Keep A Pure Heart!

“Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.” (Mat. 5:8)

I want to write, in quick succession, on two scriptures that the Lord has opened my eyes to see, of the Beatitudes that Jesus spoke on in Matthew chapter 5. The two are closely related.

The first blessing that I will talk about is in Matthew 5:8.

“Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.”

When I read this scripture my heart was overcome with unspeakable joy. The reason for this was because the revelation of this scripture came with a question: Is it possible to maintain a pure heart in all situations?

And the answer that came was a resounding yes. Yes, it is possible for a believer to keep his or her heart pure in every situation under the earth. The Bible tells us about our Lord Jesus Christ, that He

“… was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.” (Heb. 4:15)

Jesus has called us to be His disciples (Mat. 16:24). The meaning of the word “disciple” is a follower. The reason Jesus was tempted in all points was not so we could cheer Him from afar; rather, notice, it was “like as we are”, meaning it was so we could follow in His footsteps. Jesus was identified with us in every point in order that we, too, could identify ourselves with Him. It is for this reason that the Apostle Paul was able to crucify his life with Christ (Gal. 2:20).

Through His sacrifice Jesus has made it possible for us to identify our lives with His “in every point”.

I rejoiced greatly upon reading Matthew 5:8, but not because I have become perfect therein. I have undergone epic failures in this “field”. One of the most horrid experiences that I had involved an incident where someone verbally attacked me. It was so sudden and so unexpected – and, quite obviously, keeping a pure heart was nowhere near the range of priorities that I had at that time. All my defenses were wide open and the enemy came in and did me a lot of spiritual and physical harm. Thankfully, I have been set free from that incident.

But many more instances come up where my heart is tested daily. The enemy will never give up, and we are not to let down our guard, even for a second!

But the joy that I had upon reading Matthew 5;8 came because of the challenge. When an athlete sees an obstacle ahead of him, he feels the pull to overcome it. This was the reason I rejoiced. It is not easy but we must strive to keep our hearts pure at all times.

Again I ask: is it really possible to keep our hearts pure in each and every situation?

Such a simple question, and yet so profound. But the answer lies in what our Lord Jesus Christ was able to do. And scripture tells us that He went through all the situations that we go through

“yet without sin.”

That’s deep food for thought.

Circumstances will come, situations will arise. Some will be very personal. Like the case where someone looked Jesus in the eye and spat on His face. Or when they mocked Him as He hung on the cross, suffering unbearable pain.

What a challenge that was! But Jesus overcame it. He overcame it by guarding His heart.

But if we are overcome with the thrill of the challenge to keep our hearts pure in every circumstance, imagine then the reward that comes with it, that we read of in the second part of that scripture.

It says:

“… for they shall see God.” (Mat. 5:8)

Imagine… seeing God. What an incredible blessing! This singular prospect should invoke the highest and truest emotion in us.

But what exactly does it mean to “see God”?

Notice it says “Blessed”. A blessing has been pronounced upon the believer who keeps their heart pure.

It means, simply, that we shall see God moving on our behalf. The glory of God shall overshadow our lives. Our God is a glorious God. He is the King of Glory. We shall therefore experience a victorious Christian life. That is, victorious in every aspect. (But we should not confuse victory here with the carnal charismatic teachings of God’s “favor” and the prosperity gospel).

Too many Christians miss the blessing and the victory of God upon their lives simply because they harbor impure things in their hearts. Too many live spiritually hard and difficult lives because they have been unable to let things go. Unfortunately, God cannot deny Himself, and He cannot shine His glory on a believer who cannot keep their heart pure.

Many have been taught that prayer brings the victory. But if your heart is not pure you can pray your way into the outermost cosmos, and God will not hear you.

Others believe in ministry, etc., etc., etc.

We should stop these things.

I love the finality and authority that God has. Keeping our hearts pure is not an option, it is a command. It is a command whose fulfilment on our part reins in the most fantastically impossible blessing.