Pure In Heart Series

BLESS THIS HOME

wk-2 PURE IN HEART

PastorTimothy Porter

Text: Matthew 5:8

INTRODUCTION:

Hey, everybody. Welcome to the second week of our series called, "Bless This Home." I'm so glad to have all of you with us at THE BRIDGE!

What we're doing in this four-week teaching series is we are looking at what's known as the beatitudes.

That simply comes from a Latin word which means Blessedness.

In Mathew, chapter 5, Jesus showes us 8 different characteristics of those who are blessed.

Last week, we looked at "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness."

Matt 5: Beattitudes (Blessedness) Bless This Home. Purity in your family

? How many in here have Been robbed?

Men PROTECT: Physically

Women Protect the hearts moma bear

Enemy rob of purity.

What's interesting in our culture today is you're applauded for protecting your kids physically. Right?

I mean you put head gear on them and elbow pads before you send them out to check the mail today because we've got to keep them safe.

But yet, in our culture, when you try to protect their heart and their morals, you're often called an overprotective parent.

We're applauded for protecting them physically but people make fun of you when you try to protect them morally.

8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. Matt 5:8

What We're going to find today is that God actually calls us to protect, not only the physical nature of our homes , but to protect the purity of our homes hearts.

Just as some of was robbed physically, I believe we have a spiritual enemy who wants to rob our families of their purity, to break in, to kill, steal and destroy their innocence and their trust.

Jesus gave us a very specific beatitude in Mathew, Chapter 5:8, our key verse for today.

He said, "Blessed are the" what? The whole church, let's all say it aloud. He said, "Blessed are the pure in heart." For when you are pure in heart, what will you see? He said, "For they will see God."

? The word "heart" in the Greek language is the word "cardio." We get our word cardiac from that word.

Jesus was using this as a metaphor. He wasn't saying, "Blessed are those that have a pure organ that pumps blood through the veins.

He was using it as a metaphor to describe the emotions and the feelings, and the inner self.

I need to say very clearly that his message is much broader than what mine will be today.

When he said, "Blessed are the pure in heart," he was talking about attitudes and motives and thoughts towards others.

He was talking about a lot more than what I'm going to talk about.

For our purposes, I want to narrow the scope down and talk about the moral purity and apply it to our homes.

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Now, in our world today, it's very common for us to believe in ourselves and in other people that,

"Oh, she's got a good heart. He's got a good heart.

" Young, single girls dating a guy, "Oh, he's not a Christian but he's got a good heart."

No, he's unemployed and he lives in his van, down by the river. He smokes weed for dinner. "But, oh, he's got a good heart."

The reality is this, although that's a common saying, it's simply just not true of any of us.

Here's the thought, if you're taking notes, we need to understand that

? WITHOUT CHRIST, THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A PURE HEART.

The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? 10 “I the Lord search the heart and examine the mind… Jer 17:9-10

?The heart lies to us ...... It's decietful .... Don't tell your childern to follow their heat!?!?!? :o

In fact, in Ephesians 4, verse 18 and 19, the Apostle Paul said something really profound to the believers in Ephesus. He said this of those who were Gentiles, who had drifted from their faith, who were nonbelievers.

18 They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. 19 Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity… Ephesians 4:18-19

Darkened in understand—Walk into a theater—eyes adjust. Feed baby a bottle of poison, Swimming in a pool filled with acid.

?They are darkened in their understandings, they're separated from the life that God wants them to have because of their ignorance. They don't even realize it because their hearts have grown hard to the things that matter most; they're darkened in their understanding.