John Chrysostom, On "If anyone is in Christ, a new creation"

When you see a licentious person become sober, say, His mind has been created; when you see a prostitute being chaste, say, Her mind has been created; when you see a robber become merciful, say, His heart has been created; for the wolf became a sheep, the hawk became a dove. For this reason, it is a creation. For this reason also the washing is called a creation of regeneration. For, he says, putting off the old man, who is corrupt, according to the lust of his flesh, and putting on the new man, who is made according to the image of his Creator. Therefore the work is his creation; for being created in Christ Jesus for good works; first by corruptible works. Then the Father took clay, and made man; the Son takes water, and makes it wine. And there He has an element, and here an element; a change of element, and the creation is better. So, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. Do you see then that there is a new creation? For what benefit is it to me if the heaven is made? Pay close attention; No new heaven was made, nor new sun, nor earth. For what benefit is it to me, if a new heaven was made, but I was going to be in sins? How does the abiding heaven benefit or harm me, when I do not abide the same? Heaven is a house, and I am sick. If then you see a physician entering the house, and taking no care for the sick person, but whitewashing the walls, gilding the ceiling, do you not say, Man, raise the sick person? Why are you beautifying the house?

And Christ entered into this world, in which he found my nature lying sick. Attend again to what I am saying; A physician enters a great house, he finds a sick man, feverish, having sores; does he leave the sick man and rise up? does he whitewash the walls? does he gild the ceiling? does he beautify the floor? No; but he takes no account of the house, but uses all his zeal for the sick person. If the master of the house is healthy, the other things follow. So also here. Christ entered into the world; He took on flesh, but He is always present everywhere; Scripture calls his entrance the economy. 64.31

He entered into this great world, which He himself constructed; he found the nature of men sick, sick, not lying on a bed, but cast down upon wickedness, the common member corrupted, altars being lit, the smell of sacrifice polluting the air, children being slaughtered by parents, nature being trampled, the laws of being shaken, sympathy dishonored; They sacrificed their sons and daughters to demons; men raging licentiously, one a fornicator, another an adulterer, another a murderer, the whole earth being destroyed, men lying in the bed of wickedness, the devil remaining nearby, lighting the furnace, filling the sores, the physicians growing weak, I mean the prophets, accusing, not correcting, the physicians sitting by, preparing medicines, but not helping, but accusing all. There is none righteous, no, not one, there is none that seeks after God. The physician says these things? What hope is there then, when the physician accuses the one who is sick? One said: They were like horses mad for females, each one neighed after his neighbor's wife. Another sat in the wilderness, like the crow; Woe is me, for the godly man has perished from the earth, and there is none upright among men; another: Cursing and lying and stealing and adultery are poured out upon the land; each one oppresses his neighbor with oppression; another: Woe to a sinful nation.

The physician goes out weeping; what hope does the sick person have, when he sees the physician weeping? what hope do you have, when you see one who has despaired? what good thing can you expect concerning the sick person? And yet physicians often, even knowing the end, so as not to grieve the relatives, conquer the passion with philosophy, and

