The Catechetical Address of our Father among the Saints, John Chrysostom, the Archbishop of Constantinople, given on the Holy and Light-bearing Day of the most glorious and salvific Resurrection of Christ our God.


If there be any devout people who love God,
let them enjoy this splendid and radiant Feast.
If any of them be wise servants,
let them blissfully enter into the joy of their Lord,
If any of them have laboured long in fasting,
let them now receive their reward.
If any have toiled from the first hour,
let them now receive their just wage.
If any came at the third hour,
let them gratefully join in the Feast.
If any arrived at the sixth hour,
they should not be afraid,
for they will not be deprived of anything.
If any of them tarried even until the ninth hour,
let them approach without hesitation.
If any arrived only at the eleventh hour,
they should not worry on account of their tardiness.
For the Master loves to grant honours
and will receive the last just as the first.
He gives rest to the one who came at the eleventh hour,
just as He does to the one who toiled from the first hour.
He shows His mercy to the last,
and His care for the first.
To the one He gives; on the other,
He showers gifts.
He accepts deeds and welcomes intentions.
He honours labours and praises resolutions.

And so,
let all enter into the joy of their Lord,
and let the first as well as the last receive the reward.
Let the rich and the poor celebrate together.
Let the resourceful and the slothful honour this Day.
Let those who fasted and those who did not fast be glad today.
The Table is bountifully set;
let all be satisfied.
The Calf is fattened;
let no one go away hungry.
Let everyone enjoy the Cup of Faith.
Let everyone receive the richness of Grace.
Let none grieve at their poverty,
for the Kingdom that belongs to all people has been revealed.
Let none weep for their sins,
for forgive ness shines forth from the Tomb.

Let no one fear Death,
for the Savior’s death has set us free.
The One Whom Death imprisoned has extinguished Death.
The One Who descended into Hades made Hades the captive.
He caused it distress when it tasted His Flesh.
When Isaiah foresaw this, he exclaimed:
"Hades was all distressed by encountering You in the nether world."
It was distressed because it was abolished.
It was distressed because it was mocked.
It was distressed because it was slain.
It was distressed because it was overthrown.
It was distressed because it was chained.
It seized a Body but discovered God.
It seized the Earthly but encountered the Heavenly.
It seized the Visible but was overcome by the Invisible.

O Death, where is your sting!
O Hades, where is your victory!
Christ is risen, and you are abolished!
Christ is risen, and the demons are cast down!
Christ is risen, and the angels rejoice!
Christ is risen, and Life now reigns!
Christ is risen, and the Tomb is emptied of the dead!
For in rising from the dead,
Christ became the First-Fruits of those who have fallen asleep.
To Him be glory and power for ever and ever!
Amen.

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When we sin do we irrevocably forfeit a certain potential for intimacy with God which would have otherwise been ours? A potential which not even the grace of forgiveness can restore?

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As worded, I would say, "No," our intimacy with God can always be restored. What scripture would lead you to consider this question. 1 John 1:9 comes to mind as one that suggests a "No" answer.

Tim:

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My intimacy with God is strengthening, through my failures; this is the true success of potential with God and others, the certain forgiveness of sins.

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I agree. God wants us to depend on Him. David in Psalm 51 reflects the kind of heart God likes. Our ability to walk in righteousness is a spiritual thing (cf. Rom 7:14).

Starkman:

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I believe the loss, if any, is due to the time factor; what time you loose cannot be regained--how much more spiritual would I have become today were I to have not messed up in the past.

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I agree, if I understand you right. Sin does come between us and God. The relationship is negatively impacted during the time of sin. After we confess our sins and repent, the relationship is restored. However, we cannot reclaim the time lost, we can only move forward in relationship with God. There is also a time factor in recovering our sensitivity to the Lord. If we have been walking closely with the Lord all week, we will likely be more senstive to Him by the end of the week. If spent the first four or five days in sin, we may not be as sensitve to him by the end of the week.

Yet, with God, there is not easy "formula." There can be a great outpouring of His Spirit on us at the time of repentence. That can be extremely intimate. Afterall, we are very exposed and volnerable at that point. Our "defenses" against God might be at their weakest.

Sin can also affect our walk with the lord by its side-effects. For example, if we give in the the temptation of pornography, even if we repent, we have opened ourselves up to thoughts and suggestions that will tempt us in the future. It can affect how we interact with people at the time. Or, the affects of a hang-over will cloud our minds, making us less able to perform the next day.

The contemplatives like John of the Cross understood how things -- even things that are not themselves, sin -- can come between us and God. What are we getting life from? We need to seek God, and God alone. We should not prefer even our "experience of God" to God, himself. Perhaps this is what is implied behind this comment?

PoW:

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To know the opposition of "sacred" and "profain" was to become autonomous, and thus sin.

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For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and him crucified. 1 Cor. 2:2 (NRSVA)

God is infinite and eternal, and as such, I think we have great potential of being filled to capacity by Him.

In Christ's Love,
Winghead

"...you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.’ The second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ No other commandment is greater than these.”
Mark 12:30-31 (NLT)

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Hard to map. And not our job to be cartogrphers.

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Oooo. I like that. Can I use it?

Tom

"Every saint has a history and every sinner a future." Oscar Wilde

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Hard to map. And not our job to be cartogrphers.
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Oooo. I like that. Can I use it?

Tom

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A man may have made many bad decisions with regard to his marriage. Yet, he may at some point repent and change -- so thoroughly that he actually has a relationship with his wife that is more profound, more intimate, reflecting a greater capacity for shared life, than a man who never made bad decisions with regard to his marriage -- yet never made a QUALITATIVE decisions to be unreservedly open and submitted to the marriage.

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