Homilies on Matthew, Homily 24

“Not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of Heaven, but whoever does the will of my Father who is in Heaven.” Why did He not say, “but whoever does my will”? Because at that time it was a great gain for them to accept even this first point; yes, a very great gain, considering their weakness. Besides, He implied the one through the other. We may also mention that the Son in fact has no will apart from the Father’s. And here He seems to me to be criticizing the Jews chiefly, since they put all their emphasis on doctrines and took no care about practice. Paul also blames them for this, saying, “Look, you are called a Jew, and rely on the law, and boast of God, and know His will”; but none of this benefits you as long as it is not expressed in your life and works. But He Himself did not stop there. He also said something much stronger: “Many will say to me on that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in your name?” For He says, “Not only is someone who has faith cast out of Heaven if he neglects his life, but even if, besides his faith, he has performed many signs, yet has done nothing good, this man too is equally shut out of that sacred porch.” “For many will say to me on that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in your name?” Do you see how He also quietly introduces Himself here and afterward, now that He has finished His whole exhortation? How He implies that He Himself is the judge? He has already made clear that punishment awaits those who sin; now He goes on to reveal who administers that punishment. He did not openly say, I am the one, but, “Many will say to me,” again establishing the same point. For if He were not the judge, how could He have told them, “And then I will declare to them, depart from me, I never knew you”? “Not only at the time of judgment, but not even then, when you were working miracles,” He says. That is why He also said to His disciples, “Do not rejoice that the demons are subject to you, but that your names are written in Heaven.” And everywhere He tells us to take great care about how we live. For someone who lives rightly and is free from all the passions cannot ever be overlooked; even if he happens to be in error, God will quickly bring him over to the truth. But some say, “They made this claim falsely,” and this is their explanation of why such men are not saved. But then His conclusion turns out to be the opposite of what He intends. For surely His intention is to show that faith is of no use without works. Then, strengthening the point, He added miracles too, declaring that not only faith, but even the performance of miracles, does nothing for someone who works such wonders without virtue. Now if they had not performed them, how could this point have been established here? Besides, when the judgment had come, they would not have dared to say these things to His face. His very reply, too, and the fact that they speak in the form of a question, imply that they had performed them. I mean that, seeing an outcome contrary to their expectations, and after being admired here by everyone for their miracles, finding themselves there with nothing but punishment awaiting them, they say in astonishment and amazement, “Lord, have we not prophesied in your name?” Why, then, do you turn away from us now? What does this strange and unexpected outcome mean? 2. But although they are amazed that they are punished after working such miracles, do not be amazed yourself. For all the grace came as a free gift from Him who gave it, while they contributed nothing on their part. That is why they are also justly punished: they were ungrateful and unfeeling toward Him who had so honored them as to bestow His grace on them, though they were unworthy. “What, then,” someone says, “did they perform such things while practicing wickedness?” Some indeed say that they did not commit wickedness at the time when they performed these miracles, but that they changed afterward and practiced their wickedness then. But if this is so, once again the point He is working to make fails to be established. For what He took pains to show is this: neither faith nor miracles are of any use without right conduct. Paul also said to this effect, “Though I have faith, so that I could move mountains, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and have no love, I am nothing.” “Who, then, are these men?” you ask. Many of those who believed received gifts, such as the man who was casting out demons and was not with Him; such as Judas, for even he, wicked as he was, had a gift. And this can also be found in the Old Testament, where grace has often worked through unworthy people to benefit others. That is, since not everyone was fit for everything, but some lived pure lives without having such great faith, while others were just the opposite, through these sayings He urged the one group to show great faith, while through this indescribable gift of His He also called the others to become better men. That is also why He bestowed that grace so abundantly. For, they say, “We performed many