Pure in Heart vs. Purity

As we reflected yesterday on the distinction between purity and holiness, today we’re thinking about the difference between purity and being pure in heart. Scripture has a lot to say about being pure in heart - about that attitude of prioritizing God with a rare goodness and resolve. It’s very different than ‘getting everything right’ in our spiritual life. It’s much more about desire and direction than about accomplishment or comparison.

Today read over these two passages in two translation a couple of times each and let the feeling of the verses seep in. Ask God for the grace to grow this kind of heart in you today.

Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God. - Matthew 5:8

You’re blessed when you get your inside world—your mind and heart—put right. Then you can see God in the outside world. - Matthew 5:8, The Message

But the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. 1 Timothy 1:5

The whole point of what we’re urging is simply love—love uncontaminated by self-interest and counterfeit faith, a life open to God. - 1 Timothy 1:5 The Message