“And the Pharisees and Scribes murmured, saying: This man receivelh
sinners.” Luke 15.

The Pharisees and Scribes murmured that Christ received sinners. And yet He came into this world only to save sinners and to free us from the curse that, since the fall of the first man, rests upon the human race, and to which every sinner adds so fearfully by his own personal sin.

Of course, God demands that man should co-operate, and earnestly make use of the means faith offers him for the salvation of his soul. In this respect, the most necessary disposition on the part of man is confidence in God’s goodness, a firm belief that it is possible for man, in the state of
sin, however great and numerous his crimes, still to be saved; provided he is willing, with the help of grace, to fulfill the conditions that God demands.

Yes, yes, sinner whoever you are and whatever sin you have committed-God desires your salvation.
Throw yourself with confidence into the arms of His unbounded mercy.

O Mary, mother of mercy, mother of holy hope, bless us, and increase in us trust in God!

I speak in the most holy name of Jesus, to the greater Glory of God!

“God wills that all men shall be saved.” The first reason that the mind discovers for this truth, revealed by Scripture, flows partly from the nature of God Himself, and partly from the nature of an immortal being, such as man is.

God is in Himself the most perfect being, sell-communicating Goodness, as theologians rightly affirm. Just as the nature of the sun, which is light, is to give forth light, so the nature of God, as infinite Goodness, is to communicate Himself to all His creatures; that is, to bless them and make them happy as far as their individual nature will allow.

Of course, this does not give to the rational creature a right to claim a supernatural union with God, and, still less, if he has torn himself away from God by sin; but the rational creature has not only the right but the duty to aspire after this union with the divine essence, if God deigned to grant it, as was the case with man at his creation.

Man is made after the image and likeness of God. He has in his soul the image of God, because he is an intelligent being, but the likeness he possesses only by union with the divine essence by means of
sanctifying grace, a union, that will be perfected in heaven by the beatific vision.

It is true, by the fall of our first parents we lost this supernatural union with God, and, hence, every claim on Him in the kingdom of glory; but as God,
in His infinite goodness, redeemed us through the Incarnation of His Son, we regained the right and the happiness, according to the assurance of St. John, not only to be called children of God, but to be such in reality.

Hence, it is also God’s will that we reach our final destination and possess it for evermore.

God is omnipotent and free, He can create intellectual beings or not. He is free; but He can not create them mortal- He can not again annihilate them; for He can not contradict His own nature, which would be the case did He create intellectual beings mortal; that is, only for a certain period of time, even were it more than a million of years. For in that case God would create such a reasonable being, either to be happy or to be unhappy. If He created it to be unhappy, He would be more cruel than any tyrant that ever existed upon earth; and if He created it to be happy, and then were to take this happiness from it, in order to annihilate it, He would be still more cruel; for such a being, living in accordance with God’s holy will, would have the right to say: Lord, Thou hast created me without me; Thou hast made me happy, and now Thou robbest me of my happiness without deserving it; I do not give Thee thanks for my existence!

Such a reasonable being could use this blasphemous language to God the Creator, had He not created it to become and remain happy.

This desire of God to render man happy becomes still clearer to us, when we think of the work of Redemption, and of the character of our union and beatification with God and in God according to the order grace.

The aim and end of the creation is the outward glorification of God by the manifestation of His in finite perfections. The angels in heaven reflect His
holiness. The fate of the fallen angels shows forth the depth of His justice. The universe proclaims His greatness, His might, His wisdom and wondrous care in preserving what He created.

Man was to become, in His salvation, the object of the infinite mercy of God: “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt amongst us.” Rejoice, child of
man, that you are human. If God had created you an angel, and you committed one single sin, you would have been lost for all eternity.

You are human, and, therefore, were you laden with all the sins of the world, you might yet be saved through Jesus Christ. Jesus, the Son of God, became Man for you, devoted to you every breath, every step of the thirty-three years of His stay upon earth, offered up for you every prayer, every hardship.

How dearly He bought you; for every act, every step of Christ is of such infinite value! But he who accomplishes something with great trouble, naturally does not wish to have labored in vain. This may be especially said of Christ, the Incarnate Son of God. Listen to His cry from the cross: “I thirst! Your God and Redeemer thirsts for your salvation!

How your confidence will grow, if you, a child of the Catholic Church, think of the manner in which Christ made you a partaker of His indescribably great merits!

You are a child of that Church to which He gave all the means of salvation: Prayer, the Holy Sacraments, the sacrifice of the Mass, participation in the
merits of all the saints in heaven and upon earth, and even of those of His own mother as patroness of the Church.

Besides this, think how many instructions, interior enlightenments, exhortations of parents, teachers, friends, Christ has bestowed upon you! This, my sermon of to-day, is a call of God to you, and a new impulse, a new means of salvation which He sends you. How many opportunities had you not in your life to hear Mass, to go to confession, and you have them still! If you, therefore, harden your heart and go to perdition, the reproach which, like a worm, will gnaw into your soul is this: God desired my salvation,
my misfortune I owe to myself alone, I did not desire to be saved. Woe is me!

May this never be! Instead, say now, , filled with confidence: God, Thou desirest it and I desire also. I will save my soul!

Live in this disposition of mind, and show by your life that you are in earnest, and you will be saved through Jesus Christ our Lord! Amen!

Taken from ~ Original, Short and Practical Sermons for Every Sunday of the Ecclesiastical Year
By F.X Weninger S.J
1881