Which amends and damages are caused by those who seek their salvation in hope that they confess and will repent?
Who could reveal and make amends to one’s self about the damages that are caused to them with the hope that it is alright to sin and then hope they will repent and disqualify their transgressions. It’s truly believed that many Christians will aguish with this cunning and deceitful hope that will slowly drive them to the verge of misery and hell. Although, it is believed by many that whoever sins there is an eternity of a
buming pit and that they will be sentenced to an endless condemn. Even thought, they were with the thought that hell was just a fairytale. One would ask why this way of thinkıng: and the answer to this inquiry is because people always are in thought that the cure of their immoral actions is so easy with the single thought that once they would confess their wrong-doing to their confessor, they would receive a small token of honor for, bringing forward their sin. As this deed is done people seem to come into peace with themselves, because they think their obligation to the Lord has been fulfilled just by confessing their immoralities.
A’ Primary damage to those who sin with the hope of repentance due to the excessive amount of sins they are to commit.
The initial damage that is caused to those who sin with the hope of repentance is the amount of sins they are to commit and the vast number of more transgressions that follow thereafter. If these people who see confession as a form of ease and comfort think they have devoutness to confession thinking this is the whole concept of repentance. Not only are they mistaken for their way of thinking, but they lean towards bigger passions which are to follow. As they are to fall once, just then the bridle of logic loosens, prayer is no longer present as they tend to an animalistic life that has no logic and leads only to self- destruction. At that moment who can count how many trespass they have committed, not looking for any chance to further themselves into a whole new cycle of sins. As many times as their wicked yeaning urges them to fall, it happens immediately. Along with, at the same time their cunning thoughts transform instantly into a form of devious deed. Out of curiosity and for our self-interest let’s see how vast their transgressions could be. There are many individuals which are with the thought that forgiveness of their sins is easily done by just confession from one day to the other. With that single speculation their understanding is, why not commit other sins as well as with their cunning thoughts, evil aspiration and indecent gratifications. Particularly and above all, with such sort of action they give reasons to others to eradicate their souls. Therefore, according to such calculation the number of sins one is to commit in a months period could be close to three hundred, and in a year’s time more than three thousand. Along with, knowing this person who’s committing such transgression is “knocking on hell’s door’ more than three thousand times a year. One should ask themselves, why it should not be difficult to believe that the justice of God would allow the doors of hell to open for them and allow them to enter the place of the condemned for all eternity. According to the prophet Jeremiah, it is fact as well as a threat, which the justice of God will prevail. In addition to this, the prophet Jeremiah states in the verse (37, 13-14).
“Your wounds are hopeless, your trauma is fatal. None will attend to your pain. I will strike down upon you a great punishment, as I would have done to an enemy. Your
transgressions against me have become vast”. One should take these words that are spoken into consideration. God has never conveyed that you will not be cured from your trespasses. On the other hand there are those which never benefited from the rehabilitation of their transgressions. In fact, this could happen after many forms of therapies which is the result that you have not confessed once but numerous times for your sins. Moreover, confession should be used as a therapeutically procedure to cure and eradicate your transgression and due to your atrocity you use it to commit yet more sins. You keep repeating to yourself “If I sin, it’s enough that I go to confess then repent. If I sin once, then for sure I could sin again'”. The person who has this kind of thought has the idea that no matter if the sins are few or many he or she could repent at any time and will be forgiven. Sufficiently, yes you will be forgiven, but
you have not benefited from the healing treatment of what true repentance is. By virtue of, the benefit that one gains through the continuous confessions of their many transgressions is that they are condemning themselves to the abyss of hell. The sad
thing is that all of this takes place without one knowing due to their ignorance of true repentance and the purpose of confession, which is to confess one’s sins and truly repent. God makes you worthy as well as capable of being tried out without any compassion from him and in a way “punishing” you as an enemy who has unjust to God. On the other hand, the lord has much more compassion to the person who is being “punished” then the person had for God. As the Lord states For the sake that your transgression are enhanced towards me, I am punishing you as I would discipline one of my enemies” It is mentioned elsewhere by the prophet speaking allegorically for the soul that confesses and is cured from its trespasses and soon
