Matthew 5:8
Matthew 5:8 "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God." (NIV)
Matthew 5:8 "You're blessed when you get your inside world—your mind and heart—put right. Then you can see God in the outside world." (The Message)
What a fascinating and delightful verse in this opening portion of the sermon. When I read this I long for the innocents of my youth. I look upon my little boy now and pray to the Father daily that he will protect my little man and help keep him pure as he grows into a man. And at first glance this is a great interpretation if you are innocent and clean from sin in your life. But the Bible tells us that no one is without sin.
So is it impossible then to be pure in heart? Brothers and Sisters the Lord never told us to do anything that was impossible. We may need His help but it is possible. So then how is it possible to be pure of heart?
According to the Strong's the word pure comes from a word of unknown origins "Katharos" this word has many meaning and found 22 times in the bible. This word has a different meaning than just having a "clean heart". One of the definitions used in the context is to be purified by fire. the other is to be pruned like a vine so that it is fit to bear fruit. When I learned the meaning of the word pure I realized just how incapable of purifying my heart I was and how desperate I was for the Lord to purify my heart.
I pray that the Lord is showing you something today. If you have the same understanding that I did before then you probably feel doomed and forever incapable of receiving the blessing of the Lord. Well brothers and sisters I feel that this is a lie from the enemy. Again the Lord never asks more of you then you are capable of in Him.
The Lord can and will purify your heart like gold refined in the fire if you ask Him and submit yourself to the cleanings. Jesus himself referred to the Kingdom as a vineyard where the dead vines would be pruned away and living vines grafted in. The Lord has all the "right" tools at his disposal for cleaning and purifying you heart. And there is not much you can do except be willing to submit to the process.
Friends take a a moment or as long as it takes to seek the Lord and ask Him to purify your heart. I will not promise you it will be easy in fact it is not much fun at all to tell you the truth most of the time. The Lord has been working on my heart for a little more than 13 years and though I have found great joy in the midst of His work my flesh often cries out for escape from the refiners fire. It is hot, and melts down the things I thought made me strong.
Pure 24k gold refined in the fire relatively soft and malleable. Most gold for jewelry is combined with steel or another metal to harden it. This is done so that the jewelry can stand up to the riggers or daily use. But the Lord wants us to have a soft heart. Not a hard heart that is not easily molded like soft wax.
So dear readers the Lords wants to ignite the fire in your heart and purify it. He wants to give you the blessings that He promises when He said. "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God."
Matthew 5:8 "You're blessed when you get your inside world—your mind and heart—put right. Then you can see God in the outside world." (The Message)
What a fascinating and delightful verse in this opening portion of the sermon. When I read this I long for the innocents of my youth. I look upon my little boy now and pray to the Father daily that he will protect my little man and help keep him pure as he grows into a man. And at first glance this is a great interpretation if you are innocent and clean from sin in your life. But the Bible tells us that no one is without sin.
So is it impossible then to be pure in heart? Brothers and Sisters the Lord never told us to do anything that was impossible. We may need His help but it is possible. So then how is it possible to be pure of heart?
According to the Strong's the word pure comes from a word of unknown origins "Katharos" this word has many meaning and found 22 times in the bible. This word has a different meaning than just having a "clean heart". One of the definitions used in the context is to be purified by fire. the other is to be pruned like a vine so that it is fit to bear fruit. When I learned the meaning of the word pure I realized just how incapable of purifying my heart I was and how desperate I was for the Lord to purify my heart.
I pray that the Lord is showing you something today. If you have the same understanding that I did before then you probably feel doomed and forever incapable of receiving the blessing of the Lord. Well brothers and sisters I feel that this is a lie from the enemy. Again the Lord never asks more of you then you are capable of in Him.
The Lord can and will purify your heart like gold refined in the fire if you ask Him and submit yourself to the cleanings. Jesus himself referred to the Kingdom as a vineyard where the dead vines would be pruned away and living vines grafted in. The Lord has all the "right" tools at his disposal for cleaning and purifying you heart. And there is not much you can do except be willing to submit to the process.
Friends take a a moment or as long as it takes to seek the Lord and ask Him to purify your heart. I will not promise you it will be easy in fact it is not much fun at all to tell you the truth most of the time. The Lord has been working on my heart for a little more than 13 years and though I have found great joy in the midst of His work my flesh often cries out for escape from the refiners fire. It is hot, and melts down the things I thought made me strong.
Pure 24k gold refined in the fire relatively soft and malleable. Most gold for jewelry is combined with steel or another metal to harden it. This is done so that the jewelry can stand up to the riggers or daily use. But the Lord wants us to have a soft heart. Not a hard heart that is not easily molded like soft wax.
So dear readers the Lords wants to ignite the fire in your heart and purify it. He wants to give you the blessings that He promises when He said. "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God."
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