SERMO 170
CONCERNING THE SAME WORDS OF THE APOSTLE (PHIL 3:6-16):
"According to the righteousness which is from the law,"
"Who I have been without complaint," etc.
ABOUT THE WORDS OF THE PSALM (142, 1-2):
"Hear me in Your righteousness," etc.
AND FINALLY ON THE READING OF THE GOSPEL OF JOHN (6:39):
"The will of the Father is that all which he has given me should not perish," etc.
Justice from the law seems loss to the Apostle.
All divine readings are connected in such a way that they are like one single reading; because they all proceed from one mouth. There are many mouths that carry out the ministry of speaking; but there is one mouth that fills the ministers. We heard the apostolic reading, and perhaps someone is moved by what is written there: According to the righteousness that is from the law, I was blameless. But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. Then he continues: Not only loss, but indeed I also count all things as dung, that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but the righteousness which is through faith in Jesus Christ. For how did he consider as dung and loss, according to the righteousness which is from the law, being blameless? For who gave the law? Did not He who gave the law beforehand come afterward with forgiveness for the lawbreakers? But we believe that He came with forgiveness for those whom the law held guilty. Did the law hold guilty those who were blameless according to the righteousness that is from the law? Therefore, if the Lord brought forgiveness and pardon of sins to the guilty of the law, did He not bring it to the Apostle Paul, who says he lived in the law blamelessly? But let us hear him in another place: Not by works of righteousness that we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration. And again: Who was formerly a blasphemer, a persecutor, and an insolent man; but I obtained mercy, and so on. For he asserted that he lived blamelessly in the law, in such a way that he confesses he was a sinner, so that every sinner may not despair because of himself, because Paul obtained forgiveness.
The saying of the Apostle should be understood in such a way that the error of the Manichaeans regarding the old law is avoided. For what purpose the law was given. Original sin.
See, brothers, and observe the force of this speech, how the Apostle Paul considers losses and refuse, where he says that he conducted himself without complaint. Here is the fulfillment of the law, here is the transgressor of the law, at one and the same time, before Baptism, before grace. But he does not say without cause that these are losses; lest harmful thoughts enter, he says this because the Apostle Paul indicated that it was not for saying that one person gave the law, another the Gospel; like the Manicheans perversely think, and other heretics, who said that the giver of the law which was given through Moses was different, and another was the giver of the evangelical grace; indeed that bad God, but truly that good God. Why do we wonder, brothers? In the darkness of the law, as if in closed doors, they suffered blindness; because they did not knock with piety. We occasionally find the same Paul saying openly that the law is good; which he nevertheless says was given so that sin might abound; and that sin abounded so that grace might abound much more. For men presumed on their own strength, and by doing whatever they thought permissible, they sinned against the hidden law of God. Whence this manifest law was promulgated to them, who did not at all seem to be guilty to themselves. The law was given to them, not to cure, but to prove the sick. The law preceded the physician, so that the sick person, who thought himself healthy, would find himself sick; and said: Thou shalt not covet. And because before the law was given there was no transgression: For where there is no law, he says, neither is there transgression; previously it was sinned without the law; but given the law after, it was sinned more greatly, because it was sin with transgression. Man found himself conquered by his desires, which he nourished against himself with bad habit; who was also propagated with the bond and obligation of sin from Adam. Whence the Apostle says: We also were by nature children of wrath. Hence it is, that he does not say even a child of one day is clean from sin; not from what he committed, but from what he contracted.
There is no sin in Christ.
