BLESSED ARE THE PURE IN HEART
By Wm. Houghtaling
WM. HOUGHTALING
(Laport, Ind.) JESUS said, in that grand sermon on the mount, “Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God. Now let us put that statement in another way: Cursed are the impure in heart, for they shall not see God. This is a reasonable deduction as will be apparent. God does not punish us arbitrarily, but by the working out of natural laws allows our manner of life to be shown to be good or evil. It is written, “Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? . . . A good tree can not bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.” Did you ever see one who, having obeyed God’s laws through life, did not wear the mark of God’s blessing in his face? And did ever the sign of the curse fail to be apparent in the appearance of one whose life is impure? When the vilest sinner turns to God, and is thoroughly converted, how quickly a change is noticeable! How soon the eye, the index of the thoughts, which was wont to be averted in the presence of the pure, acquires a look of honest confidence! Instead of the look of guilt, we see there the evidence of the blessing. True, the scar remains, as does the scar of an external wound; but where there is a scar, we know that there has been a healing. “As he thinketh in his heart, so is he,” is a truth that is patent. A keen observer, standing for a moment on one of our crowded thoroughfares, might single out any number of men and women who bear the stamp of impurity; but could a like number be found upon whom God has set His seal? God alone can look upon the heart; therefore man may sometimes be deceived for a time by a fair outward show; but the evidences of sin are bound to appear. As well sow thistles and expect a harvest of grain, as to live in sin and expect to bear the mark of God’s approval. “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.” We do not need a scientist to tell us that a tree is dead when it has been so for a long time; but the danger of deception is with regard to one that has just been killed, but is still standing. For a little while its leaves may appear fresh and green, but how soon the mark of death shows itself! God does not have to put a mark upon the dead tree to show us that it is dead; the simple working out of natural law shows us that life no longer exists. So it is with men. God does not need, by a miracle, to put the mark of Cain upon us to show that we are spiritually dead; that will come as a natural consequence when we live in disobedience to His laws. Paul, in writing to the Philippians, says: “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.” By meditating upon the things of God, our minds will become conformed to His mind; and when our minds become changed into the likeness of God’s mind, we shall think God’s thoughts; and as God is the embodiment of purity, the more we come into harmony with Him, the more will purity be manifest in our daily life. Impure thoughts precede impure actions, just as seedtime precedes the harvest. We might as well take in our hands a viper and expect to escape unscathed, as to cherish impure thoughts and think to come forth uninjured. Only the mighty power of God can break the bands of sin, and give us freedom; but when this has been done, we are constrained to say: “Bless the Lord, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless His holy name.” For “He was manifested to take away our sins.” “And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as He is pure.”