Origen On: Ask Seek And Knock (230 AD)

 
Do you then, my son, diligently apply yourself to the reading of the sacred Scriptures. Apply yourself, I say. For we who read the things of God need much application (bring rooted and grounded in whole of the word of God), lest we should say or think anything too rashly about them. And applying yourself thus to the study of the things of God, with faithful prejudgments such as are well pleasing to God, knock at its locked door, (Origen is saying in his day the mysteries of the kingdom had become a locked door – that through prayer and seeking after God can be reopened)

and it will be opened to you by the porter, of whom Jesus says, "To him the porter opens. And applying yourself thus to the divine study, seek aright, and with unwavering trust in God, the meaning of the holy Scriptures, which so many have missed. (Origen didn’t say a few have fallen into error, or some he says that by the year 230 many – most “believers” no longer have any understanding of scripture, they no longer have any ability to rightly divide the word of truth, because they have no application (broad scope) of the word. And on top of that they do not apply themselves to the study of the entire word of God to try to regain that which was lost, so that the word has become locked to them.)    Be not satisfied with knocking and seeking; for prayer is of all things indispensable to the knowledge of the things of God. For to this the Saviour exhorted, and said not only, "Knock, and it shall be opened to you; and seek, and ye shall find," but also, "Ask, and it shall be given unto you.

(Notice Origen makes no mention of receiving earth wealth, or receiving at the hand of God houses and lands – the as seek and knock is in regards only to the excellency of Christ and the knowledge of the Lord.)

"My fatherly love to you has made me thus bold; but whether my boldness be good, God will know, (Origen is saying quite candidly that his desire to teach this by no means guarantees his hearers anything) and His Christ, and all partakers of the Spirit of God and the Spirit of Christ. May you also be a partaker, and be ever increasing your inheritance, that you may say not only, "We are become partakers of Christ,"⁷ but also partakers of God. (He concludes this by saying it is only they that actively partake that gain in God)

(Origen’s epistle to Gregory) on forsaking the teaching and philosophy of the Greeks and following after Christ alone.