The reason, therefore, of our predicting that He will impute to those on His right hand the alms-deeds they have done, and charge those on His left with omitting the same, is that He may thus show the efficacy of charity for the deletion of past sins, not for impunity in their perpetual commission.And such persons, indeed, as decline to abandon their evil habits of life for a better course cannot be said to do charitable deeds.For this is the purport of the saying, "Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me."(5) He shows them that they do not perform charitable actions even when they think they are doing so.For if they gave bread to a hungering Christian because he is a Christian, assuredly they would not deny to themselves the bread of righteousness, that is, Christ Himself; for God considers not the person to whom the gift is made, but the spirit in which it is made.He therefore who loves Christ in a Christian extends alms to him in the same spirit in which he draws near to Christ, not in that spirit which would abandon Christ if it could do so with impunity.For in proportion as a man loves what Christ disapproves does he himself abandon Christ.For what does it profit a man that he is baptized, if he is not justified? Did not He who said, "Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he shall not enter into the kingdom of God,"(6) say also, "Except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven?"(7) Why do many through fear of the first saying run to baptism, while few through fear of the second seek to be justified? As therefore it is not to his brother a man says, "Thou fool," if when he says it he is indignant not at the brotherhood, but at the sin of the offender,--for otherwise he were guilty of hell fire,--so he who extends charity to a Christian does not extend it to a Christian if he does not love Christ in him.Now he does not love Christ who refuses to be justified in Him.Or, again, if a man has been guilty of this sin of calling his brother Fool, unjustly reviling him without any desire to remove his sin, his alms-deeds go a small way towards expiating this fault, unless he adds to this the remedy of reconciliation which the same passage enjoins.For it is there said, "Therefore, if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath aught against thee; leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift."(8) Just so it is a small matter to do alms-deeds, no matter how great they be, for any sin, so long as the offender continues in the practice of sin.
同类推荐
热门推荐
学霸甜妻超暖萌
【每个女孩,心中都应该有过这样一个少年。白衣飘飘,眼神凉薄。】*十六岁。她是安城一中出名的小太妹。张扬跋扈、臭名昭著。所有人都唤她甄甄,唯有他,冷淡无趣,连名带姓地喊她“甄明珠。”“甄明珠,停止你这些无聊的游戏。”“好啊。”她仰头看着少年清凉无波的凤眼,笑得没心没肺,“只要你当我的男朋友。”“……不可能。”后来她知道,这世上没有什么不可能,只要用心,一切皆有可能。*他是她第一眼看上的仙气飘飘的少年,值得她奉上全部的热情和勇敢。她是甄明珠,他是程砚宁,终有一日,她是他的掌上明珠。*那一天,甄明珠二十岁。高档酒楼豪华包厢。中学同学会。三年河东、三年河西。曾经卑怯寡言的同班女生穿着高腰短裙黑丝袜,妆容精致,自信飞扬。她们当着她的面,畅谈名校的历史和光辉。有人看着沉默的她频频发笑。当年飞扬张狂的跋扈千金家道中落远走他乡,T恤板鞋牛仔裤,惨,不忍直视。有人笑问:“你现在在哪上班呢?”甄明珠淡淡一笑未开口,修长身影拨开人群,微笑着抬起她的手:“冒冒失失的,手机都忘了带。”包厢里静了几秒,有人迟疑唤:“学长?”当年不染尘埃的一中明月,如今姿容清绝的笔挺青年,终归,一头栽进了臭沟渠。*甄明珠:她没有这般不顾一切地爱过人。程砚宁:她是他的小太阳,她是他的光。*看起来好像除了美再无优点的小太妹VS清冷无尘仙气飘飘大学霸,学妹和学长,女追男,校服到婚纱,沿袭阿锦甜宠暖虐风,1V1双处,演员VS建筑师,结局H。(^__^)谨以此文,重走韶华。献给所有一直陪伴阿锦的小可爱们……笔芯。