First Sermon for the Feast of the Ascension: On the Signs of Faith and Salvation

“ At length He appeared to the eleven as they were at table; and He upbraided them with thety incredulity and hardness of heart because they did not believe them who had seen that He arose again.*

“ And He said to them: Go ye into the whole world and preach the Gospel to every creature,

“ He that believeth and is baptised shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be condemned.

“ And these signs shall follow them that believe: In My name they shall cast out devils ; they shall speak with new tongues ;

“ They shall take up serpents; and if they shall drink any deadly thing it shall not hurt them ; they shall lay their hands upon the sick and they shall recover.

“And the Lord Jesus, after He had spoken to them, was taken up into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of God.

“ But they going forth preached everywhere : the Lord working withal and confirming the word with signs that followed.” —Mark xvi. 14-20.

“ At length He appeared to the eleven as they were at table.” Truly, my brethren, “the goodness and kindness of God our Saviour appeared ” (Tit. iii. 4) in this manifestation. For if He disdains not to be present with us at our meals, more willingly, as we may trust, does He come to us when we pray. ‘‘ The goodness of God our Saviour appeared,” of Him, I say, Who “ knoweth our frame ” (Ps. cii. 14), and does not despise but rather pities our necessities, if yet we ‘‘ make not provision for the flesh in its concupiscences’’ (Rom,

“ Who had seen Him after He was risen again.’’—(Translator.) 227 xiii. 14), but only in its needs. It was of this the Apostle appears to have been thinking when he said, ‘‘ Whether you eat or drink, or whatever else you do: do all to the glory of God”’ (r Cor. x. 31). But it is possible also to connect this apparition of the Lord to His disciples, whilst “ they were at table,” with the answer given on another occasion to the Jews, who were murmuring against the same disciples for that they did not fast: ‘‘ Can the children of the Bridegroom mourn, as long as the Bridegroom is with them ?”’ (Matt. ix. 15).

The Evangelist continues: “And He upbraided them with their incredulity and hardness of heart, because they did not believe them who had seen that He arose again.” Attend to this, my brother, Christ reproves, yea, what sounds harsher, He even upbraids His disciples, and at that time particularly when He was on the point of withdrawing from them His bodily presence, and so, as it should seem, ought rather to have comforted them. For the future, then, let no feeling of anger rise within thee whenever thou art reproved by him who holds the place of Christ in thy regard. Thy superior in upbraiding thee, only deals with thee as Christ is recorded to have dealt with His disciples before ascending into heaven. But how are we to understand the words, “They did not believe them who had seen that He arose again ” ? Is it meant that there were those whose happy eyes merited to see the glorious miracle of the Lord’s resurrection ? Now we nowhere find, nor do we believe that any mortal witnessed His actual rising. It is therefore necessary to understand this of the angels whose testimony to the fact of the resurrection the pusillanimous apostles were so slow to accept.

ON SIGNS OF FAITH AND SALVATION 229

But now, in order to fulfil what the Prophet had prayed to the Lord for, “Teach me goodness and discipline and knowledge ” (Ps. cxviii. 66); the instruction of preaching also was added to the grace of the divine visitation and the discipline of reproof, when the risen Saviour said to His apostles, “ Preach the Gospel to every creature: he that believeth and is .baptised shall be saved.” What shall we say to this, brethren? For the men of the world appear to derive excessive assurance from these latter words, and I fear lest they should begin to “‘ make them an occasion to the flesh ” (Gal. v. 13), presuming more than they ought on baptism and faith without works. But let us consider what is added, “ And these signs shall follow them that believe. In My name they shall cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; they shall take up serpents; and if they shall drink any deadly thing it shall not hurt them; they shall lay their hands upon the sick and they shall recover.” This passage may well seem to give even the pious themselves as much cause for despair as the preceding inspires worldlings with illusory confidence. For where shall we now find a man who appears to possess the signs of belief mentioned in this place? Yet without faith no one can be saved, for it is written, “ He that believeth not shall be condemned,” also, ‘‘ Without faith it is impossible to please God” (Heb. xi. 6). Who now, I ask, casts out devils ? or speaks with new tongues? or takes up serpents unharmed? What then? If, at the present time, these supernatural graces are found to belong either to none at all or only to very few, it seems to follow that either no one shall be saved, or those few alone who rejoice in the possession of such miraculous gifts.* Besides, the gifts in question are not so much merits in themselves as probable indications of merits. Hence, at the final judgment, many will say, ‘‘ Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Thy name, and cast out devils in Thy name, and done many miracles in Thy name?” And the Lord will answer, “ I never knew you. Depart from Me, you that work iniquity ” (Matt. vii. 22, 23). And I ask how shall that be fulfilled which the Apostle says, speaking of the just Judge, “Who will render to every man according to his works ” (Rom. ii. 6), ifi—which God forbid !—it is of miracles rather than of merits that account shall be taken at the judgment ?

However, good works are themselves a species of signs, and indeed surer and more salutary signs than any others. Nor do I think it difficult to see how we can interpret in this sense the signs recounted in our Gospel, so that they may be common and indubitable signs of belief, and also, by consequence, of salvation. Thus the first effect of “ the faith that worketh by charity ”’ (Gal. v. 6) is compunction of heart, by which beyond question devils are cast out with the vices which are expelled from the heart. In the next place, they who believe in Christ “speak with new tongues,” since “ old matters depart from their mouths ” (x Kings ii. 3), and they no longer use the old tongue of their disObedient first parents, by ‘“‘inclining their hearts to evil words, to make excuses in sins ” (Ps. cxl. 4). But now when they have blotted out their past sins by compunction of the heart and confession of the mouth, it is necessary, in order to avoid a relapse, that they

Cf. Sermons on the Canticle of Canticles, vol. ii. p. 32, note (Mount Melleray Translation),

ON SIGNS OF FAITH AND SALVATION 231 shall “take up serpents,” that is to say, they must promptly extinguish every evil suggestion. But what is to be done if perchance some of the old root of evil should sprout again—for it cannot be plucked out all at once, and the soul should be assailed by carnal concupiscence? Here, doubtless, applies what is said, “Tf they shall drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them,” because, after the example of the Saviour, they only taste, and refuse to swallow (Matt. xxvii. 33) : I mean, there is consciousness of the uprising, but no consent. Now, apart from consent, the mere feeling of carnal desires can do us no hurt, because, “‘ there is now no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus ”’ (Rom. viii. r). What more remains? Undoubtedly, the conflict we shall have to keep up against our morbid and corrupted affections will prove very painful, yea, and very dangerous: but they who believe “‘ shall lay their hands upon the sick and they shall recover.” That is to say, they shall cover their sickly affections with good works, and by this remedy restore them to health.