Pure in Heart

“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” Matthew 5:8

There is a saying in our culture, “Follow your heart.” It sounds nice and makes for neat home decor signs, but, unfortunately for the Christian, it is not accurate. Jeremiah 17:9 says, “The heart is deceitful above all things…” The Bible indicates the heart is something not to blindly follow, but to tame and guide. As Christians, we are not called to “find ourselves” but to “deny ourselves.”

So, how do we develop a pure heart? Psalm 12:6 says, “The fear of the Lord is pure.” Psalm 119:9 says, “How can a person stay pure? By living according to Your Word.” Psalm 20:11 says, “Even small children are known by their conduct, if their heart is really pure and upright.” Proverbs 15:26 says, “God detests the thoughts of the wicked, but gracious words are pure in his sight.” We can see through these verses that by living according to God’s word and watching our conduct and our words we can develop a pure heart. And there’s good reason! Psalms 24:4-5 says those with pure hearts will “receive a blessing from the Lord” and “righteousness unto salvation.” We are also told in Matthew 5 the pure in heart will see God and that our purity is the “fine linen of the righteous deeds of the saints.”

The bad news? One of the ways we are made pure is through tests and trials (Proverbs 17:3). Sometimes God puts us through the refiner’s fire to rid us of impurities and make us shine. Don’t fret the unwarranted trials and tests, friend. It is all a part of the journey.