In his book Talks...
Illustration
In his book Talks To Teachers on Psychology, William James has a chapter titled, "The Laws of Habit." In it James wrote: "The drunken Rip Van Winkle, in Jefferson's play, excuses himself for every fresh dereliction by saying, 'I won't count this time.' Well, he may not count it, and a kind of heaven may not count it; but it is being counted nonetheless. Down among his nerve-cells and fibers, the molecules are counting it, registering and storing it up to be used against him when the next temptation comes. Nothing we can ever do is, in strict scientific literalness, wiped out." Your characteristic behavior is being counted, too. It will become the basis of the judgment. The sun shines on mud and softens it. The sun shines on clay and hardens it. So, in Malachi's vision, the day of the Lord shines on some and burns them up. It shines on others like the healing rays of the sun.
