“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.” (Matthew 5:8)
I’ve always wondered what it would be like to see God. I wonder how He looks at me, and if He likes what He sees.
I want to know if my Father approves of what I’m doing and the way I’m living my life. And like a child, all I want is to hear Him tell me: “I’m proud of you.”
As long as I live in this world, I will constantly be at war against my own flesh. It will be hard to live pure – to remain undefiled by the things of the earth. My mind and conscience will constantly be tortured by the wayward ways of this world.
But the Beatitudes offer my motivation: Those with a pure heart will see God. Even in the fog of suffering and pain.
LIKE THE ONE YOU LOVE
When you love someone intensely and know them intimately, you start becoming more like them. Ever experienced this? You subconsciously start to mimic their actions until their habits become your habits. Over time, parts of their character will become inextricably yours.
I want to love Jesus to the point where I inevitably become more like Him. I want to be so saturated by His presence that everything else fades away. I want to be fully submerged into Him until every fibre of my being reflects His DNA, like a white cloth soaked in a pail of dye.
How can I see the Maker of the heavens and the earth? You guessed it – by having a pure heart (Psalm 24:3-4).
The concept of a pure heart sounds far-fetched. It even has an uncool ring to it. It gives the impression of being bland, boring and tasteless.
While those around us may offer harsh judgement, these are far outweighed by the perks of purity. When our hearts are pure, we unclog the passages through which purpose, joy and fulfilment from God freely flow.
God cleanses our hearts as we draw near to Him. Worshipping is a spiritual reboot for our spirit-man; we are replenished – reset – in His presence.
HOW TO POSTURE THE HEART FOR PURITY
1. To keep something pure, it cannot mix with impurities
Be set apart, as God has called you. Society’s cajoling can get loud and tempting, but stand your ground. Don’t conform to the world and its practices (Romans 12:2) – we get to know our Father’s will when we are transformed, with renewed minds.
The transformation happens from the inside out. As we seek to unroot habitual sin, we preserve our purity by fleeing from the desires of our flesh (Galatians 5:19-21), turning away from things like pornography, gossip, unforgiveness.
Retain the purity of your heart by keeping it unstained by the world, as we’re told in James 1:27.
2. Purify yourself with worship, the word, prayer
God cleanses our hearts as we draw near to Him (James 4:8). Worshipping is a spiritual reboot for our spirit-man; we are replenished – reset – in His presence.
We keep our hearts pure by living according to His word (Psalm 119:9). God longs to commune with us. When we read His word, we get to sit at His feet as He lays upon our hearts the things that He wants us to hear.
In prayer, we set our eyes on Jesus and not on the things around that are vying for our attention. So pray and ask God to create in you a pure heart (Psalm 51:10) as you learn how to lean on Him.
3. Work on the state of your heart
“The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” (1 Samuel 16:7)
It is what is inside – the state of our hearts – that truly determines how spotless we are before God, not how we appear on the outside. So guard your heart, and guard it well.
In Luke 6:44-45, it says that a tree can be judged by its fruits. So work on your character; allow your tree to bear the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23).
4. Watch your mouth
Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks. We grieve the Spirit when we are loose with our lips; better to make friends with the King, no? “One who loves a pure heart and who speaks with grace will have the king for a friend.” (Proverbs 22:11)
If we are not careful, our tongues have the propensity to defile us (Matthew 15:11). So choose to let it bring healing instead of destruction (Proverbs 12:18).
Watch what you say. The tongue can corrupt the whole body (James 3:3-6); tame the tongue, so that purity will rule our hearts.
A consecrated and returned heart will catapult our prayers up to the heavens.
CONSECRATION VS CULTURE
“Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.” (Philippians 4:8)
We protect our purity by dwelling on the things that are pleasing to God.
This is difficult when apathy, cynicism and scepticism reign supreme in the culture and vocabulary of the world today. But a consecrated and returned heart will catapult our prayers up to the heavens.
And take heart that even if you’re struggling in your journey towards purity, God – in His mercy – will pardon us if our hearts are set on seeking Him (2 Chronicles 30:18-19).
Ignore the naysayers. Drown out the doubts. Consecrate your hearts and see for yourself who will have the upper hand as you watch God do amazing things in your life.
