How Can Good Works be Performed for Our Salvation? Sunday’s Meditation

Seventh Sunday after Pentecost

The Gospel according to St. Matthew, 7:15-21

“At that time, Jesus said to His disciples: Beware of false prophets who come to you in the clothing of sheep, but invariably they are ravening wolves. By their fruits you shall know them. Do men gather grapes of thorns or figs of thistles? Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit, and the evil tree bringeth forth evil fruit. A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can an evil tree bring forth good fruit. Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit shall be cut down and shall be cast into the fire. Wherefore by their fruits you shall know them, not everyone that saith to Me: “Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven: but he that doth the will of My Father who is in heaven, he shall enter into the kingdom of heaven.”

Meditation for the Morning

Let us adore Jesus Christ revealing to us in the gospel of the day one of the truths which are most important in regard to our salvation, that is to say, that we cannot be saved except on condition of sanctifying our life upon earth by good works (Matt. 7:19). Let us thank Him for so precious a lesson and ask of Him grace thoroughly to profit by it.

FIRST POINT

The Necessity of Good Works for our Salvation

Each one of us is like a tree planted by the hand of God in the field of the Church, in a ground of benediction, cultivated with care, watered with profusion. If neither this careful culture nor the fruitful dew of heaven makes us produce good works, we fall under the anathema pronounced by the Apostle: “The earth that drinketh in the rain which cometh often upon it and bringeth forth thorns and briars, is reprobate, and very near unto a curse;” (Heb. 6:7,8) an anathema which is only the reproduction of the words of our gospel: “Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit shall be cut down and shall be cast into the fire.“(Matt. 7:19) The reasons for this sentence are numerous, First, he who neglects to perform good works does not love God. Love is an active passion which turns the heart towards its object and makes it act for it. (St. Gregory) If I do nothing for God, it is a proof that I do not love Him; if I do but little, it is a proof that I do not love Him much. Second, he who neglects good works does not love his neighbor; when we love any one we give him succor by means of works of mercy. Third, he who neglects good works does not love himself, because being wholly taken up with the things of this world, which so quickly passes away, where we live for so short a time, we are not occupied with preparing a happy destiny for ourselves throughout eternity. We class ourselves amongst the useless servants, of whom it as written that they shall be cast into the exterior darkness, instead of being of the number of those righteous whom one of the Fathers calls “the riches of eternity,” because by means of their good works they send before them into heaven treasures of merit. Let us here examine our conscience and listen to its reproaches.

SECOND POINT

The Characteristics which Good Works ought to Possess in order to be Saving

First, they must be wholly good; for, if they are defective in one single particular, whether because of the time at which they are done, or the manner of performing them, or on account of the intention which accompanies them, it is enough to deprive them of their value or diminish the merit of them. God loves order and desires to have it in all things; He is not pleased with any diversion from it. Let us examine as to whether our good works have this primary characteristic, or whether, spite of the great number of them which we have performed, we are still very poor. Second, they must be done in the order of the will of God; He alone, says Jesus Christ in the gospel of the day, who does the will of My heavenly Father shall enter into the kingdom of heaven. Therefore all that turns us away from the duties of our state, all that is inspired by caprice or some human object, does not count amongst good works. The only good works are those which God commands or which He counsels, or which He gives us an opportunity of doing. Third, it is not enough to apply ourselves to good works only when we have a taste for them; we must continue them even when we feel disgust for them. “Be thou faithful until death.” (Apoc. 2:10) Let us again examine our selves on this subject.

Resolutions and spiritual nosegay as above