Ὅταν ἴδῃς τινὰ ἀκόλαστον σώφρονα γενόμενον, εἰπὲ, Ἐκτίσθη αὐτῷ ἡ διάνοια· ὅταν ἴδῃς πόρνην σωφρονοῦσαν, εἰπὲ, Ἐκτίσθη αὐτῆς ἡ διάνοια· ὅταν ἴδῃς ἅρπαγα ἐλεήμονα γενόμενον, εἰπὲ, Ἐκτίσθη αὐτοῦ ἡ καρδία· ὁ γὰρ λύκος ἐγένετο πρόβατον, ὁ ἱέραξ ἐγένετο περιστερά. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο κτίσις. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο καὶ τὸ λουτρὸν κτίσμα λέγεται τὸ τῆς παλιγγενεσίας. Ἀποδυόμενοι γὰρ, φησὶ, τὸν παλαιὸν ἄνθρωπον, τὸν φθειρόμενον, κατὰ τὴν ἐπιθυμίαν τῆς σαρκὸς αὐτοῦ, ἐνδυόμενοι δὲ τὸν νέον ἄνθρωπον, τὸν γενόμενον κατ' εἰκόνα τοῦ Κτίσαντος αὐτόν. Ὥστε κτίσις αὐτοῦ ἐστι τὸ ποίημα· κτισθέντες γὰρ ἐν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ ἐπὶ ἔργοις ἀγαθοῖς· πρῶτα μὲν ἔργοις φθαρτοῖς. Τότε ἔλαβεν ὁ Πατὴρ πηλὸν, καὶ ἐποίησε τὸν ἄνθρωπον· λαμβάνει ὁ Υἱὸς ὕδωρ, καὶ ποιεῖ αὐτὸ οἶνον. Κἀκεῖ ἔχει στοιχεῖον, καὶ ὧδε στοιχεῖον· ἐναλλαγὴ στοιχείου, καὶ βελτίων ἡ δημιουργία. Ὥστε, εἴ τις ἐν Χριστῷ, καινὴ κτίσις. Ὁρᾷς οὖν ὅτι ἔστι καινὴ κτίσις; τί γάρ μοι ὄφελος ἐὰν γένηται οὐρανός; Πρόσεχε μετὰ ἀκριβείας· Οὐκ ἐγένετο οὐρανὸς καινὸς, οὐδὲ ἥλιος καινὸς, οὐδὲ γῆ. Τί γάρ μοι ὄφελος, εἰ οὐρανὸς ἐγένετο καινὸς, ἐγὼ δὲ ἔμελλον ἐν ἁμαρτίαις εἶναι; τί με ὠφελεῖ ἢ βλάπτει με ὁ οὐρανὸς μένων, ὅταν ἐγὼ μὴ μένω ὁ αὐτός; Ὁ οὐρανὸς οἶκός ἐστιν, ἐγὼ δὲ νοσηρός εἰμι. Ἐὰν οὖν ἴδῃς ἰατρὸν εἰσελθόντα εἰς τὴν οἰκίαν, καὶ τοῦ μὲν νοσηροῦ μηδεμίαν πρόνοιαν ποιούμενον, λευκαίνοντα δὲ τοὺς τοίχους, χρυσοῦντα τὸν ὄροφον, οὐ λέγεις, Ἄνθρωπε, ἀνάστησον τὸν νοσοῦντα; τί τὴν οἰκίαν καλλωπίζεις;

Καὶ ὁ Χριστὸς εἰσῆλθεν εἰς τὸν κόσμον τοῦτον, εἰς ὃν κατακειμένην ηὗρε τὴν φύσιν μου νοσοῦσαν. Πρόσεχε πάλιν ᾧ λέγω· Εἰσέρχεται ἰατρὸς εἰς οἶκον μέγαν, εὑρίσκει νοσοῦντα ἄνθρωπον, πυρέττοντα, ἕλκη ἔχοντα· ἀφίησι τὸν νοσοῦντα καὶ ἐγείρεται; λευκαίνει τοὺς τοίχους; χρυσοῖ τὸν ὄροφον; τὸ ἔδαφος καλλωπίζει; Οὐχί· ἀλλὰ τοῦ μὲν οἴκου οὐδένα ποιεῖται λόγον, ὅλῃ δὲ σπουδῇ κέχρηται πρὸς τὸν νοσοῦντα. Ἐὰν ὁ οἰκοδεσπότης ὑγιαίνῃ, καὶ τὰ ἄλλα ἕπεται. Οὕτω καὶ ἐνταῦθα. Εἰσῆλθεν εἰς τὸν κόσμον ὁ Χριστός· σάρκα ἀνέλαβε, πανταχοῦ δὲ πάρεστιν ἀεί· εἴσοδον δὲ αὐτοῦ τὴν οἰκονομίαν καλεῖ 64.31 ἡ Γραφή.

