Sermon 333

SERMO 333

On the Birthday of the Martyrs

Security given to the martyrs. Patience given by God, how it is ours. Our bread, Christ.

Our Lord Jesus Christ, to his witnesses, that is, to his martyrs who were anxious about human frailty, lest by confessing and dying they might perish, gave great security, saying to them: "Not a hair from your head shall perish." Therefore, are you afraid that you might perish, when your hair will not perish? If such superfluous parts of you are preserved, in how great protection is your soul? A hair, which you do not feel when it is cut, does not perish, and shall your soul, through which you feel, perish? Indeed, he predicted that they would endure many hard things, so that by predicting it, he might make them more ready, and they might say: "My heart is prepared." What does: "My heart is prepared" mean, except: "My will is prepared"? Therefore, martyrs have a prepared will in martyrdom, but: "The will is prepared by the Lord." After recounting those future hard and harsh evils, he added: "By your patience, you will possess your souls." By your patience, he said; for it would not be your patience if your will were not in it as well. By your patience; but how is it ours? What is had by us is ours, and what is given to us is also ours; for if it were not ours, it would not be given. For how do you give something, except that it becomes the possession of whom you give it to? That confession is open: "Will my soul not be subjected to God? For from him is my patience." He himself says to us: "By your patience." Let us also say to him: "From him is my patience." He made it yours by giving it: do not be ungrateful by assigning it to yourself. Do we not say in the Lord's prayer that what is from God is ours? Every day we say: "Our daily bread." You have already said: "our"; and you say: "give us." Behold our, behold give us; by his giving, it becomes ours. If by his giving it becomes ours, by our arrogance it becomes alien. You say: ours, and you say: give us. Why then do you assign to yourself what you did not give to yourself? For what do you have that you have not received? You say: ours; and: give us. Recognize the giver: confess that you receive, so that he may deign to give willingly. What if you did not need, being the one who begs, and you are arrogant? Do you not beg, asking for bread? Our eternal bread, Christ in the equality of the Father; our daily bread, Christ in the flesh; eternal without time, daily in time. Yet he is the bread that came down from heaven. Martyrs are strong, martyrs are firm, but bread strengthens the heart of man.

To Paul, due rewards. To him, previously for due punishment, given grace.

Now, therefore, let us hear the Apostle Paul speaking, when he was approaching his passion, presuming about the crown prepared for him. "I have fought the good fight," he said, "I have finished the race, I have kept the faith; henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing." The Lord, he said, will award me the crown as a righteous judge. Therefore, he owes what he will give: he will give, therefore, as a righteous judge; for he cannot deny the reward based on the work. What work does he examine? "I have fought the good fight," this is work; "I have finished the race," this is work; "I have kept the faith," this is work; "henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness," this is the reward. But in the reward you do nothing; in the work you do not act alone. The crown is from him himself to you; but the work is from you, yet not without his help. When, however, the Apostle Paul, formerly the cruelest and fiercest persecutor Saul, did not deserve anything good at all, indeed he deserved much evil; for he deserved to be condemned, not chosen. And behold suddenly, while he was doing evil and deserving evil, he was struck down by a single heavenly voice; the persecutor is cast down, the preacher is raised up. Hear him confessing this very thing: "I was formerly a blasphemer and a persecutor and an insolent opponent, but I received mercy." Did he say there: "The righteous judge will award me"? "I received mercy," he said; "I deserved evil, I received good. He has not dealt with us according to our sins." "I received mercy, what was due to me was not given; for if what was due were given, punishment would be given. No," he said, "I did not receive what was owed; but I received mercy. He has not dealt with us according to our sins."

Paul's transformation. The prophecy of Jacob fulfilled in Paul.

As far as the East is from the West, so far has He removed our iniquities from us. Turn away from the West, turn to the East. Behold one man: Saul and Paul; Saul in the West, Paul in the East; persecutor in the West, preacher in the East. Sins are extinguished there, righteousness arises from there. In the West old, in the East new; in the West Saul, in the East Paul. How is this from Saul, how is this from the cruel, how is this from the persecutor, how is this from the non-shepherd? Indeed, he was a ravenous wolf, from the tribe of Benjamin, he said. However, it was said in prophecy: Benjamin is a ravenous wolf, snatches in the morning, and divides spoils in the evening. First consumes, later feeds. He was snatching, indeed snatching. Read, he was snatching: read the Book of Acts of the Apostles. He had received letters from the chief priests, so that, whoever he found following the way of Christ, he might bring them bound to be punished. He went, he raged, he breathed slaughter and blood: behold, he snatches. But it is still morning, vanity under the sun; evening comes for him, when he is struck blind. His eyes are closed to the vanity of this world, other inner ones are enlightened. The vessel of destruction shortly before becomes a vessel of election, and behold it is filled: he will divide the spoils; the divisions of his spoils are recited daily. See how he divides the spoils. He knows what suits whom: he divides, not indiscriminately, not confusedly he bestows. He divides, that is, distributes, distinguishes; he does not dispense indiscriminately or confusedly. He speaks wisdom among the perfect; but to some unable to grasp solid food, dividing he says: I gave you milk to drink.

