Quite often I come across Christians who wonder how they could ever be fit for heaven. They wonder, “If heaven is a perfect place and I am imperfect, how could I ever be allowed there?”
Jesus’ blood provides the way for us to be blameless, perfect and suited for heaven. It has been compared to liquid paper (“Wite Out”) used by secretaries, especially in the days of typewriters. The boss hires a secretary and expects her to turn out excellent work. But he knows that even while she strives for excellence, she will occasionally make a mistake. So, he provides “Wite Out” to her. The “Wite Out” is not provided to encourage mistakes but rather to cover them. One day she is typing and she notices that she has made a mistake. Immediately, she reaches for the “Wite Out,” blots out her mistake and then retypes. What is presented to the boss at the last? A perfect paper. It’s not perfect because she has been perfect but because she made use of the “Wite Out” and then retyped to get it right.
Likewise, you and I can be presented holy and blameless before Jesus on the judgment day. Each day, with the help of God, we strive to be like Jesus in every way. When we sin and fail to be like Him, we reach for His blood through prayer and ask God to blot out our mistakes. The Bible says, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). Once He has blotted out our sins, we then continue to be about the business of striving to be like Jesus—retyping, if you will.
The blood of Jesus, our special “Wite Out” keeps us perfect before God. It’s our progress in becoming more and more like Jesus that God wants to see. And when we have given our all to be like Jesus, God will cap it off at the last by making us just like Him—perfect and suited for heaven (1 John 3:2-3)
“Though your sins are like scarlet,
they shall be as white as snow”
(Isaiah 1:18).
- Jeff May