1 Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God! Therefore the world does not know us, because it did not know Him. 2 Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. 3 And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure. John 3:1-3 (NKJV)

The majority of Biblical Scholars agree that the John who writes this Epistle is the same St. John who wrote the fourth Gospel. This is the ninth of a series of Devotions on the First Epistle of John. Previous devotions can be found in the Archives. It is my hope that as we meditate on St. John’s Epistle, where the keynote is Love, that together we can grow in our Love of God.

An often asked question is, "What will we look like in Heaven?" I don’t know of any place in Scripture where we are given a clear answer. I don’t know if St. John was answering a question or just teaching when he wrote these words. I do know that there are two statements that help me with the question.

First of all he wrote, "we shall be like Him." This statement will mean nothing to those who do not know or believe in God. To those who know and believe in God, they are able to begin to build a profile. No, we can’t build a physical profile, but does that matter? We often use the phrase, "Beauty is only skin deep" to indicate that it is not what we see that makes the person; it is that which comes from within. If we use this thinking, then we can begin to build a profile of what God is like. It will not be complete; in fact, it may only scratch the surface of describing God, but it will be a start.

Secondly, St. John wrote, "for we shall see Him as He is. And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure." When we begin to put the profile of God together, based on what we know of Him, the purity of God seems to grow and grow in our minds. Just as we desire to have the qualities of God, we then also want to be pure like He is. Even though we want to be pure, we often fail. But, take heart. Don’t put your emphasis on the times you have failed, place it on the times your have succeeded.

The important question is not, "What is God Like?" The more important desire is that we want to be like Him.

WE PRAY: Lord God, in this world, the focus is on the outer things such as beauty, wealth, and power. Help us to understand that the outer things will pass away with the world. Send your Holy Spirit upon us that we might eagerly seek the gifts that you have for us to share with others. AMEN

A SUGGESTION FOR LIVING THE COMMANDMENT

Develop a profile of what God is like. In a small notebook or a three by five card that you can carry in your pocket, list a quality of God and a Bible Verse that either mentions that quality or shows that quality in action. Here is the most obvious one -- you supply the Bible Verse:   God is Love.