The Good Life #7 - Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God

It's 3 p.m. on a brisk Friday afternoon. I got back from my afternoon walk about 30 minutes ago, and called Mike so we could video chat for a few minutes while I made a late lunch of turkey on whole wheat (with Miracle Whip) and a mug of hot chocolate. I don't mind when he calls during my blogging time, it's just easier on my train of thought if he doesn't.

I realize that it's been 2 weeks yesterday since my last post, but I was in Brattleboro with Mike from Saturday afternoon on the 8th until midday last Saturday. Valentine's Day, y'know... <3 Which I could say more about, but just suffice it to say that we'll be spending most holidays here in Concord until we can get a place together.* Anyway, due to weather concerns, he stayed over with me until this past Monday. That was another whole "adventure" when I had to pay $175 to get the van out of the towing lot. I'd never had to deal with a parking ban before.* I'm just glad I had the money to cover it without being short the rest of the month. Now I get text alerts ahead of them. (Not that I need them when the car isn't here, but...)

In other news, we'll start with the good bit first. Andrea's husband, Matt, is home again!! When I had been over on the 5th, I believe, he was supposed to be home in the next day or 2, but appealed due to not being back to previous capabilities necessary for home care. Since then, he's been back in the hospital for a short time, but came home earlier this week sometime. Praise God!! Of course, continued prayers for his complete Stroke recovery, in Jesus' Name.

The latest with my parents is that their "guests" are STILL THERE!! It's been since last April sometime, and the landlord just found out about it back in November, I think it was. My oldest, Carissa, was calling him on my parents behalf and mentioned it. Now, since things are completely without hope of financial recovery for them, she and one of my dad's sisters are looking at the Veteran's Home for dad and mostly likely the County Nursing Home for mom.* These are located about 45 and 25 minutes away, respectively. It's a huge change for all concerned, but it will be the best thing in the long run. Especially for my father. He'll FINALLY get away from my Narcissistic mother and be able to enjoy time alone, or with new friends, as he sees fit. (Of course, there will be visits, but he won't have to live with her 24/7, as he has for most of the last 57 yrs.)*

Also, my son, Benjamin, has a birthday next Friday. I will definitely be blogging more before then, but you can view his card on the Stamp, Card, and Jewelry page. :) He will be 27. So far, nothing new has been mentioned about his potential return to Indiana to help his ex-wife; pray he doesn't fall into her trap again.

And now, we proceed --

I'm sure we've all known some people who are "pure of heart", and others who are decidedly not. During my walk earlier, I was thinking about this in planning my Message Intro paragraph for this post. What came to mind were the 2 men I've had long-term relationships with over the past 8 yrs or so, as well as my love, Michael. While all 3 have backgrounds that would give them more than enough reason be Narcissistic, only Rob is. I was with him just prior to reconnecting with Mike, and should have broken things off far sooner. Jeremy CAN be Narcissistic, but only when he's really angry about something. And even then, I've seen a change in him since he left me shortly before Halloween in 2018. We're still good friends and talk on the phone every couple of weeks or so.* Since moving back to Nebraska, he's slowly progressed to a much better outlook overall. Mike, on the other hand, has never been selfish to the point of Narcissism. When I first met him back in 1990, he was a really sweet, caring, sensitive guy. I rarely saw him angry about anything, and even then, I don't think he had a tendency to take it out on others. He still struggles with a bit of selfishness now and then, but the point is that he recognizes it and tries to improve. While Mike and Jeremy are at least far closer to being "pure of heart" than some, it's unlikely that Rob will ever see a need to change that much.*

Once again, our key passage is found at the beginning of Matthew 5 --

Matthew 5:1-12

New International Version

Introduction to the Sermon on the Mount

5 Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, 2 and he began to teach them.

The Beatitudes

He said:

3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.5 Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.7 Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.9 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11 “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

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As sometimes happens, Pastors Matt and Joe collaborate and present a message together. This was one of those moments. The fun bit they shared before starting in was the 2 nicknames the Staff give them on these occasions: "Jott" or "Moe" are the combo monikers they came up with. LOL (Personally, I like "Jott", as it's not already a real name) :D

Pastor Matt led into the message itself by admitting to the fact that, while the Beatitudes can be confounding for many, they are also an invitation to those who are open to receiving them. He reiterated here from previous messages that we are not meant to look at them as a "checklist" of Christian behaviors. (more on this later)

Pastor Joe then read our focus verse - Matt. 5:8 - "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God."

Pastor Matt brought out the fact here that Jesus was quoting from Psalm 24:3-4. (I'm not sure I knew that before) As we will be coming back to this again later, I'm going to go ahead and copy it here, starting with verse 1, and going to verse 6. Actually, since Pastor Matt also emphasized the enhanced "color" and depth of multiple translations, I'll follow suit --

Psalm 24:1-6

King James Version

24 The earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.

2 For he hath founded it upon the seas, and established it upon the floods.

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.

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Psalm 24:1-6

New International Version

Psalm 24

Of David. A psalm.

1 The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it;2 for he founded it on the seas and established it on the waters.

3 Who may ascend the mountain of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place?4 The one who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not trust in an idol or swear by a false god.[a]

5 They will receive blessing from the Lord and vindication from God their Savior.6 Such is the generation of those who seek him, who seek your face, God of Jacob.[b

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Psalm 24:1-6

New English Translation

Psalm 24[a]

A psalm of David.

