Faith And The End

Φωτὸς δὲ ἀνὰ μέσον καὶ τοῦ σκότους, οὐδὲ ἕν. Ἐν δὲ τῇ ἀναστάσει τῶν πιστευόντων ἀπόχειται τὸ τέλος· τὸ δὲ οὐχ ἄλλου τινός ἐστι μεταλαδεῖν, ἀλλ᾽ ἢ τῆς προωμολογημένης ἐπαγγελίας τυχεῖν. Μὴ γὰρ κατὰ τὸν αὐτὸν χρόνον ἅμα ἄμφω συνίστασθα!ί φαμεν, τὴν τε πρὸς τὸ πέρας ἄφιξιν καὶ τῆς ἀφέξεως τὴν πρόληψιν· οὐ γάρ ἔστι ταὐτὸν αἰὼν καὶ χρόνος· οὐδὲ μὴν ὁρμὴ καὶ τέλος, οὐχ ἔστι" περὶ ἕν δὲ ἄμφω: καὶ περὶ ἄμφω ὁ εἷς καταγίνεται. Ἔστι γοῦν, ὡς εἰπεῖν, ὁρμὴ μὲν ἡ πίστις ἐν χρόνῳ γεννωμένη τέλος δὲ τὸ τυχεῖν τῆς ἐπαγγελίας, εἰς αἰῶνας βεδαιούμενον. Αὐτὸς δὲ ὁ Κύριος σαφέστατα τῆς σωτηρίας τὴν ἰσότητα ἀπεκάλυψεν, εἰπών· Τοῦτο γάρ ἐστι τὸ θέλημα τοῦ Πατρός μου, ἵνα πᾶς ὁ θεωρῶν τὸν Υιὸν, καὶ πιστεύων ἐπ᾿αὑτὸν ἔχῃ ζωὴν αἰώνιον· καὶ ἀναστήσω αὐτὸν ἐν τῇ ἐσχάτῇ ἡμέρᾳ. Καθόσον μὲν οὖν δυνατὸν ἐν τῷδε τῷ κόσμῳ, ὃν ἐσχάτην ἡμέραν ἡνίξατο, εἰς τότε τηρούμενον ὅτε παύσηται, τελείους ἡμᾶς γενέσθαι πιστεύομεν. Πίστις γὰρ μαθήσεως τελειότης· διὰ τοῦτό φησιν· Ὁ πιστεύων εἰς τὸν Υἱὸν, ἔχει ζωὴν αἰώνιον. Ἐΐ τοίνυν οἱ πιστεύσαντες ἔχομεν τὴν ζωὴν, τί περαιτέρω τοῦ κεκτῆσθαι ζωὴν ἀΐδιον ὑπολείπεται; Οὐδὲν δὲ ἐνδεῖ τῇ πίστει, τελείᾳ οὔσῃ ἐξ αὑτῆς καὶ πεπληρωμένη. Εἰ δὲ ἐνδεῖ τι αὐτῇ, οὖχ ἔστιν ὁλοτελῆς οὐδὲ πίστις ἐστὶ σκάζουσα περί τι· οὐδὲ μετὰ τὴν ἐνθένδε ἀποδημίαν ἀναμένει τοὺς πεπιστευχότας, ἀδιακρίτως ἐνταῦθα ἡῤῥαβωνισμένους. Ἐκεῖνο δὲ τὸ πιστεῦσαι ἤδη προειληφότες ἐσόμενον μετὰ τὴν ἀνάστασιν ἀπολαμβάνομεν γενόμενον· ὅπως τ' ἂν ἐκεῖνο πληρωθῇ τὸ λεχθέν· Γενηθήτω κατὰ τὴν πίστιν σου. Οὗ δὲ ἡ πίστις; ἐνταῦθα ἡ ἐπαγγελία τελείωσις δὲ ἐπαγγελίας ἡ ἀνάπαυσις. Ὥστε ἡ μὲν γνῶσις ἐν τῷ φωτίσματι, τὸ δὲ πέρας τῆς γνώσεως, ἡ ἔσχατον νοεῖται ὁρεκτόν. Καθάπερ᾽ οὖν τῇ πείρᾳ ἣ ἀπειρία καταλύεται, καὶ τῷ πόρῳ ἡ ἀπορία· οὕτως ἀνάγκη τῷ φωτισμῷ ἐξαφανίζεσθαι τὸ σκότος" ἡ ἄγνοια δὲ τὸ σκότος, καθ᾽ ἣν περιπίπτομεν τοῖς ἁμαρτήμασιν, ἀμβλυωποῦντες περὶ τὴν ἀλήθειαν· φωτισμὸς ἄρα ἡ γνῶσίς ἐστιν, ὁ ἐξαφανίξων τὴν ἄγνοιαν, καὶ τὸ διορατιχὸν ἐντιθείς. ᾿Αλλὰ καὶ ἡ τῶν χειρόνων ἀποβολὴ τῶν κρειττόνων ἐστὶν ἀποκάλυψις. Ἃ γὰρ ἣ ἄγνοια συνέδησε κακῶς, ταῦτα διὰ τῆς ἐπιγνώσεως ἀναλύεται καλῶς τὰ δὲ δεσμὰ ταῦτα, ἧ τάχος, ἀνίεται·πίστει μὲν ἀνθρωπίνῃ, θεϊχῇ δὲ τῇ χάριτι· ἀφιεμένων τῶν πλημμελημάτων ἑνὶ Παιωνίῳ φαρμάκῳ, Λογικῷ βαπτίσματι. Πάντα μὲν οὖν ἀπολουόμεθα τὰ ἁμαρτήματα, οὐκέτι δὲ ἐσμεν παρὰ πόδας κακοί. Μία χάρις αὕτη τοῦ φωτίσματος, τὸ μὴ τὸν αὐτὸν εἶναι τῷ πρὶν ἣ λούσασθαι τὸν τρόπον. Ὅτι δὲ ἡ γνῶσις συνανατέλλει τῷ φωτίσματι, περιαστράπτουσα τὸν νοῦν, καὶ εὐθέως ἀκούομεν μαθηταὶ οἱ ἁμαθεῖς· πότερόν ποτέ τῆς μαθήσεως ἐκείνης προσγενομένης; οὗ γὰρ ἂν