Works become holy when we incorporate the Blessed Trinity into our actions. They are not just tasks or gestures. They are movements of love, shaped by grace and offered back to God. While someone can do good works without consciously recognizing grace, we are always held in sanctifying grace – given freely by God, not earned. Because this grace is already present, the question of whether we can do good without it becomes less relevant. What matters is how we respond to the grace we’ve already received. We don’t earn grace through works, but we do deepen our participation in it.
Scripture reminds us not to seek worldly acknowledgment for our deeds. If we do, we’ve already received our reward. It is best to be quiet about our works, to live them humbly like in 1 Thessalonians:
“Aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we instructed you.”
—1 Thessalonians 4:11
I wrestle with works. In my heart, I believe it is our duty as Christians to tend to our fellow human beings. We are called to live the Beatitudes. Not outsource them to governments or charities or other people… It’s not someone else’s job. It’s OURS. And I know I lack woefully. I’ve looked over the corporal and spiritual works of mercy and seen how far I’ve fallen short. It saddens me deeply that I have not given to my Lord what is His—All of me.
Not just some of my time, but all.
Not just some of my words, but all.
But my whole heart, my whole life.
And yet, He still calls.
Still waits.
Still loves.
I remember someone once told me they didn’t want to help the less fortunate because they didn’t want to get their hands dirty. “Let the government do it for me,” they said. That may seem practical, but it lacks true love of neighbor. We are called to treat others as we would treat ourselves:
“You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”
—Mark 12:31
Saint Rose of Lima once said,
“Lord, our actions have meaning through you. It is our actions which express our love for you. Lord, let me never fail to see that stranger as one of yours.”
When I told my aunt, a nun, that I wanted to be a missionary, she said something that changed me:
“Start in your own backyard.”
That simple phrase opened my eyes to the suffering around me – in the streets, in our families, in our communities. It reminded me that loving like Christ begins close to home. It also reminded me that love doesn’t mean appeasing sin. We are called to live by the commandments and understand them more fully:
“If you love me, you will keep my commandments.”
—John 14:15
🧺 What Are These Works?
The Church teaches us about the Corporal and Spiritual Works of Mercy—acts of love that reflect Christ’s care for the body and soul. They’re not optional. They’re our Christian duty.
✨ Corporal Works of Mercy
These tend to the physical needs of others:
- Feed the hungry
- Give drink to the thirsty
- Clothe the naked
- Shelter the homeless
- Visit the sick
- Visit the imprisoned
- Bury the dead
Jesus speaks directly to these in Matthew’s Gospel:
“For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me,
I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.”
—Matthew 25:35–36
These works echo the Beatitudes:
“Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.”
—Matthew 5:7
“Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.”
—Matthew 5:4
🕊️ Spiritual Works of Mercy
These care for the soul:
- Instruct the ignorant
- Counsel the doubtful
- Admonish sinners
- Bear wrongs patiently
- Forgive offenses
- Comfort the sorrowful
- Pray for the living and the dead
Scripture calls us to build one another up:
“Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.”
—1 Thessalonians 5:11
And to restore others gently:
“Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness.”
—Galatians 6:1
These works reflect the Beatitudes too:
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.”
—Matthew 5:9
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.”
—Matthew 5:6
🕯️ Closing Reflection
We’ve looked at grace.
We’ve looked at works.
We’ve named what’s been given, and what’s been asked.
We’ve seen the ache of falling short, and the quiet courage of beginning again.
We’ve remembered that it is our hands, our hearts, our duty.
Not someone else’s.
Not someday.
Now.
We’ve seen the suffering in our own backyard.
We’ve heard the call to love—not by appeasing, but by living the commandments more fully.
We’ve remembered that mercy is not a feeling.
It’s a movement.
Some things are said.
Some things are done.
And some things are simply lived.
The next step isn’t a new idea.
It’s something already stirring.
Already known.
Already waiting to be named.
- Becoming a Saint in God’s Eyes Part 1
- Becoming a Saint, Part II: Grace in Motion
- Becoming a Saint in God’s Eyes: Part IV: The Journey Grace and Works Joined Together
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