Hear the Psalm speaking of inward things, and singing of the more hidden aspects of our sins. For it is said to Christ from the person of the human race: "Against you alone have I sinned, and done what is evil in your sight." This is not said from the person of one David, but from the person of Adam, from whom the human race comes. For hear what follows: "Against you alone have I sinned, and done what is evil in your sight; so that you are justified in your words." It is said to Christ; how do we understand this? Hear what follows: "And you prevail when you are judged." God the Father has not been judged, the Holy Spirit has not been judged; we find only the Son, in that flesh which He deigned to take from our substance, judged; not by the method of human concupiscence and of a woman; a virgin believed, a virgin conceived, a virgin gave birth, and a virgin remained. And therefore it is said: "And you prevail when you are judged." For He was judged and prevailed; because He was judged without sin. It was due to patience that He endured judgment, not guilt. Many innocents are judged, but in the very causes which they handle. For in the rest, they are not without sin; because as in deeds before men, so before God the sin of thought is also fact. Your deed before the eyes of God is your thought. The very judge is the witness of the deed; the very conscience is the accuser of the deed. Therefore He was truly innocent when judged, and thus He prevailed. For He alone prevailed, not over the judge Pontius Pilate, nor over the raging Jews; but over the devil himself, who diligently searches out all our sins through the effort of envy.
The world, sinners, and lovers of the world. Christ alone is innocent. Original sin.
And what does the Lord Jesus say about the devil himself? Behold, the prince of this world comes. It has often been said to Your Charity that this world is called sinners. And why are sinners called by the name of world? Because they inhabit the world by the love of the world. For those who do not love the world do not inhabit that which they do not love. Our conversation, he says, is in the heavens. If therefore one who loves God dwells in heaven with God; one who loves the world dwells in the world with the prince of the world. All therefore who love the world are the world; the inhabitants of the world, not by flesh, which all the just are; but by the soul, which only sinners are, whose prince is the devil. Just as a house is called by the inhabitants of the house; according to which we say that a bad house is marbled, and a good house is smoky. You find a smoky house, which the good inhabit, and you say: A good house. You find a marbled and paneled house, which the wicked possess, and you say: A bad house, calling the house not the walls and coverings of bodies, but the inhabitants themselves. Thus Scripture called the world the inhabitants of the world through the desire of love, not through the conduct of the body. Therefore: Behold, he says, the prince of the world comes, and he has nothing in me. In him alone the devil found nothing. And as if it were said to him: Why then do you die? There follows: But so that all may know that I do the will of my Father, rise, let us go from here. He rises, and goes to the passion. Why? Because I do the will of my Father. For this singular innocence the Psalm says: Against you alone I have sinned, and done evil before you; so that you may be justified in your words, and overcome when you are judged; because nothing evil is found in you. But why is something found in you, O human race? Because it follows and says: For I was conceived in iniquity, and in sins my mother conceived me. David says this. Look from whom David was born; you will find from a lawful wife, from no adultery. Therefore according to which lineage does he say: I was conceived in iniquity; unless there is something from the propagation of death, which carries with it everyone who is born of the conjunction of man and woman?
Conversation without complaint according to the law.
Therefore, each one having lust, let him attend to the law saying: "You shall not covet"; he finds in himself what the law prohibits, and becomes guilty of the law. But finding in himself to whom he is subject, he begins now to say: "I delight in the law of God according to the inner man; but I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members." Having recognized himself as sick, let him implore the doctor: "Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?" Let the doctor respond: "The grace of God through Jesus Christ our Lord." The grace of God, not your merits. Why then did you say you lived blamelessly in the law with righteousness? Pay attention: he said "blameless" before men. For there is a certain righteousness that a man can fulfill, so that no man will blame him. For he says: "You shall not covet your neighbor's property." If you do not seize another's property, there will be no complaint from men. Therefore sometimes you covet, and do not seize. But the judgment of God is above you, because you covet; you are guilty of the law, but in the eyes of the legislator. You live without blame: why then do you suffer these losses? why these impurities? This knot is somewhat tighter; but He who customarily loosens will loosen it. But not only I myself with pious subjection, but all with pious intention, may we merit. Whatever the Jews were doing, from which men would not complain, and their conduct would be in the law without blame, they attributed to themselves, and assigned that righteousness according to the law to their own strength; they could not fulfill it, but did as much as they could; by attributing to themselves, they did not even fulfill this piously.
