Lucifer, as we’ve been told, was the most beautiful of all the angels. But when the angels and their followers fell, they became disembodied spirits. They fell into a spiritual void. Their state of disembodiment is precisely why they keep trying to possess bodies on Earth. They lost their heavenly perfected beauty of form and everything that goes with that supreme level of perfection.

That’s also why Satan had to appear in the Garden of Eden as a serpent. He had to possess the serpent, as he had no body of his own. In the garden, Adam and Eve spoke and interacted with animals just as people talk to each other, so Eve would have thought nothing of the serpent talking to her. We’ll be able to talk with animals again in Heaven – not like we do now (“Heel!” “Down, boy!” “Whoa!”), but full conversations.

In Heaven, everyone is beautiful. Not just the face, but the body as well. There are no flaws in anyone or anything in Heaven, and the state of perfection never ends. The perfected physical beauty is matched by athletic grace and skill that comes from a body in perfect proportions. For me, as someone who was born not beautiful and not athletic, these rewards in Heaven are a huge motivation. I don’t care if that makes me sound shallow. I would be lying if I said I didn’t want to be perfectly beautiful and perfectly athletic forever.

The physical perfection also translates to perfect pitch and perfect intonation. That’s why angels are such beautiful singers. If you make it to Heaven, you’ll sing like an angel, too, along with being beautiful and athletically gifted beyond anyone on Earth. All of your senses – hearing, vision, taste, etc. – will be perfected.

You’ll also have a beautiful speaking voice. The most beautiful voice I ever heard came from the heavenly spheres. I heard it while I was attending a church service in Toronto a few months after I was born again. Halfway through the sermon, I was suddenly struck by an intense pressure that pushed in on me from the outside while at the same time pushing out from the inside. I can’t describe it any other way. It threw me into a momentary tizzy, as I had no idea what was happening.

Then I heard the voice. It was beautiful beyond compare and spoke directly into my right ear (the one that doesn’t hear very well). The voice said: “Do not be afraid. I am with you.” I looked around, thinking there was someone behind me whispering directly into my ear, but there was no-one there. The pew to my right was empty, as were the pews several rows back.

The feeling of pressure disappeared as quickly as it had started and I was flooded with a glorious ecstasy. My childhood friend was sitting to my left. She was the only friend I had who was raised as a believer, so I’d made contact with her after I was born again.  She had graciously invited me to stay with her and even looked after me financially for a while. I glanced over at my friend, thinking she must have heard the voice, too, but she just smiled at me quizzically. I smiled and nodded back, saying nothing.

*****

What we know of Jesus during his time on Earth in a human body is that he was not good-looking. Isaiah says that Jesus had “no form or comeliness that we should desire him”. Being unattractive in a world that prizes physical beauty was part of his challenge in becoming the Messiah. Jesus chose this role knowing he would be unattractive, knowing he was handicapping himself right out of the gate. People wouldn’t follow him because of his good looks, but because they believed in him and knew he spoke the Truth.

Attractive people have a different experience of reality. I’m not particularly attractive, though I’ve learned how to create the illusion that I am. Some people in my family are model attractive, and I’ve seen up close and personal how differently the world responds to them than to me. I’m not jealous of their beauty, and in fact I used to use their looks to my advantage. They were my secret weapon. Their beauty and the social power it afforded them got me out of many scrapes when I was younger.

Beautiful people command respect without trying. People generally listen to them and do their bidding, and are more prone to giving them the benefit of the doubt. Their beauty gives them a natural authority that spills over into other areas like believing everything they tell you, even when it beggars belief. The most accomplished and successful liars I know are physically beautiful people.

Jesus did not have the advantage of beauty during his ministry years. If people listened to him, it was because of the Truth of his words. That same advantage – speaking God’s Truth – we can all have, regardless of how we look.

*****

By the way, Jesus is beautiful now. He started gaining his heavenly body after his resurrection, which is why none of his disciples or followers initially recognized him. If and when we make it to Heaven and we stand with Jesus face to face, we will see his beauty in all its glory. I am certain that even in a place of perfect beauty, Jesus is still the most beautiful of all.