"After salvation, the soul is like a glass of water, initially filled with the pure refreshing and thirst quenching water that is Christ."
[This sermon is one of a series entitled "Sermon on the Mount, Concentrating on the Beatitudes," which is being preached on Sunday mornings by Pastor Tim Senter.]
In our discussion concerning Matthew 5:7 we talked about true mercy as a mark of godliness and salvation. We found the proof of this in the origination of true mercy, from our Savior on the cross. We should note here, grace comes free of charge, but mercy is the product of obedience. Many good Christian policeman and women endanger themselves for our protection every day. You should pray that they understand this biblical truth. Grace comes from their operation and apprehension of a suspect. This grace gives society a chance to be safe, and the suspect their life and opportunity to have a day in court. However, where many officers seem to make mistakes is in mercy. Mercy can only be given when the individual has submitted to the authorities around them. Grace may call for extra measures of restraint, where mercy can be given as the suspect exhibits a submitted attitude to the police’s authority.
The fifth beatitude also taught us that the mercy that is first given by our Savior is perfect and spiritual in nature. This perfect spiritual mercy comes after the believer’s poor spiritual self-recognition and need. This mercy too, then, is subject to our submission to God and His Son for salvation. We also found that, in this change, we have a new spiritual condition that is apparent in our lives and the operations thereof. Our life changes and desires conformity to God and His precepts, His Word, and His desires. Because we have an understanding, then, of His perfect requirements and our true heart’s bent toward sin, we have a new spiritual outlook that sees man in our old plight. We, therefore, desire others to find the Savior and seek Him. We recognize, ultimately, that we have contentedness because mercy is God’s gift and with this gift, we can, in turn, show mercy. Since this perfect mercy is not incumbent upon the whims of our sin-filled hearts, we have an over-abundance of it to give to others. This, then, is true mercy, which is God-given, so that it can be given to others.
Today we talk about purity, absence of contamination, or freedom from corruption. We will talk about the things of God with respect to purity and discover what it is that makes this attribute so desirable, and enables one to see God. Please look at Matthew 5:8 . Here is Tim’s Translation:
”Contented are the ones pure in heart, because they will see God.”
Purity is the absence of impurity in a substance. It is the freedom from all sin in the heart of man. We find an example of physical purity in measuring the qualilty of gold. I did a little study and found that a karat is a measure of one 24th of purity. In other words, 12 karat gold has 50% pure gold in it, so 12/24ths equals .5 or 50% pure. Half of something that is made of 12 karat gold is pure while the other half of the material is any combination of things. Therefore, 24 karat gold is 100% gold. Yellow gold that is less than 24 karat is normally mixed with copper and silver. White gold is normally mixed with silver, or some other white metals. What is interesting about gold is that man engineers impurity into the metal in order to create a better-looking product. Europeans normally prefer 18 Karat gold because it has a very gold (or yellow) color. We find this engineering represented in our culture by way of “Rock and Roll” church, so-called Christian Rock concerts and the introduction of this satanic worldly music into the church just to draw in youth. If it sounds like Satan’s music, it is. We also see this purposeful introduction of impurity in the church marketing movement of today, or the “purpose-driven church.” The purpose is to get as many people to come as possible, not to present the pure gospel of Christ Jesus. Purity may also refer to a spiritual purity of character or essence. This can indicate an abstinence of vices and/or abundance of virtue. This type of purity may describe someone who is very regimented in their life, very organized, and very moral concerning the operation of their lives. We find this in monks and others who adopt ascetic lifestyles. Monasticism demands this type of self-abasement. The people who live this type of life hold their personal honor and integrity in high regard. These attributes are to be well guarded. Many people who live this way are very concerned about giving their word or making promises to others. They know they are fallible, and in order to maintain their appearance of purity, loyalty, and honor they have difficulty with commitments to others. Still, this is a self-focused effort that concerns itself more with appearances and operation than true heart-felt purity. Children struggle in this environment when their parents levy requirements upon them and compound it with statements such as, “what will people think of our family,” or “our family name will be ruined.”
Other worldly examples of purity include those who count this “purity” as being only based in their intentions. These individuals think that if they intend good, that is what counts. We find this in the Liberty Council’s “Day of Purity” which is celebrated on Valentine’s Day. This is an effort to remain morally pure, especially from the promiscuous sexual encouragements of our society today. They invite churches to participate, as well as many other organizations that encourage “traditional values” that oppose the secular attitude that sexual activity and experimentation early and often is normal. They may have a point, secularly, when you consider the statistics on their web site. They report that 8,000 teens are infected with sexually transmitted diseases every day. These are people between the ages of 14-25. Between 1994-1998 HIV infections in teen girls increased over 110%. There is a 430% increase in teen pregnancy since the 1960′s. Because of our progressive society, 20% of the 1.3-1.5 million abortions conducted in America are performed on teenagers.[1] Our young people are under severe and continuous satanic attack, and all that attack amounts to is – you can enjoy yourself all you want. However, is what the Liberty Council advocates really biblical or godly purity?
