Purity – The Sixth Step To Happiness
We have been making our way through a section of scripture known as the beatitudes. They are found in Matthew chapter five. Each of the beatitudes begins with the word – blessed. This word could also be translated – “Happy”. So as we have been making our way down though the beatitudes we are finding steps to happiness. Follow along with me as I read:
”Blessed are the poor in spirit, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are those who mourn, For they shall be comforted.
Blessed are the meek, For they shall inherit the earth.
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, For they shall be filled.
Blessed are the merciful, For they shall obtain mercy.
Blessed are the pure in heart, For they shall see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers, For they shall be called sons of God.
Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”
Matthew 5:3-12 (NKJV)
Today we are going to focus in on verse eight:
“Blessed are the pure in heart, For they shall see God.” Matthew 5:8 (NKJV)
As Americans we are increasingly concerned with environmental purity. We want to drink pure water. We want to breath pure air. We want to make sure that the foods we eat are pure – that they don’t contain things that are harmful to us. Last year alone, Americans spent over half a billion dollars on water purifiers. But there is an area of our lives that is more important than the water we drink. It is more important than the air we breath. It is more important than the food we eat. It is an area that we often overlook - God says - "Happy are the pure in heart." We all have a heart condition that we should be concerned about.
Now here is a beatitude which demands that we should stop and examine ourselves. The Greek word for “pure” has a number of interesting facets. It was used for dirty clothes that had been washed clean. It was used to describe grain and flour that had been carefully sifted – cleansed of all impurities. It was used when describing milk or wine that had not been mixed with any other liquid. It is not diluted or watered down. It was pure.
So this beatitude could be translated, “Happy is the one who is genuine in heart, who is authentic, who is not a phony, because such a person will see God.” What we are talking about is being “Holy”. God has said in His word:
"Be holy, for I am holy." 1 Peter 1:16 (NKJV)
Holy is what God is. "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty." Pure and clean without blemish - Holy - is what God is. God wants us to be like Him. God is holy – God is pure – and God wants us to holy and pure also. Today let’s look at three steps to having a pure heart.
THREE STEPS TO HAVING A PURE HEART
The first step to having a pure heart is:
1. Remember that God sees EVERYTHING.
Look at what it says in Proverbs chapter five:
“Mark well that God doesn’t miss a move you make; he’s aware of every step you take.” Proverbs 5:21 (MSG)
Nothing is secret from God. Nothing is a surprise to Him. Does it bother you that you have no secrets from God? To tell you the truth – it bothers me sometimes. There are a lot of secrets I would like to be kept secret. But God already knows them. God says He knows everything about you. A lot of people think that they are fooling God. That somehow He doesn’t see everything that they have done – but He has. He sees right through everything. But here is the scary part – look at the next verse:
“For there is nothing hidden which will not be revealed, nor has anything been kept secret but that it should come to light.” Mark 4:22 (NKJV)
Everything that we think is hidden will be revealed – everything that we think is secret will be exposed. Wow! Shouldn’t that change our behavior? Shouldn’t that change the way I act? If God already knows everything – and everything is going to be revealed – I might as well strive to have a pure heart. I shouldn’t try to fake it anymore. I may fool some people – some of the time – but I can never fool God. But here is the amazing thing – God knows everything that I have done – and He loves me anyway.
A pure in heart person is conscious that God knows them inside and out. A pure in heart person is aware that God sees their every move. A pure in heart person knows that God knows them – and that God loves them anyway. That is a mark of maturity. The more mature you are the more conscious you are that God is with you all the time. An immature person acts like God isn’t even there at all. A mature person focuses in on pleasing God. The desire of very Christian should be to bring pleasure to God. That’s what it means to have a pure heart. You can’t please everyone – but you can strive to please God – and believe me – God knows every move you make. He loves you and He wants you to be successful.
The second step to having a pure heart is:
2. Review my MOTIVES.
We need to do an honest evaluation of why we do what we do. We should check our motives. In Proverbs chapter sixteen we find this written:
“All a man’s ways seem right in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the motives.” Proverbs 16:2 (HCSB)
We should constantly keep check on our motives. In fact second Corinthians chapter thirteen tells us that we are examine ourselves:
“Test yourselves to make sure you are solid in the faith. Don’t drift along taking everything for granted. Give yourselves regular checkups. You need firsthand evidence, not mere hearsay, that Jesus Christ is in you. Test it out. If you fail the test, do something about it.” 2 Corinthians 13:5 (MSG)
Let me suggest three areas to test yourself.
