This morning I woke up tired and heavy. A beloved cousin died yesterday and I felt as if a chunk had been cut out. When I came to my desk to start devotions with worship, I didn’t feel like worship, but selected four pages of praise songs to sing anyway. The first one, Be Still my Soul reflected my situation but not my feeling of heaviness. I sang as if a foreigner to the music. It is well with my Soul was in those pages as well as other ‘feel good’ songs. To my amazement, by the time I finished singing and praising God without feeling like it, that missing peace and joy came back. I should not have been startled when today’s devotional began with, “You have a part to play in becoming pure in heart.”
MacArthur says this purity is a gracious work of the Holy Spirit and that I must admit that I cannot do it myself. As Proverbs 20:9 asks, “Who can say, “I have made my heart pure; I am clean from my sin”? I must admit my helplessness. Inner peace and joy cannot be faked, neither can purity.
However, just as obedience to the habit and spiritual discipline of singing praises restored my sense of being okay in God’s care, certainly obedience to God’s Word and the work of the Holy Spirit is vital to purity of heart.
Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure. (1 John 3:2–3)
So how do I purify myself? The Bible is clear that trusting in Jesus Christ is the major first step. As the NT says about all believers, Jew or Gentile, God makes “no distinction between us and them, having cleansed their hearts by faith.” (Acts 15:9) This initial cleansing is followed by a life of faith, by walking in the truths God gives us as we trust Jesus:
If we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. (1 John 1:7)
Walking in the light means seeking light from all that God reveals to us in the Bible.
How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word. With my whole heart I seek you; let me not wander from your commandments! I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you. (Psalm 119:9–11)
Since we have these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit, bringing holiness to completion in the fear of God. (2 Corinthians 7:1)
It is not enough to know those truths. As He says, I need to walk in them, live my life by them. Again, this is about obedience, about saying no to sin and yes to God in my actions. “Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul.” (1 Peter 2:11) This is why singing praise songs, an act of obedience, could overcome the hole in my heart. God tends to walk through open doors and give us His joy as our strength even when we don’t feel like opening the door.
Turning from ‘poor me’ to ‘praise God’ is like having a shower that washes the heart, and “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” (Matthew 5:8)
This isn’t about physical seeing but a deeper sense of His presence and becoming increasingly aware of His working in my life, about seeing His power and handiwork in the beauty and intricacy of creation, about discerning His grace and purposes amid trials, and about learning to praise Him no matter how I feel. It is also about seeing His sovereignty in all of life as He gives profound and eternal meaning to all events and issues.
Jesus, I am joyful because You are incredibly faithful. My dear cousin is still gone from this earth, yet even in grief there is joy, joy in knowing You are here with us who feel her loss, and joy that You give peace in surprising ways. Because of what You are and what You do, my way of thinking changes — and that is purity of heart. You transform me and I can share with others the power You have to change hearts and minds. I’m so grateful for Your amazing grace and for Your continued presence with Your people. Give me increasing purity that I can see You clearly and share You with others.
READ: Isaiah 6:1–8. Soak up the wonder of Isaiah’s vision of God. Take special note of how he responded to God’s what he saw.
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