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Brothers and fathers, see how you hear. For Christ and God says: "Search the Scriptures." For what reason does he say this? So that, first, we may be taught the way that leads to (356) salvation, and then, by the practice of the commandments, having walked unswervingly, we may arrive at the very salvation of our souls. Who then is our salvation? Jesus Christ, as the angel standing by the shepherds said: "Behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day a Savior, who is Christ the Lord, in the city of David." Let us hasten then, each one of us, beloved, let us run vigorously, carrying nothing burdensome or of this life or hard to bear, so that, not being forced to walk more slowly because of this, we may be able to arrive and enter into the city of David. I beseech you, through the grace working in you, not to neglect your salvation, but rising as from the sleep of evil conceit and neglect, let us not stand nor sit down until we are outside the world and, having found and seen our Savior and God there, we may worship Him and fall down before Him, and let us not stand still even then, but until He Himself says to us: "You are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world."

How then does one come to not being of the world? If he crucifies himself to the world and the world to himself, as Paul also says: "The world has been crucified to me, and I to the world." And how, he says, do these words harmonize with those? The words, he says, are different, but the power of both is one and the same. For just as one who is outside the house does not see those shut up inside, so too one who has been crucified to the world, that is, made dead, possesses no sensation (357) for the things in the world. And just as, again, a dead body has no sensation whatsoever either for the living or for the other dead bodies lying with it, so too one who has come to be outside the world in the Divine Spirit and is with God cannot have sensation for the world or for the things of the world.

Thus therefore, brothers, both before death there is a death, and before the resurrection of bodies there is a resurrection of souls, in deed and power and experience and truth. For when the mortal mind is made to disappear by the immortal mind and when deadness is pursued by life, the soul then, as one risen from the dead, admittedly sees itself, just as those who have risen from sleep see themselves, and it recognizes God who raised it, whom contemplating and for whom giving thanks, it worships and glorifies His infinite goodness. But the body has no inspiration or movement or thought whatsoever toward its own desires, but becomes wholly dead and breathless in these things.

There are times when a man often forgets even natural things at that point, because the soul is always dwelling intellectually on things above nature. And reasonably so; for "Walk by the Spirit," he says, "and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh." For the flesh, as has been said, becoming dead through the visitation of the Spirit, will leave us undisturbed for the rest and you will live unhindered, since "the law is not laid down for the just," according to the divine apostle, as for one who is clearly living above the law. For "where," he says, "(358) the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom," freedom certainly from the slavery of the law. For the law is a guide and a pedagogue and a leader by the hand and a teacher of righteousness in saying: "You shall do this and that," and again: "This and that you shall not do," but grace and truth are not so, but how? "And you shall do all things and say them according to the grace given to you and speaking in you," as it is written: "And they shall all be taught by God," not learning the good through letters and inscriptions but being taught it in the Holy Spirit, nor in word alone but in the light of the word and in the word of light being mystically initiated into divine things.

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Ἀδελφοί καί πατέρες, βλέπετε πῶς ἀκούετε. Φησί γάρ ὁ Χριστός καί Θεός· "Ἐρευνᾶτε τάς Γραφάς". Ἵνα τί φησίν; Ἵνα ἐν πρώτοις μέν τήν ἐπί (356) σωτηρίαν ἄγουσαν ὁδόν διδαχθῶμεν, ἔπειτα καί διά τῆς πράξεως τῶν ἐντολῶν ἀμεταστρέπτως βαδίσαντες, ἐπ᾿ αὐτην τήν σωτηρίαν τῶν ψυχῶν ἡμῶν καταντήσωμεν. Τίς οὖν ἐστιν ἡ σωτηρία ἡμῶν; Ἰησοῦς ὁ Χριστός, καθώς ὁ ἄγγελος ἐπιστάς τοῖς ποιμέσιν ἔλεγεν· "Ἰδού εὐαγγελίζομαι ὑμῖν χαράν μεγάλην, ἥτις ἔσται παντί τῷ λαῷ, ὅτι ἐτέχθη ὑμῖν σήμερον Σωτήρ, ὅς ἐστι Χριστός Κύριος ἐν πόλει ∆αυίδ". Σπεύσωμεν οὖν ἕκαστος ἡμῶν, ἀγαπητοί, δράμωμεν εὐτόνως μηδέν φορτικόν ἤ βιωτικόν ἤ δυσβάστακτον ἐπιφερόμενοι, ἵνα μή σχολαιότερον βαδίζειν ἐκ τούτου ἀναγκαζόμενοι, οὐ δυνηθῶμεν φθάσαι καί εἰσελθεῖν ἐν τῇ πόλει ∆αβίδ. Παρακαλῶ ὑμᾶς διά τῆς ἐνεργούσης ἐν ὑμῖν χάριτος μή ἀμελῆσαι τῆς σωτηρίας ὑμῶν, ἀλλά ἀναστάντες ὡς ἐξ ὕπνου τῆς πονηρᾶς οἰήσεως καί ἀμελείας, μή στῶμεν μηδέ καθίσωμεν ἕως ἄν ἔξω τοῦ κόσμου γενώμεθα καί τόν Σωτῆρα ἡμῶν καί Θεόν εὑρόντες καί κατιδόντες ἐκεῖ, προσκυνήσωμεν αὐτῷ καί προσπέσωμεν, καί μηδέ μέχρι τουτου στῶμεν, ἀλλ᾿ ἕως οὗ κἀκεῖνος πρός ἡμᾶς εἴπῃ· "Ὑμεῖς οὐκ ἐστέ ἐκ τοῦ κόσμου, ἀλλ᾿ ἐγώ ἐξελεξάμην ὑμᾶς ἐκ τοῦ κόσμου".

