The Beatitudes: Pure in heart
5:7 Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
To understand what it means to be pure in heart, we have to learn what 'pure' means. Hagnos is the Greek word for pure. It means to be free from ceremonial defilement; holy and sacred. It comes from the Greek word hagios, meaning to be sacred, holy, and set apart by and for God. The purity we are to have here, then, is to have holiness, which points to a heart that is God’s and God’s alone.
Holiness isn’t equivalent to sinlessness and perfection — a disciple in Christ knows they have a sinful nature and a need for reconciliation to God. Purity isn’t having good intentions because we can have the best intentions and be sincere in all that we want to do and still do wrong. The sincerity we are to have, when put to action, comes from a heart that is singleminded. (God’s Word) Merriam-Webster defines singlemindedness as “having or concentrating on only one aim or purpose; having one driving purpose or resolve.” When our hearts are singleminded, they are motivated by, loyal to, and given to God solely because He is worthy.
Jesus tells us we should store up our treasure in heaven because our heart is wherever our treasure is. Simply put, when our treasure is in God, our heart is with Him. [Matthew 6:20-21] We put great value on His companionship, His approval, His love, His goodness, His face, and Him alone because nothing the world can offer is worth more. He is altogether lovely and altogether worthy, so we serve Him with a whole and undivided heart. This is the character of our integrity and why we choose God. It’s an “honesty which has no hidden motive and no selfish interest.. free from the tyranny of a divided self, and does not try to serve God and the world.” (“Ken Boa”)
When we have an undivided heart, we don’t choose ourselves or the world first and run to God second when it doesn’t work out. We, also, don’t choose God first and run to ourselves and the world the moment it doesn’t turn out as expected. The truth is that we all have fallen into that trap. Disappointment can cause us to use God to pacify the problem until it “disappears.” Although He is glad that we are seeking Him, our heavenly Father wants us to choose Him and love Him and know Him. [Hosea 6:6] We cannot truly know our Father’s heart and thoughts toward us by straddling a fence. [Revelation 3:15-16; Matthew 7:21-23; Isaiah 29:13] We have to move by faith and rest on the side He's on. The choice of a decided heart isn’t one of first’s and last’s, but one that’s firm and immovable no matter what may come.
By faith, our heart stands sure like Abraham’s in Genesis 22, when he was with his son at the top of the mountain. It’s as confident as Job’s in the fact that God is worthy of praise and love because He is good. [Job 13:15] We choose God not because we can personally benefit from His blessings, miracles, what He has to offer in the way of manifestation, but because of who He is to us. Of course, He is a way maker, miracle worker, and promise keeper, and we need His help more than we need the help of anything else. We don’t deny that we do and He can, but we stand firm as Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego did in the face of opposition and say “Even if… He still is.” [Daniel 3:16-18] He is the center, He is the source, He is the reason; there is no other Saviour, no other Healer, no other Provider, no other Deliverer, no other Creator, no other way but God. [Isaiah 44:6; Revelation 22:13; John 14:6]
By faith, we know that even when the skies are blue, He is. Even when the skies are stormy, He is. When the seas are calm and when they are raging, He is. He was there in the beginning, He will be there in the end, and He is right now. Purity in heart is a bold act of faith to be devoted to and believe in God no matter the obstacle and opposition because we know who He is without a shred of doubt. [Hebrews 11:1]
they shall see God.
A pure heart creates space for us to know our heavenly Father the way He desires. Because we know Him and continue to get to know Him, we see Him in everything. We see Him in our victories and our losses. We see Him when our expectations are met and when we’re disappointed. We see Him in our yesterdays, todays, and tomorrows. We see Him in ourselves, other people, and our surroundings.
We look along all of these things and see the glory of our heavenly Father, who is always good, always kind, and forever worthy of praise.
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