it is clear that we shall not be judged without a body, good or bad.

Ambrosiaster, Commentary on 2 Corinthians 5

Patristic Wisdom: Looking to the Second Sunday after Pentecost

And since we have the same spirit of faith, according to what is written, “I believed and therefore I spoke,” we also believe and therefore speak, knowing that He who raised up the Lord Jesus will also raise us up with Jesus, and will present us with you. For all things are for your sakes, that grace, having spread through the many, may cause thanksgiving to abound to the glory of God. Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal. For we know that if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. (2 Cor 4:13–5:1)

It was very relevant for him to site this testimony: blessed David in the previous psalm had said, “He rescued my soul from death, my eyes from tears and my feet from stumbling for me to be pleasing in the sight of the in the land of the living” (though this land was not seen), he began the next psalm with the words, “I believed, therefore I spoke.” The same Spirit, he is saying, spoke also through them and speaks through us.

The Lord accepted death for the sake of all so that we might all share resurrection with him. Consequently, we believe that he will also through him render us superior to death and present both you and us together before the fearsome tribunal. Everything is for your sake, after all - that is, the believers: he refers not only to the Corinthians but to all who have accepted the message. So that grace may increase on account of thanksgiving by the greater number and abound to God’s glory: concerned for the salvation of all in common. he arranged things in keeping with Christ the Lord; so he was obliged to repay him unceasingly in thanksgiving hymns.

Far from being distraught or depressed, we bear everything nobly: the soul gains the greatest advantage from recourse to courage. He then compares the troubles of the present life to the good things awaiting in the future: The slight momentary tribulation is preparing an everlasting weight f glory for us beyond all measure. On the one hand, he brings out through momentary the brevity and temporary character, while on the other he contrasts everlasting with momentary, and weighty (that is, valuable) and beyond all measure with slight and light, and not repose but glory, which is far greater, with tribulation. Since the latter are visible but the former not apparent, he was right to proceed, We consider not what is seen but what is no what is seen is temporary, what is not seen is eternal. The tribulations that are temporary but also the repose of the present life; so we should not be attached to the passing things, but look forward to the enjoyment of the eternal goods.

Theodoret of Cyrus, Commentary on the Second Letter to the Corinthians 4