Moreover, you were all distinguished by humility, and you were not in any way puffed up with pride. You yielded obedience rather than extorting it and were more willing to give than to receive. (1 Clement 2)

Let no one deceive himself: if anyone is not within the altar, he is deprived of the bread of God. For if the prayer of one or two possesses such power [Matt. 18:19], how much more that of the bishop and the whole Church! He, therefore, that does not assemble with the church has, just by this, revealed his pride and condemned himself. For it is written, "God resists the proud" [Prov. 3:34]. Let us be careful, then, not to set ourselves in opposition to the bishop, in order that we may be subject to God. (Letter to the Ephesians, ch. 5)

Lest therefore we should walk in darkness, we ought to follow Christ, and to observe his precepts, because he himself told his apostles in another place, as he sent them forth, All power is given to me in heaven and earth. Go, therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you." Therefore, if we wish to walk in the light of Christ, let us not depart from his precepts and admonitions, giving thanks that, while he instructs for the future what we ought to do, he pardons for the past where we in our simplicity have erred. (Epistles of Cyprian 62, ch. 18.)

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Do you ask, 'What is faith in him?' I answer, The leaving of your way, your objects, your self, and the taking of his and him; the leaving of your trust in men, in money, in opinion, in character, in atonement itself, and doing as he tells you. I can find no words strong enough to serve for the weight of this necessity—this obedience. It is the one terrible heresy of the church, that it has always been presenting something else than obedience as faith in Christ. (Unspoken Sermons: Series I, II, III. 2004. Johansen. p. 393. Emphasis in original.)

“If anyone wills to do His will, he shall know concerning the doctrine…” (John 7:17).

The golden rule to follow to obtain spiritual understanding is not one of intellectual pursuit, but one of obedience. If a person wants scientific knowledge, then intellectual curiosity must be his guide. But if he desires knowledge and insight into the teachings of Jesus Christ, he can only obtain it through obedience. (My Utmost for His Highest; An Updated Edition in Today's Language. Discovery House Publishers, 1992. July 27 devotion.)

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