Blessed Are The Pure-Hearted

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

There is no impurity before God. His being is so untainted, without even a hint of impurity, that nothing contaminated with sin can be in his presence. It will not stand. We are born bent toward impurity. We have a natural leaning toward sin, and before we are very old, we have revealed that nature. We know this from our own children. The word we say most to our little, toddling offspring is “no,” not “yes.” That was true of our parent’s words to us. Isaiah said “All we like sheep have gone astray. Every one of us has turned to his on way.” (Isaiah 53:6, emphasis added.) Paul, in Romans 3:23, reminds us “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (emphasis added again)

Part of what makes God glorious is His total purity. I wonder what we would look like if every thought was pure, every action innocent, every word true? Hmm.

Truth is, we are not pure. How will we ever be able to stand before God? How can we get a pure heart? Isaiah finishes 53:6 with, “the Lord laid on Him the iniquity of us all.” Paul tells us, “While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8). Only through Christ can we be made pure. It is His gift, from the suffering and blood of the Cross, which makes us pure. “He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” (2 Corinthians 5:21, NASB) Apart from Christ, I am hopelessly unrighteous. In Christ, I am made new. It is beyond my reckoning to understand all this, but my limited ability to comprehend does not make it less true.

Check out these additional passages of scripture to gain more insight. If you are reading this online, you should be able to click on each reference, as you can those above, and you'll be taken to the BibleGateway.com site, where you can read the scriptures, and look at them in their context.
Ephesians 2:1-10
1 Corinthians 6:9-11
Hebrews 12:14 
Revelation 22:3-4
1 John 3:2

Update:  I am feeling well, perhaps a bit more tired than normal, but doing well. Keep the prayers going. They are everything.