Theosis and the Cross

Gerhard states the the object of theology is to make men divine - partakers of the divine nature. Take that to the cross for a moment. For it is by the Cross that God most deeply reveals who He is. When He would make you divine, participants in His divine nature, He is not talking about making you "superman" - He is talking about making you be suffering servants, co-heirs with His Son. The divine nature is manifested in the total emptying out of self in service to the sinner in need. That's what He invites us to share and to share it in all its depths. This is not just the path to glorification - though it is that, "if we suffer with Him we will also be glorified with Him" - it IS glorification, just as St. John's Gospel teaches. "The hour has come!" To share in the divine nature is to share in the "mind of Christ" a la Philippians 2. Life lived in union with Christ as love, the gift of self poured out for others. To hold onto self and try to preserve it for self - that is to decline to be a sharer in the divine nature. Yes, He would lift you to the glories of Godhead. That's why He said: "Take up your cross daily and follow me."