From the Imitation of Christ; Chapter 24
Keep your goal always before you and, remember, you shall stand before a strict Judge, who knows all things, who accepts no bribes, allows no excuses, and always passes a just judgment.
O foolish, wretched sinner! You sometimes become terrified when you see the face of an angry man, but what answer will you give to God, who knows your every wicked deed? Prepare yourself for Judgment Day, for when it comes you will not have a defense attorney to make excuses for you, but you will have to answer for yourself. Right now your efforts can bear profit, and your tears find acceptance; your sighs can be heard, and your sorrow find cleansing forgiveness.
The man who habitually exercises patience goes through a wholesome purgatory while still alive. He suffers injuries at the hands of others, but he is more concerned about their malice than his hurt. He willingly prays for those who harm him, wholeheartedly forgives offenses committed against him, and never puts off asking another's pardon. In fact, he more readily gives in to compassion than to anger. Too, he does not pamper his body, but by penances strives to bring it into complete subjection to his spirit.
It is better to purge our sins and root out our vices now than to keep them for some future purgation. We certainly deceive ourselves by the obsessive love we have for our bodies!
What else does this fire have to feed on but your sins? The more lenient you are on yourself and the more you yield to your flesh, the greater will be your future suffering, for you are only storing up fuel for the fire.
There, a man will be punished according to the types of sins he has committed. Those who are lazy will be pricked with red-hot spurs, and the glutton will be tormented by acute hunger and thirst. Those filled with lust and who have indulged their senses will howl in pain like mad dogs.
There is no vice that will not have its own special torment. The proud will be filled with disgrace and humiliation, and the miserly will suffer all kinds of privations. One hour of suffering there will be more fierce than a hundred years spent performing the hardest penances. For the damned there is neither rest nor comfort, but we here do enjoy a break from our toil and do find comfort in our friends.
Therefore, take care and be sorry for your sins, so that on Judgment Day you may be safe and numbered among the blessed. Then the righteous man will stand in great confidence in the presence of those who have afflicted him. The man who now humbly submits to other men's judgments will then rise to judge; the poor and humble will be wrapped in assurance, while the proud will be enveloped in fear.
He who learned to be a fool for Christ and was despised by men will then be revealed as truly wise. All trials patiently endured will prove a delight, while the throats of the wicked will be choked in sorrow. All the devout will rejoice and all the wicked weep.
Mortified flesh will then exult more than if it had been brought up on the choicest of foods. Rough garments will take on brilliance, while silks and stains will lose their sheen. The humble hut will be esteemed more than any gold-encrusted palace. Steadfast patience will prove more valuable than all the world's power, and simple obedience will be more honored than worldly wisdom.
A good and pure conscience will then give you more joy than all the philosophy you have ever learned. The contempt for riches will weigh more than all the treasures in this world, and fervent prayer will bring you more happiness than a multi-course banquet.
The silence you kept will then be more exhilarating than the telling of long tales, and holy deeds will be of greater value than nice-sounding words. And a strict life with hard penances will then bring you more pleasure than worldly delight.
Remember, the sufferings you now bear are somewhat slight, but they will free you from greater sufferings in the future. Try and endure, here and now, what you will have to suffer later on! If now you can only put up with so little, how will you bear a punishment that is eternal? If a modicum of suffering now makes you uneasy, what will hell's fire do to you?
It is impossible for you to enjoy a double paradise: one here, based on the delights of this world, and the other reigning with Christ in His kingdom.
If, up to now, you have always lived amid honors and pleasures, what good would all this do you if you were to die this instant? All is vanity, therefore, except loving God and serving only Him. If you love God with your whole heart, you will fear neither death nor punishment, neither judgment nor hell. Perfect love opens up an unerring way to God. If, however, you still find delight in sin, then it is no wonder that you fear death and judgment.
If love cannot draw you away from evil then, at least, let the fear of hell pull you away. If you put off fearing God you cannot long persevere in goodness, but all too quickly, you will fall into the devil's snares.
In Christ,
Rev. Jeffery A. Fasching
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