No Shoes in Heaven
I’m a tenderfoot, and I’ve never been comfortable going barefoot. Even when I was a little boy, I wanted my shoes. Growing up, I spent a lot of time rambling through the woods and pastures. Often, you could find me splashing in the creek, chasing crawfish and minnows. But I never took my shoes off.
As an adult, I still resist going barefoot. In Northeast Georgia, we are infested with fire ants. If you go outside without shoes, the fire ants will find you, and they’ll bite you. They live up to their name, because their bite feels like fire! But even when I walk around in the house, I feel more comfortable wearing shoes.
I think it is wise to wear shoes. And it is Biblical. When the prodigal son returned, his father put shoes on his feet. In Ephesians, we are told to put on shoes as we prepare to spread the gospel. John the Baptist wasn’t even qualified to untie Jesus’ shoes. And in the Song of Solomon, we read that women’s feet are beautiful in sandals. So yes, it is wise and Biblical to wear shoes.
However!
I have concluded that there will be no shoes in Heaven. After all, when Moses approached the burning bush, he was told to take off his sandals. He was standing on Holy Ground. When Joshua met the Commander of the Lord’s Army, he received an instruction. He was told, “Take off your sandals.” The place where he was standing is holy. Joshua did as he was told, because he was standing on Holy Ground.
So, when we reach Heaven, to borrow a phrase from Uncle Jed, I think we will “take our shoes off and set a spell.” Maybe we will run barefoot on the streets of gold and dip our toes in the Crystal Sea. When we raise our hands high to glorify Jesus, we will experience the wonder of God. It will flow from our fingertips to our tippy toes. Because there won’t be any shoes on our feet to keep us from feeling the Glory as we stand on Heaven’s Holy Ground.
From the Bible
“Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian. And he led the flock to the back of the desert, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. And the Angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire from the midst of a bush. So he looked, and behold, the bush was burning with fire, but the bush was not consumed.
Then Moses said, “I will now turn aside and see this great sight, why the bush does not burn.” So when the Lord saw that he turned aside to look, God called to him from the midst of the bush and said, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” Then He said, “Do not draw near this place. Take your sandals off your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground.”
Exodus 3:1-5 NKJV
https://bible.com/bible/114/exo.3.1-5.NKJV
Douglas & Deborah Huff
From Down Where the Pavement Ends
Email-douglas@pavementendsministry.com