after it fails into temptation and then stays irrecoverable and worthy to be abandoned by God and be condemned to hell. As it stated “The prophet which prophesied of peace, when the word of the prophet shall come to pass, then shall the prophet be known, that the LORD hath truly sent him. Therefore thus said the LORD; Behold, I will cast thee from off the face of the earth: this year thou shall die, because thou hast taught rebellion against the Lord'” Jeremiah 28. 9,
The second form of contamination is those who transgress with the hope in repentance of their excessive quality of immoral actions
The second deterioration which is caused to a person, he who sins with the hope that they will repent and confess, even of the amount and quality of their immoral deeds which they carried out, and with the ambition there is time to repent. The ones who have the false speculation and keep telling themselves “I will confess”. By saying this, not only do they sin more my being hypocrites and not having no fear or respect towards God, but they submerge in the most unclean way towards transgression. They act out with no shame even greater trespasses against God with the idea that there is always time to go to confession and repent. What makes matters worse is that even the disbeliever does not commit such immoralities as to the “so called'” believer. Together with, they whirl into the unclean mud of transgression, which technically speaking not even the animals throw themselves into such pit to become so unclean. However, what does the Lord do in such cases towards the e individual? God does not obliterate the cunning way the individual thinks, but punishes the particular way when the time comes as the prophet Osie has exclaimed in the following verse (9,9) “They were shattered with their enormous as well as their
overexheturating wickedness. The corrupt ones who worship idols on the mountain the Lord will have before them the multitude of their iniguities and will punish them for their sin”: In other words, God will recall the transgressions and according to those one will be punished accordingly.
The third form of contamination is those who sin with the hope of repentance is the contempt, bragging, unrepentantly and the negativity towards true repentance.
The third form of damage that one causes themselves is with the false hope of repenting whenever its convenient to them and that is the intentional defiance of God’s will. This defiance is shown in their will not to repent and reach their salvation by violating God’s law. As it stated by Solomon “As the ungodly reach the peak of their atrocity its then their arrogance has defiance for everything”. In addition to this, when their wickedness has attained its highest level, then the senses become immune, the heart toughens as a result not taking into consideration all the transgressions that are committed. As a matter a fact, they are those who move even much more forward in their cunning ways. Not only do they not despise their sins, but they seemed to be liked by them and others, which gives them some sort of satisfaction and praise. As a result, they brag thinking they have made some sort of great achievement. “To those who rejoice in the evil ways that they themselves or others are committing, then those will rejoice in their perversion of evil’ Solomon, Paroimeies 2, 14. Also it is noted by (Isaiah 3,9) “The expression on their faces testifies against them, and like Sodom they flaunt their sin; they do not conceal it. Woe to them, for they have brought disaster upon themselves”. Along with the ones that were saying, let me sin now and there were always be time for me to repent. Not knowing that, with this wicked way of thinking the result is that they lead themselves to the greatest peak of transgressions which in result leads them not to want them to repent at all, or even go to confession. Even if some people wanted to confess and repent they cannot anymore due to the fact that their heart has become bitter for their salvation and transgression has become part of their nature and way of life. As a result their soul became senseless and cannot repent and correct all its wrong doing. Nonetheless, these people who were improvised have died unrepentant and uncorrected into redeeming their soul. Also, it’s quite amusing that these kinds of Christians as they reach their peak of wickedness still hope on to their faith and do not renounce it. Unfortunately, this is the woe of those who do not abandon their belief which is an anchor of survival. They persuade themselves if they still believe or have faith in God that they will be saved no matter their immorality. As it’ s stated by the holy Chrysostom, this cunning way of thinking is related to their dogmatic cunning way of life. As you can see my beloved brothers how much damage and catastrophe one causes to them-selves with the false hope thinking there is always time to repent. As it is said by Abba Isaac whoever sins a second time repeating their transgressions is looked down from God as devious, towards the almighty. That person passes on to the afterlife without having the chance to repent. In addition to this, Abba Isaac adds “Suddenly he passes on, with no chance or hope of having
fulfilled the work of virtues”. It is also mentioned by the Great St. Vasilios “He who acts out the transgression with the hope of repentance, has a wicked way of thinking and therefore there is no true repentance”. Apart from this, St. Ambrosias adds in the following verse “The fluency of forgiveness often gives more chances into falling into temptation”.
SAINT NICODEMUS OF HOLY MOUNT ATHOS
New Skiti Holy Mount Athos
Assignation of the Virtuous Prodromou Benedict Heiromonk
