Blessed are the pure in heart!

"Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God." (Matthew 5:8)

Watching the debate about morality and public integrity in our country is confusing. Most of us who live in South Africa like to think of ourselves as moral individuals. Yet, we time and again re-elect into power leaders who seemingly struggle with the demand to provide leadership that ensures protection of the vulnerable against the greed of the powerful!

While we may be able to impact the behaviour of individuals in our society by the restrictions of law, we will never be able to change the essence of a person's morality in that way. Limiting what a person can do outwardly does not change who that person is inwardly. Behaviour flows from the inward nature of an individual. You might say that is it a matter of the heart. It is a matter of internalised values! It is a matter of personal belief and of a personal relationship with a holy God!

So, when Jesus said, "Blessed are the pure in heart ..." He was emphasizing that what we all need is to be pure on the inside. In the Beatitudes, Jesus is dealing with principles which impact every area of our lives. This simple sentence, "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God" becomes a road map that will lead us to the fulfilment of a personal encounter with God. It is a call to heart-purity. Jesus is saying that the condition of our hearts before God is of first importance and that it flows from our relationship with God. Our priority as believers is to maintain a right heart attitude toward God. This relationship will internalise the principles of God's Kingdom as our personal values and it will show in our lives!

So what did Jesus mean when he spoke of pure in heart? What does pure really mean? Does it mean perfect? If it does, we are in trouble. The Greek word which is translated as pure is kitharas. It sounds like the word catharsis, because catharsis comes from this Greek word. It simply means to make pure by cleansing. It is used in psychology and counselling to refer to a cleansing of the mind and emotions.

The heart in Scripture refers to the mind, will and emotions. It refers to the control centre of the will. The writer of Proverbs said, "Watch over your heart with all diligence, for from it flow the springs of life" (Proverbs 4:23). The "heart" is our innermost self that determines our behaviour. When Jesus speaks of the pure in heart he is talking about a heart that is of pure motive before the Lord. Our hearts should be characterized by single-minded, undivided devotion to God.

How can we make our hearts pure? The answer to a great degree is found in the Beatitudes themselves. The second four Beatitudes are the result of walking in the first four:
In order to become pure in heart, we must see our need to only depend on God and respond to that need. We must walk through the progression of those who are "poor in spirit" and see our sinfulness. As those who "mourn" our sinfulness, we repent in godly sorrow for our sin. Our hearts are broken before God because we are not pure. We then will become "gentle" or meek before God. Humility marks those who are dealt with by God. It brings us to a place where we "hunger and thirst for righteousness" because we have seen that only the righteousness of God satisfies. This is the foundation we must lay if we are ever to become pure in heart.

The blessing: The reason we must become pure in heart, is that only those who are shall see God. God reserves intimate fellowship with himself to those whose hearts are focussed on their devotion to him. Then we will enjoy the privilege of catching a glimpse of his glory. This is the promise to all who are pure in heart. If we are, we will see God.

And if we see God, it will purifies our hearts! Blessed are those who have a closer walk with God, for their hearts will be pure, we can also say!

Those who are pure in heart will one day see God in his fullness as we stand before him in his eternal kingdom. We shall then behold his glory and stand in his presence forever.
For the here and now - they will enjoy a closer walk with God. They may journey with the Lord every day! The journey with the Lord will bless them with a pure heart and the pure heart, will bless them with a closer walk with God!