“Blessed are the pure in heart…”
…never meant so much to me as it does now. My pastor, Andrew Franseen, is going through the book of Matthew in a series when he spoke on the Beatitudes. He broke them apart in a way that I had never seen before. He mentioned that in his studies he started seeing this division between the first four and the last four. He pointed out that the first four appear to be in our relationship with God. The last four deal with our relationship to others. With this being so, the sixth one stood out of place for me. I had always understood that the “pure in heart” referred to your standing before God. Never had I thought that it was in relationship to those around you. So, all week I have been considering the implications and trying to apply them to my life. I found it to be a very difficult task. Specifically, I found it difficult in areas such as driving and in school. When I am driving down the road and get flicked off and cussed out by some random driver because I was in the lane that he wanted to be in when all the lanes are open, I realize that the temptation to cuss him out in my head (well, basically the same thing…neither cussing at him or using “christian cussing” are edifying) is exactly what Christ was talking about. Sure I never said anything or reacted back. I simply ignored him. Christ is not concerned with my outward actions though. Also, in school, my teacher makes an assignment. I complete it to the best of the instructions. She returns my grade with a 50 and proceeds to tell me what she was really looking for which was apparently not what I gave her. Instinctively, my blood pressure rises and I notice the temperature getting warmer. Yeah, that is what Christ was talking about. It reminded me of 1 Cor 13 when it speaks of how love does not assume the worst and is not resentful.
“What’s the difference?”, you may ask. For me, purity of heart clearly was not something I can humanly do before God. He knows my heart. The only way for me to be clean before Him is to be cleansed by the blood. To be pure in heart to others means that I keep my intentions before others clean. No, I cannot do this one perfectly either. However, God knows my heart – people don’t…usually. My loyalty is to others through Christ. Yes, the battle is within me. Yes, people may never know the “indignation” that I hold toward them, but I answer to Christ about it.
The result lies in the rest of the verse – “…for they will see God.” I have seen God more vividly this week than I have in a while mainly because I have seen my need for Him. I cannot do this on my own. To live pure in heart toward others is going to take a supernatural strength that I do not have. I have seen how pure God is. It has been amazing. I am shocked that I have lived with this arrogance…but then again, why should I be so shocked? This is who I have been my whole life. I need His strength. Through this I will be able to see Him more clearly because I see myself more clearly.
What has God been doing in yourlife to change your view of Him?
Josh Blaha
2 Responses
This morning Romans 7 made the law and the flesh very clear to me. After the great chapters on sinners, justification, and the battle of being dominated by choice I became very curious how Paul transistions to telling his struggle between doing what he doesn’t want to do and not doing what he does want to do. That transitional Scripture was verses 12, 14: “Wherefore is law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good… For we know that the law is spiritual; but I am carnal, sold under sin.” So much is said about the law these days it gets old and sometimes to the point of distraction. According to this the law is: HOLY and SPIRITUAL. The commandment is: HOLY, JUST, GOOD. I am: CARNAL, SOLD UNDER SIN. Never ever, ever detract from the law and the commandments. They are HOLY. They are what I am not. There is not even a basis for comparison. Even more so the commandment makes that upon which the CARNAL self dwells, Verse 13: “But sin, that it might appear sin, working death in me by that which is good: that sin by the commandment might become exceedingly sinful.” So why does Paul, why do I have that struggle of not doing what I want to do, and doing what I don’t want to do? “So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God, but with the flesh the law of sin. There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.” Wait a second. …the law of God? …the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus? …the law of sin and death? I must realize that there are laws in everything God is and has made. Elsewhere I read about the law of love and others. But the law first referred to is that of God’s law and commandments given to Moses. They could not live up to it then, nor can we today. Why? Because of Adam (Romans 5:12) and since man is carnal, of fleshly direction and desire. What has God done to change my view of Him? To make the realization that what I am is worse than I thought (exceedingly sinful), but that in Christ Jesus there is therefore no condemnation. O to hear his words, “Neither do I condemn you. Go, and sin no more.” The deeper I am in the hole the narrower becomes my focus on the one place where the Light is.
Posted on August 4th, 2009 at 1:10 pm
Another thought crossed my wondering… It is as the world is so it does that is reversing the phrase God has given to fit its hopes and dreams… the blessed are pure in heart. The concept is reversed as if only those who are ‘blessed’ with the best the world has to offer are ‘pure in heart’ because of their ‘blessed’ state…
May I never be removed from the truth you shared. May I my focus be on His truth…
Posted on September 21st, 2009 at 8:53 am
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