Don't you find just a tiny bit of irony in that statement?
You just hit the nail on the head,dear brother!
Humility is the sign of a true Christian,not wealth and comfort without a cross.
From Thomas Kempis Imitation of Christ
"If you wish to be truly delighted and more abundantly comforted by Me, behold, in contempt of all worldly things and in the cutting off of all base pleasures shall your blessing be, and great consolation shall be given you. Further, the more you withdraw yourself from any solace of creatures, the sweeter and stronger comfort will you find in Me.
At first you will not gain these blessings without sadness and toil and conflict. Habit already formed will resist you, but it shall be overcome by a better habit. The flesh will murmur against you, but it will be bridled by fervor of spirit. The old serpent will sting and trouble you, but prayer will put him to flight and by steadfast, useful toil the way will be closed to him."
In other words ... if we are living a life without a cross it means we are not sacrificing and we are selfish because we are not willing to suffer for others,thus not being anything like Christ.
Don't you find just a tiny bit of irony in that statement?
***Just like Augustine, Luther recognized his folly in rejecting the Church for personal interpretation. The difference is that Augustine was not addicted to wealth and comfort.
You just hit the nail on the head,dear brother!
Humility is the sign of a true Christian,not wealth and comfort without a cross.***
Yes. The very individuals who complain about Church wealth have leaders like Swaggart and Bakker and Osteen and Warren whose opulent lifestyles completely overshadow even such as the Papal apartments. The Catholic/Orthodox leaders live in church property; even little tinpot single church leaders like Jeremiah Wright live in multimillion dollar luxury homes that are titled to themselves.
How many of our leaders own property like even Jeremiah Wright?
Worth repeating, sfa. The only thing that makes sense and makes a real difference is imitation of Christ.