many years this work has been in progress . Soon--none know how soon--it will pass to the cases of the living . In the awful presence of God our lives are to come up in review . At this time above all others it behooves every soul to heed the Saviour ' s admonition : " Watch and pray : for ye know not when the time is ." Mark 13:33 . " If therefore thou shalt not watch , I will come on thee as a thief , and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee ." Revelation 3:3 .
When the work of the investigative judgment closes , the destiny of all will have been decided for life or death . Probation is ended a short time before the appearing of the Lord in the clouds of heaven . Christ in the Revelation , looking forward to that time , declares : " He that is unjust , let him be unjust still : and he which is filthy , let him be filthy still : and he that is righteous let him be righteous still : and he that is holy , let him be holy still . And , behold , I come quickly ; and My reward is with Me , to give every man according as his work shall be ." Revelation 22:11 , 12 .
The righteous and the wicked will still be living upon the earth in their mortal state-- men will be planting and building , eating and drinking , all unconscious that the final , irrevocable decision has been pronounced in the sanctuary above . Before the Flood , after Noah entered the ark , God shut him in and shut the ungodly out ; but for seven days the people , knowing not that their doom was fixed , continued their careless , pleasure-loving life and mocked the warnings of impending judgment . " So ," says the Saviour , " shall also the coming of the Son of man be ." Matthew 24:39 . Silently , unnoticed as the midnight thief , will come the decisive hour which marks the fixing of every man ' s destiny , the final withdrawal of mercy ' s offer to guilty men .
" Watch ye therefore : . . . lest coming suddenly He find you sleeping ." Mark 13:35 , 36 . Perilous is the condition of those who , growing weary of their watch , turn to the attractions of the world . While the man of business is absorbed in the pursuit of gain , while the pleasure lover is seeking indulgence , while the daughter of fashion is arranging her adornments--it may be in that hour the Judge of all the earth will pronounce the sentence : " Thou art weighed in the balances , and art found wanting ." Daniel 5:27 .
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