DP 221 - A Person Is Admitted No More Interiorly into Truths of Faith and Goods of Charity than the Extent to Which He Can Be Maintained in Them to the End of His Life

DP  221

In the Christian world people know
that the Lord wills the salvation of all,
and moreover that He is omnipotent.
Many therefore conclude from this
that the Lord can save everyone,
and that He saves those who implore His mercy,
especially those who implore it
using the formula of the accepted faith,
that God the Father may have mercy
for the sake of the Son,
particularly if they implore Him at the same time
to grant them that faith.

But the case is quite different . . .
the Lord cannot act contrary
to the laws of His Divine providence,
because to act contrary to them
would be to act against His Divine love
and against His Divine wisdom,
thus against Himself.
. . . such mercy apart from means is not possible,
because a person's salvation
is accomplished through means,
and a person can be led in accordance with these means
only by one who wills the salvation of all
and who is at the same time omnipotent,
thus the Lord.

The means by which a person is led by the Lord
are what we call laws of Divine providence,
and among them is this one,
that a person is not admitted more interiorly
into truths of wisdom and goods of love
than the extent to which
he can be maintained in them to the end of his life.
But to make this apparent to reason,
we need to explain it
in accordance with the following outline:

(1) A person may be admitted
into wisdom regarding spiritual matters
and also into a love for them and yet not be reformed.

(2) If the person afterward turns away from these
and goes off in the opposite direction,
he profanes things that are sacred.

(3) There are many kinds of profanation,
but this kind is the worst of all.

(4) Therefore the Lord admits a person
no more interiorly into truths of wisdom
and at the same time goods of love
than the extent to which he can be maintained in them
to the end of his life.