Hi, My name is Fr. Mike Schmitz, and this is Ascension Presents.
So... when it comes to sin.
I know. You're like "Why are you talking about sin again?"
Well, because it's kinda a big part of our lives, and we probably need to know a little about it.
Also because people keep asking me about it.
I don't want to talk about this.
Of course I have to, because I'm a priest, and that's part of our job to say,
"Here's what sin is, therefore here's what grace is"
But here we go. What's the big deal?
If it's a personal sin, no one gets hurt.
No one even finds out about this. It's my personal sin.
Why is that such a big deal? Well, first, well, there's two reasons at least.
First is because what we've talked about before,
that even personal sins are still relational. Right? Because sin isn't just breaking a rule.
It's not just breaking a commandment. It's breaking the relationship. It's saying,
"God, I know what you what, and I don't care. I want what I want."
So even a personal sin is still relational to God.
But the second reason is because of this:
Because while some sins are personal, there are other sins that are communal, or they're social sins.
There are societal ills. There's kinda structures of sin that we can live in.
But I'm talking about personal sin,
that while sin is personal,
it is never private.
Jesus even says this. He says, there's no words that are whispered in the quiet closed room
that aren't going to be proclaimed from the rooftops,
there's nothing that's done in the darkness that won't be revealed in the light,
that at some point, every one of our sins is no longer going to be private. It's going to be completely public.
I don't think Jesus just meant that as a deterrent, like, "You better watch it, because someone's gonna find out!"
I think he means something more.
I think he means, ultimately, what Paul talked about.
You're a part of the body, right? You're part of the Church.
We're part of the body of Christ.
And he says, when one member of the body suffers, the whole body suffers.
So when one member of the body sins, they weaken themselves, and they weaken the whole body.
When one member of the body does some kind of sin, even if it's personal, even if no one knows about it,
ultimately, in some spiritual way, we're all connected.
Therefore, at some level, we're all hurt by this.
In some way, we're all wounded.
We're all suffering. We're all made weaker even by one person's personal sin that affects the whole body.
So there's no such thing - there's that personal sin - but there's no such thing as a private sin that just affects me.
Now that's kind of the bad side.
On the positive side, Paul goes on to say, and when one member of the body is strengthened, we're all strengthened.
That means this. That means when you battle against sin in your life, when you fight for the good, when you fight for virtue,
when you fight for justice, when you fight for all these good things,
when you're made strong, even if nobody knows about it,
the whole body is made strong.
That when you make that hard decision that just goes unknown, goes unnoticed, it's just completely obscure,
that hard decision, that personal decision for virtue,
the whole body becomes stronger.
Sometimes it can feel like, "Well, you know, my sins don't matter,"
and it can also seem like, "Well, my virtue — my growth and virtue don't matter. My prayers don't matter."
But this message is that, actually, yes, your sins matter, the whole body,
but so does your fighting for virtues, so does your fighting for good, so does your fighting for Jesus.
Even if nobody knows about it, even if nobody notices it,
even if it's only in the privacy of your own home, the privacy of your own mind and heart,
privacy of your own life.
Here's the last thing about this.
This is so profound. This is so critical.
But it is also so immediate and so important.
Today there are many, many Christians who are suffering for their faith in Jesus.
There are many, possibly many Christians who today will be asked,
will be called upon, to offer their very lives for their faith in Jesus.
Consider this. It could be your struggle against sin in your life,
your fighting for virtue in your life today that nobody knows about, completely personal,
that strengthens the body in such a way that your act of virtue, your fight against sin today,
strengthens someone else in this world,
at the moment when they need strength the most, to give their whole life for Jesus.
That's the extreme, but also we realize there's the less extreme, but just as necessary.
Think about how your personal act of virtue, your personal fight against sin,
could strengthen the members of your family who are fighting themselves.
Think about how your personal act against — fighting against sin, fighting for virtue,
could strengthen the people you love the most without them even knowing that you're doing anything for them.
Because why? Because, yes, your personal sin matters. It makes a difference,
but your personal virtue also matters. It also makes a difference.
And especially if you're feeling like, "Nobody knows my life. I don't make any impact.
My life doesn't mean anything."
Please, know this truth:
Your life,
personal sin, but also your personal choice for goodness, for greatness, for Jesus,
it matters!
And it makes a difference in this world,
and it makes a difference in someone's life.
From all of us from Ascension Presents.
My name's Father Mike.
God bless.
ASCENSIONPRESENTS.COM
So, don't give up!
Don't give up when you get knocked down.
Why? Because God's mercy is always renewed.
So if you fell down today, go to confession, just call the priest: "Hey! Can I go to confession?"
Or wait till Saturday, whatever.
Go!
Also check this out, your going to confession is an act of virtue,
so just the very fact that you let Jesus pick you up
strengthens the whole body.
Go! How crazy is that?
The fact that you let Jesus forgive you, you let Jesus pick you up, that strengthens the whole body.
So go to confession and let the body be strengthened.
Tsk. Come on.
That's so cool, man. So cool. So cool.
OK. Peace out.
Deuces.
Who says deuces? That's dumb.