Origen:
“The Son of God, . . . taking the form of a servant, was made obedient unto death so that He might teach obedience to those who could not obtain salvation other than by obedience.”
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Origen:
“The apostolic teaching is that the soul, . . . after its departure from the world, will be recompensed according to its deserts. It is destined to obtain either an inheritance of eternal life and blessedness (if its actions will have procured this for it) or to be delivered up to eternal fire and punishments – if the guilt of its crimes will have brought it down to this.”
Hippolytus:
“This shows that transgressions are blotted out and that reconciliation is made for sins. But who are the ones who have reconciliation made for their sins – except those who believe on His name and propitiate His countenance by good works?”
Clement of Alexandria:
“When we hear, ‘Your faith has saved you,’ we do not understand Him to say absolutely that those who have believed in any way whatever will be saved. For works must also follow. But it was to the Jews alone that He spoke this utterance. Those persons were Jews who kept the Law and lived blamelessly. All they lacked was faith in the Lord. No one, then, can be a believer and at the same time be licentious.”
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Lactantius:
“Let no one be disheartened. Let no one despair concerning himself if he has turned aside to the way of unrighteousness because he was overcome by passion, impelled by desire, deceived by error, or compelled by force. For it is possible for such a one to be brought back and to be set free. It is possible if he repents of his actions and makes satisfaction to God, turning to better things.”
Lactantius:
“God especially desires for men to be cleansed from their sins. Therefore, he commands them to repent. Yet, to repent is nothing else than to profess and to affirm that one will sin no more. Therefore, the ones who are pardoned are those who slip into sin unintentionally and incautiously. He who sins willfully has no pardon.”
Tertullian:
“Repentance is the price for which the Lord has determined to award pardon. . . . Sellers first examine the coin with which they make their bargains to see if it is cut, scraped, or counterfeit. Likewise, we believe that the Lord, when about to grant us such costly merchandise – eternal life – first tests our repentance.”
Clement of Alexandria:
“God gives forgiveness of past sins. However, as to future sins, each one procures this for himself. He does this by repenting, by condemning the past deeds, and by begging the Father to blot them out. For only the Father is the one who is able to undo what is done.”
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Clement of Alexandria:
“True repentance means to be no longer bound in the same sins for which He denounced death against Himself. Rather, it is to eradicate them completely from the soul. For on their extirpation, God takes up His abode again in you.”
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Clement of Alexandria:
“He, then, who from among the Gentiles and from that old life has come to faith, has obtained forgiveness of sins once. But he who has sinned after this should fear, even though he may obtain pardon because of his repentance, for he is as one no longer washed to the forgiveness of sins. . . . The frequent asking of forgiveness, then, for those things in which we often transgress is only the imitation of repentance. It is not repentance itself.”
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