"By contentions," he means, with heretics, in which he would not have us labor to no purpose, where nothing is to be gained, for they end in nothing. For when a man is perverted and predetermined not to change his mind, whatever may happen, why shouldest thou labor in vain, sowing upon a rock, when thou shouldest spend thy honorable toil upon thy own people, in discoursing with them upon almsgiving and every other virtue?
How then does he elsewhere say, "If God peradventure will give them repentance" (2 Tim. ii.25); but here, "A man that is an heretic after the first and second admonition reject, knowing that he that is such is subverted and sinneth, being condemned of himself"? In the former passage he speaks of the correction of those of whom he had hope, and who had simply made opposition. But when he is known and manifest to all, why dost thou contend in vain? why dost thou beat the air? What means, "being condemned of himself"? Because he cannot say that no one has told him, no one admonished him; since therefore after admonition he continues the same, he is self-condemned."
However... among the things which struck me as this thread has gone on are a couple of images of God which are presented here. One, that of at least some of the Protestants, is of an ominpotent, wrathful being, a God to be saved from rather than by, as I said sometime back or Kosta's rather capricious puppet master. The other is our fully omnipotent, yet fully transcendant, loving God. The images we all hold of God, speak volumes about what our Church or their assemblies are teaching. I'd like to suggest, however, that among the other ways The Church speaks about our Triune God and the way that the Holy Spirit moves in our lives is this piece of almost pure Athonite spirituality, from Archimandrite Sophrony (+1993), the disciple of +Silouan the Athonite:
"The Holy Spirit comes when we are receptive. He does not compel. He approaches so meekly that we may not even notice. If we would know the Holy Spirit we need to examine ourselves in the light of the Gospel teaching, to detect any other presence which may prevent the Holy Spirit from entering into our souls. We must not wait for God to force Himself on us without our consent. God respects and does not constrain man. It is amazing how God humbles Himself before us. He loves us with a tender love, not haughtily, not with condescension. And when we open our hearts to Him we are overwhelmed by the conviction that He is indeed our Father. The soul then worships in love."
"...God humbles Himself before us." "He approaches so meekly that we may not even notice." Isn't that extraordinary? The Pantokrator humbles Himself before us! And if this is true, and I sincerely believe it is, then how can it be that this God who meekly approaches us with humility to infuse us with His uncreated energies is the source of the arrogance of individual men who proclaim that they, sua sponte, can divine the meaning of scripture better than the consensus patrum, or in the Western terminology, the Magisterium, of the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church established at Pentecost?
Amen, brother. The Scripture clearly states in Phillipeans that Christ humbled Himself. Over and over throughout His life, He humbled Himself. We believe that God is not about to change. Love is a total giving of the self. How can one love another WITHOUT being humble!!! Yet, our separated brothers would have it both ways. As you said, it goes back to the Traditions we have been taught, in BOTH cases. If a Calvinist, one follows that tradition, if of the Apostolic Church, one follows a different tradition - tradition being a teaching, oral, written, and daily practiced in liturgy and our Christian walk.
Regards