A. GIVING
When you give something what is the motive behind your giving? Are you giving in order to get something in return? Are you giving to be noticed by other people? Look at what it says in Matthew chapter six:
“Whenever you give to the poor, don’t sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be applauded by people. I assure you: They’ve got their reward!” Matthew 6:2 (HCSB)
We need to carefully check the motives of our giving.
We also need to check the motives in our:
B. PRAYING
Ask yourself – am I talking to God or am I talking so that others can hear me? Is my prayer addressed to my Father – or do I pray so that others will pay attention? Am I trying to impress others or am I talking to God? Jesus gives this warning in Matthew chapter six:
“Whenever you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites, because they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by people. I assure you: They’ve got their reward!”
Matthew 6:5 (HCSB)
Are your prayers so that others can pay attention to them or are they to God? What is the motive behind your prayers?
We also need to check why we do what we do in:
C. SERVING
Notice what the Bible says in Psalm one hundred:
“Serve the Lord with gladness; Come before His presence with singing.” Psalms 100:2 (NKJV)
We are to serve the LORD and we are to serve Him with GLADNESS. Are you striving to please people or are you striving to please God. Remember you can’t serve two masters. You have to set priories. We should serve God in a manner that "the right hand doesn’t know what the left hand is doing." Our service to God becomes automatic. What is motive behind what you do? Remember:
“All a man’s ways seem right in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the motives.” Proverbs 16:2 (HCSB)
The third step to having a pure heart is:
3. Realign my PRIORITIES.
Do you remember what the first of the Ten Commandments is? It is: “You shall no other gods before Me.” That is the first of the Ten Commandments. God is saying – “I want top place. I don’t want to be second or third place in your life. Whether it’s your career, your husband, your wife, anything – I want to be first.” How do you know if you are making Him first in your life? Let me give you three tests:
PRIORITY TEST
A. Look at my ACTIVITIES.
Ask – where do I invest my time and money? Wherever you put your time and money is what you feel is a priority in your life. Regardless of what you say is your priority – if you look at where you invest your time and money determines what the priorities are in your life. If you want to have a pure heart you need to determine where your heart is. Look at what Jesus says in Matthew chapter six:
“For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Matthew 6:21 (HCSB)
Where you spend your money and your time shows where your heart is.
B. Look at my ANXIETIES.
What do I worry about most? You can tell a lot about a person by what they worry about. Do you worry about, finances, food, fitness, fashion, or the future? If you’re worrying about any of these things, it means that God is not number one in your life. Look at what Jesus says in Matthew chapter six:
“Don’t worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Isn’t life more than food and the body more than clothing?” Matthew 6:25 (HCSB)
Jesus tells us to put our trust in the Father. He says, "Look at the birds in the sky – God takes care of them – they don’t worry - and you are worth much more than them."
C. Look at my AMBITIONS.
What are the goals in my life? My goals reveal the direction of my heart. What is the number one ambition of your life? What do I think is the most important thing to achieve? The problem with many Christians is that have the same ambitions – the same goals – as their non-Christian friends. There is no difference. The result is they have the same tensions. They have the same stresses. They have the same headaches. They have the same problems. But God says, “Set your heart first and foremost on pleasing Me – then you will see Me – and you will be happy.”
“Happy are the pure in heart, For they shall see God.”
You see happiness comes from walking in the presence of God. He sees your every move. He knows your motives. He knows if you have made Him the top priority of your life. Jesus said it this way:
“Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all things shall be added to you.” Matthew 6:33
Make God the top priority of your heart. Check your heart. We all need a spiritual heart checkup. What’s the condition of your heart? Some of you have a broken heart. Jesus can mend it! Some of you have a hard heart. Jesus can soften it! Some of you have a cold heart. Jesus can warm it! But you must give your heart to Him. Put your heart in His care – put your heart in His hands – and let Him work a miracle in your life - today.