Paul, after the grace of God, repays with good works.

Behold, this he does, who a little while ago was doing, what? I do not wish to remember. Rather, I will remember the wickedness of man, that I may approve the mercy of God. From whom Christ suffered, he suffers for Christ; Saul becomes Paul, a true witness emerges from a false one. He who scattered, gathers; he who attacked, defends. How did this happen to Saul, that we speak of? Let us hear him. You ask, he says, how this came to me? It is not, he says, from me: I have obtained mercy. It is not, he says, from me: I have obtained mercy. What shall I render to the Lord for all the things he has rendered to me? For he has indeed rendered, but not evil for evil; he has clearly rendered, but not evil for evil, he has rendered good for evil. What then shall I render? I will take the cup of salvation. Certainly, you would render? I have still received: but now clearly with the passion approaching, I will render good for good, not good for evil. Therefore, the Lord first ought to have rendered evil for evil; but he did not wish to render evil for evil, but rendered good for evil. By rendering good for evil, he found how to render good for good.

Good works are gifts of God. Paul's own are nothing but evil.

Behold, in Paul, previously Saul, He found nothing good. When He found nothing good in him, He forgave the bad, bestowed the good. Thus, you ask, when He first bestowed good, He anticipated; but by giving good, with which He could reward good, behold, He rewards these goods, these good works, with a reward; He rewards a good fight with good things, a completed course, preserved faith. But with what goods? Those which He Himself gave. Did He not Himself give, so that you might fight the good fight? If He did not Himself give, what is it that you say in another place: "I worked harder than all of them, yet not I, but the grace of God with me"? Behold, again you say: "I finished the course." Did He not also give you the ability to finish the course? If He did not give you the ability to finish the course, what is it that you say in another place: "It is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who shows mercy"? "I kept the faith." You kept it, you kept it: I recognize, I approve; I admit, you kept it; but: "Unless the Lord watches over the city, in vain does the watcher stay awake." Therefore, with His help and with His gift, you fought the good fight, completed the course, and kept the faith. Forgive me, Apostle, I know nothing of your own except evil. Forgive me, Apostle; we say it because you taught us; I hear the confession, I do not find ingratitude. Truly, we know nothing prepared by you for yourself, except evil; Therefore, when God crowns your merits, He crowns nothing but His own gifts.

To the author of such Scriptures concerning the grace of God.

This true faith and piety, let no one be puffed up about free will in good works - which whoever receives, let him receive so that he knows the giver, so that no one is ungrateful to the giver, proud before the physician, either still insane or healed not by himself - this, I say, this true faith and piety, let no arguments tear from your hearts. Keep what you have received. For what do you have that you did not receive? This is to confess to God, to say what the Apostle Paul says: But we have not received the spirit of this world. The spirit of this world makes people proud, the spirit of this world makes people puffed up, the spirit of this world makes everyone think they are something, when they are nothing. But against the spirit of this world, what does the Apostle say? Against the inflated, proud, given, puffed-up, not solid spirit of this world, what does he say? We have not received the spirit of this world, but the spirit which is from God. How do you prove this? That we might know the things that are freely given to us by God. Therefore, let us hear the Lord saying: Without me, you can do nothing. And this: No one has anything unless it is given to him from above. And: No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And this: I am the vine, you are the branches; as the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me. And what the Apostle James declares, saying: Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights. And what the Apostle Paul says to check the presumption of those who boast of free will, he cries out and says: What do you have that you did not receive? If you received it, why do you boast as though you did not receive it? And this: By grace, we have been saved through faith, and this is not from ourselves; it is the gift of God, so that no one may boast. And this: It has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe in him but also to suffer for him. And this: God, who began a good work in you, will carry it on to completion. Therefore, diligently and faithfully considering these and similar things, let us not assent to those who, extolling free will into pride, attempt more to cast down than to elevate; but let us humbly consider what the Apostle says: It is God who works in you both to will and to act.

Thanks must be given to God.

Let us give thanks to our Lord and Savior, who, though we had no previous merits, healed us when wounded, reconciled us when enemies, redeemed us from captivity, brought us from darkness to light, recalled us from death to life; and humbly confessing our frailty, let us beseech His mercy, that, since His mercy has anticipated us according to the psalmist, He may deign not only to preserve in us, but also to increase His gifts and benefits, which He Himself has deigned to give; who lives and reigns with the Father and the Holy Spirit for ever and ever. Amen.