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About the Book
"An Enemy Called Average" by John Mason is a self-help book that encourages readers to break free from mediocrity and strive for excellence in all areas of their lives. The book provides practical tips and strategies for overcoming obstacles, setting and achieving goals, and living a life of purpose and fulfillment. It urges readers to reject complacency and embrace their potential for greatness.
Gregory Thaumaturgus
Gregory the Wonderworkerâs Early life
Gregory was born in a Pontus, a region on the southern coast of the Black Sea, located in the modern-day eastern Black Sea Region of Turkey, around 212-13. His was a wealthy home and his parents named him Theodore (Gift of God) despite their pagan beliefs. When he was 14 years old his father died and soon after, he and his brother, Athenodorus, were anxious to study law at Beirut, Lebanon, then one of the four of five famous schools in the Hellenic world.
Influence of Origen
However, on the way, they first had to escort their sister to rejoin her husband, who was a government official assigned to Caesarea in Palestine (modern Haifa, Israel). When they arrived they learned that the celebrated scholar Origen, head of the catechetical school of Alexandria, lived there.
Inquisitiveness led them to hear and speak with the Origen and his irresistible charm quickly won their hearts. They soon dropped their desires for a life in Roman law, became Christian believers and pupils of Origen, learning philosophy and theology, for somewhere between five and eight years. Origen also baptised Gregory.
Pastor (then Bishop) of Neoceasarea
Gregory returned to his native Pontus with the intention of practicing oratory, but also to write a book proving the truth of Christianity, revealing his evangelistic heart. But his plans were disrupted when locals noticed his passion for Christ and his spiritual maturity. There were just seventeen Christians in Neoceasarea when Gregory arrived and this small group persuaded him to lead them as their bishop. (âbishopâ simply meant a local overseer). At the time, Neocaesarea was a wicked, idolatrous province.
Signs of the Spirit
By his saintly life, his direct and lively preaching, helping the needy and settling quarrels and complaints, Gregory began to see many converts to Christ. But it was the signs and wonders that particularly attracted people to Christ.
En route to Neocaesarea from Amasea, Gregory expelled demons from a pagan temple, its priest converted to Christ immediately.
Once, when he was conversing with philosophers and teachers in the city square, a notorious harlot came up to him and demanded payment for the sin he had supposedly committed with her. At first Gregory gently remonstrated with her, saying that she perhaps mistook him for someone else.
But the loose woman would not be silenced. He then asked a friend to give her the money. Just as the woman took the unjust payment, she immediately fell to the ground in a demonic fit, and the fraud became evident. Gregory prayed over her, and the devil left her. This was the beginning of Gregoryâs miracles. It was at this time he became known as âGregory Thaumaturgus,â âGregory the Miracle Workerâ (or Wonderworker).
At one point Gregory wanted to flee from the worldly affairs into which influential townsmen persistently sought to push him. He went into the desert, where by fasting and prayer he developed an intimacy with God and received gifts of knowledge, wisdom and prophecy. He loved life in the wilderness and wanted to remain in solitude with God until the end of his days, but the Lord willed otherwise.
His theological contribution
Though he was primarily an evangelist and pastor, Gregory also had a deep theological understanding.
His principal work âThe Exposition of Faithâ, was a theological apology for Trinitarian belief. It incorporated his doctrinal instructions to new believers, expressed his arguments against heretical groups and was widely influential amongst leaders in the Patristic period: Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian, and Gregory of Nyssa (The Cappadocian Fathers). It was the forerunner of the Nicene Creed that was to appear in the early 4th century.
In summary
He gave himself to the task of the complete conversion of the population of his diocese. The transformation in Neocaesarea was astonishing. Persuasive preaching, numerous healings and miraculous signs had a powerful effect. Such was his success that it was said that when Gregory became bishop (c 240) he found only seventeen Christians in his diocese; when he died only seventeen remained pagan (Latourette 1953:76).
Basil the Greatâs Testimony
Basil the Great (330-379, Bishop of Caesarea, in his work âOn the Spiritâ wrote the following account of Gregory the wonder-worker.
âBut where shall I rank the great Gregory, and the words uttered by him? Shall we not place among Apostles and Prophets a man who walked by the same Spirit as they; who never through all his days diverged from the footprints of the saints; who maintained, as long as he lived, the exact principles of evangelical citizenship?
I am sure that we shall do the truth a wrong if we refuse to number that soul with the people of God, shining as it did like a beacon in the Church of God: for by the fellow-working of the Spirit the power which he had over demons was tremendous, and so gifted was he with the grace of the word âfor obedience to the faith among. . .the nations.â that, although only seventeen Christians were handed over to him, he brought the whole people alike in town and country through knowledge to God.
He too by Christâs mighty name commanded even rivers to change their course, and caused a lake, which afforded a ground of quarrel to some covetous brethren, to dry up. Moreover, his predictions of things to come were such as in no wise to fall short of those of the great prophets. To recount all his wonderful works in detail would be too long a task. By the superabundance of gifts, wrought in him by the Spirit, in all power and in signs and in marvels, he was styled a second Moses by the very enemies of the Church.
Thus, in all that he through grace accomplished, alike by word and deed, a light seemed ever to be shining, token of the heavenly power from the unseen which followed him. To this day he is a great object of admiration to the people of his own neighborhood, and his memory, established in the churches ever fresh and green, is not dulled by length of time. (Schaff and Wace nd., Series 2. 8:46-47).
âGregory was a great and conspicuous lamp, illuminating the church of God.â âBasil the Great.
ready to commit, slow to compare - a recipe for real community
Months ago a young couple visited our church, and we had them over to our home for lunch. As we ate and conversed over meatloaf and mashed potatoes, the young woman peppered me with questions. âSo what is community like at your church?â âHow many people are in discipleship relationships?â In between questions, she gave us a glowing review of the church they had been a part of in another state. I felt expectations rise as she shared about her close relationship with the pastorâs wife, who happened to live in the apartment above them, and how she popped in on their family at all different times of day. I was beginning to feel like a job description was being offered to me, and our church was being evaluated as to whether we fit the bill. Iâm thankful this couple had such a wonderful experience at their former church, but I couldnât help but wonder how helpful it was to measure everything against their previous experience. Yes, we learn from our past and are blessed when we have great models, but is it helpful to compare communities of faith and assume that one is the ideal model and all others should strive to look the same? âRelationships deepen and grow only when weâre willing to commit time and energy to fostering them.â The conversation about what church community should look like caused me to reflect on different issues Iâve noticed emerging around this important debate. Community Without Commitment Despite all the hype about the importance of community in the body of Christ, there can be a tendency to want all the feelings of community without a firm commitment to a local body of believers. Relationships deepen and grow only when weâre willing to commit time and energy to fostering them (Hebrews 10:24â25). Committing to a Bible study or small group or discipleship relationship often provides the setting to establish community. But if you always have a list of reasons why you donât have the time, how will the body of Christ you belong to know how to minister to your needs? If having babies or being tired or working late keeps you from faithfully serving your church or being served through a ministry of the church, youâre likely not going to feel well-connected. How will we know how to pray for each other when there isnât a regular time to meet in a smaller setting and share our joys and burdens of life? If your travel plans or childrenâs sports schedules consistently have you missing corporate times of worship, youâll be deprived of not just hearing the word proclaimed, but the interactions that happen in the pews before and after the service. We will never experience true community without a firm, sacrificial commitment to a local body of believers. Community Without Accountability True community also means being transparent enough with your own struggles so that others in the body know how to pray for you (James 5:16). Not everyone in your church needs to know your darkest moments of despair, but do a select few know your battles? Are others free to ask you how youâre faring in your war with pornography, binge eating, or gossip? Or do you meet them with a high wall of defense when they try to speak truth into your life? âWe will never experience true community without a firm, sacrificial commitment to a local body of believers. â When another member in the body has the courage to confront our inconsistency or hold us accountable in a struggle weâre facing, we should ask God to give us grace to receive their words with humility and meekness. Our own pride can tempt us to surround ourselves with people who will affirm our words and actions, instead of challenge us when we turn down the wrong path. There is a temptation to shut people out who are speaking truth into our life by avoiding communication with them: unfriending them on Facebook, turning the other way when you see them at church, or conveniently never finding the time to meet them for coffee. But weâre missing out on what could be a primary means of sanctification in our lives when we refuse to be held accountable by our community of faith. No Perfect Community So, in your search for the church with the perfect community, be willing to accept that community will look different from church to church. Maybe your community was established by a strong relationship with the pastorâs wife at your former church, but be willing to see that your close relationships at your new church could come through an unexpected way: a single woman longing for companionship or perhaps a gray-haired grandma willing to meet you for coffee each week. Instead of sitting on the sidelines comparing and critiquing what your church does or doesnât have, commit to a ministry of the church to both serve in and be served. Find a smaller group within the body to share life with, study Scripture with, and pray for one another with. And keep the commitments you make. If you sign up for a Bible study that lasts twelve weeks, do your best to commit for the long haul. If youâre feeling disconnected from others within your church, evaluate your own level of involvement. True community is established through faithfulness, commitment, and a humility to both share your struggles and receive counsel. You honor God when you commit to the saints and sinners he has placed in your church family. We Need Each Other âOne day weâll see Jesus together, but weâll only make it if we push each other to cling to him today.â We might not ever find the perfect community this side of heaven, but our church families are essential for our walk with Jesus. Like Hebrews says, the state of our very souls depends on our community of faith: Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God. But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called âtoday,â that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. (Hebrews 3:12â13) We need community. We need our brothers and sisters in Christ. However imperfect our church may be, we need our family to point us to the gospel. One day weâll see Jesus together, but weâll only make it if we push each other to cling to him today.
