A pure, innocent heart – 2017.01.10

A pure, innocent heart – 2017.01.10

Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God.
Matthew 5,8
How we desire a pure heart!  We envy the innocence of tiny, newborn babies! And yet sin does not release its grip on us.  Those impure thoughts, the penchant for lying (much easier than telling the truth), those cravings for luxury and comfort, the tendency to claim things that do not belong to us, or not paying our debts.  The beautiful girls or men who make it difficult for us … there is so much that can make our hearts impure!
But the desire for a pure heart is within us.  How can we satisfy this desire?  Perhaps emigrate to Shangri-La? – that mystical valley in the Himalayas where everything is as it was in Paradise.  But does Shangri-La even exist, or is it purely a legend, a dream?
This verse kept me occupied the whole day.  A pure heart … what is that?  Is it even possible?
I considered fasting and keeping my distance from any and all kinds of luxury.  Should I undertake something hard, perhaps a pilgrimage on my knees?  Then Jesus reminded me of another verse:  For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of. In Matthew 15, from Verse 16, Jesus says:  Are you still so dull?  Don’t you see that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then out of the body?  But the things that come out of a person’s mouth come from the heart, and these defile them.  For out of the heart come evil thoughts – murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander.  These are what defile a person; but eating with unwashed hands does not defile them.
Now I realise:  God says He wants to give us a new heart.  He wants to instil His Spirit within us, so that He may govern us.  Indeed, that is how it goes, no other way:  He needs to have the final say in my heart.  He needs to determine, even when evil thoughts and desires rear their head.  I want to listen to Him and follow Him.  He wants to cleanse me of all sin, of all blame and impurity;-  oh, how good!!  And His Spirit renews me.
So I am cleansed each and every morning, blessed, found innocent by Him, our Lord.  Oh how wonderful it is to have Jesus in our lives!
Thank You Jesus, for being there!  Only You can create in me a pure, innocent heart!  You redeem me, You give me new life every day!  How good that You are there for me!!!
Bible study for today:  Psalm 44, 1-15


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