One of my favorite examples of this type of situational or intentional purity is the young man seeking to help the elderly lady across the road. As she is beating him with her cane and purse all the way across, he is befuddled. When they reach the other side the young man asks her, “Ma’am, why are you hitting me? I was only helping you across the street.” The lady says, “Because I didn’t want to cross the street. I was waiting for the 3:00 bus, and there it goes.”
We see examples of this form of pseudo-purity in the actions of many liberal governmental activities. Welfare programs are a perfect example. The government establishes these programs to help the disadvantaged. They tell us it is an effort focused purely to help those in need. Yet, in our country, and that of every country that engages in these programs, the individuals become dependent upon society and fall into an indentured servitude status. Those who take advantage of the system are entrapped in it and forced to be even more dependent upon it. There is no purity in the system; it is as corrupt and flawed as the government itself.
Another form of worldly purity is found in the environmental moralistic movements of today. We discussed this somewhat when we talked about mercy and the sanctimonious response of some intellectually elite that claim environmental influence drives morality. Morality is not purity, and certainly does not display a heart of purity. Folks, the difference between this type of thought, (that one can be brought up in a pure environment and therefore enjoy purity), and the heart purity discussed in our focus passage of today is that one is of man, and one is of God.
One type of purity is born of a false or self-conceived purity, and one is of absolute purity. One type of purity is born of a focus on self-presentation and preservation, while the other is born of a truly changed heart and soul. One form of purity is focused upon self; the other is given by God and maintained in obedience to Him and through Him. Godly purity is also the only qualification to enter heaven. Man’s purity fluctuates dependent upon the location, time, and emotion. God’s purity is inexhaustible and unachievable in ourselves on this earth. For this reason, it is an order of sanctification, not the end of the process. Note, I did not say level. Purity comes through sanctification and is within the process. This is why we have it here as our sixth Beatitude. Not that we will achieve godly purity, but that we can have it, we can be contented in our level of purity, and be growing in purity every day with our Lord. “Only the true Godly heart of purity will see God, not one conceived of man.” Our problem in life is that “we think purity is a state of character or virtue, but it is God.“
Today we will look at the purity of the heart, what the worldly aptitudes of the pure heart are, and what the heavenly aptitudes are. First, purity of heart.
I. Purity of Heart
How many times have we heard the phrase, “Don’t judge a book by it’s cover.” People can say or do anything, or appear to others in any one of many forms. The most innocent looking individual may be an evil and maniacal murderer. The mass murderer Ted Bundy is the perfect example of this. He would use his attractive looks and mild demeanor to attract his victims. Therefore, it is not the outside but inside that counts. What is inside the person is the true mark of purity. Individuals can appear pure for many reasons and in many ways; but the mark of true purity is what is inside them. Also, the inside is not determined by man or our natural efforts.
Man’s mark of purity can take on many shapes and forms. We can have pure and impure thoughts, but take no action on them. We can attempt (unsuccessfully) to control the thoughts, and be considered pure by others because we make effort to do so. We can be pure, therefore, and have impure thoughts as far as man is concerned. We can, as impure beings, conceive pure thoughts and activate efforts to carry out these thoughts, yet secretly live an impure life. We find this in the story by Oscar Wilde, “The Picture of Dorian Gray.” Dorian is a wealthy and very attractive young man, but inside and in private he practices every kind of hedonistic vice known to man. All of these activities are absorbed by his portrait, which eventually portrays a hideously grotesque man. What was once a perfect representation of Dorian’s externally handsome appearance, has now taken on and depicts all of the impurities within his true heart. The painting displays every evil thing committed in Dorian’s hedonism. We think we look like Dorian in life, handsome, established, steady, organized, and sophisticated; but our heart is as his portrait. We would do well to remember that our true heart looks just like the Dorian’s portrait, repulsive and repugnant, to our great God.
We should consider some of the “inside” things that man holds as “pure.”
