Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.
Matthew 5:8
In the sixth of Jesus’ beatitudes, he makes an amazing promise: “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God” (Matthew 5:8). But what does Jesus mean by this? We can’t literally see God, can we? In this beatitude, Jesus reminds us that it is not through our eyes that we see God, but through our hearts. And if we are to see God clearly, it will only be through hearts that are clean and pure. But who has a pure heart? And how do we even begin to purify our hearts? It is one thing to be merciful, or to hunger for righteousness, or to mourn or be meek. It is quite another to have a pure heart! If this beatitude doesn’t drive us to prayer, I don’t know what will! But there is a prayer in the Psalms that gives words to this longing, Psalm 51: “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.” Yes. God can create in us clean, pure hearts. And it begins with opening our hearts to God.
If this beatitude does nothing else, it encourages us to examine our hearts, to take an honest look at our innermost character, at who we truly are. When we do, what do we find? Do we find a genuine desire to love God above all else? Do we find a heart full of love? What lies at the center of our being, in that place no one else can see but God? There is really no escaping this beatitude’s bright glare. We can pretend to have mercy, to be meek, and to mourn. We can’t pretend to have a pure heart.
In William Barclay’s commentary on the Gospel of Matthew, he writes of this beatitude (“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God”) that it “demands from us the most exacting self-examination. Is our work done with motives of service or from motives of pay? Is our service given from selfless motives or from motives of self-display? Is the work we do in church done for Christ or for our own prestige?” To ask these questions and to answer them honestly can be challenging and humbling, but it sets us on the path to praying for a clean, pure heart. And this is the path that ultimately leads us to seeing God.
“Now we see in a mirror, dimly,” Paul reminds us, “but then face to face” (1 Corinthians 13:12). None of us can see God clearly. Not yet. But our faith leads us to believe that one day we will see God face to face. And our desire to hasten that day leads us to begin now, in whatever we can, to purify our hearts. So let’s get to work on cleaning our hearts, so that we are ready for the glorious day when we will see God face to face.
This is my seventh in a series of devotions on the Beatitudes in Matthew’s Gospel. You can find the others here:
My Pastoral Ponderings 
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