A Clean Heart

Pacific Press Publishing Company · Oakland, California · May 14, 1902

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 28, No. 20.

A Clean Heart.—In that wonderful prayer of the psalmist, found in the 51st psalm, which is also the prayer of the truly penitent sinner of all ages, is set forth the foundation work of all genuine reform among men. “A clean heart” is the necessary beginning. Without that, all reform will prove evanescent and hopeless.

The Fountain of Motive and Action.—The heart is used as expressing the seat of the affections, the mainspring of motive, the fountain of thought. “Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.” “For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness” (Mark 7:21, 22), and every other sin in the category, and all these defile the man, even in the cherished thought: “for as he thinketh in his heart, so is he.” “Whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart;” and again, “Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer.”

Cleanse the Fountain.—It follows from the above scriptures that the only way to reform the man is to cleanse the heart; the only way to purify the stream of life and action is to cleanse the fountain. “A good tree can not bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.” The fountain must be cleansed, the tree made good.

But Whose Heart?—Not the other man’s, not the church’s, not the nation’s, but the individual’s. “In me a clean heart.” No man can truly pray for a clean heart in others unless he himself possesses it. He may ask their salvation from sorrow or trouble, but not from sin in its fullest, broadest, deepest sense. The watchword and order of true reform is not, “The World for Christ, The Nation for Christ, The Family for Christ, Myself for Christ;” it is the exact reverse of this. First of all it is “myself for Christ.” John Knox himself was first reached by the Spirit of Christ before he could pray, “Give me Scotland or I die.” The lips of Isaiah must first be touched with the cleansing coal from God’s altar ere he could say, “Here am I; send me.” “Moses must first look upon God before he could plead even for his own self-effacement that Israel might be saved. And so also with Paul the apostle. His own soul must know the salvation, the unselfish Spirit of Jesus Christ, before he could say, “I could wish that myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh.” The work of reform must begin where God by His Spirit begins it, with my heart: “then will I teach transgressors Thy ways; and sinners shall be converted unto Thee.” See Ps. 51:10–13.

How Changed?—Not by human power, or human wisdom, or human education; not by science or scientific evolution; not by law applied by man; not by legislative enactment; not by pledges or resolutions or penance. It is by none of these things that the heart is made clean. Some of these may seem to effect changes, but the change is not lasting. Oftentimes the change is only from one sin to another, as from degradation to pride, from gratification of lust to self-righteousness. But the soul is not thus satisfied; it has no rest; it is not clean. Temptations stir it like the troubled sea; and when God is near, it is afraid. It is not clean. How shall it be changed? The Spirit which inspired the prayer tells: “Create in me a clean heart.” It must be by creation. Any power less than this will prove futile. From the chaos of doubt, and sin, and self-righteousness, and darkness, and unrest, creative power must call forth the cosmos of a clean heart.