In front of a large crowd of ragtag people—many of whom had just been healed from their infirmities—Jesus preached a radical sermon on the upside-down, inside-out nature of God’s kingdom. Within the opening lines of His  famous sermon comes this startling truth:

“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” ~ Matthew 5:8

Many in Jesus’ day sought to use Jesus or get what they most longed for from Him, whether it be status, power, freedom, or significance. Yet Jesus cuts through their mixed motives and definitively declares that what we all need most is a pure heart that breaks away toward a fresh vision of God, because our vision of God will shape the course of our lives.

What we all need most is a pure heart that breaks away toward a fresh vision of God, because our vision of God will shape the course of our lives.

Defining the Beatitude

This verse is one of eight statements known as the Beatitudes. When we look at the Beatitudes, it is helpful to remember what they are not. They are not a religious to-do list. They are not merely aspirational statements that we need to live up to or accomplish. We do not become poor in spirit, mourn, be meek, be hungry for righteousness, or be merciful by stacking up the right combination of behaviors or trying harder.

Again, the Beatitudes are not a religious to-do list—they are a radical description of lives transformed by the good news.

Jesus, as King of God’s kingdom, is pronouncing God’s gracious favor upon those who are the least deserving and most unfit for God’s kingdom. God is making the best kind of life, with the best of all rewards, available to anyone who humbly embraces the life-giving demands of the gospel.

As often is the case, the best commentary to expand our understanding on this Beatitude is Scripture itself. Looking back, the Scriptures reveal the reality of the heart when King David proclaims:

“Behold, you delight in truth in the inward being,

and you teach me wisdom in the secret heart.

Create in me a clean heart, O God,

 and renew a right spirit within me.” ~ Psalm 51: 6, 10

Looking ahead in Scripture, this reality is expounded upon when the Apostle John writes:

“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 2:2-23

The kind of purity this Beatitude is talking about is inward. When Scripture talks about the heart, it is talking about the seat of our thoughts, words, and actions. Having purity of heart points us primarily to the way we relate to God and others.

Yet the best commentary on this Beatitude lies within the Sermon on the Mount itself, where Jesus talks about how we practice our righteousness before others in our giving, fasting, and praying. And in Matthew 6:21 He lays it out with convicting clarity when He says:

“For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

To summarize, this Beatitude is all about what we treasure and value, and what we prioritize and fixate on.

One commentator defines the pure in heart as “…the single-minded, who are free from the tyranny of a divided self. In this case, the pure heart is the single heart and prepares the way for the ‘single eye’ which Jesus mentions in the next chapter.”^[1]

From this understanding, here are four outcomes of having a pure heart—and why it’s what we all need most.

1. A Pure Heart Brings True and Lasting Change

We know full well that we live in a broken and fallen world, therefore anything in this world cannot bring true and lasting change. Yet we need to remember that Jesus has inaugurated a kingdom that is not of this world and brings the good news that can truly transform dead, dull hearts into living, tender hearts. Jesus began His public ministry by announcing:

“The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.” ~ Mark 1:15

We can cultivate a pure heart by turning to, trusting in, and treasuring Christ one day at a time. What we need most today is a pure heart and a fresh vision of God so that true and lasting change can be worked in us and flow through us.

We can cultivate a pure heart by turning to, trusting in, and treasuring Christ one day at a time.

2. A Pure Heart Fuels a Pursuit of Christ Above All Else

There are many things that matter and are of value to pursue, but having a pure heart will enable us to begin to focus on what really matters most. King David put it this way in Psalm 27:4:

“One thing have I asked 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 gaze upon the beauty of the Lord

    and to inquire in his temple.”

Our life will always follow our eye’s gaze, and we will ultimately become like whatever we behold.

Our life will always follow our eye’s gaze, and we will ultimately become like whatever we behold.

3. A Pure Heart Confronts and Overcomes Hypocrisy and Division

In stark contrast, Jesus offers another list later in Matthew that is antithetical to the Beatitudes (see Matthew 23:25-28). The kingdom of God addresses matters of the heart, and His kingdom confronts all the facades of external righteousness that were touted by the kingdom of the religious leaders in Jesus’ day—and also in our day. A pure heart confronts our tendency as God’s people to pretend like we have it all figured out or have all the answers, and allows God’s grace to flood our lives and bring a revival of integrity to our hearts.

Oh, that we would pray along with the psalmist in Psalm 86:11, “Unite my heart to fear Your name!”

We need the Holy Spirit to transform our polluted hearts into pure ones. Then we can be agents of integrity and unity rather than perpetuating hypocrisy and division.

4. A Pure Heart Equips Us with a Heavenly Perspective

As Christians, we have “dual” citizenship. One is eternal (heavenly) and is worthy of our ultimate allegiance. The other is temporary (earthly) and yet requires our engagement. Our heavenly citizenship does not allow us to neglect the responsibilities or shield us from the effects of our earthly citizenship, but instead informs, shapes, and equips us to participate in the public square as ambassadors of God’s kingdom.

What we need most—and what this world is waiting to see—are people marked by pure hearts and a fresh vision of God. As followers of Christ, we are called and have been equipped to incarnate the life of Christ in and through our lives. When we see God with pure eyes, we can then imitate God with integrity and authenticity.

When we see God with pure eyes, we can then imitate God with integrity and authenticity.

Copyright © 2023 Justin Jeppesen. All rights reserved.

^[1] Stott, J. R. W., & Stott, J. R. W. (1985). The message of the Sermon on the mount (Matthew 5-7): Christian counter-culture (p. 49). Leicester; Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.