“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.”
When we think of our own battles with sin, particularly hidden sin, we often consider as a motivation for us the fact that God sees everything. As Hebrews 4:13 says, “There is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.”
It certainly ought to motivate us when we are in the throws of temptation, when no one is looking, when it is just you, alone and in the dark, it ought to motivate you toward holiness to consider and meditate on the fact that God sees all things, that God knows all things, that he is present with you watching everything you do.
But here, Christ says the inverse of this must also be a present motivation for us. When you’re in throws of temptation, when you’re tempted to lie in order to present yourself in a better light, when you’re tempted to gossip and slander a brother or a sister, when you’re tempted to fully give yourself over to your anxiety about the future, when you’re tempted to click that link to the shady website in order to see forbidden things, Christ tells you that what should stop you dead in your tracks in that moment, is the promised reward ahead of you.
Yes, God sees you in that moment. You are naked and exposed before the fire of his eyes. Everything you do, everything you say is before his face.
AND if you would turn to him, if you would purify your heart, if you would confess your sin and cling to the cross of Christ, then you will see God.
This is what you were made for. To behold your creator in all his splendor, in all his radiant holiness, to take in the sheer magnitude of his glory—like a thimble attempting to hold the ocean. This is what you were made for, to see him face to face.
So do not let the fleeting pleasures of sin entice you. Do not let the cares of this world distract you. Do not give yourself over to the impurity of lust, and licentiousness, and anger, and envy, and bitterness. Purify your heart and you shall see God.
Zach Wilke – May 19, 2024
