Teaching from the Mountainside - Pt. 7

 

[Jesus said] “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” (Matthew 5:8 ESV).

 

In Jesus’ Teaching from the Mountainside he simply says purity of heart is an essential in the kingdom of God. It is rare to really see something that is truly pure.  We imagine some things to be pure when in actuality they are not. Other things are partly pure.  Streams and rivers were no doubt meant to be pure, but today many of them flow with a high percentage of bacteria and impurities that are quite harmful to us. The church was meant to be pure, but even it is often marked by impurity and failure.

 

We are told to “just follow your heart!” In the face of a tough decision we’re sometimes encouraged to do this and we tend to base our decision on what feels best at the moment. Often we confuse “heart” with emotion or sentiment. So when Jesus invites us to treasure a pure heart as a quality of life in the kingdom of God, we may not immediately grasp what he is saying.

 

In the Bible, the heart is the center of one’s being. It’s where the will, intellect, and emotions intersect. What we value in our heart sets the course for how we live our life - how we spend our money, form relationships, and make decisions. The condition of our heart is immensely important. A person with a pure heart is one who is undefiled by sin. The Bible tells us that only those who have no sin in their heart are fit for God’s presence. That would be cause for despair, but the Bible also assures us that no one except Jesus has a pure heart. His life was perfect in every way, and yet for our sake he was willingly banished from God’s sight, as if he had an impure and imperfect heart.

If you believe the gospel, you are cleansed from your sin and impurity, and you receive the gift of a pure heart.

 

The natural heart of man is bent on evil, but God desires to give each of us a new heart – a pure heart.  God desires that we have a spiritual “heart transplant.”  The Lord says in Ezekiel 36:26, “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.“ As Christians we call this the new birth, and we believe it comes by accepting Jesus and allowing him to take up residence within our innermost being.  It was for this purpose that he died.  He “…gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good” (Titus 2:14). If you are in Christ, one day you will see God!