free you from the dangerous state in which you are? Open at once the mouth you have kept closed so long, and bewail your sins, that you may free yourself from the evident danger of hell in which you are; for death can and perhaps will otherwise sur prise you in your present evil plight.
Although they know they may die at any moment. If you received a certain message from heaven telling you that you are to die to-morrow, or in a week, nay, even in a month, would you wait long before preparing yourself for death, and freeing your conscience from sin? My opinion is that you would begin at once to settle accounts with your Judge and to lead, for the rest of the time that is given you, a pious, Christian, humble, holy life, so that you may not be lost, but may be happy with God forever in heaven. Is not that the case? And yet you continue to sin, and intend to remain in the state of sin, although perhaps not a month, nor a week, nor a day, but only a few minutes of life remain to you. Imagine you are now on a bed of sickness; the doctors have given you up and say that you must certainly die in four hours unless a miracle is wrought in your favor; how would you spend those last hours? There is not a doubt that yon would look after the interests of your soul, that you would receive the last sacraments at once, make your will, and do all in your power to prepare for eternity. Is that not so? And why? Because you know that you must die in four hours, that it is all over with you, and that death is at hand. Quite right! Now how many sick people are there not, who according to the doctors were bound to die, and yet they have recovered and are still alive? Cases of the kind are countless. How many, on the other hand, have preserved their lives contrary to the declaration of God and of our faith? Not one. What do God and faith say? That you must die at an hour you know not; He does not fix for you four hours, like the doctors, but one hour, nay, one moment, and you know not when that shall come. If you believe the doctor when he tells you that you have four hours to live, and on the strength of his opinion prepare so carefully for death, why are you so negligent in preparing when God does riot promise you even one hour of life? Faith tells you that you cannot be safe from death for a single moment. How, then, can you dare to continue living as you have hitherto lived? How can you still persist in sinning? How can you be so presumptuous as to remain for one hour in the state of sin and yet expect to go to heaven?