Πῶς δέ τις ἔρχεται εἰς τό μή εἶναι ἐκ τοῦ κόσμου; Ἐάν ἑαυτόν σταυρώσῃ τῷ κόσμῳ καί τόν κόσμον ἑαυτῷ, καθώς καί ὁ Παῦλός φησιν· "Ἐμοί κόσμος ἐσταύρωται κἀγώ τῷ κόσμῳ". Καί τί ταῦτα, φησί, πρός ἐκεῖνα συνᾴδει τά ῥήματα; Τά μέν ῥήματα, φησίν, ἄλλα, ἡ δέ δύναμις τῶν ἀμφοτέρων μία καί ἡ αὐτή. Ὥσπερ γάρ ὁ ἔξω τῆς οἰκίας ὤν, τούς ἔνδοθεν ἐγκεκλεισμένους οὐ καθορᾷ, οὕτως οὐδέ ὁ ἐσταυρωμένος τῷ κόσμῳ ἤτοι νενεκρωμένος αἴσθησίν τινα (357) πρός τά ἐν κόσμῳ πράγματα κέκτηται. Καί ὥσπερ πάλιν τό νεκρόν σῶμα οὔτε πρός τά ζῶντα οὔτε πρός τά σύν αὐτῷ νεκρά κείμενα σώματα τήν οἱανοῦν αἴσθησιν ἔχει, οὕτως οὐδέ ὁ ἔξω τοῦ κόσμου ἐν Πνεύματι Θείῳ γεγονώς καί σύν Θεῷ ὤν δύναται πρός τόν κόσμον αἴσθησιν ἔχειν ἤ πρός τά τοῦ κόσμου πράγματα.

Οὕτω τοιγαροῦν, ἀδελφοί, καί πρό θανάτου θάνατος καί πρό τῆς ἀναστάσεως τῶν σωμάτων ψυχῶν ἀνάστασις γίνεται ἔργῳ καί δυνάμει καί πείρᾳ καί ἀληθείᾳ. Τοῦ θνητοῦ γάρ φρονήματος ὑπό τοῦ ἀθανάτου νοός ἐξαφανιζομένου καί τῆς νεκρότητος ὑπό τῆς ζωῆς διωκομένης ἡ ψυχή τότε, ὡς ἐκ νεκρῶν ἀναστᾶσα, ἑαυτήν ὁμολογουμένως ὁρᾷ, καθάπερ οἱ ἐξ ὕπνου ἀναστάντες ἑαυτούς βλέπουσι, καί τόν αὐτήν ἀναστήσαντα ἐπιγινώσκει Θεόν, ὅν κατανοοῦσα καί ᾧ εὐχαριστοῦσα, προσκυνεῖ καί δοξολογεῖ τήν ἄπειρον αὐτοῦ ἀγαθότητα. Τό δέ σῶμα οὐκ ἔχει πρός τάς ἰδίας ἐπιθυμίας τήν οἱανοῦν ἔμπνευσιν ἤ κίνησιν ἤ ἐνθύμησιν, ἀλλά νεκρόν ὅλον καί ἄπνουν ἐν τούτοις γίνεται.

Ἔστιν ὅτε καί αὐτῶν εἰπεῖν πολλάκις τῶν κατά φύσιν ὁ ἄνθρωπος ἐπιλανθάνεται τηνικαῦτα διά τό ἐν τοῖς ὑπέρ φύσιν ἀεί ἐνδιατρίβειν νοερῶς τήν ψυχήν. Καί εἰκότως· "Πνεύματι γάρ, φησί, περιπατεῖτε καί ἐπιθυμίαν σαρκός οὐ μή τελέσητε". Νεκρά γάρ ἡ σάρξ, ὥσπερ εἴρηται, διά τῆς ἐπιφοιτήσεως γινομένη τοῦ Πνεύματος, ἀνενοχλήτους ἡμᾶς τοῦ λοιποῦ ἐάσει καί ἀνεμποδίστως βιώσετε, ἐπειδή "νόμος τῷ δικαίῳ οὐ κεῖται", κατά τόν θεῖον ἀπόστολον, ὡς ὑπέρ νόμον δηλονότι πολιτευομένῳ. "Ὅπου γάρ, φησί, (358) Πνεῦμα Κυρίου, ἐκεῖ ἐλευθερία", ἐλευθερία ἐκ τῆς τοῦ νόμου πάντως δουλείας. Ὁ γάρ νόμος ὁδηγός καί παιδαγωγός καί χειραγωγός καί διδάσκαλος δικαιοσύνης ἐστίν ἐν τῷ λέγειν· "Ποιήσεις τό καί το" καί αὖθις· "Τό καί τό οὐ ποιήσεις", ἡ δέ χάρις καί ἡ ἀλήθεια οὐχ οὕτως, ἀλλά πῶς; "Καί ποιήσεις πάντα καί εἴπῃς κατά τήν δοθεῖσάν σοι χάριν καί λαλοῦσαν ἐν σοί" καθά γέγραπται" "Καί ἔσονται πάντες διδακτοί Θεοῦ", οὐ διά γραμμάτων καί χαραγμάτων τό καλόν ἐμανθάνοντες ἀλλ᾿ ἐν Ἁγίῳ Πνεύματι τοῦτο ἐκδιδασκόμενοι, οὐδέ ἐν λόγῳ μόνῳ ἀλλ᾿ ἐν φωτί λόγου καί ἐν λόγῳ φωτός μυστικῶς τά θεῖα μυούμενοι.