(Day 13)
The sixth blessing of the Kingdom of Heaven
(Matthew 5:8) Blessed are the pure in heart, for
they shall see God.
How do we know if someone has a CLEAN
HEART?
We cannot determine a clean heart by
appearance. A person may seem upright and righteous in the eyes of others, but
his heart may be filthy and sick. This was the case of many Pharisees during
Jesus’ days. On the outside they carried out good works, but their intention
was to please other people, not God. They were religious people who carried out
the letter of the Law, but they did not know God. They did not have a personal
relationship with Him. That is why Jesus confronted them so sternly:
(Matthew 23:25-28) "Woe
to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you
clean the outside of the cup and the plate, but inside they are full of greed
and self-indulgence. You blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and
the plate, that the outside also may be clean. "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like
whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of
dead people's bones and all uncleanness.
So you also outwardly appear
righteous to others, but within you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.”
Jesus said that if our motivation is
to impress people, our reward will be people’s approval, but it will not come
from God.
(Matthew 6:1-2) Beware of practicing your
righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you
will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven. Thus, when you give to
the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues
and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward.
(Matthew 6:5) And when you pray, you must not be
like the hypocrites. For they love to
stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be
seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward.
(Matthew 6:16) And when you fast, do not look gloomy
like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be
seen by others. Truly, I say to
you, they have received their reward.
If we want to have a connection with
God, we must seek Him with a pure heart, without any other interest or
motivation than to be with Him.
(John 4:23-24) But the hour is coming, and is now
here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for
the Father is seeking such people to worship him. God is spirit, and those who
worship him must worship in spirit and truth.
We must consider what our motivation is
when we fast, pray, gather together or perform good deeds. Are we doing it for
God or for people?
If we do it for God, we will find Him
there.
(Psalms 24:3-6) Who shall ascend the hill of the
LORD? And who shall stand in his holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure
heart, who does not lift up his soul to what is false and does not swear
deceitfully. He will receive blessing from the LORD and righteousness from the
God of his salvation. Such is the generation of those who seek him, who seek
the face of the God of Jacob.
Just as there is no one righteous
(with “clean hands”), we will not find anyone who has kept a clean heart
continuously, except perhaps a baby.
Nevertheless, even after we have stained our hearts with an evil emotion,
it can always be made clean again. God doesn’t expect us to be perfect to come
to Him, but He expects us to seek perfection and holiness, because “without
holiness no one will see the Lord” (Hebrews 12:14).
On the other hand, if we don’t have a
clean heart, our own interests will blur our vision, and we will not be able to
see what God is trying to show us, or hear what He wants to reveal, or know His
purpose.
Let’s examine our heart, and see if it
is pure. If we find it is not, well then… let’s clean it!
(Jeremiah 4:14) O
Jerusalem, wash your heart from evil, that you may be saved. How long shall
your wicked thoughts lodge within you?
(Psalms 51:10) Create
in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.
PRAYER
Lord, I realize that my heart is not
as pure as I thought it was. Not all the intentions of my heart have been pure.
But today I come before You in repentance. Please forgive me for putting others
ahead of You, for loving others more than You.
I want to cleanse my heart of wicked
thoughts and wrong intentions. Lord, I want to ascend to your hill and stand
with you in your holy place. I will clean my hands and purify my heart to be
with you. I want to be your child that loves you in spirit and truth, and not
with other motives. I will seek you as Jacob did, who fought because he knew
what was important in this life.
Create in me a clean heart, O God,
and renew a right spirit within me.
Do not cast me away from your
presence, and do not take your Holy Spirit from me, because You are the most
important part of my life.
[Psalms 51:10-11; Jeremiah 4:14; John
4:23-24; Psalms 24:3-6]
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