Sermon - March 14, 2010

Get Blessed: Simply Divine
Jeremiah 15:9-14, 1 John 3:1-3, Matthew 5:8

     For the last few weeks we have been contemplating the Beatitudes as the character map of every Christian. Beginning with blessed are the poor in spirit, we followed to “Blessed are those who mourn and blessed are the meek.” Last Sunday we felt the pangs of those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, confident in their blessing to be filled. This morning, we open ourselves to God's promise on Jesus' lips, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.”
   If this sermon were a video game, it would be rated E for everyone. But not everyone will want to hear it, receive it, or believe it. Some might even rate it M for mature Christians only with viewer discretion advised. But it is appropriate for everyone just as God intends.
  Once an avid fan of the Home and Garden Network, HGTV, I used to watch shows like Design on a Dime, and  Debbie Travis Painted House.  Some of the ideas featured on those programs I implemented in the décor of our home. My favorite was Divine Design. In each episode Candice Olson would transform a blase room like this family room into a stunningly gorgeous living space. When the project was completed she would say something like: “Before this room was old and too tired to party. And, by filling the room with luxurious fabrics, sumptuous furniture and enough light to put the sparkle into any occasion, it’s now ready for celebrations – that's simply divine. “Jesus' words depict the transformation of a crowded, cluttered divided soul to one made whole and ordered in perfect beauty: blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
   What is pure?  We want to drink pure water, breathe pure air, eat uncontaminated food.
Grain is pure if all the chaff has been removed. Gold that has had all its dross removed is pure gold. Purity, according to the Bible means “clean, not contaminated, unmixed.” We think of the heart only in terms of emotions. However the biblical understanding of the heart includes not only emotions, but intellect and will as well. Jesus told his disicples in John 14:1 Do not let your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. That's emotion.
      When the teachers of the law were thinking “Why does this fellow talk like that? He's blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?”  Mark 2:8 tells us  Immediately Jesus knew in His spirit that this was what they were thinking in their hearts. That's intellect.  When Daniel decided that he would not eat the king's delicacies but only vegetables and water Daniel 1:8 tells us Daniel purposed in his heart that he was not going to defile himself. That is will. So, according to the Bible, pure of heart is to to be clean, uncontaminated, with single devotion in emotions, intellect, and will.  In other words to be pure in heart means to have unmixed motives and transparent integrity.
   Blessed are the pure in heart; those who are inwardly what they outwardly live. The heart is the very center, the hub of your emotions, your motivations, impulses, and passions, how you think, what you feel, and what you will: the core of your being. We read in Proverbs 27:19 As water reflects a face, so a man's heart reflects the man.  Max Lucado refers to the heart as  “the totality of the inner person...the seat of character, a freeway cloverleaf where all emotions and prejudices, emotions and wisdom converge. It is a switch house that receives freight cars loaded with moods, emotions, and convictions and puts them on the right track.”  Jesus teaches us “For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks.” Mt. 12:34. That means every insult, every cuss word, every time we use the Lord's name in vain or speak evil against another person,  is sewage spilling out from the heart. God does not look upon external appearances. He looks at what's on the inside of us. Abraham Lincoln once said, “If I were two-faced, would I be wearing this one?”
   Hear how the Prophet Jeremiah evaluates the human heart:  The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? Jer. 17:9.  God understands it. Dr. Billy Graham once said, “We're suffering from only one disease in the world. Our basic problem is not a race problem. Our basic problem is not a poverty problem. Our basic problem is not a war problem. Our basic problem is a heart problem.” It is a deadly heart disease the depth of which God alone knows. Jeremiah continues “The Lord searches the heart and examines the mind to reward a man according to his conduct according to what his deeds deserve.” Jer. 17:10
   We can attempt to mask the condition of our heart, ignore it, or hide it, but that does not change the truth. A  little girl started crying when she heard a dog barking.  The owner scolded the dog and it immediately settled down. The little girl's mother tried to comfort her daughter, by saying, “Honey, you don't have to cry. The dog has stopped barking.” But the girl continued to whimper. “Yes, but his bark is still in him.”  We might be able to control ourselves for a while, but sooner or later, our bark comes out.
   Only God can diagnosis the extent of our heart disease, only God can treat it, and only God can heal it. He is the Heart Doctor. Jeremiah cries out, “Heal me, O Lord, and I will be healed; save me and I will be saved, for You are the one I praise.” vs. 14
   According to Jesus, purity of heart isn't just believing the right things. Or going through the right motions. The Pharisees did exactly that and received some of Jesus' harshest rebukes. No,  it is doing the right things with the right motives, the heart right with God. It is consistency between what you believe,what you do and how you go about doing it.  
  Further more purity of heart is more than the absence of corruption and mixed motives.  Not everyone will want to hear this, receive this or believe this: because if you do, you will see God. Sadly, not everyone wants to be that close to God. Purity of heart is the fullness of God's Spirit dwelling in you. God's very life living through you, in your  life touching the lives of those around you. It is not enough to want to live an exemplary moral life, you desire for Christ to live through you. How do we come to have that kind of purity of heart? Take ten steps up.

