Works And Nature

Ελθέτω τὸ ἅγιον Πνεῦμά σου, φησὶ, καὶ καθαρισάτω ἡμᾶς. Οὐκοῦν ἰδία τε καὶ ἐξαίρετος τοῦ ἁγίου Πνεύματος δύναμίς τε καὶ ἐνέργεια, τὸ καθαίρξιν τε καὶ ἀφιέναι τὰς ἁμαρτίας, ὡς ὁ εὐαγγελικὸς λόγος μαρτύρεται. Οὐχοῦν ὁ τὴν δύναμιν τῆς ἀφέσεως αὑτῷ τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν μαρτυρήσας, συνεμαρτύρησε πάντως αὐτῷ τὴν θεότητα. Τὸ δὲ αὐτὸ τοῦτο καὶ περὶ τοῦ Μονογενοῦς φήσιν ὁ ᾿Λπόστολος, ὅτι καθαρισμὸν τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν ποιησάμενος, ἐκάθισεν ἐν δεξιᾷ τῆς μεγαλοσύνης τοῦ Πατρός. Ἕν τοίνυν ἑχατέρων τὸ ἔργον, τοῦ τε καθαρίξοντος τὴν ἁμαρτίαν Πνεύματος, καὶ τοῦ τὸν καθαρισμὸν τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν πεποτηχότος Χριστοῦ. Ὧν δὲ ἡ ἐνέργεια μία, καὶ ἡ φύσις πάντως ἡ αὐτὴ τούτων ἐστίν. Πᾶσα γὰρ ἐνέργεια δυνάμεώς ἔστιν ἀποτέλεσμα. Εἰ οὖν καὶ ἐνέργεια καὶ δύναμις μία, κῶς ἔστιν ἑτερότητα φύσεως νοῆσαι, ἐν οἷς οὐδεμίαν κατὰ τὴν δύναμίν τε καὶ ἐνέργειαν διαφορὰν ἐξευρίσχομεν; Ὡς γὰρ οὐχ ἔστιν ἐν τοῖς τοῦ πυρὸς ἰδιώμασιν, ὅταν δύο, τὸ φωτίζον τε καὶ τὸ χαῖόν ἐστι, τὸ κοινωνεῖν νομίσαι τοῦ προχειμένου ὑπαλλαγῆν᾽ οὕτως οὐχ ἄν τις εὐφρονῶν μίαν ἑνέργειαν ἐκ τῆς Γραφῆς διδαχθεὶς τοῦ Υἱοῦ καὶ τοῦ Πνεύματος, διαφοράν τινα φύσεως ὑπονοεῖ Ἅγιος Γρηγόριος Νύσσης, Ἐις Την Προσυεκην, Λογος Γ' Source: Migne PG 44.1157d-160b

'May your Holy Spirit come and purify us,' says Luke. 1 Since, then, the special virtue and power and work of the Holy Spirit is the purification and cleansing of sin, as the passage of the Gospel witnesses, then the power of the cleansing of sins which is witnessed, gives witness to Him of His Divinity. Yet the Apostle says the very same thing about the Only-Begotten, that having made purgation of sins, He sits on the right hand of the majesty of the Father. 2 Therefore the same thing is the work of either of them, of the Spirit who cleanses from sin as well as of Christ who was made a purgation of sins. But if the work is the same, then their nature must also be exactly the same, for every work is the effect of power. If then there is one work and power, how shall it be thought that there is a difference of nature in those in whom we can find no difference of power and work? For as it is with the properties of fire, where the two works of illuminating and burning are quite similar, there cannot be thought to be a change of subject, so neither will a thoughtful man assume there is a difference of nature in the Son and the Spirit, because he has been taught by Scripture that they have the same work. Saint Gregory of Nyssa, On the Lord's Prayer, from the Third Oration 1 Rare variant of Luke 11.2 2 Heb 1.3