Sunday, January 10, 2016

The Epistle of Barnabas on Holiness Around 70-130CE

Since I last spoke to you, there is a great deal that I have come to understand; for on my pilgrimage towards holiness I have had the companionship of the Lord. … The divine principles are three in number. Faith begins and ends with Hope, hope of life; judgment begins and ends with Holiness; and the works of holiness are evidenced by Love, and joy and gladness it brings. …

We must set our faces against any unprofitable trifling, and have a rooted aversion to the way of wickedness and its works. All the same, you are not to withdraw into yourselves and live in solitude, as though God had already pronounced you holy. Come and take your full share in the meetings, and in deliberating for the common good. Scripture says, “Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes, and knowledgeable in their own sight.”


Let us be men of the Spirit, then; let us make ourselves into the real temple of God. … Let us devote ourselves to practicing the fear of God and trying earnestly to keep His commandments; and then His ordinances will be our delight. … What a good thing it is to have learned the precepts of the Lord, as they are set forth in Scripture, and to put them into practice. For the man who does this, there will be glory in the kingdom of God.

No comments:

Post a Comment