Friday, August 6, 2021

Patristic Wisdom: Looking to the Eleventh Sunday after Pentecost


But you have not so learned Christ, if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus: that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.… And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. (Eph 4:20–24, 30)

He is calling us to live as one whose thoughts come from the Spirit, who is himself once again becoming the spiritual man created by God. We are to live in the likeness of God, just as God intended when He said: “Let us make man in our own image and likeness.” Admittedly God has no face or physical aspect. God is Spirit. So we too have been created according to God, to think according to the Spirit and thus to allow nothing to drag us down to worldly and unworthy thoughts.

Marius Victorinus, Epistle to the Ephesians 2.4.23–24

When we behave well, the Holy Spirit given to us rejoices in us, seeing that His promptings are bearing fruit in our lives, just as it is said of the Lord: So there is joy in heaven over one sinner who repents. The Holy Spirit rejoices at our salvation, not for His own sake, because there is no lack of happiness in Him, but rather because if we were not obedient to Him He would be upset about not having any effect on us because He wants us to be part of life. He is not upset because He is suffering, since He cannot suffer, but when Paul says that He grieves, He means that this is for our sake. He deserts us because we hurt Him by ignoring his commands. His grief is our unworthiness which prevents us from being called children of God. He is the Holy Spirit, who makes us children of God by dwelling in us.

Ambrosiaster, Epistle to the Ephesians 4.30

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