Little children, let no man deceive you: he that does righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous.
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Augustine of Hippo
AD 430
What, on hearing that we are righteous as He is righteous, are we to think ourselves equal with God? You must know what means that as: thus he said a while ago, Purifies himself even as He is pure. Then is our purity like and equal to the purity of God, and our righteousness to God's righteousness? Who can say this? But the word as, is not always wont to be used in the sense of equality. As, for example, if, having seen this large church, a person should wish to build a smaller church, but with the same relative dimensions: as, for example, if this be one measure in width and two measures in length, he too should build his church one measure in width and two measures in length: in that case one sees that he has built it as this is built. But this church has, say, a hundred cubits in length, the other thirty: it is at once as this, and yet unequal. You see that this as is not always referred to parity and equality. For example, see what a difference there is between the face of a man an...
Little children, let no man deceive you. Neither Simon nor the Gnostics, who teach that a man is justified by faith only, and that good works are not required in order to his justification, and that if a man retains faith he can love as he pleases. S. Peter, James , and John , all of them opposed this heresy.
He that doeth righteousness is righteous. Not merely some works of righteousness, but perfect and entire righteousness. For no one can completely fulfil the law of God, unless by grace and love, which the righteous alone has. See James 2:10.
(2.) S. John here contrasts the children of God, and the children of the devil. See above ii29. He here speaks of righteousness, in a general sense, as the aggregate of all virtues.
(3.) He who doeth righteousness is righteous, because his Acts , which flow from a habit of righteousness, prove him to be righteous; and they also gain for him an increase of righteousness. And also because he should ever exercise himself in works of righteous...
