It is essential for one who fervently seeks the courts of eternity to lessen their affection for earthly things, allowing their passion for God to flourish as their pursuit of worldly matters wanes.
The term “bailiff” points distinctly to that cruel deceiver who initially ensnared humanity in the web of deceit and has since held them captive under the burden of death. Having offered mankind the currency of sin in paradise, he now demands it continuously as iniquity compounds. Concerning this bailiff, the gospel truth warns, “Lest the judge should give thee up to the torturer” (Luke 12:58). The voice of this torturer represents the defeat of temptation in our lives. We may hear this voice if we are affected by it, but if we stand firm against it, we can let it fade away.
Indeed, it is written, “Everyone who commits sin is a slave of sin” (John 8:34). This assertion holds true: anyone who surrenders to sinful desires relinquishes their former freedom, submitting to the dominion of unrighteousness. However, we rebel against such a master by resisting the injustices that bind us, fighting against negative habits, and renouncing all ignoble desires that undermine our born freedom. We conquer our transgressions through repentance, cleansing our stains with tears.
THEOSIS