The pure in heart

Not Blessed are those that go to church, Not Blessed are those that sing in the choir Not Blessed are those that clean up the highway or serve on the board. But Blessed are the pure in heart.

So, What does it take to have a Pure Heart?
Jesus tells us that we must love our enemies, do good to them which hate us, curse us, and spitefully use us; and to him that strikes you in the face, offer him to strike you on the other side as well. If he borrows or steals your shirt - give him your coat as well.

It means to not ever do anything for any reason other then because we love God and each other.

We might be upset at our children or at our Mom and Dad, our friends at school, or the neighbor down the street. We might not care for the way the world is treating us in any number of situations.

But the pure in heart never feel sorry for themselves, act in anger or disappointment. They don't strike out, they don't strike back and they don't try to get even. See they are the Blessed and they see God. In all things...........

From the flowers on a hill side to the loudest of thunderstorms, they see God.

It works like this. Several years ago our youngest son, Rory, took my wife Margaret by the hand outside and told her to look at all the wild flowers growing on the hillside from our home.

He then announced that because she had married Dad, that God had made all those flowers, of which there was literally thousands, running for several miles down the highway, and they were special--just for her.

From that day to this when we are traveling down that highway in the spring my wife will look out the window and exclaim: "Look there are my flowers!"

Our son is older now, his heart is not as pure as it once was; and he would say the wild flowers are pretty. Maybe even beautiful. But without being reminded of his proclamation years ago, he wouldn't see them as a glorious gift from God to my wife.

That is a shame and it happens to most all of us as we get older and more experienced.

How are you doing at this, Christian?

How God must hurt when He tries to find the "pure in heart" in the church today.
I gotta admit, I'm not one of them. I want to be. I try to be. Yet I have experienced a few setbacks.

I try to give to and help those who I think are in need, and in so many instances I have been taken.

I gotta admit that to "see God" in every man, or every circumstance is often hard, and often "just doesn't work for me".

Yet that is what is says, Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God.
Now I know some would say that means they will see God sometime far off in heaven But Jesus said over and over that the kingdom of God is at hand.

I am, as I'm sure you are, bothered by the constant attacks (by the Devil) on my intentions. The constant attacks on my very purpose for life, and the constant attacks on my resolve to "be pure". You do resolve to be pure don't you?

Is it any wonder that Jesus would say, "'Blessed' are the pure in heart"?

To have such purity of heart requires there be no wedges, no separations, or conflicts.
Like the intent of the little ones.

No wedges or conflicts between you and your spouse, no wedges between you and the rest of your family, no conflicts between you and your business associates, school mates, no wedges, separations or conflicts between you and your church, and most of all, none between you and God.

So how are you doing with all this Christian?

There are so many events in this thing we call Life that bring temptation in front of us and we, just like our first parents -Adam and Eve-still don't trust God. We want to work things out on our own.

See, To seek God and His wisdom, and follow that wisdom, kind of puts all of our eggs into one basket so-to-speak, and we don't like that, We call that bad advice, because we always want to have a way out when the going gets rough.

So everyday temptation shows up, and we have to make this free choice. Our choices usually "line up" with "the great lies of Satan" because "The heart is deceitful above all things, ( don't say its not) and desperately wicked: who can know it?" Jeremiah 17:9

We think we know what is best for our lives - and even if we don't ...well, it's our life.

We go to our churches on Sundays and we lift up our hands (whether or not they be "clean hands"- ref. to Ps. 24:4-6)

We ask Him to bless us and use us - as long as it meets with our schedule, and our approval.

We want the church music to sooth us or excite us or entertain us or help us to worship or something.

The preaching needs to entertain us, feed us, teach us, encourage us, or whatever.

We must be part of the good denomination. Or better yet the non denomination, The youth ministry had better be active and the building needs to be adequate for all this God activity and with a nursery.

That's with our church attendance, with our best foot forward.

None of which has any thing to do with God's reasons for us to assemble.

Is it any wonder that He would say, "Blessed are the Pure in heart..."?

Like the irritant grain of sand in the oyster
God will never ask you if you got along with your friends, if the chairs were comfortable. If the preacher preached well, If the music was good enough. Or if you saw so and so at church.

I like the way Jesus puts it when He says, "Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God."

Every where and in every thing. The littlest and youngest members of His church can and do
And I mean every where and in every thing.

A "pure heart" is a heart that has only one ingredient in it. Like pure gold or pure water. pure water is clean and refreshing, it's unmuddied.

"Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God."

One ingredient in it and that is a love for God. You develop that in prayer. Jesus said my house will be a house of prayer.

All the rest is just an irritant. A grain of sand in the oyster. But if you are to busy because you judged the music, judged the sermon, judged the offering, judged the building.

You have too many ingredients in your heart. You look at these things and you can't see God.........

"Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God."
Pull your eyes off of that grain of sand and lift them to God in prayer Allow Him to enfold your grain of sand in His arms, pull it close in and allow Him to hug it and hold it to bathe it in His love.

Just as the oyster coats that irritant and forms layer after layer that becomes protective and perfectly round and hard almost unbreakable, pure in color and precious in value.

Your heart will become a precious jewel to God and you will be able to see Him.