What does it matter? A question we have all asked at one point or another as we decide whether we should do something. If it is a good action, we worry that it won’t make enough of a difference to be worthwhile. If it is a bad action, we reassure ourselves that it won’t make enough of a difference to be worthwhile. Either way, we assume no one (or nearly no one) will care about our actions—no one that matters, at any rate.
Yet Paul’s words to the Romans in today’s first reading paint a different picture. Paul warns the Romans of “the just judgment of God, who will repay everyone according to his works” (Rm. 2:5-6). God knows every intimate detail about your life. He loves every good thing about you. Even the smallest good thing you have ever done will be treasured by Him at your inevitable judgment. And the evil you thought was well-hidden will likewise be assessed at the appropriate time. For good or for ill, none of us escapes the just judgment of God.