Εἰσῆλθεν εἰς τὸν κόσμον τοῦτον τὸν μέγαν, ὃν αὐτὸς κατεσκεύασεν· ηὗρε νοσοῦσαν τὴν φύσιν τῶν ἀνθρώπων, νοσοῦσαν, οὐκ ἐπὶ κλίνης κειμένην, ἀλλ' ἐπὶ κακίας ἐῤῥιμμένην, τὸ κοινὸν μέλος διεφθαρμένον, βωμοὺς ἀναπτομένους, κνίσσαν τὸν ἀέρα μολύνουσαν, τέκνα σφαττόμενα παρὰ γονέων, τὴν φύσιν πατουμένην, τοὺς νόμους τῆς οὐσίας σαλευομένους, τὴν συμπάθειαν ἀτιμαζομένην· Ἔθυσαν υἱοὺς αὐτῶν καὶ θυγατέρας τοῖς δαιμονίοις· ἐκβακχευομένους τοὺς ἀνθρώπους ἀκολάστως, τὸν μὲν πόρνον, τὸν δὲ μοιχὸν, τὸν δὲ ἀνδροφόνον, τὴν γῆν ἅπασαν ἀπολλυμένην, τῶν ἀνθρώπων κειμένων ἐν τῇ κλίνῃ τῆς πονηρίας, τὸν διάβολον παραμένοντα, ἀνάπτοντα τὴν κάμινον, ἐμπιπλῶντα τὰ ἕλκη, τοὺς ἰατροὺς ἀτονοῦντας, τοὺς προφήτας λέγω, κατηγοροῦντας, οὐ διορθωμένους, τοὺς ἰατροὺς παρακαθημένους, φάρμακα κατασκευάζοντας, οὐκ ὠφελοῦντας δὲ, κατηγοροῦντας δὲ ἅπαντας. Οὐκ ἔστι δίκαιος οὐδὲ εἷς, οὐκ ἔστιν ὁ ἐκζητῶν τὸν Θεόν. Ὁ ἰατρὸς ταῦτα; Ποία οὖν ἐλπὶς, ὅτε ἰατρὸς κατηγορεῖ τοῦ κάμνοντος; Ὁ μὲν ἔλεγεν· Ἵπποι θηλυμανεῖς ἐγένοντο, ἕκαστος εἰς τὴν γυναῖκα τοῦ πλησίον αὐτοῦ ἐχρεμέτιζεν. Ἄλλος ἐκάθισεν ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ, ὡς ἡ κορώνη· Οἴμοι, ὅτι ἀπόλωλεν εὐλαβὴς ἀπὸ τῆς γῆς, καὶ ὁ κατορθῶν ἐν ἀνθρώποις οὐχ ὑπάρχει· ἄλλος· Ἀρὰ καὶ ψεῦδος καὶ κλοπὴ καὶ μοιχεία κέχυται ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς· ἕκαστος τὸν πλησίον αὐτοῦ ἐκθλίβουσιν ἐκθλιβῇ· ἄλλος· Οὐαὶ ἔθνος ἁμαρτωλῶν.

Ἐξέρχεται ὁ ἰατρὸς κλαίων· ποίαν δὲ ἐλπίδα ἔχει ὁ νοσῶν, ὅταν ἴδῃ τὸν ἰατρὸν κλαίοντα; ποίαν ἐλπίδα ἔχεις, ὅταν ἴδῃς τὸν ἀπεγνωκότα; τί ἔχεις χρηστὸν προσδοκῆσαι περὶ τοῦ νοσοῦντος; Καίτοι ἰατροὶ πολλάκις, καὶ εἰδότες τὴν τελευταίαν, ὥστε μὴ λυπῆσαι τοὺς προσήκοντας, τῇ φιλοσοφίᾳ νικῶσι τὸ πάθος, καὶ