Verse 4

As I have already said, the apostle here not only speaks to us of the means, but of the source of our blessing in the unspeakable counsels of God, and of the end which God proposes to Himself; for it is said, " That ye may be holy and without blame before Him in love." This is the thought of God about us: He wishes to have us before Him, and to have us there happy and for Himself.
There is only one thing in which God does not suffice for Himself, and that is, in His love. His love has need of other beings besides Himself, in order to make them happy. He desires to have before Him beings in harmony with what He is, and He sets us before Him "holy and without blame." This is what He is Himself, He who is the Holy One, He who certainly is without blame; for it is impossible to find any fault in Him. He calls Himself the Holy One; He is love! Well! He sets us holy and without blame before Him in love. Precious And most important thought for us! He has resolved that the Church should be such that He could take delight in her, and behold in her, before Him, the reproduction of Himself, the most perfect happiness possible: He sets before Hirn beings like to Himself, in order to make them as happy as it is possible; He communicates to us His nature, and takes His delight in us. In order for that, He makes us " holy and without blame in love"; and these things are accomplished here below by the Spirit, though the effects are not fully shown till above in the place of perfectness. So, where is. our place even now below? Before Him; and this place is not a joy only, but the most precious thing that can be imagined, to be before Him!
We do not like to be before Him when we are not holy; but when the conscience is cleansed by the blood of Christ, we are truly happy before Him. In order that we may be happy before Him we must be holy, we must understand the tastes of the divine nature-our nature. We ourselves must find our happiness in being " holy and without blame in love." The apostle John shows in his first epistle (chap. 4:13), that the divine nature is produced in the Christian: the Christian has received God's own Spirit; it is a man who loves, and God is in him and he in God. What is granted is nothing less than the communication of the divine nature, by which we dwell in God, and God in us, " That we might be holy and without blame before Him in love."
What we shall be above ought to be our aim here below, not as a task imposed, but as being made partakers of the divine nature to the glory of God. Now if we would realize these things, our thoughts must be above, according to the nature of the grace which we have received. It is most strengthening for us to think of the things which are above-of their source, of Jesus, of the fulfillment of this purpose of God in glory.