SACRAMENTAL LIVING

“No human actions, no matter how good or noble they may seem, can earn eternal life, for it is only through the grace and love of God that life everlasting is given to us.” (Orthodox Study Bible, Roman 6:23) “Eternal life is not a wage to be earned, but a gift to be received from God (Romans 6:23).” (Foundation Study Bible, 1 John 5:11) “The only way to earn salvation is to be perfect—and that is impossible. We can only hold out our empty hands and receive salvation as a gift

“In his rebellion Saul was treating God as if He were a moody, cranky pagan god, who could be thwarted, and then appeased by sacrifices. He also has rejected you (1 Samuel 15:23). Saul was rejected because he was still treating God as a force to be used. He was sorry he got caught, but he still thought he was right and could give a quick sacrifice and go on with the plan.” (Foundation Study Bible, 1 Samuel 15:23) “God is not merely some philosophical concept or impersonal for

“God is kind by nature and always provides for our good and, when we ask Him for something, He will provide it, as long as it is for our good. Whatever is necessary for the salvation of our soul and for the maintenance of our physical existence, God will provide it in abundance, and we’ll have His blessing. Whatever He deprives us of, either to test us or to protect us, we accept with joy as well as with thoughtfulness, as it is for our benefit.” (Elder Paisios of Mount Athos

“The world here [1 John 2:15-16] is creation after the fall and under the dominion of Satan. It is creation no longer oriented toward God, but temporary and dominated by inordinate passions (see Mt 6:24; Lk 16:13; 1Co 7:29–31)…The world distorts every realm of God's good creation (see Jam 1:13, 14). There are (1) sensual pleasures of the flesh (physical passions), (2) intellectual attainments and capacities of the eyes (the soul's passions), and (3) inordinate possessions, po

“Christ is God and Savior; He reveals the word of the Lord that we seek to avoid. Talking about salvation may offend the intelligent and the worldly by assaulting their pride. How often do we hear finely educated people say, “We are wise, and the law of the Lord is with us” (Jeremiah 8:8). Yet far too many books are written with the lying pen of vanity (vs. 8). The Apostle Paul cautions us: “Be not be wise in your own opinion” (Rom 12:16). Saint Augustine possessed fine intel

“A common misunderstanding of liberty or freedom is to see it as standing apart from all moral restraints, to say there is no such thing as sin. But this results in slavery of the worst kind, bondage to egotistic and sensual passions. True Christian freedom begins with freedom from sin, freedom from immoral activity. A Christian is called to live in purity in an impure world.” (Orthodox Study Bible, 2 Peter 2:19) “In truth there is only one freedom—the holy freedom of Christ,

“The word apostle means one who is sent and the word apostate means one who renounces or turns back. It literally means turning away. A state of apostasy is worse than a state of ignorance. When we are ignorant, we don’t know and upon knowing we have a chance to correct our heart. Apostasy is when we do know and still choose to reject.” (Matthew Henry, Sacramental Living Blog) “The Lord’s accusation against His ancient people when they dealt treacherously with Him should enc

JUST ANNOUNCED: A J. R. R. Tolkien panel will be held on Saturday, June 15 at 9am at the Ancient Faith Writing and Podcasting Conference III (#AFCon 3), hosted at the Antiochian Village Conference and Retreat Center. Featured panelists: - Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick, Host of the The Amon Sûl Podcast & Panel Moderator - Steven Christoforou, Director of Y2AM - Orthodox Christian Youth and Young Adult Ministries - Michael Haldas, Author of Echoes of Truth: Christianity in The Lo

“Shall I not punish them for these things? The Hebrew word translated punish (Jeremiah 9:9), literally meaning “to visit,” can be used of the visitation of God in mercy (Ps. 65:9) or in wrath…Punishment feeling like mercy or wrath has everything to do with us, not some sort of mood God is in. When God, who loves us too much to leave us in a state of sin, “visits” us with punishment to awaken us and correct us, our reaction to it determines experiencing it as mercy or wrath.”

“GIFTS - Charismatic or spiritual gifts are blessings and abilities given by the holy spirit to believers for the building up of the Body of Christ.” (Orthodox Study Bible, Glossary) “ 1 Peter 4:10 reads, ‘As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.’ This applies to every person. We are all to use our gifts, that is our talents and abilities given to us by God, to minister to others, that is to meet people’s need