A. The inside is not your mind
We should first note that, contrary to man’s assessment, your ability to just control your thoughts to develop purity does not make you pure. Instead, what you are – saved by the precious blood of Christ, does make you pure. It purifies your soul. It is the only way in which you can go before the Lord without shame (1 John 2:28-29–click here to access a sermon on this text). Current intellectual minds consider the plight of society today and would find it better if Christians had no influence in it whatever (Rom 8:7). They would look at our society and say that purity in freedom is paramount, at least “freedom” the way they define it. In this pure societal freedom there is no room for morals of one kind or another, but only that which makes each individual content. This subjects society to the whims of each individual’s definition of freedom. To some, freedom means that no one can defend themselves; that if anyone does have the means to defend themselves they actually endanger others in doing so. Therefore, to this group, intellectually speaking, pure freedom places everyone on the same plane and denies anyone, through legal means, the right to keep what they worked for, earned, and paid for. Pure freedom then is that everyone is free to be victimized by the predators of society. There are exceptions to this intellectual thought – anyone placed in political power of any kind is always protected, and does not have to forfeit their freedoms, and they define pure freedom for all others.
Another aspect of intellectual purity is that people can “know,” but not “be.” We find this frequently in the child psychologists with no children of their own, or the counselor with an unstable life. We also see this with the doctor who smokes, pastors with no family life, no capacity for love, and no ability to be personable. Athletes, our paragons of health and the models of many of our youth, take steroids and defile their bodies with drugs and promiscuity. These all are examples of intellectual purity that knows what is right, just, or correct–yet operates in an impure fashion.
We find this, also, in religion. I say “religion” here because it is not Christianity, nor is it an example of salvation. It is purely religion. Pharisees organized many rituals to keep themselves oriented toward God. They initiated many laws that the Jew had to follow to be pure. I have heard tell that over 400 such observances were levied upon the Jewish people in order to keep them pure. Extra little things such as “no work on the Sabbath” meant you could not save an animal that had fallen into a pit and might die.
Some people come to church for purely intellectual stimulation. This does not develop purity in the church, and is not the purpose of this gathering. If you think I am purely interested in intellectually stimulating you, you are sorely mistaken. Lloyd Jones wrote, “When people have had merely an intellectual interest …it has oftentimes been a curse to the church.”[2] People that do not come here to learn and submit to this instruction, but to teach or attempt to bring others to “their level” are in no way edifying the body of Christ. People should come to church to hear the Word of God expounded, and if that is not being done, then they should find a location that does so. People need to submit to a local ministry for accountability and fellowship. This provides for their purification, and that of the body of Christ.
The scripture says that this purity we are discussing is to be purity “in the heart.” What is it that the scripture is talking about?
B. The inside is not man’s heart
True, God wants man’s heart, mind, and soul. We have to remember that man’s heart is desperately wicked (Jer. 17:9). Man’s heart is evil (Matt 12:34). Man’s heart is bent toward sin (1 Pet 2:14). Man’s heart fails him. Man’s heart is at enmity with God (Jam 4:4). Man wars against God within himself. Man’s heart is not the product of a pure society any more than any one individual on this earth can be within himself or herself pure (Matt 15:19). Man’s heart is impure from the inception of life, and incapable of self-generating purity. There is an argument, which is frequently brought forth–who has ever instructed a child in the concept of lying? Who ever needed to teach a child the first use of the word “mine?” Children have to be taught to obey; they do not naturally do it. Every child that ever walked this earth, except the Lord Jesus Christ, had to be disciplined, or should have been. Purity is not inherent in the heart of man, any more than the brain surgeon was born with the capacity to perform his or her profession from the womb.
While studying Hebrews, we looked at an environmental example of pop psychology and recognized that man is not (as psychologists would maintain) inherently good, but inherently evil. To say environment is the key denies the perfection of the Garden of Eden, it denies the natural operation of parenthood, and it denies every aspect of life in its earliest stages. People learn what they are taught, they mimic the behaviors of those around them, and they are a product of their upbringing. However, when they achieve a level of consciousness that gives them the ability to determine right and wrong, they make their own choices. They either choose to do right or wrong– and without a recognized accountability, we simply make everyone a victim. There is no purity in this effort.
Whether man wants to admit it or not, he is accountable for his actions. He is naturally not pure, and any purity that is practiced is injected by a pure source – God.
Man’s natural heart, therefore, is corrupted and impure. The same is true with any practices that he endeavors because their point of origin is impure. I believe we have made the point that the inside is not pure. We should now consider works. It has been said that “practice makes perfect”– but does that hold true in scripture?