mighty works.” But “then I will declare to them, I did not know you.” For “now they suppose they are my friends; but then they will know that I did not give them these gifts as friends.” And why be amazed that He has bestowed gifts on men who have believed in Him, though their lives do not match their faith, when He is unquestionably found working even through those who have fallen away from both? Balaam, for example, was a stranger both to faith and to a truly good life; nevertheless, grace worked through him for the benefit of others. Pharaoh too was of the same sort; yet even to him He made known what was to come. And Nebuchadnezzar was full of wickedness; yet to him again He revealed what would happen after many generations. And again, to this last man’s son, though he surpassed his father in wickedness, He made known what was to come, putting a marvelous and great plan into effect. Accordingly, because the gospel was then also beginning, and its power needed to be abundantly displayed, many even of the unworthy used to receive gifts. Yet those miracles brought them no benefit; instead, they are punished all the more. That is why He addressed even that fearful saying to them, “I never knew you,” since there are many whom He begins to hate even here, and from whom He turns away even before the judgment. Let us therefore fear, beloved, and pay close attention to our lives. Let us not consider ourselves worse off because we do not work miracles now. For working them will never benefit us, nor will not working them put us at a disadvantage, if we carefully practice every virtue. For miracles put us in debt, but our lives and deeds put God in our debt. 3. Now, you see, He has finished everything: He has spoken in detail about every virtue and pointed out the various kinds of people who pretend to possess it, both those who fast and pray for show and those who come in sheep’s clothing, as well as those who corrupt it, whom He also called pigs and dogs. He goes on to show how greatly virtue benefits us even here, and how much harm wickedness does, by saying, “Therefore, whoever hears these sayings of mine and does them will be compared to a wise man.” His meaning is this: You have heard what those who do not obey will suffer (even if they work miracles); but you should also know what those who obey all these sayings will enjoy, not only in the world to come, but even here. “For whoever,” He says, “hears these sayings of mine and does them will be compared to a wise man.” Do you see how He varies the way He speaks? At one time He says, “Not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord,” revealing Himself; at another, “Whoever does the will of my Father”; and again He introduces Himself as judge: “For many will say to me on that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in your name, and I will say, I do not know you.” And here again He indicates that He Himself has authority over everything, which is why He said, “Whoever hears these sayings of mine.” Thus, while everything He had said concerned the future—a kingdom, an indescribable reward and consolation, and the like—He also wishes to give them the fruits of virtue through things here, and to show how great its strength is even in the present life. What, then, is its strength? To live in safety, to resist being easily overcome by any terror, to rise above all who mistreat us. What can equal this? For even the man who wears the crown cannot secure this for himself, but the man who pursues virtue can. He alone possesses it in full abundance: amid the ebb and flow of present affairs, he enjoys a great calm. The truly marvelous thing is that he cannot be shaken even a little, not merely in fair weather, but when the storm is violent, the turmoil great, and the temptations constant. “For the rain came down,” He says, “the floods came, the winds blew and beat against that house; and it did not fall, because it was founded on the rock.” By “rain,” “floods,” and “winds” here, He means, figuratively, the disasters and afflictions that happen to people: false accusations, plots, bereavements, deaths, the loss of friends, harassment from strangers, and every other evil in our lives that anyone could mention. “But such a soul,” He says, “gives way to none of these, because it is founded on the rock.” He calls the firmness of His teaching a rock, because His commands truly are stronger than any rock, setting a person above all the waves of human affairs. For whoever strictly observes these things will prevail not only over people who harass him, but even over the demons themselves who plot against him. And Job is our witness that saying this is no empty boast: he received all the devil’s assaults and stood unmoved. The apostles too are our witnesses, for when the waves of the whole world beat against them, when nations and rulers, their own people and strangers, evil spirits and the devil, and every instrument of attack were set in motion, they stood firmer than a rock and scattered it all. And now, what can be happier than this kind of life? For neither wealth, nor bodily strength, nor glory, nor