Friday of the Ninth Week in Ordinary Time

Yet from all these things the Lord delivered me.
In fact, all who want to live religiously in Christ Jesus
will be persecuted.
But wicked people and charlatans will go from bad to worse,
deceivers and deceived.
But you, remain faithful to what you have learned and believed,

On a road trip recently I heard a country singer describing his vision of eternal life. He is pretty certain he’ll be welcome in heaven because he’s enjoyed himself so much on earth. He is, after all, just one of the fun-lovin’, good time boys.

I’d have no complaint about that kind of optimism except that it’s not based on the Word of God. It may be Christian; a lot of opinions and notions are popularly known as Christian, along with a lot of people. But our hope for eternal life is not based on anyone’s optimism. We live only in the specific promises God has made to his faithful people.

How far beyond that faithful people the promises goes I do not care to speculate. I like to think God is extraordinarily generous to the just of every land, nation and religion. Our Church prays for their salvation, most especially during our Good Friday Service. We also pray for our loved ones, and especially the rascals we have bred. If they never seem to amount to much their Christian mothers still love them; and that should count for something.  

After reminding his disciples of the punishment God will mete on “wicked people and charlatans” Saint Paul urges Timothy to remain faithful to what you have learned and believed.

We have seen already too much punishment of the just – as they say in the Army, “No good deeds goes unpunished” – while the wicked get away with murder. Every human system of justice is subject to corruption, and some are worse than others. When they become too egregious they collapse altogether; but before that happens everyone knows it’s flawed. Horror stories abound in every state and municipality of the failed system of justice. Lawyers will tell you outright, criminal justice has nothing to do with justice or compassion. It’s only about the rules of the game.

God has promised a day of reckoning for the virtuous and the wicked. God’s justice will be precise, pervasive and penetrating, "sharper than a two-edged sword." Every wickedness will be exposed to the harsh light of truth; every kindness will be revealed in the gentle light of mercy. The measure of all truth will be Jesus’ supreme sacrifice. It will flow like a tsunami over all the earth. As it washes back to sea, it will carry tons of human debris with it. On that day even God's holy people will stand aghast, paralyzed with holy fear as God sets all things right.