![]() ![]() Do I seek to imitate Your holiness, Lord? Help me by Your Spirit to overcome the pressures of the world and the fiery darts of Satan, that I might keep myself unspotted from the world as You have commanded me.It is no wonder that David wanted a clean heart, and a right spirit. If purity is the Robe of Heaven, the righteousness of Christ, then I want to diligently strive for purity. Lord, I know that one day I will see the fullness of Your divine essence in the face of Jesus Christ.I am so thankful that Your Spirit who lives in me overflows with pure water, so that as I live in obedience and holiness, these same rivers of eternal life may flow from me to others who need to drink from that fountain of living water. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. ![]() ![]() And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you. Any association with that which is filthy contaminates me. Ezekiel 36:25-27 ESV / 6 helpful votesHelpfulNot Helpful. In Adam I have been polluted, but in Christ I am purified. Rather a pure heart aligns itself with the will of a pure, just, and holy God and the truth of His Word and seeks to honor, obey, and adore Him.ĭo you wish to see God? Then, to echo James… “cleanse your hands and purify your hearts.” Blessed are those who have purity in their minds and consciences, in their thoughts, wills, and affections.”Ĭlean hands and a pure heart make no allowance for living a double life or participating in any duplicitous or deceitful behavior. Jeremiah Burroughs said, “By the heart we are to understand not only the will or affections, but all the faculties of the soul - the mind, conscience, and thoughts, all is to be understood by heart. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you men of double mind,” (James 4:8). James supports both of these passages when he says, “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. 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. The reward of having clean hands and a pure heart is that you will receive blessing from the Lord, and righteousness from the God of your salvation Share this. Who does not lift up his soul to what is false, Psalm 24:3-4, the Old Testament complement to the New Testament beatitude of Matthew 5:8, elaborates on what that means: But what exactly does it mean to have clean hands and a pure heart? What does that look like? In fact, Habakkuk 1:13 says “Your eyes are too pure to approve evil, and You cannot look on wickedness with favor.”įor this reason, our only hope for entering the presence of a just and holy God is to pray as the psalmist, “Create in me a pure heart, O God…” (Ps. God, on the other hand, is infinitely pure by nature. And by nature, our hearts are deceitful and desperately wicked (Jer. God knows our real character is revealed not by what we do or say, but by what’s in our heart (Matt. Why, then, do we consider entering the presence of a just and holy God without first tending to that which matters most to Him – the condition of our heart? It would be completely unthinkable to appear before a monarch or a king without giving utmost consideration to cleanliness and a top-notch appearance. “Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God,” (Matthew 5:8) ![]()
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