Heaven: Undistracted Devotion to Jesus (Santosh Poonen)

“I expect to pass through this world but once. Any good, therefore, that I can do or any kindness I can show to any fellow creature, let me do it NOW. Let me not defer or neglect it for I shall not pass this way again” – Stephen Grellet (1773-1855). Under the Old Covenant, no one could behold the glory of God. Under the New Covenant, because the Spirit of the Lord is WITHIN us, we have liberty to behold His glory (II Corinthians 3:17-18)! This is why we must continually seek to be filled afresh with the Holy Spirit. To truly see Jesus is to be blind to all other sights; and to truly hear Jesus is to be deaf to all other voices (Matthew 17:5,8). "Turn your eyes upon Jesus, and the things of earth will grow strangely dim." How "dim" are the things of earth to someone who is actually in heaven in the physical presence of God? So dim that they would be like complete darkness! Spiritually, under the New Covenant, we too can increasingly enter into this undistracted life, while here on earth! Jesus is not preparing many holy individuals who will then reign with Him; but He is preparing ONE holy Bride (Ephesians 5:27). When God allows us to overcome in some area, let us not try to attach any glory to ourselves because of it. The best we had to offer Jesus was “our vile body” (Philippians 3:21). When we recognize that, it will preserve us in humility, so that Jesus can transform it to be conformed to the body of HIS glory.