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The great sacrament of piety (see 1 Tim. 3:16)! God appeared in the flesh, proved that He is God by the Spirit, that is, by His teaching, which is Spirit and life, by His deeds performed by the finger of God, by the gift of the Holy Spirit to men. Having put on flesh, He became visible not only to people, but also to Angels, for whom, according to Divinity, He is invisible. 17 The pagans, who were perishing from ignorance of God, heard the preaching of salvation. The teaching about God is accepted not by earthly wisdom, not by exalted reason, not by extensive learning, not by the rich, lofty and glorious things of the world, but by the humble pledge of the heart by faith. Those who believe in God enter into the assimilation of Him and, having ascended by grace above all that is temporary, receive the mysterious, experiential knowledge that He ascended to heaven and takes there with Him those who truly believe in Him. Those who have not confirmed and increased their faith by hearing the works of faith are conveniently deceived by the teaching of lies, which hypocritically take on the appearance of truth (see 1 Tim. 4:1). Physical feats are of little use, that is, they can only tame passions, and not eradicate them. “Piety,” which consists in the invisible exercise of the mind and heart in the Orthodox faith, “is useful for everything” (1 Tim. 4:8), with it only a person can experience eternal life, partly tasted by the saints here, as in betrothal, which is fully revealed after the separation of the soul from the body. Eternal life consists in the diverse action of grace in the soul, which is felt as it is cleansed from passions. This word, as spoken from spiritual experience, is “true”; it is worthy to be accepted (see 1 Tim. 4:9) as the beginning from which a Christian can ascend to ineffable blessings, setting ascension in his heart. Venerable Macarius the Great. Conversation 4, ch. 9. You might be interested in: