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Question 8
Origen says the doctrine of “just judgment” is meant to “incite” virtue and avoidance of sin, and he quotes Paul about “stubbornness” treasuring up wrath and God rendering “according to his works”; how does this early Christian linkage between judgment and moral responsibility confront common evangelical instincts about “works,” “legalism,” and the purpose of warnings in Scripture?
Another way to ask: Origen links God’s judgment with real moral responsibility and says warnings are meant to push us toward virtue. How does that challenge common fears about “works,” “legalism,” and why the Bible warns us?

Direct Answer Based on Origen’s teaching as quoted, early Christians saw warnings and judgment language as practical motivation to live virtuously, because God’s “just judgment” assumes real responsibility; that challenges any instinct to dismiss moral exhortation as mere “legalism.”

Support from Transcript:

  • Origen says “there is a just judgment of God,” and “This fact incites those who believe it to live virtuously and to shun sin.”
  • He says “things worthy of praise and blame are within our own power,” and “It is our responsibility to live righteously.”
  • Origen cites Paul: God’s goodness leads to repentance, but “because of your stubbornness and your unrepentant heart, you are treasuring up wrath.”
  • The passage continues: “God will render to each one according to his works… persistence in doing good… [or] reject the truth and follow evil.”
  • Origen explicitly contrasts this with views that make it depend on fate, insisting commands are “dependent on us.”
Discussion Follow-ups If Scripture’s warnings are meant to “incite” obedience, how should preaching change—less reassurance without change, more calls to repentance?

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