I. The Promise to the Pure in Heart

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1 Matthew 5 1 And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: and when he was set, his disciples came unto him: 2 And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying, 3 Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. 5 Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth. 6 Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. 7 Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. 8 Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God. Blessing of seeing God! Moses I beseech thee, shew me thy glory. (Ex 33:18) Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God. What does it mean to be pure in heart? / See God? I. The Promise to the Pure in Heart A. To See God In the Life That Is to Come Revelation 22 1 And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb. 2 In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. 3 And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him: 4 And they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads. 5 And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever. 1. Jesus is the image of the invisible God. (Col 1:15) 2. he that hath seen me hath seen the Father. (Jn 14:9) 3. What will it be like to see God face to face? (look into the eyes of Jesus)

2 B. To See God In Life Today 1. Physical sight / Spiritual sight Psalm 27 4 One thing have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to enquire in his temple. a) Temple - not yet been built (Solomon) b) How - David - dwell in the house of the LORD? 8 When thou saidst, Seek ye my face; my heart said unto thee, Thy face, LORD, will I seek. c) Eyes of faith 1 Peter 1 8 Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory. II. The Purity of the Heart A. The Physical Heart 1. Average adult heart beats: a) 72 times /min - 100,000 / day - 3,600,000 /yr billion / lifetime 1 2. Pumps - 2,000 gallons of blood - 60,000 miles of blood vessels - each day 2 3. Own electrical impulse continue to beat separated body oxygen 3 4. Very Sensitive organ (WebMD) a) Cardiovascular disease - leading cause of death the U.S. b) Cardio - Greek word (kardia) 5. Importance: Good diet / proper exercise healthy heart B. The Spiritual Heart Pr 4:23 Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life. Pr 23:7 For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he 1 Parramon s Editorial Team Essential Atlas of Physiology. Hauppauge, NY: Barron s Educational Series, Inc. 2 Avraham, Regina The Circulatory System. Philadelphia, PA: Chelsea House Publishers. 3 Daniels, Patricia, et. al Body: The Complete Human. Washington, D.C.: National Geographic Society.

3 Mt 12:34 for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. 1. What is the spiritual heart? a) Inner-most part of our being b) Controls: thoughts / passions / desires / will c) Center of our life 2. Both Saved / Unsaved - Heart The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? (Jer 17:9) 3. Where God looks 1 Samuel 16 7 for the LORD seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart 4. What does God see? Genesis 6 5 And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. a) Every imagination of the thoughts of his heart b) Heart disease SIN 5. Hope for the Heart Ezekiel A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. 27 And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them. a) Salvation begins in the heart Romans 10 9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. 10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

4 III. The Protection of the Heart A. Heart Enemy Acts 4 33 And with great power gave the apostles witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus: and great grace was upon them all. 34 Neither was there any among them that lacked: for as many as were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the prices of the things that were sold, 35 And laid them down at the apostles' feet: and distribution was made unto every man according as he had need. 36 And Joses, who by the apostles was surnamed Barnabas, (which is, being interpreted, The son of consolation,) a Levite, and of the country of Cyprus, 37 Having land, sold it, and brought the money, and laid it at the apostles' feet. Acts 5 1 But a certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, sold a possession, 2 And kept back part of the price, his wife also being privy to it, and brought a certain part, and laid it at the apostles' feet. 3 But Peter said, Ananias, why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost, and to keep back part of the price of the land? 4 Whiles it remained, was it not thine own? And after it was sold, was it not in thine own power? Why hast thou conceived this thing in thine heart? Thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God. Proverbs 4:23 Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life. Watch over / protect / guard B. Through Careful Living Ephesians 5 15 See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, exactly / accuracy 16 Redeeming the time, because the days are evil. 17 Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is. 18 And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;

5 C. Through Cleansing Psalm 24 3 Who shall ascend into the hill of the LORD? or who shall stand in his holy place? 4 He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully. 5 He shall receive the blessing from the LORD, and righteousness from the God of his salvation. 6 This is the generation of them that seek him, that seek thy face, O Jacob. Selah. 1 John 1 5 This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. 6 If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: 7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. 8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. John is not saying that we can somehow obtain spiritual perfection while here on earth. Actually he's saying that we can't. He's also saying that in order for us to maintain fellowship with God, we must live in the light of His truth. Why is this important? As we in the light of God s truth, our sins are revealed along the way. As our sins are revealed, we confess them and receive a continuous and thorough cleansing from God. By receiving this cleansing, we keep our hearts pure and thus permitted to have fellowship with God. CONCLUSION I can t imagine a greater blessing than seeing God. I can t think of anything more wonderful than knowing Him in a real and personal way. This blessing can be ours if we are pure in heart.