power, nor anything else can secure this, but only the possession of virtue. For there is no other life—no, there is none—that we can find free from all evils, but this alone. And you are witnesses, since you know the plots in kings’ courts and the turmoil and troubles in the houses of the rich. But there was nothing like this among the apostles. What, then? Did nothing like this happen to them? Did they suffer no evil at anyone’s hands? No, the greatest marvel of all is this: they were indeed the targets of many plots, and many storms broke over them, but their souls were neither overwhelmed by them nor thrown into despair. Instead, with naked bodies they wrestled, prevailed, and triumphed. You too, then, if you are willing to carry out these things exactly, will laugh at all troubles with contempt. Yes, for if you are strengthened by the philosophy contained in these instructions, nothing will be able to hurt you. For how will someone who intends to plot against you harm you? Will he take away your money? Well, even before he threatened you, you were commanded to despise it and to keep so far from it that you would not even ask your Lord for any such thing. But does he throw you into prison? Why, even before you were imprisoned, you were instructed to live as someone crucified to the whole world. But does he speak evil of you? Christ has freed you from this pain too, by promising you a great reward, without labor, for enduring evil, and by freeing you so completely from the anger and distress it causes that He even commands you to pray for such people. But does he banish you and involve you in countless troubles? Well, he is making your crown more glorious. But does he destroy and murder you? Even in this he benefits you greatly, securing the martyrs’ rewards for you, bringing you more quickly into the peaceful harbor, giving you grounds for a more abundant reward, and arranging for you to profit from the penalty common to all. This indeed is the most marvelous thing of all: those who plot against others, far from injuring them at all, instead make those they target with their malice more worthy of approval. What can compare with this? I mean, with choosing this way of life, and no other. Thus, although He had called the way confined and narrow, to ease our labors in this respect too, He shows that it offers great security and great pleasure, just as the opposite course brings great instability and harm. For just as He showed that virtue has its rewards even in this world, so vice has its penalties too. For I will say now what I am always saying: everywhere He works for His hearers’ salvation in both ways, on the one hand through zeal for virtue, on the other through hatred of vice. Thus, because some would admire what He said without giving any proof of it in their works, He awakens their fears in advance, saying: Though the things said are good, hearing them is not enough to keep you safe; you must also obey them in your actions, and this is where the whole matter chiefly rests. And here He ends His teaching, leaving their fear at its height. For in speaking of virtue, He urged them on not only by the things to come—speaking of a kingdom, Heaven, an indescribable reward, comfort, and countless good things—but also by present things, pointing to the firm and immovable nature of the Rock. So too, in speaking of wickedness, He arouses their fears not only through things to be expected—the tree cut down, the unquenchable fire, exclusion from the kingdom, and His saying, “I do not know you”—but also through present things: I mean the collapse described in the account of the house. 4. That is also why He made His argument more vivid by demonstrating its force through a parable. For saying, “The virtuous man will be impregnable, but the wicked man easily overcome,” was not the same as picturing a rock, a house, rivers, rain, wind, and the like. “And everyone,” He says, “who hears these sayings of mine and does not do them will be compared to a foolish man who built his house on the sand.” And He rightly called this man “foolish.” For what could be more senseless than someone who builds a house on sand, undertaking the labor while depriving himself of its fruit and rest, and receiving punishment instead? For surely everyone can see that those who pursue wickedness also labor: the extortioner, the adulterer, and the false accuser all toil and exhaust themselves to carry out their wickedness. Yet far from reaping any benefit from these labors, they suffer great loss instead. Paul too indicated this when he said, “Whoever sows to his flesh will reap corruption from his flesh.” Those who build on sand are also like this man: those given over to sex outside marriage, to unrestrained lust, to drunkenness, to anger, and to all the rest. Ahab was such a man, but Elijah was not (for when we set virtue and vice beside one another, we will understand the difference more accurately). The one had built on rock, the other on sand; so, although he was a king, he feared and trembled before the prophet, the man who had only his sheepskin. The Jews were like this, but