not been repented of and forsaken will not be pardoned and blotted out of the books of record , but will stand to witness against the sinner in the day of God . He may have committed his evil deeds in the light of day or in the darkness of night ; but they were open and manifest before Him with whom we have to do . Angels of God witnessed each sin and registered it in the unerring records . Sin may be concealed , denied , covered up from father , mother , wife , children , and associates ; no one but the guilty actors may cherish the least suspicion of the wrong ; but it is laid bare before the intelligences of heaven . The darkness of the darkest night , the secrecy of all deceptive arts , is not sufficient to veil one thought from the knowledge of the Eternal . God has an exact record of every unjust account and every unfair dealing . He is not deceived by appearances of piety . He makes no mistakes in His estimation of character . Men may be deceived by those who are corrupt in heart , but God pierces all disguises and reads the inner life .
How solemn is the thought ! Day after day , passing into eternity , bears its burden of records for the books of heaven . Words once spoken , deeds once done , can never be recalled . Angels have registered both the good and the evil . The mightiest conqueror upon the earth cannot call back the record of even a single day . Our acts , our words , even our most secret motives , all have their weight in deciding our destiny for weal or woe . Though they may be forgotten by us , they will bear their testimony to justify or condemn .
As the features of the countenance are reproduced with unerring accuracy on the polished plate of the artist , so the character is faithfully delineated in the books above . Yet how little solicitude is felt concerning that record which is to meet the gaze of heavenly beings . Could the veil which separates the visible from the invisible world be swept back , and the children of men behold an angel recording every word and deed , which they must meet again in the judgment , how many words that are daily uttered would remain unspoken , how many deeds would remain undone .
In the judgment the use made of every talent will be scrutinized . How have we employed the capital lent us of Heaven ? Will the Lord at His coming receive His own with usury ? Have we improved the powers entrusted us , in hand and heart and brain , to the glory of God and the blessing of the world ? How have we used our time , our pen , our voice , our money , our influence ? What have we done for Christ , in the person of the poor , the afflicted , the orphan , or the widow ? God has made us the depositaries of His holy word ; what have we done with the light and truth given us to make men wise unto salvation ? No value is attached to a mere profession of faith in Christ ; only the love which is shown by works is counted genuine . Yet
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