1.     Admit, confess sinful impurity. Acknowledge you cannot change on your own. Jeremiah the great prophet faced this and wrote “Can the Ethiopian change his skin or the leopard its spots? Neither can you do good who are accustomed  to doing evil.”

2.     Ask for a new heart:  Claim the word of God from Ezekiel 36:26  I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you:  I will remove from you our heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.

3.     Pray for Purity: “Create a clean heart in my O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.” God did not go to all the trouble to send His Son into this world, watch Him die, and raise Him to life, just for us to break a few bad habits. Although, by His grace and power, in the Name of Jesus we can. No, Jesus came to purify our hearts, to make them new, to equip us to behold and fully enjoy the presence and fellowship with God.

4.     Draw close to God.  James implores us “Come near to God and He will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. James 4:8

5.     If you are truly serious about seeking purity, study Scripture: memorize and meditate on God's Word. Psalm 119:9, “How can a young man keep his way pure?” The answer follows “By living according to Your word... I have hidden Your word in my heart that I might not sin against You.”

6.     Don't gripe. Avoid complaining and arguing.  When we grumble we are giving voice to our lack of faith. When we argue with others, we are inviting unholiness to settle in our hearts. This is why Apostle Paul told the Christians in Philippi, “Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure.” Phil. 2:14-15.

7.     Watch what you watch. King David vowed, “I will set no worthless thing before my eyes.” Psalm 101:3 Think about what is worthwhile on television, in the media, on the internet. James 1:27 teaches us that “Religions that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.” It is not easy, but if you are serious about seeking purity, follow Job's example, I made a covenant with my eyes not to look lustfully at a girl. Job 31:1.Gals, you can substitute “guy” for girl. It greatly matters what we focus on: a book, magazine, TV show, movie, a website. Keep it clean.

8.     For single folk: three words. True love waits. For the rest of us, fidelity in marriage.  From Hebrews 13:4 Marriage should be honored by all, and the marriage bed kept pure, for God will judge the adulterer and all the sexually immoral” If you think it's too late, think again. God can create and clean-up a heart of any age this very moment.

9.     Find a faithful friend. Some one you esteem as honest and wise who will keep you accountable. Proverbs 27:9 ...the pleasantness of one's friend springs from his earnest counsel.

10. Finally, focus on our future hope. If you are serious about pursuing purity, you will soon discover it is a life long challenge and adventure. Over the years in ministry, I have sadly discovered, that even though God invites all to share in His holiness, not everyone wants that adventure. Little do they realize the great joy that awaits all those who set out upon it. In that sweet fellowship with God we have hope just as the Apostle John tells us in 1 John 3:3 “Everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.  

    The best part comes last: Blessed are the pure in heart for they will see God.  For those who are singular in their devotion, unmasked in their relationship to Him, God reserves the most intimate fellowship.  The nearer we approach purity of heart, the surer we become of God, His goodness, mercy and love. And the closer we come to God, the purer becomes our heart. In the depth of our soul, the core of our being we want to see Him. And you will, in the people you love – which becomes virtually everyone - in every day events, everywhere you go, you see evidence of God with you,  His love surrounding you, protecting you, and proclaiming you as His child. In prayer, You will find Him closer than your very breath.  In Bible Study, His word will speak directly to you. In your day to day decisions, as you approach His throne and wait upon Him, you will know what pleases Him and what is best for your life. In retrospect, you will look upon your adventure in Christ as victorious, glorious, and abundantly full of life – a total transformation from being a blase existence to a luxurious living space that's simply divine..

     

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