the apostles were not. And so, though the apostles were few and in chains, they displayed the firmness of rock; but the others, many as they were and armed, displayed the weakness of sand. For they said, “What are we to do to these men?” Do you see who is at a loss? Not those who are in others’ hands and bound, but those who are holding them down and binding them. And what could be stranger than this? You have the other man in your grip, and yet you are completely at a loss? Yes, and quite naturally. Because they had built everything on sand, they were weaker than everyone. That is also why they said again, “What are you doing, seeking to bring this man’s blood on us?” What is he saying? You whip others, and you are afraid? You mistreat them, and you are dismayed? You pass judgment, and yet you tremble? That is how feeble wickedness is. But the Apostles were not like this. How did they respond? “We cannot help speaking about the things we have seen and heard.” Do you see a noble spirit? Do you see a rock laughing at the waves with contempt? Do you see an unshaken house? And what is still more marvelous, far from becoming cowards themselves at the plots formed against them, they grew even more courageous and threw the others into greater anxiety. For someone who strikes an unyielding material is himself the one struck; and someone who kicks against the goads is himself the one pierced, the one who receives the severe wounds. And someone who plots against the virtuous is himself the one in danger. For wickedness becomes weaker the more it marshals its forces against virtue. And just as someone who wraps fire in a garment does not extinguish the flame but burns up the garment, so someone who mistreats virtuous people, oppresses them, and binds them makes them more glorious but destroys himself. For the more evils you suffer while living righteously, the stronger you become. The more we honor self-restraint, the less we need anything; and the less we need anything, the stronger we grow and the more we rise above everything. John was such a man. That is why no one caused him pain, but he caused Herod pain. Thus the man who had nothing prevailed over the ruler; and the man who wore a crown and purple and endless splendor trembled and feared the man stripped of everything. Even when John had been beheaded, Herod could not look at his head without fear. To see that even after John’s death Herod’s terror of him remained in full force, listen to what he says: “This is John, whom I killed.” Now the expression “I killed” belongs to someone who is not gloating but soothing his own terror and urging his troubled soul to remember that he himself killed him. So great is the power of virtue that even after death it is more powerful than the living. For this same reason, again, while he was alive, those who possessed great wealth came to him and said, “What are we to do?” Do you have so much, and yet want to learn how to prosper from someone who has nothing? The rich from the poor? Soldiers from someone who does not even have a house? Elijah too was such a man. That is why he also spoke to the people with the same boldness. For just as John said, “You brood of vipers,” so Elijah said, “How long will you limp on both your hips?” And the one said, “Have you killed and taken possession?” The other, “It is not lawful for you to have your brother Philip’s wife.” Do you see the rock? Do you see the sand—how easily it sinks, how it gives way to disasters? How it is overthrown, even with the support of royalty, numbers, and noble birth? For it makes those who pursue it more senseless than everyone else. And it does not merely fall, but falls with great disaster. For “great indeed,” He says, “was its fall.” The danger concerns no trivial matters, but the soul and the loss of Heaven and those immortal blessings. Or rather, even before that loss, no life is as miserable as the one a person who pursues this must live: dwelling in constant discouragement, alarms, cares, and anxieties. A certain wise man also pointed to this when he said, “The wicked flee when no one is pursuing.” For such people tremble at their shadows and suspect their friends, their enemies, their servants, those who know them, and those who do not. Even before their punishment, they suffer extreme punishment here. And to make all this clear, Christ said, “And great was its fall,” bringing these good commandments to a fitting close and using even present things to persuade the most unbelieving to flee from vice. For although the argument from what is to come is greater, this argument has more power to restrain people with cruder minds and draw them away from wickedness. That is also why He ended with it, so that its benefit might remain with them. Knowing all these things, then, both present and future, let us flee from vice and strive for virtue, so that we may not labor fruitlessly and aimlessly, but may both enjoy security here and share in the glory there. May God grant that we all attain it, through the grace and love for humanity of our Lord Jesus Christ, to whom be glory and might forever and ever. Amen.