The disciple of God, then, should seek to have the remembrance of his Master Jesus Christ fixed in his soul and to meditate upon it day and night, And it is right for him to know where he should begin, and how and where he must raise the structure of his building, and how he should begin and finish it, that he be not laughed at by all those who pass along the road, even as our Lord spake concerning that man who began to build a tower and was not able to finish it, that he became a laughing-stock and a mockery to all who saw him. And who is this man who began the building of the tower of whom our Redeemer spake, if it be not the man who setteth out on the path of the Gospel of Christ? Now the beginning of the building of this disciple who hath agreed to go forth from the world and to keep the commandments is his promise and his covenant with God; and he should begin, and run his course, and finish it, collecting and bringing together from all places fine stones of a noble life and character for the building of the tower which reacheth up to heaven. Now the foundation is set and laid, and is, according to the word of Paul, “Jesus Christ our God,” and every man, howsoever he pleaseth, buildeth upon that foundation. For by His love the foundation hath been laid down once and for all to receive everything which might be set upon it, until the coming of the day of the revelation in which the work of every man will be tested and proved; and He who hath been the foundation stone in the corner of the building will go up and become the Judge and Head in the top of the building. And according to what Paul himself spake, “If any man buildeth on this foundation gold, or silver, or stones of price, or wood, or hay, or stubble, each man’s work shall be revealed, for that day shall reveal it, inasmuch as it shall be revealed by fire, and the fire shall prove each man’s work of what sort it is.” — Prologue.

Our Lord and our Redeemer Jesus Christ in His living Gospel invited us to draw nigh in wisdom to the work of keeping His commandments, and to lay within ourselves the foundation of His discipline rightly, in order that the edifice of our life and character might mount up straightly. For he who knoweth not how to begin wisely the building of this tower which goeth up to heaven is not able to complete [it] or to bring it to the finish which is of wisdom. For knowledge and wisdom should order, and arrange, and work the beginning and end and founding [of the edifice], and whosoever beginneth thus is called a wise man by the word of our Redeemer, “Whosoever heareth these My words, and doeth them, is like unto a wise man who hath dug, and made deep, and set his building upon the rock: and the rain descended, and the rivers came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not; for its foundations were laid upon the rock. But whosoever heareth and doeth not, is like unto a foolish man who set his building upon the sand, and even if feeble things beat upon his building they will sweep it away.” We are therefore bound by the word of our Teacher not to be constant listeners only to the Word of God but also constant doers. For the man who, though listening not, doeth, is better than the man who is constant in listening and empty of works, even as the word of the apostle Paul teacheth us, “For not the hearers of the law are righteous before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified: for if the Gentiles which have no law do by their own nature [the things] of the law, these, having no law, are a law unto themselves; and they show the work of the law written upon their hearts, and their conscience testifieth concerning them.” The hearing of the law is good, for it bringeth to the works thereof, and reading and meditation in the Scriptures, which purify our secret understanding from thoughts of evil things, are good, but if a man is constant in reading, and in hearing, and in the meditation of the word of God, and yet perfecteth not by his reading the labour of works, against this man hath the Spirit of God spoken by the hand of the blessed David, rebuking and reproving his wickedness, and restraining him from taking even the Holy Book into his polluted hands, saying, “For to the sinner speaketh God, What “hast thou [to do] with the books of My commandments, that thou hast taken My covenant in thy mouth? Thou hast hated My instruction, and thou hast cast My words behind thee” — Prologue.

And, moreover, O my beloved, in the Holy Scriptures are many things concerning the matter of faith, but these few out of many have I written to remind thy love that thou mayest know, and make known, and mayest believe and make thyself a believer. And when thou hast read and learned the works of faith thou shalt be like unto that tilled land upon which the good seed fell, and which brought forth fruit, some a hundredfold, some sixtyfold, and some thirtyfold; and when thou shalt depart to thy Lord, He shall call thee “good, and excellent, and faithful servant“, who on account of his exceedingly great faith shall enter into “the kingdom of his Lord“. — Aphraates: On Faith.

And when a man hath become a house and a dwelling-place then he beginneth to take care for what is required by him that dwelleth in the building, just as if a king, or some honourable man who was called by the name of king were to tarry in a house; for then all the appurtenances of royalty would be required for the king, and all the ministration which is necessary for the honour thereof. For in a house which lacketh all good things a king will neither tarry nor dwell, nay, a king requireth all the furniture in a house with nothing whatsoever lacking; and if anything is lacking in the house in which the king abideth, the keeper of the house is delivered over unto death, because he did not make ready for the service of the king. Thus also let the man who becometh a house and a dwelling-place for Christ see what appertaineth unto the service [of the house] in which Christ dwelleth, and with these things let him make it fair. First of all let him build his building upon the Rock which is Christ, and upon the Rock let faith be founded, and upon faith all the building shall rise up. And for making the house habitable pure fasting which is established by faith is necessary; and he requireth the pure prayer which is accepted by faith ; and to him is useful the love which is compounded with faith; and he needeth the alms which are given in faith; and he must ask for the humility which is ornamented with faith ; and virginity which is beloved of faith must be chosen by him; and he must bring nigh unto him the holiness which is planted by faith ; and he must meditate upon the wisdom which is discovered by faith ; and he must seek after the hospitality which is increased by faith; and the simplicity which is mingled with faith is necessary for him; and he must seek after the patience which is perfected in faith; and his mind must abide in the long-suffering patience which is acquired by faith; and he must love the life of an anchorite which appeareth by faith; and he must seek after the purity which is preserved by faith; all these things the faith which is founded upon the true Rock, which is Christ, asketh, and these things are required by the King Christ Who dwelleth in the children of men who have been builded with these works. — Aphraates: On Faith.

Hear then, my beloved, and open unto me the internal eyes of thy heart and the spiritual perceptions of thy understanding to that which I will say unto thee. Now faith is built up of many things, and is crowned with many colours; it is like unto a building which is built up of many materials, and its fabric mounteth to the top. But know, O my beloved, that stones must be laid in the foundations thereof, and then the whole edifice goeth upwards until it is finished. And thus also must it be with our whole building; its foundation must be the true Rock, which is Jesus Christ our Lord, and upon [this] Rock is faith founded, and upon faith the whole building riseth until it is finished. [This] foundation is the beginning of the whole building, for when a man draweth nigh to faith, he is founded upon the Rock which is our Lord Jesus Christ. And his building will not be washed away by the waves, and it will not be injured by the winds, and it will not fall through storms, because his building riseth upon the rock of the true Rock. And in calling Christ the “Rock” I have not spoken according to my opinion, but the Prophets of old called Him “Rock”, and [this] I will prove to thee.

But for the present listen concerning the faith which is founded upon the Rock, and concerning the building which riseth upon the Rock. First of all a man must believe, and when he hath believed he will love, and when he loveth he will hope, and when he hopeth he will be justified, and when he is justified he will be perfect, and when he is perfect he will be completed; and when his whole building hath risen up, and hath been finished and perfected then will he become a temple for the dwelling-place of Christ, even as the prophet Jeremiah said, “The temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, ye are the temple of the Lord if ye make fair your ways and your deeds.” And again it saith in the prophet, “I will dwell in you, and I will walk in you.” And again the blessed Apostle spake thus, “Ye are the temple of God, and the spirit of Christ dwelleth in you.” And our Lord also thus spake to His disciples, “Ye are in Me, and I am in you.“. — Aphraates: On Faith.