Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God —Matthew 5:8

Purity is not innocence— it is much more than that. Purity is the result of continued spiritual harmony with God. We have to grow in purity. Our life with God may be right and our inner purity unblemished, yet occasionally our outer life may become spotted and stained. God intentionally does not protect us from this possibility, because this is the way we recognize the necessity of maintaining our spiritual vision through personal purity. If the outer level of our spiritual life with God is impaired to the slightest degree, we must put everything else aside until we make it right. Remember that spiritual vision depends on our character— it is “the pure in heart ” who “see God.”

God makes us pure by an act of His sovereign grace, but we still have something that we must carefully watch. It is through our bodily life coming in contact with other people and other points of view that we tend to become tarnished. Not only must our “inner sanctuary” be kept right with God, but also the “outer courts” must be brought into perfect harmony with the purity God gives us through His grace. Our spiritual vision and understanding is immediately blurred when our “outer court” is stained. If we want to maintain personal intimacy with the Lord Jesus Christ, it will mean refusing to do or even think certain things. And some things that are acceptable for others will become unacceptable for us.

A practical help in keeping your personal purity unblemished in your relations with other people is to begin to see them as God does. Say to yourself, “That man or that woman is perfect in Christ Jesus! That friend or that relative is perfect in Christ Jesus!”

Journal, DJR
Good morning Lord
I’d never seen that verse that way. That the pure in heart see God. It gives me another reason to keep pure in heart. To see you and your vision. Of course keeping pure in heart is a good idea anyway … but grinding it out with will power just for it’s own sake or because it’s the right thing to do …. hasn’t had long term success with me (or most humans, I would guess) So even with the motivation that I will see and hear better if I keep pure in heart … I still need your help in doing that. I guess I’ll never get to where I dont need your help. And that is a good thing.

Yes, it keeps us connected. I have paid for everything. You have access to all of me and my power and wisdom. You have asked often what there is for you to do. Here is something for you to do. Keep your heart pure and listen. Practice looking thru my eyes and letting me look thru your eyes. It’s exciting. But it only works at its best when your heart is pure. So fight the impurity that is in the world and your flesh and come along with me. What I have planned for you is more exciting anyway. “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jer 29:11

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