C. The inside is not practice
Just as an individual cannot be inherently pure, they cannot through the operation of simple consistent morals, be considered pure. This is the argument against a robot-like ritualistic life. To describe this life it appears as, “Monday work, Tuesday work, Wednesday work, then prayer meeting, Thursday work, Friday work, Saturday house or yard work, Sunday church, Monday work, etc….” Where is the heart-felt purity of God in this staccato and antiseptic life? Life is not merely practicing the same sinless or safe behavior repeatedly. A life of purity involves continually seeking God for that which He asks in your service.
This is also not just some form of humanistic decency that is socially acceptable. We see this pseudo-purity in operation regularly in our congresses all across the nation where one congressman would call another “my dear friend from…” and in the next breath destroy them verbally in a viscous attack upon their character and person. Equally, purity is not found in simply being civilized. We are considered a civilized nation, yet we regularly murder individuals in this nation, legally, who have no means to defend themselves. I am not talking about incarcerated murderers, I am talking about abortion. We call ourselves civilized; yet, we commit the corrupted and impure act of infanticide over 4,000 times a day.
Ethics are another false form of purity. The same group of individuals, who would attempt to rid our nation of a proper disposal of murderous vermin in society, would support the murder of the innocent mentioned above. What form of ethics is this where one individual chooses to terminate their own life, (knowing the penalty for murder they take another life), is considered more valuable than an individual whom is not even given a chance to speak for themselves. Comportment, etiquette, or ethics, regardless of the label we might attach, these are nowhere near pure in their form as far as man is concerned.
God tells us that He wants our mind, heart, and Soul. He wants our mind to understand your poor spirit, soul to mourn, heart to function in meekness. God wants our mind to be filled with the pure words of God, soul to hunger and thirst for more of it, heart for mercy for those who do not know Him. God wants our minds engaged, but controlled by the soul that is injected with the Holy Spirit of God so that our hearts can be purified. God wants our hearts pure because He submitted His son to the cross for our salvation. In this fashion, being saved through the blood of Christ Jesus, our hearts are purified. In this way, our souls are saved and we are brought into a position of purity such that we can stand before the all-pure God of heaven.
Contented are the ones pure in heart, because they will see God. They see Him every day. They find Him in His Word, in His people, in His house, in His joy, in His work, in every function that is performed because what ever the pure in heart do, they do it all for the glory of God (1 Cor 10:31).
This is the purity we need to seek for ourselves. This purity is of God, not of man. God, then, gives this purity to us and man has no influence upon it, cannot take it, does not determine it, and has no bearing upon it. God’s purity is to be our focus.
Still, we have not covered the internal purity that man is supposed to have. We have seen many examples of the false, fake, pretend, man made, or man touted purity that is in the world. What is the spiritual purity that God gives us?
D. The inside is the spirit
After salvation, the soul is like a glass of water, initially filled with the pure refreshing and thirst quenching water that is Christ. Equally, a pure heart is created in the believer (Ps 51:10). A pure heart, then, being placed by God guides the soul in its development to purity. Slowly, as we live here, that glass that is our soul is discolored with sin, stained with it. The soul is tainted because of the existence of man here and the operation of the world controlled by Satan. The pure heart, where the Holy Spirit resides, then works on the soul of man continually encouraging man to cleanse it. Our heart’s lust seeks to envy, hate people, murderer, commit adultery, fornicate, steal, and lie (Rom 1:24-32). The Holy Spirit works within us in our hearts to sanctify us and prepare us for our heavenly destination.
Although the true believer will never die again, they can be steeped in sin such that their glass of water is darkened badly. The pure in heart yearns to continually drink in more of the living water of Christ and regularly rinse out that glass so that it stays pure. The soul of the saved, then, should thirst after the blood of Christ to purify it, washing the stained glass. Also, the pure heart needs to feed on the Word of God in order to keep it invigorated to encourage purity of the soul. This is done through the mind, which operates the eyes and ears.
A mark, therefore, of the internally-purified heart and spirit is that there is a hunger for the Word of God. This testifies that it is without impurity, without corruption, that the blood of the Lamb of God has washed it. This pastor is not attempting to suggest sinless perfection, just that the soul is purified by the blood of Christ. This provides for times of purity in heart – contentedness and confidence in the promise that we will see God. The Holy Spirit within you creates a hunger in your heart for this Word and this hunger is fed through your mind. Your life changes, therefore, not out of function, not out of self-discipline, not from some intellectual ascent, or some intellectual teaching, but because the heart that is within you is of God, and God wants you to be godly– not ethical, or cordial, or civilized.