ἔχοις εἰπεῖν τὸν χρόνον· ἡ μὲν γὰρ κατήχησις εἰς πίστιν περιάγει, πίστις δὲ, ἅμα βαπτίσματι ἁγίῳ παιδεύεται Πνεύματι· ἐπεὶ ὅτι γε μία καθολικὴ τῆς ἀνθρωπότητος σωτηρία, ἡ πίστις, ἰσότης δὲ καὶ κοινωνία τοῦ δικαίου καὶ φιλανθρώπου Θεοῦ, ἣ αὐτὴ πρὸς πάντας, ὁ ᾿Απόστολος σαφέστατα ἐξηγήσατο, ὧδέ πως εἰπών Πρὸ τοῦ δὲ ἐλθεῖν τὴν πίστιν, ὑπὸ γόμον ἐφρουρούμεθω, συγκλειόμενοι εἷς τὴν μέλλουσαν πίστιν ἀποκαλυφθῆγαι. Ὥστε ὁ νόμος παιδαγωγὸς ἡμῶν γέγoνεν εἰς Χριστὸν, ἵνα ἐκ πίστεως δικαιωθῶμεν· ἐλθούσης δὲ τῆς πίστεως, οὐκέτι ὑπὸ παιδαγωγὸν ἐσμεν. Οὐκ ἀκούετε, ὅτι ὑπ᾽ ἐκεῖνον τὸν νόμον οὐκέτι ἐσμὲν, ὃς ἣν μετὰ φόβου· ὑπὸ δὲ τὸν Λόγον, τῆς προαιρέσεως τὸν Παιδαγωγόν; Εἶτα μέντοι ἐπῆγαγε τὴν ἁπάσης ἐκτὸς προσωποληψίας φωνήν Πάντες γὰρ υἱοί ἐστε διὰ πίστεως Θεοῦ ἐν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ· ὅσοι γὰρ εἰς Χριστὸν ἐβαπτείσθητε, Χριστὸν ἐνεδύσασθε· οὐκ ἔνι Ιουδαῖος οὔτε “Ελλην· οὐκ ἔνι δοῦλος, οὔτε ἐλεύθερος· οὐκ ἔνι ἄρσεν καὶ θῆλυ· πάντες γὰρ ὑμεῖς εἷς ἐστε ἐν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ. Κλήμης ὁ Ἀλεξανδρεύς, Ὁ Παιδαγωγός, Λόγος Πρώτος, Κεφ Ϛ’ Source: Migne PG 8.284b-288a

There is nothing between light and darkness. But the end is reserved till the resurrection of the faithful, and it is not the reception of something else but the obtaining of the promise previously made. For we do not say both the arrival at the end and the anticipation of that arrival happen at the same time, for eternity and time are not the same, neither is the attempt and the result, but both concern the same thing, and the one and the same person is involved in both. Faith, so to speak, is the attempt generated in time and the attainment of the promise is the result secured for eternity. Now the Lord Himself has most clearly revealed the equality of salvation, saying, 'For this is the will of my Father, that everyone that sees the Son and believes in Him, shall have everlasting life, and I will raise him up on the last day.' 1 As far as it is possible in this world we believe we are to be perfect, which is expressed by the last day, and which is preserved until the time when it will end. Thus He says, 'He who believes in the Son has everlasting life.' 2 If, then, those who have believed have life, what remains beyond the possession of eternal life? In faith there is nothing lacking, it is perfect and complete in itself. If anything is lacking, it is not wholly perfect. But faith is not defective in any respect, it does not make us wait after our departure from here, we who have believed and received without distinction the token of future good, but having in anticipation grasped that which is to come by faith, we receive it as present after the resurrection, in order that that may be fulfilled which was spoken, 'Let it be according to your faith.' 