CPG 3739
Actual Author or Source unknown
Source of Attribution to Julius Apollinarian forgery
Text Syriac: Flemming and Lietzmann, Apollinaristische Schriften Syrisch, 49-51.
Other Translations German: Lietzmann, Apollinaris von Laodicea und seine Schule: Texte und Untersuchungen, 307-310; Graf “Unechte Zeugnisse,” 225-228
Source of Information Thompson, Correspondence of Julius I, xxxv-xxxvii, xl, 183

1. We have been prepared for life by the Gospel, my brother, from which we have learned that God has come into the world and transformed the human things into divine glory and into heavenly splendors and into the kingdom of heaven and into a blessed life and into the order of the new creation. He, that is, who is in Christ is a new creation (2 Cor 5:17), and all who believe in Christ have become like Christ, for those who have seen his glory have become like his glory. That is, he transformed our humble body to be similar to his glorious body through the working of his power (Phil 3:21), since everything is subject to him.

2. Therefore let no one fall away over the human shape and the bodily sufferings or for that reason interpret Christ as a man, lest he forfeit life. For a man does not redeem the world, and the sufferings of a man do not sanctify those who are baptized into him. We all have indeed been baptized into the death of Christ by believing that the death of Christ has been made the beginning of life and that he has also transformed our death into life. For Christ has done away with death and caused an imperishable life to shine, as it stands written. But no man can do away with death or cause life to shine, as also David says, “Who is the man who lived and did not see death and saved his soul from the hand of the grave?” (Ps 89:48). But how is the one who cannot save him himself supposed to save others? And how is the one who cannot even redeem just one supposed to redeem the world? For because sin lives in man, the consequence of death also finds place, “For death ruled from Adam until Moses even over those who have not sinned similarly to Adam by breaking a command” (Rom 5:14). That is, after Adam had sinned and in his sin made us in his likeness, from then on the law of God remained over us, in which he says, “From earth you are and so earth you shall return” (Gen 3:19). But even Moses was not able to dissolve death, but he also was included under death, and none of those who were subject to the dominion and law of death freed anyone. But Christ and his goodness gave the beginning of life, for the Spirit of the birth of life gave faith in Christ, who after his resurrection has given the Holy Spirit through his blowing (Jn 20:22). But the Holy Spirit is a gift of God and not of men.

3. So we want to believe, as seems appropriate, in Christ as the Son of God who appeared in the body, who is Lord of the prophets and Lord of the angels, and therefore serve him, whatever is in heaven and on earth and under the earth. For the rulers and the dominions and the heavenly powers do not serve a man but God (Eph 1:21), and every knee which is in heaven and on earth and under the earth bends to him and ever tongue confesses that Jesus Christ is Lord to the honor of God the Father (Phil 2:10). But Christ is God who has revealed himself in the flesh and has spoken as God and done everything as God and is the true Son of God who has given the law and spoken, “I say to you” (Mt 5:22) and rebuked the sea and wind and impure spirits. Men, however, who received God or divine power, do not give out a law from themselves or make commands. Therefore Paul said, “Not I, but our Lord” (1 Cor 7:10) because he brought the command from Christ and not from himself. And where he did give advice, since he did not give it out from himself but through the Spirit which was given to him by Christ, in that case he said, “I believe that the Spirit of God is in me” (1 Cor 7:40), and another time he spoke, “Why do you seek for proof that it is Christ who speaks in me?” (2 Cor 13:3).

4. So everyone who maintains that Christ was a man in whom God lived is godless, because he makes our Lord Christ into one man among many and changes the authenticity of his deity, as if he were assumed by God and were not truly God who appeared in our form and has revealed our life-giving worship that we worship Christ because he is God and not because God is in him. And he also does not know which is lord and which is servant, which is redeemer and which is redeemed, which is spirit and life-giver (which Christ is, of course, as the Apostle has said) and which is the living soul and made out of dust (which Adam was), and which is the one from earth and which is the heavenly one and from heaven, who was found in human form because of the flesh from the Virgin but was God in power because of the Spirit from heaven. To him be praise in eternity. Amen.

Translated by AMJ

Last updated: 8-31-2012

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