Have you seen, have you witnessed, have you experienced this heart change in yourself? Does your heart yearn to be feed regularly by the word of God.? Does your soul ache for the nourishing pure water that is Christ Jesus? If you do not have a hunger for God’s Word, you may have a spiritual condition that needs Christ’s repair.
What is the promise here that we find in this passage?
II. Heavenly Heart
In Psalm 19:14 David pleads that God would let his heart only covet the things of God that are pure, that this purity would be acceptable to the sight of God and that David’s mouth would always speak of this greatness. We received this pure heart from Jesus Christ the Righteous, the spotless and sinless Lamb of God sent to the slaughter for us. This innocent Lamb was not ushered in, but went willingly into the hands of His captors. He chose to submit Himself by not calling upon legions of angels to defend Him and destroy man. Jesus, the most pure sacrifice ever given, gave Himself for you. This is purity, not that we ever had it, but that it is God and given by God through His son. For this reason, we should always endeavor to remain pure by keeping His commandments. In 1 Corinthians 10:31 we read that we are to do all we do, even eating and drinking, for God’s glory. We are to give up our own desires (1 John 2:15-17; 3:13-16 –sermon posts on these texts can be found here and here, respectively) for others, and for God. Jesus is indescribably pure, so pure His purity can be used to cover our imperfections, corruption, and contamination.
We seek purity among our people weekly and see it here and now in our fellowship. We made note of fellowship in our study of 1 John and that fellowship with other believers is the closest thing we will get to heaven on earth (1 John 4:7-12–a sermon post on this text can be accessed by clicking here). This, godly, pure fellowship, is the closest we will get to seeing God here on earth. In this operation, in the answers to prayer we share, in the great works of God we share one with another, in our testimonies, in the work of God in each believer’s life, we see God here on earth; however, we will also see Jesus Christ Himself in heaven.
In Revelation 22, we have a picture of the pure heart and the things that will feed it. We also find in verse 14 the promise that we, believers, will see the Lamb of God. We are shown a river of crystal-clear, life-giving water proceeding from the throne of the Lamb and of God. We see the tree of life, amid the stream, being continually fed from the living waters that are the Father and the Son. This living and pure tree develops fruit regularly, and the leaves of the tree heal nations. We find that the curse is gone, that we will see His face and read His name, and that His name will be on every person’s forehead heaven. We find in verse 14 that the truly blessed or contented ones are the ones who “do” (practice His commandments) – they will see God. In this performance, we are given the right of access to the tree of life, to enter the gates, and to reside with God therein.
Job believed in purity of heart and he was assured, he would see God in his flesh.” Job knew he was focused properly and knew that this proper yearning for God’s purity would reward him with a physical presence with God (Job 19:26).
Ladies and gentlemen, we looked at purity of heart today. We discovered the great effort man has undertaken to distance himself from true purity. We considered that the purity that is inside you is not your mind, but the soul and a newly-created heart–a heart that does not exist in the carnal man, but only in the man whose heart is bent toward God. We also discovered that practicing morality or a humanistic form of righteousness is not a pure heart. This purity comes from a spirit that is cleansed and invigorated by the very life-giving water that is Christ Jesus. As He said, drink of this well and you will never thirst (John 4:14). This spirit is filled with the pure water of Christ Jesus and is continually replenished as the believer yearns to be quenched again, and again, and again. The heavenly heart of the believer that is cultivated in this sanctification sees God. We see Him within our walls here. We see Him when we are in town and find a brother or sister in Christ with whom we fellowship. We see Him in the testimonies on Sunday night, and Wednesday night where we find our God working in our lives and the lives of loved ones. We can see God’s great sovereignty and take great comfort in His strength through this pure heart. We find that a pure heart is contented, therefore, in all the things of God, even if challenges present themselves in our lives. This is the pure, contented heart bent toward God and away from this world. This is why the pure of heart are contented–because they see God.
The question I have for you, Christian, is: Are you complacently satisfied with the current level of purity in your own heart? Do you find yourself yearning to get back to the things of the world, to believe in the teachings of the intellectual of the world, to lean toward, their beliefs and understandings? Do you limit yourself and your abilities based on what you perceive of the world? Alternatively, do you continually seek the counsel of God’s Word, the things of God, and the people of God to guide your life? Whom you listen to, belies your heart folks. What will it be, God and godliness, or the world and worldliness? The choice will testify to your pure heart, or the lack thereof.
[1] http://www.lc.org/dayofpurity/about/index.cfm (Why a Day of Purity).
[2] Lloyd-Jones, D Martyn, Studies in the Sermon on the Mount, One-volume edition (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1976), 93.
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