April 3

Pursue peace with everyone, as well as holiness, without which no one will see the Lord. — Heb 12:14 BSB

Possessing holiness is a necessary and indispensable requirement for inheriting the kingdom of the saints in light. But this fitness must be wrought in us by the power of God’s grace, for in ourselves we have no such fitness. Consider its necessity. What happiness could we possibly find in heaven unless we had the nature to enjoy it? Unless we are made capable of seeing Christ as He is and enjoying His presence forever, heaven would hold no delight for us. Nothing unclean or unholy can enter there. Sanctification, therefore, must be wrought in us by the power of God to make us fit for this heavenly inheritance. For this reason, He communicates His Spirit and grace to give us heavenly affections, holy desires, gracious thoughts, tender feelings, and above all, that love whereby we love Him as the altogether lovely One.

Through the sanctifying work of His Spirit, He separates us from all evil, plants His fear deep in our hearts, making it a fountain of life that helps us avoid the snares of death. He works in us a conformity to His suffering image here so that we may be conformed to His glorified image hereafter. There is, therefore, both a perfect and an imperfect sanctification—perfect by imputation, imperfect in its present workings. But the one is the pledge of the other. As surely as Christ now represents His people in heaven as their holy Head, so will He bring them to be forever with Him in those abodes of perfect holiness and happiness that He has prepared for them, mansions of eternal light and love.