The justice of man is nothing unless it is from God.
Therefore he says that to fulfill the law is this: "not to covet." Who that lives can achieve this? Let the Psalm assist us, which has just been sung: Hear me in your righteousness; that is, not in mine. If he had said: Hear me in my righteousness; it would call for merit. Indeed, in some places, he calls it his righteousness; but here he discerns better, because even when he says it is his, he means it is given; just as we say: Give us this day our daily bread. How is it ours; how: give? Therefore, speaking more distinctly here, he says: Hear me in your righteousness. And he continues: And do not enter into judgment with your servant. What does it mean: Do not enter into judgment with your servant? Do not stand with me in judgment, demanding from me all that you commanded, demanding all that you instructed. For you will find me guilty, if you enter into judgment with me. Therefore, he says, I need your mercy rather than your most clear judgment. Why then: Do not enter into judgment with your servant? He follows, and says: For no one living will be justified in your sight. For I am a servant: why do you stand in judgment with me? I will use the mercy of the Lord. Why? Because no one living will be justified in your sight. What did he say? As long as one lives in this life, no one is justified, but in the sight of God. He did not add in your sight in vain; unless because someone can be justified in the sight of men, so that it is fulfilled: According to the righteousness which is from the law, being blameless, in the sight of men. Refer to the sight of God: No one living will be justified in your sight.
The justice of this life compared to the future justice.
What then shall we do? Let us cry out: Enter not into judgment with Your servant. Let us cry out: Wretched man that I am, who will rescue me from this body of death? The grace of God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Therefore, we have heard this Psalm, we have heard this Apostle; that when there will be that righteousness according to which the Angels live, when there will be that righteousness where there will be no concupiscence, from there let each one measure himself by what he is now, and what he will be then; and he will find in comparison to that righteousness, this one to be loss and dung. But whoever thinks that he can now fulfill righteousness, having lived well and innocently according to the estimation of human opinion, has remained on the path; he does not desire anything better, because he thinks he has fulfilled it; and being especially conceited, he will be proud. And a humble sinner is better than a proud righteous man. Therefore, he says: And be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, as the Jews thought; but the righteousness which is from the faith of Christ Jesus. Then he continues, saying: If by any means I might attain to the resurrection of the dead. There he believed he would fulfill righteousness, that is, he would have full righteousness. In comparison to that resurrection, all the life we lead now is dung. Listen further when the Apostle speaks more clearly: If by any means I might attain to the resurrection of the just; not that I have already attained, or am already perfected. And then he goes on: Brothers, I do not count myself to have apprehended. How does he compare righteousness to righteousness, salvation to salvation, faith to vision, pilgrimage to the city?
The present justice is to be despised for the desire of perfect justice.
Pay attention to how he fulfills this: Brothers, I do not think that I have attained this. One thing, however. What: one thing, except to live by faith, in hope of eternal salvation, where there will be full and perfect justice, in comparison to which the losses are that will pass away, and the filth that is to be rejected? What then? One thing, however, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, according to intent I follow after the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. And to those who might presume of their own perfection: As many of us as are perfect, let us be thus minded. He had already said he was imperfect, but now perfect. Why, except that this is the perfection of man, to have found that he is not perfect? As many of us as are perfect, let us be thus minded. And if in any thing ye be otherwise minded, God shall reveal even this unto you; meaning, that if you prove yourselves justified in any progress of the mind, by reading the Scriptures, and finding what is true and perfect justice, you find yourselves guilty, and by desire for the future you condemn the present, you live by faith and hope and charity; and understand that what you still believe, you do not yet see; what you still hope for, you do not yet hold; what you still desire, you do not yet fulfill. If such is the charity of those who sojourn, what will it be of those who see? Therefore, he who taught the justice of God, and did not establish his own, cried out from the Psalm: Hear me in thy justice. And enter not into judgment with thy servant; for in thy sight shall no man living be justified.
Perfect justice and happiness will be when God is seen.