Joasia wrote:
Sandblast.. please elaborate. Are you saying that you are in a high stage of theosis? What are the gifts that God gave you?
As to your interpretation of the passage...Blessed Theophlact explains: He did not say, ' You must display your virtue', for that is not good; but rather He said only, 'Let it shine', so that even your enemies will marvel and glorify not you, but your Father. If we practice virtue, we must practice it for the glory of God and not for our own glory.\"
God bless.
As to your question about my state:
NO,NO,NO,NO.NO!!! As to my gifts ( I may be wrong); exhortation through teaching. I\'ve always wanted to teach, but now as a Christian I cannot seem to get away from believing what God said to Solomon at the dedication of the Tabernacle: \\"...If MY PEOPLE which are called by My NAME, would turn from their wicked ways, then I WILL HEAR...FORGIVE... and HEAL their land.\\"
When I\'m at work as a Corrections Officer, it is my duty and job to enforce the rules of the Dept. of Criminal Justice - Institutional Division. I have done that in such a manner as to have among other names called me by the inmates; You\'re a Robo Cop. Actually every Officer has the same exact mandate by the courts and Legislature as I have. One other thing they say is: \\"Why you sweating the small stuff man?\\" Interpreted for our conversation, that means this: We each have the same clear mandate from God to \\"...be perfect as your Heavenly Father is perfect...\\" However the avenue as to how that is accomplished is very evident in the difference of me as a married father, and a monk. You\'re absolutely correct in believing that it\'s wrong whenever we put our virtues on show for others to see. I then am not walking humbly with my God (Micah 6:8) I like pointing out that part of the Shama says to \\"...love the Lord thy God ...with
all thy mind ...\\" More than one inmate has said \\"I don\'t like him, but you gotta respect him. Because in all the time I been knowing him, he\'s still the same.\\" I for sure am not the only Christian at the unit ( I may be the only Orthodox), but not every Christian carries out their duties exactly the same. Remember I said that God has gifted each of us differently, and yet in the diversity of gifts, the common goal is the glorification of the Head of the Body. The fearful and awesome beast of the heavenly vision had four heads, one body, and one set of wings: There was the head of a man, a lion, an eagle, and an ox (Do you see a picture of the Four Gospels ?) The prophet says however even with the four heads the being only went in one direction, \\",,,wherever the Spirit moved ....\\" The Evangelists had different audiences, used different styles, and sources, They had only one subject, Jesus ! Again from the pages of Holy Tradition: There are given to us many names for God, each one however was a self-revelation of God to varied peoples, according to their need of the moment. So, how an inmate may see me \\"...walking humbly with my God.\\" he will see another Christian walking humbly with God in another manner. The last part of Jesus\' statement says/indicates the unseen purpose of my deciding on my \\"works\\", \\"that they may see...and GLORIFY YOUR FATHER in heaven.\\"
Orators, teachers, soldiers, men in city government, holy virgins, martyrs, prolific writers, monks and nuns of the desert; this is where we\'ve gained saints and Church Fathers.
the sinful and unworthy servant
