The Key to Perseverance and Salvation

It is essential to always keep in mind that what is most important in God's eyes is your effort to please Him, your effort to reach Him, your effort to love and serve Him.

Remember that we are all sinners worthy only of hell.  But by Jesus' sacrifice, we can be saved.  It all depends upon what we do with the unmerited grace freely given us by Jesus Crucified.

The difference between the sinners that go to Heaven and the sinners that go to hell lies in the way that they deal with their sinfulness.

That is, the penitent sinner acknowledges his sins before God, recognizes his weak and disordered nature, and nonetheless tries his utmost to seek and do the will of God to the best of his ability.  This is the essential meaning of perseverance.

The condemned sinner, on the other hand, sees his sin as something good and beneficial, so he clings to it with all of his strength and will.  Likewise, he sees God as an obstacle and an impediment to his personal satisfaction, fulfillment and gratification. Thus, he becomes angry with God and rejects Him along with His love, His graces and His Mercy.

This conscious and deliberate act of rejection, isolation and alienation from God on the part of the recalcitrant sinner in favor of the sin is what constitutes a mortal sin - the complete loss of the state of grace and separation from God who so loves us.

In other words, the damned sinner loves the sin and hates God while the saved sinner loves God and hates the sin, even though he may be inclined to fall into repeat sins as a consequence of his fallen nature. 

God does not condemn the reprobate to hell.  That is something the unrepentant sinner does to himself by conscious and definitive choice.

Remember what our Lord said, "You cannot serve two masters.  Either you will hate the one and love the other or love the one and hate the other."

So, it is important to consider:  "Who is your master?"

Paul Rasavage