3 And where faith is, there is the promise, and the consummation of the promise is peace. As in illumination there is knowledge, and the end of knowledge is the last thing hoped for. Just as, then, inexperience comes to an end by experience, and confusion by clarity, so darkness must be dispelled by illumination, and the darkness is ignorance, by which we fall into sins, blind to the truth. Knowledge is the illumination we receive which dispels ignorance and bestows clear vision on us, for the abandonment of what is bad comes with the adoption of what is better. For what ignorance has bound badly, is released well by understanding, and with those bonds quickly slackened by human faith and Divine grace, our transgressions are taken away by one Paeonian medicine, the baptism of the Word. Then we are cleansed from all our sins and no longer have lame feet. This is the one grace of illumination, that our characters are not the same as before our washing. And since knowledge springs up with illumination, pouring its beams into the mind, the moment we hear, we who were untaught become disciples. Does this, I ask, take place at the advent of this instruction? You cannot tell the time. For instruction leads to faith, and faith with baptism is trained by the Holy Spirit. For that faith is the one universal salvation of humanity, and the Apostle most clearly showed that there is the same equality before the righteous and loving God, and the same fellowship between Him and all,  by speaking in this way, 'Before faith came we were kept under the law, shut out from the faith which should afterwards be revealed, so that the law became our schoolmaster to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith, but after that faith has come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.' Do you not hear that we are no longer under that law which was accompanied with fear, but under the Word, the master of free choice? Then he added the statement, clear of all partiality, 'For you are all the children of God through faith in Jesus Christ. For as many as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor freeman, there is neither male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.' 4 Clement of Alexandria, The Teacher, Book 1, Chapter 6 1 Jn 6.40 2 Jn 3.36 3 Mt 9.29 4 Galat 3.23-28