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

Through the pages of Scripture the heart is more then just our emotions, but it is also our thoughts, reasonings, understandings, as well as our passions. In the giving of the Great Commandment to Moses, it says, “Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.” (Deuteronomy 6:5)  We are to love God with all our heart, which is understood as our passions and our thoughts. It was in the translation of Scripture from Hebrew to Greek in the Septuagint that heart and mind was understood as the meaning of heart. Jesus quoted the Greek when He said, “’The most important one,’ answered Jesus, is this: ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’” (Mark 12:29-30)

When Jesus says, “Blessed are the pure in heart,” (Matthew 5:8a) He means that those who are blessed are pure in their emotions, also pure in their mind. It is about the purity of the whole person, not just an outward presentation as the Pharisees taught. Thus Jesus would challenge them, “But the things that come out of a person’s mouth come from the heart, and these defile them. For out of the heart come evil thoughts—murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. These are what defile a person; but eating with unwashed hands does not defile them.” (Matthew 15:18-19)

David, who was chosen to be King, was a man who had a heart who desired God’s heart. God said to Saul, “the LORD has sought out a man after his own heart and appointed him ruler of his people.” (1 Samuel 13:14) David was that man. And yet, David was tempted and sinned with Bathsheba. In his confession to God, his desire was to have his heart restored anew. “Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.” (Psalm 51:10)

In the promise of the Messiah, Ezekiel would speak of God coming to give us a new and pure heart. “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.” (Ezekiel 36:26-27) Jesus has come to give us a pure heart. When we come to Him in faith, He forgives and purifies us. He took all our sin and gave us His righteousness. “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” (2 Corinthians 5:21) In the righteousness given to us by Jesus,  we are to pursue Him and His righteousness out of a pure heart. “Flee the evil desires of youth and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.”

The blessing which comes to us through our pure heart is that we will see God. We will see Him at work in our lives as He blesses us in our pursuit of Him and His righteousness. As we will be blessed when we see Him in the place, He is preparing for us. “No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him. They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever.” (Revelation 22:3-5) Let us walk with Him with a pure heart, seeing Him transform us and with the promise of seeing His face.

In the Love of Jesus,

Michael Block