Heaven, A Holy Place
Jesus said, “Do not let your
hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in
Me. In My Father’s house are many rooms; if it
were not so, I would have told you. I am going
there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and
prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to
be with Me that you also may be where I am. You
know the way to the place where I am going… I
am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes
to the Father except through Me.” (John 14:1-4, 6)
The Holy Scriptures teach clearly that
heaven is a real place, a permanent place and a personal
place. It is also a holy place. The writer of
the book of Hebrews tells us this powerful truth about
the character of those who will be in heaven, “Make every effort
to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without
holiness no one will see the Lord.” (Hebrews 12:14) The
Holy Spirit moved the apostle Peter to write, “…just as He
who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it
is written: Be holy, because I am holy.” (1 Peter 1:16)
Holiness embraces purity and moral
integrity. Those called to be God’s children
are to be like Christ. Peter used the word
“called” (Greek kaleo) meaning a divine calling to
partake of the blessings of redemption. Theologians tell
us that the word “called” as used by the
apostle Peter is a Divine Grace that is sure to produce.
The blood of Christ is not a cover of sin but a
purifying source that will cleanse all sin from those who
come to Jesus in repentance and receive Him as Savior and
Lord.
In the New Testament the apostle
Peter wrote powerfully and boldly about holiness because
it is the attribute of God. The Old Testament also
contains many Scriptures that speak directly about what
God says about Himself, “Be holy, because
I, the Lord your God, am holy.” (Leviticus 19:2)
Holiness means total separation from that
which is profane or wicked in God’s sight.
God--Father, Son and Spirit--is the depiction of
righteousness, purity and sinlessness. He is also
the embodiment of absolute perfection, completeness and
fulfillment. Jesus Christ is the perfect picture of
total separation, unaffected by this world’s
philosophies. He lived a victorious life over the flesh
and defeated Satan’s temptations with the Word of
God. Jesus is in heaven and the blessing of being
in heaven means to be where He is. There is no sin in
heaven, thus, there are no consequences of sin. The
blessing of being in heaven is enjoying perfection and
absolute separation unto God and Christ Jesus.
On earth we are often exposed to the lures
of sin and must live with consequences of it. Down
here the apostle Paul says we see but a poor reflection
and we know only in part. In heaven we will know
perfection and completeness. Here we are always looking
for fulfillment in some way. In heaven we will know true
and everlasting fulfillment.
The simplest understanding of holiness is
that of loving conformity to God’s commands and to
His Son. Heaven is where God is who is holy; and
the people who are there with Him are those who long in
their hearts and lives for the holiness of God. The ones
who are in heaven know the truths of 1 John 1:9,
“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and
just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all
unrighteousness.”
They have offered their bodies as living sacrifices, holy
and pleasing to God. (Romans 12:1-2)
Will you join the multitude who have
chosen Christ and the holiness of God? Heaven
awaits all who have.
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