Holiness to the Lord
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Holiness is spiritual purity. Holiness is the absence of unclean spirits. To be holy is to be reserved to God for His own purposes.
The term "saint" means holy one. The members of the Church have been called out of the world in order that they may belong to God in a special way. They form a holy priesthood.
We are not made holy by imputation (assigned righteousness) except in the sense that those who receive Jesus are counted as holy because of their faith in Him. But we must continue in the sanctifying influences of the Holy Spirit. If we do not we soon lose the initial holiness that was given to us when we received the Lord.
The true saints continue to be washed in the blood of the Lamb. The Christians continue to be delivered from sin by the power of the Holy Spirit and by the abiding Presence of Christ Himself.
Each member of the Wife of the Lamb, the Body of Christ, will be perfectly holy. Inside the walls of the new Jerusalem there will be nothing that defiles—no unclean spirits of any kind whatever. There will be no lust, no lying, no fear, no unbelief, no violence, no hatred, no malice, no idolatry, no covetousness, no sorcery, no drunkenness, no stealing.
The Lord Jesus is perfectly holy. He will judge every spirit of the members of His Body until each saint is as He is—holy and free from unclean spirits.
All that is unclean will be outside the walls. Nothing unclean will be permitted to enter the new Jerusalem unto the ages of ages. The kings and priests of God must be holy for they will stand in the Presence of God for eternity. They, along with the seraphim, will cry, "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts."
One of the greatest mistakes in Christian thinking is the belief that people who are "saved by grace" will compose the holy city. The expression "saved by grace" is employed today to mean our sins are covered so God no longer sees us as we are.
If the new Jerusalem consists of people who still are sinning, who still are self-willed, but who are forgiven through Christ, then the new Jerusalem is holy by imputation (assigned righteousness) but unholy in actuality. That would be the same condition that exists today in the churches.
Such is not the case. The new Jerusalem is not unholy. There are no unclean spirits dwelling there. The redemption that is in Christ is not complete until we have been delivered totally from all that is of Satan and of our self-will. Until we have been made perfect by the working of Christ we cannot be part of the holy city.
In that day shall there be upon the bells of the horses, Holiness Unto The Lord; and the pots in the Lord’s house shall be like the bowls before the altar. Yea, every pot in Jerusalem and in Judah shall be holiness unto the Lord of hosts: and all they that sacrifice shall come and take of them, and seethe therein: and in that day there shall be no more the Canaanite in the house of the Lord of hosts. (Zechariah 14:20,21)
The new Jerusalem is composed of the spirits of righteous men "made perfect."
To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, (Hebrews 12:23)
The Scriptures speak of a perfected Bride:
That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish. (Ephesians 5:27)
The ministries of the ascended Christ shall continue to operate until every member of the Body of Christ has been brought to perfection.
Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: (Ephesians 4:13)
We believe the above passage indicates that the work of perfecting the saints will continue in the spirit realm after we die, for it is obvious that the members of the churches on earth are nowhere near the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.
It seems that a firstfruits of the Church will regain their bodies at the appearing of Jesus, and that the overcomers not only will rule the nations of saved peoples of the earth but also will assist in bringing to perfection the weaker members of the Body who were not qualified to be glorified in body at the time the Lord returned.
The Body of Christ, the Wife of the Lamb, the new Jerusalem, will be brought to perfection before it descends from the new heaven.
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