Then there are the "mountains and hills," which must be made low. For oftentimes, when the Evil One sees that a man cannot be altogether discouraged from serving God, then he turns round and persuades him that he is serving God very well indeed; that he may be proud to think how often he has resisted temptation, how often overcome difficulties, how often done great things for Christ's sake.
So arise the vast mountains of pride and self-will and self-conceit. But be sure our Lord will not climb over these to come to you. You must first get them out of the way. They must be made low, if you would enter into life: for it is written, "God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace to the humble."
Then the "crooked places"—I suppose you know what they are—all crooked ways of lying and deceit and untruthfulness. We call a truthful person straightforward, because he does not turn about to this side or to that in what he says, but goes straight to the truth. Well, whatever is not straightforward is crooked, and the crooked path is one which Christ will not walk in. So we must try every day to go on more and more straightforwardly with what God would have us do, according to the saying in the Proverbs, "Let thine eyes look straight on, … decline not to the right hand, nor to the left, and the Lord will bring forward thy ways in peace."
Once more: there are the "rough places." Rough tempers, rough words, and rough manners; such feelings as spite, and anger, and ill nature, and revenge; as cutting and cruel words, and quarrelling and fighting. Such rough places must be made very plain and smooth if the road is to be fitted for the feet of our meek and gentle Lord.
And, lastly: "The glory of the Lord shall be revealed." So shall it indeed be to those that are found worthy to enter into the kingdom of heaven. But what that glory is who shall tell? St. John could not. "Beloved," he says, "we are now the sons of God; and it hath not yet appeared what we shall be." St. Paul could not, for when he was caught up into heaven he tells us that he heard words "which it is not granted to man to utter." Isaias could not. "From the beginning of the world," he says, "they have not heard; the eye hath not seen, O God! besides thee, what things thou hast prepared for them that wait for thee." All we know is, that this glory shall be very great. And if we serve God faithfully here we shall one day see it, and shall one day know. We shall awake after his likeness and be satisfied therewith.
Sermon IX.
Penance.
For now the axe is laid to the root of the tree.
—Matthew. iii. 10.