Holy Places

What do we imagine when we see the words “holy place”? There are those who claim to have located the birthplace of Jesus, the very cross He hung on, or even where His blessed mother saw the angel Gabriel. These and many more places would be considered holy. Thousands of visitors travel to the Holy Land each year in hopes of seeing, touching, and photographing their visit to the places where Jesus walked.

In Matthew chapter 24, the disciples asked Jesus to tell them when the end of the world will be. He told them not to be troubled, but to expect wars, and rumors of wars, famines, pestilences and earthquakes. Great sorrows will be the lot for members of the church who will be hated and killed, for His name's sake.

This will cause many of the members of the church to hate and betray each other. False prophets shall arise and many will follow after them. So wicked shall men be that the natural love for their brothers and sisters, spouses and children will vanish.

But at this same time, there will be those who will endure it well, and the true gospel will be preached throughout the world. Many will accept it, and a righteous people will be prepared to meet Christ at His second coming. But He warned in verse 15, “stand in the holy place”.

When Christ refers to the holy place, what place is He speaking of? It is doubtful that there is one single location, for the righteous are spread throughout the world. There must be a way to have any of God's select children find refuge in a place of holiness.

Zech. 14:20-21

“there [shall] be upon the bells of the horses, HOLINESS UNTO THE LORD. … Yea, every pot in Jerusalem and in Judah shall be holiness unto the Lord of hosts.”

Zechariah records that throughout Jerusalem there will be proclamation of holiness. All that reverence the Lord may show it outwardly. And those who see the signs may or may not agree with the message. It will anger some, and violence will follow. This will happen all over the world. All of God's children will take sides, being for or against the followers of the Lord. But what is most important is the inward proclamation. Paul wrote to Timothy that we must strive for holiness by being “an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity.”(1 Tim. 4:12) This will make us inwardly holy before the Lord.

As we train our tongue, become charitable in our heart, listen to the holy spirit, build up our faith, and purify our very soul, we make ourselves holy. And the process of purifying ourselves prepares us for His coming.

Psalms 24

3 Who shall ascend into the hill of the Lord? or who shall stand in his holy place?

4 He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully.

We live day by day in a manner that either prepares us to figuratively “stand in His holy place” or spiritually drive us away. On the game board of life, each thought, each choice, each action moves our piece closer or farther from the final goal. If we are to win, then a consistent forward progression is required.

Every mistake must be counter-balanced by a renewed effort to do better, to move forward toward His holy place.

1 Cor. 3

17 If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.

There are two areas that we may focus on to help us be holy. The first is where we live. Our home is a temple of sorts. It is where we and our family reside. It provides a major influence on our inner self. We must keep it pure. Evil words, inappropriate music, suggestive videos, off-color conversations all drive us, and those we live with, far from the spirit, and thus from His holy place.

To improve our home environment, we should have good music, friendly conversation, wholesome activities, clean surroundings, prayer, and sharing of the word of the Lord. These things bless our home and those in it with a closeness to the spirit. They strengthen our unity, and our resolve to be pure and holy. They point us toward His holy place, and give us incentive to go forward as a family.

The second area is our bodies. As Paul pointed out, our own bodies are God's temples. He created us, and we are His greatest joy. His work and glory is indeed to bless us with the same life that He has attained. Like any other parent, He wants us to make good decisions and follow His example. Part of that is in learning how to treat our bodies.

Good food, regular exercise, wholesome activities, and following His commands in life-style choices all contribute to keeping our bodies pure and strong. To do otherwise is to defile the temple of our God. Looking back to when Jesus chased out those who defiled God's temple in Jerusalem, it will be remembered that when it was cleansed, He then taught. He could not teach in an unholy place. As long as it was filthy, the Holy Ghost could not reside. It is the same with our own bodies. To make them holy, they must be kept clean in body and mind.

So, how do we prepare to meet the Lord? We keep our homes our bodies, and our minds clean and ready to stand by Him. If we do these things, the angels of God will protect us, and we will be kept from the harmful ways of Satan. We will be privileged to greet our master, and with tears in our eyes, thank Him for all He has done in our behalf.