“Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God,” says Jesus in Matthew 5:8. The Message puts it slightly differently: “You’re blessed when you get your inside world—your mind and heart—put right. Then you can see God in the outside world.”
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The word blessed here is also often translated as happy. The meaning is literally to become large when God extends His benefits. So we are filled when when are blessed, thus making us happy.
The world pure is katharós which means, “without mixture; what is separated (purged), hence “clean” (pure) because it is unmixed (without undesirable elements); (figuratively) spiritually clean because purged (purified by God), i.e. free from the contaminating (soiling) influences of sin.”
Kardía – heart means “the affective center of our being” and the capacity of moral preference (volitional desire, choice) desire-producer that makes us tick, i.e our “desire-decisions” that establish who we really are. Interesting note: kardía is mentioned over 800 times in Scripture, but never referring to the literal physical pump that drives the blood. That is, “heart” is only used figuratively both in the OT and NT.
To see, in this sense, is the word horáō – properly, see, often with metaphorical meaning: “to see with the mind” (i.e. spiritually see), i.e. perceive (with inward spiritual perception).
And of course, God – the creator and sustainer of all the universe.
The idea of purity is something that really is synonymous with Christianity in its’ earliest expressions. St. Peter quoted the book of Leviticus 11:44 when he said, it is written “Be holy as I (Christ) am holy. James says it in 1:27 when he defines pure religion as keeping oneself unspotted from the world. The concept of mixing and mingling with something dirty or impure obviously contaminates something that is pure. We already know that satan has been given great leeway over the earth, and as such, walks about like a roaring lion looking for those he can devour (I Peter 5:8). So the Christian quest for keeping one’s self unspotted from the contaminations of sin is continually in the forefronts of our minds. Paul speaks extensively about the battle in Romans 7-8-9. The battle against sin is constant, but should not be our focus. As we draw closer in our relationship with Jesus Christ, there is a physical reality shift. Basically the closer we get to Christ, the stronger the attraction toward him and the weaker the pull of the world. Conversely, the more we walk in the world, the greater its pull on us and the more difficult it becomes to see or hear God. Purity and holiness are something that we shall never fully achieve in our mortal bodies on this side of the second coming, but when we are caught up in the glory and are changed in the twinkling of an eye, as Paul says in I Cor. 15:52, we shall fully realize purity. Sin shall be no more. All that baggage that we carry – self condemnation, defeat, shame, doubt, unbelief, lust…and the list goes on… is gone and we can live fully free! We can experience a significant measure of freedom here on earth by getting mind renewal and walking in holiness to the best of our finite ability, but there…wow.
Dave Ramer spoke about this on Sunday and he said that this concept transcends just morality, but it will touch every part of your heart (the center of who you are). He went on to say that there are three areas in which we experience the world: thinking, feeling, behaving.
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Behavior is our methods – how do we remain pure in this area? Do we behave without manipulation, distorting the truth? How do we act on what our thoughts are telling us?
Thinking is our morality. This is where we must resist the lusts that war against us. 2 Cor 10:5, 1 Peter 2:11.
Feelings are our motives. Emotions are powerful – both positive and negative. They can be motivators. They can causes us to procrastinate when we don’t “feel” like doing something that our mind is telling us we should. Intimate connection with God will transform our emotions which will end in us walking in His perfect peace and staying steady with eyes firmly fixed on Him, not giving way to every wave of drama, but living consistent lives.
“If you want too go deep in God, purity is the vehicle that will take you there.” The pure will have an increased capacity to experience God. This is an amazing promise! In our spirits is where the Holy Spirit dwells and in that place we are righteous. The body, mind, will and emotions is where that battle is fought and where the struggle for purity ensues. Hebrews 12:14 tells us to pursue holiness and purity because without it, no one will see The Lord. If our eyes our pure – focused – our whole body will be full of light! Gazing on the beauty of The Lord, seeking Him with all we are… this is where our quest for purity must rest! We must be ever mindful that the stuff of this world is a pale counterfeit for the genuine purity that is achieved by traveling the road less travelled by, as it were. The narrow road leading ever upward, twisting and turning down steep valleys and up lofty mountain peaks until one day it reaches the end…the white shores of an endless sea of glass.
It’s my desire. It’s my battle and my struggle. The old song says, “I get knocked down, but I get up again.” They must have been quoting Paul in 2 Cor. 4:9 because he said the same thing! And that is how we know we are still in the fight. We get back up, we keep swinging. Proverbs 24 says, “though a righteous man may fall seven times, he gets back up.” That’s the journey of purity! Get up! Keep going! Pursue it with all you are.