11. But some one will say to
me that it is one thing to live after man, another thing to live
after the flesh; because man forsooth is a rational creature, and
there is in him a rational soul, whereby he differs from the beast:
but the flesh is the lowest and earthly part of man, and thus to
live after it is faulty: and for this reason, he who lives after
man, assuredly lives not after the flesh, but rather after that
part of man, whereby he is man, that is, after the spirit of the
mind whereby he excels the beasts. But this discussion is perhaps
of some force in the schools of philosophers: but we, in order to
understand the Apostle of Christ, ought to observe in what manner
the Christian books are used to speak; at any rate it is the belief
of all of us, to whom to live is Christ, that Man was taken unto
Himself by the Word of God, not surely without a rational soul, as
certain heretics will have it; and yet we read, “The Word was
made flesh.”1839
What is to
be here understood by “
flesh,” but Man? “And all
flesh shall
see the
salvation of
God.”
1840
What can be understood, but all
men? “Unto Thee shall all
flesh come.”
1841
What is it, but all men? “Thou
hast given unto Him
power over all
flesh.”
1842
What is it, but all men? “Of the
works of the
Law shall no
flesh be justified.”
1843
What is it, but no man shall be
justified? And this the same
Apostle in another place confessing
more plainly saith, “Man shall not be justified of the works of
the
Law.”
1844
The
Corinthians also he
rebukes, saying, “Are ye not
carnal, and
walk
after man?”
1845
After he
had called them
carnal, he saith not, ye
walk after the
flesh, but
after man, forasmuch as by this also what would he have understood,
but after the
flesh? For surely if to
walk, that is, to
live, after
the
flesh deserved
blame, but after man deserved
praise, he would
not say by way of
rebuke, “ye
walk after man.” Let man
recognize the
reproach; let him change his purpose, let him
shun
destruction. Hear thou man:
walk not thou after man, but after Him
Who made man. Fall not thou away from Him Who made thee, even unto
thyself. For a man said, who yet lived not after man, “Not that
we are sufficient to think any thing from ourselves, as though of
ourselves: but our sufficiency is of
God.”
1846
Consider if he lived after man,
who spake these things with
truth. Therefore the
Apostle,
admonishing man not to
live after man, restores man to
God. But
whoso liveth not after man, but after
God, assuredly liveth not
even after himself, because himself also is a man. But he is
therefore said also to
live after the
flesh, when he so lives;
because also when the
flesh alone hath been named, man is
understood, as we have already shown: just as when the
soul alone
hath been named, man is understood: whence it is said, “Let every
soul be subject unto the higher powers,”
1847
that is, every man; and,
“Seventy-five
souls went down into Egypt with
Jacob,”
1848
that is,
seventy-five men. Therefore
live thou not after thyself, O man:
thou hadst thence
perished, but thou wast sought.
Live not then, I
say, after thyself, O man; thou hadst thence
perished, but thou
wast found.
Accuse not thou the
nature of the
flesh, when you hear
it said, “If ye shall
live after the
flesh, ye shall
die.”
1849
For
thus could it be said, and most truly could it, If ye shall
live after yourselves ye shall
die. For the
devil hath not
flesh,
and yet, because he would live after himself, “he abode not in
the truth.”
1850
What
wonder therefore, if, living after himself, “when he speaketh a
lie, he speaketh of his own,” which the Truth spake truly of
him.
E.C.F. INDEX & SEARCH
