First Great Deception
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perversity; but the decisive hour will come at last, when their destiny
is to be decided. Will he then chain these rebels to his side? Will he
force them to do his will?
Those who have chosen Satan as their leader, and have been con-
trolled by his power, are not prepared to enter the presence of God.
Pride, deception, licentiousness, cruelty, have become fixed in their
characters. Can they enter Heaven, to dwell forever with those whom
they despised and hated on earth? Truth will never be agreeable to
a liar; meekness will not satisfy self-esteem and pride; purity is not
acceptable to the corrupt; disinterested love does not appear attractive
to the selfish. What source of enjoyment could Heaven offer to those
who are wholly absorbed in earthly and selfish interests?
Could those whose lives have been spent in rebellion against God
be suddenly transported to Heaven, and witness the high, the holy
state of perfection that ever exists there,—every soul filled with love;
every countenance beaming with joy; enrapturing music in melodious
strains rising in honor of God and the Lamb; and ceaseless streams
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of light flowing upon the redeemed from the face of Him who sitteth
upon the throne,—could those whose hearts are filled with hatred of
God, of truth and holiness, mingle with the heavenly throng and join
their songs of praise? Could they endure the glory of God and the
Lamb?—No, no; years of probation were granted them, that they might
form characters for Heaven; but they have never trained the mind to
love purity; they have never learned the language of Heaven, and now
it is too late. A life of rebellion against God has unfitted them for
Heaven. Its purity, holiness, and peace would be torture to them; the
glory of God would be a consuming fire. They would long to flee from
that holy place. They would welcome destruction, that they might be
hidden from the face of Him who died to redeem them. The destiny of
the wicked is fixed by their own choice. Their exclusion from Heaven
is voluntary with themselves, and just and merciful on the part of God.
Like the waters of the flood, the fires of the great day declare
God’s verdict that the wicked are incurable. They have no disposi-
tion to submit to divine authority. Their will has been exercised in
revolt; and when life is ended, it is too late to turn the current of their
thoughts in the opposite direction,—too late to turn from transgression
to obedience, from hatred to love.