I suppose those who think they are going to heaven when they die have given some thought as to what their first action will be when they get there. Some may figure some loved one will be waiting for them, and that there will immediately be lots of hugs and kisses. I can understand that all of us will be excited to see those dear mothers, fathers, children and friends who have preceded us to heaven maybe many years before. We really cannot assume with accuracy what our first experience will be in heaven. I think our first act in heaven will be something very different than a warm reunion with our relatives.
The Bible tells us something about what is continuously going on in heaven. Isaiah chapter 6 says that Isaiah mentioned that he saw the Lord high and lifted up seated on a throne. That was Isaiah’s first experience of heaven. He saw the six winged seraphim standing or flying above God calling to one another over and over again, “Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God Almighty, the whole earth is filled with his glory.” Isaiah’s response to all of this was to recognize his unworthiness to be in the presence of the holy God. He didn’t mention seeing any relative or good friend.
What we must understand is that heaven is about God, not us. Heaven is about God’s holiness, not about the selfish desires that had often defined our humanity. Heaven is about worshiping the Lord our God. God will certainly welcome us when we get to heaven, but his welcome will be the most glorious event that we have ever seen. It will be beyond anything you or I can imagine. Our immediate reaction when we get to heaven will be one of humble adoration and praise.
I heard an illustration that describes why the seraphim were saying, Holy, Holy Holy, three times the word holy, not just one.
In Isaiah’s day if a person fell in a shallow hole he would say, I fell in a hole.” No big deal. He got up and went on his way. If he fell in a hole that was deeper he would explain what happened by saying, “I fell in a hole, a hole.” Mentioning his experience by saying the word hole twice would indicate that he may have needed a little help getting out, but he did finally get out of the hole. But if the man fell in a really deep hole, deep enough to injure himself, or maybe he was not able to get out, the incident might be reported by someone else and they would say, “He fell into a hole, a hole, a hole.” To repeat something three times indicated in that time that, in this case, the hole was as big as it could have been. This may seem funny or weird, but for people in that day when they heard Isaiah’s account of what he saw and heard they understood that God’s holiness was beyond anything they could imagine.
People in our society are not concerned about God or his holiness. They are concerned about their rights, their pleasure, being number one, being noticed. Their God is whatever is humanistic. They have no concern for the sanctity of life, just their rights to do what they want to do anytime they want to do it. The liberal slant toward godly values is a slap in the face of God. But God is Holy, Holy, Holy and he is sovereign. He is ruler over all the earth. Understanding and accepting His holiness as the guiding factor in our lives will change the direction of our thinking and our actions. But don’t fret about the delay of your family reunion when you get to Heaven. There will be plenty of time for that in our eternal home.
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