Blessed are the Pure in Heart: My Personal Belief on Purity
In a degenerating world, attaining purity seems to be out of reach. Celebrities and politicians encourage many sorts of depravity, while the web contains any sin imaginable. These individuals advocate for a pleasure-seeking culture, one with sexual promiscuity and immorality, drug abuse, abortion, and the removal of God from the picture. Purity has since become a long forgotten absolute. Yet the Bible has not changed from its stance on the purity that Christians must retain while surrounded by an immoral society. Purity is a necessary component of the Christian faith as followers of Christ live in a depraved world but not of it.
Purity is the state of being clean or blameless or without any sin or blemish (Dunnett). The manifestation of purity is God, Who is the ultimate standard because He alone is altogether holy and righteous. Since the fall of man, humankind has been enslaved by their sin and thus unable to meet God’s standard. For this reason, it is hopeless for man to obtain purity on their own. “Who can say, ‘I have kept my heart pure; I am clean and without sin?’” (Proverbs 20:9, NIV). Matthew 5:8 says that only the pure in heart “will see God” (NIV); these are the people able to be in the Lord’s presence. “The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart" (1 Samuel 16:7, NIV). Any attempts by man are bleak because the pure in heart alone reach God's standard.
Yet God made a way for His creation to be redeemed. “He made [Christ] who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21, NIV). Through Christ’s sacrificial death on the cross, man has the chance to choose Christ and His offer of purity, to be cleansed from sin and made righteous before God, but it is a decision one must make. In regards to this, John MacArthur stated, “A person who is not being purified from sin has no claim on being saved from it." However, even though believers are made into new creations (2 Corinthians 5:17, NIV), their carnal sinful side still fights to take hold, and sometimes believers give in to their lusts. There is not any way to acquire purity in this life because of sin, so as followers daily meditate on and obey God’s Word, purity will be in closer reach by the time comes for them to join their Heavenly Father in absolute holiness and glory. This petition made by David should be a daily prayer of all believers who sincerely seek purity: “Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.” Psalm 51:10 (NIV).
One of the greatest obstacles a man of God must confront on his journey for spiritual maturity and purity is his battle for sexual purity. With every source of media and society constantly bombarding men with pornography, sex, and other sexually explicit themes, many men have become hooked to Satan’s lures and lies. I have had many losses in fighting against Satan’s temptations, but God has always pointed me back to Him. As a human, I cannot withstand sexual temptation, but as a child of God and slave of Christ, I can face my weaknesses with God’s strength and guidance. I confess I have yet to truly conquer this war zone, but with God, I can counter the devil’s lies with the Sword of the Spirit. So for now, I must continually “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” (2 Timothy 2:22, NIV).
Purity is a pillar of the Christian faith. Because of Christ paying the price and giving us his purity and righteousness, every Christian is saved by grace and must bear fruit. Dwight L. Moody commented that "He [Jesus] came to deliver us from our sinful dispositions, and create in us pure hearts, and when we have Him with us it will not be hard for us. Then the service of Christ will be delightful" (ChristianQuotes.info). Every slave of Christ has one objective: to be like Him. Duncan Campbell said, "This desire for heart purity is a creation of the Holy Spirit at work in the heart"(ChristianQuotes.info). May the desire to be pure in heart radiate throughout all believers.
Works Cited/Bibliography
“25 Quotes About Purity.” ChristianQuotes.info, www.christianquotes.info/quotes-by-topic/quotes-about-purity/#axzz5ZuQkaxPD. Web.
“Blessed Are the Pure in Heart.” Grace to You, 31 Jan. 2017, www.gty.org/library/blog/B170131/blessed-are-the-pure-in-heart. Web.
Dunnett, Walter M. “Purity Definition and Meaning - Bible Dictionary.” Bible Study Tools, Salem Web Network, 1966, www.biblestudytools.com/dictionary/purity/. Web.
“Purity, Unity, and Using Our Spiritual Gifts.” Grace to You, www.gty.org/library/sermons-library/1390/purity-unity-and-using-our-spiritual-gifts. Web.
The Holy Bible: New International Version. The Zondervan Corporation. International Bible Society: 1984. Electronic.
“The Only Way to Happiness: Be Pure in Heart.” Grace to You, 19 July 1998, www.gty.org/library/sermons-library/90-194/the-only-way-to-happiness-be-pure-in-heart. Web.
