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Articles
The Pure In Heart
We continue our investigation of the beatitudes found in Mt.5:1-12, by looking at Mt.5:8, "Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God." Purity is a term that suggests that which has been cleansed and therefore would be clean, unadulterated, uncontaminated, guileless, genuine. We must be pure in heart, a sincere spirit, a clean mind, a soul uncontaminated by the wiles of the devil, attitudes that are guileless. Goals and aims that only seek to be pleasing to God. Our world is filled with hearts that are filthy, vile, polluted with the sin and iniquity. Listen to Paul’s exhortation found in II Cor. 7:1, "Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God." That which is cleansed, is therefore made pure. Purity of life, purity of actions, purity of deeds, purity of words comes from a pure heart. The Pharisees had a superficial type of purity, Mt.23:25-28, "Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess. Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness. Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity." When we make pure our hearts within, then the outside will be made pure also. For without purity we shall not see God, "Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord:" Heb.12:14