24 The Lord owns the earth and all it contains, the world and all who live in it.2 For he set its foundation upon the seas, and established[b] it upon the ocean currents.[c]3 Who is allowed to ascend[d] the mountain of the Lord?[e]Who may go up to his holy dwelling place?4 The one whose deeds are blameless and whose motives are pure,[f]who does not lie,[g]or make promises with no intention of keeping them.[h]5 Such godly people are rewarded by the Lord,[i]and vindicated by the God who delivers them.[j]6 Such purity characterizes the people who seek his favor, Jacob’s descendants, who pray to him.[k] (Selah)

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They didn't include the KJV, that's my oversight, but it adds to the mix, so it's all good.

As we dig more deeply into what it means to be "pure of heart", we find some great insights in the words used in each of these translations.*

While the NIV speaks simply of "clean hands and a pure heart", and of "trusting in idols" or "swearing by a false god", the KJV and NEV bring more nuanced definition here. They speak of vanity and deceitfulness.* As Pastor Matt put it, someone who is not pure of heart will say things like, "You HAVE TO believe me!!" or "I swear on my mother's grave!!", etc... The point of a pure heart lies in aligning our motives to our actions. No deceptions or evil desires, which, as Pastor Joe brought out, directs our attention back to Eden. Adam and Eve started out with pure hearts, content to spend time with God and seek His will in all things. Then Satan showed up and presented them with a different viewpoint. The blame and deception started there and has continued in the hearts of men (and women) ever since. As we will discover in this message, only the power of God can help us to overcome these natural tendencies.

Next, Pastor Matt had us turn over to Mark 10:17-22 for a look at the Rich Young Ruler and how his story fits into our theme. This short passage shows us the deception of Religion and how it can deceive us into thinking we're better than we are. During his interaction with Jesus, the young man started by showing humility by bowing in reverence.* He later confirmed that he had followed the Commandments faithfully since birth. This shows that Judaism was focused on behavior rather than on relationship with God. (Granted, that's all they had until Jesus' Sacrifice, but the point lies elsewhere.)* The point being made here was that Jesus loved him too much to allow him to stay in the land of "Make Believe", as Matt phrased it.

As Pastor Joe spoke up here, Jesus essentially performs "heart surgery" on those willing to allow it. Pastor Matt heartily agreed and then brought out the 2 responses we may have to Jesus' invitation:

Do we respond in humility and say, "Uuuugh, I'm sorry..." and commit to doing better about aligning our actions and motives in the future?? or...
Do we walk away, dejected, like the Rich Young Ruler who couldn't see his way out of trusting in mammon (money) as opposed to trusting God?? Other things may get in our way today, as well. Like reputation, influence, friends, etc...

Further exploration into the full implications of a pure heart took us back into the Old Testament to review Psalm 51. Specifically, verses 9-10, for the sake of time, as Pastor Joe mentioned. Here, we find King David in misery at having done so wrongly by Bathsheba and her husband. In these verses, he is pleading with God to "hide from my sins" and then to "create in me a pure heart". This use of Creation language once again, calls our attention back to Eden. God started this Earth with full connection to His Creation, and He's never going to give up on that goal in view of full restoration. New Creation leads to New Heart, which leads to New Identity.

We see this concept echoed again in 2 places in Ezekiel - First of all, in chapter 36, verses 24-28, we see God's promise of restoration for Israel after having been in Exile. Here, He speaks to them of replacing their hearts of stone with those of flesh, thus giving them a New Spirit. This speaks definitively of transformation, not simply of behavior modification, as Pastor Joe brought out. Secondly, in chapter 39, verses 27-29, God tells them through Ezekiel's voice that He will "pour out My Spirit"*, and "no longer hiding My face..."

The Pastors then went on to confront the question some may bring out of, "What about what God says back in Exodus about not seeing His face?? How does that work with Matt. 5:8??"

As we've seen before, when Scripture presents us with a "problem", it's an invitation to look more deeply for the answers. Turning to Exodus 33:20, we read about Moses' interaction with God as He is agreeing to pass by. God tells Moses that no one can see His face and live. Verses 7 and 11 of this same chapter show us that much of Moses' time spent with God took place in the Tent of Meeting (Tabernacle). Again, we are getting echoes of Eden here and God's ongoing desire to connect with His Creation.

Ultimately, we find that, in Jesus, this "tension" of views is permanently solved. This is further supported in John 14:9, Col. 1:15, and Heb. 1:3a.

Now, getting back to our passage in Psalm 24, we see that the foundation of this Scripture lies in Creation. Pastor Matt brought out another thing here, that I'm 99% sure I'd never heard before. The Garden of Eden was said to have sat on a mountain!!* So here, we see the connection between "mountain", "Eden", and "Tabernacle" (or Temple). The joining together of Heaven and Earth, which is indicated in all 3 of these words, can only be accomplished if we are pure of heart. The question, as posed by Pastor Joe here, is "Are we hungry for it??" Remembering at the same time the earlier Beatitude that those who hunger and thirst after righteousness will be filled.

The facts are that God is always pursuing us and that Jesus has already DONE THE WORK. Contrary to the belief of those in Legalistic circles, we DON'T HAVE TO STRIVE. We have only to trust in Jesus and rest in the work He has accomplished on our behalf.

So how do we become in practice, who we are in position?? Pastor Matt posited. As mentioned just above, we simply trust in Jesus and rest in what He's done. We can do it because He has made us new. At the same time, the Father is enabled to see us in our New Identity, through Christ.* It is also through Jesus that we are all written into the story of Eden.

In closing, Pastors Matt and Joe discussed the triangular cycle that many New Christians find themselves in. It is an image of God, obedience, and identity. Starting at the top, you have the Father, the lower left is obedience, and the lower right is about identity. (See image below) Going in this direction, we get the message that, because God is our Father, if we do the right things, we gain identity in Him, and thus, have good standing with Him. This perspective can bring 2 results --

We may get an attitude of superiority and Legalistic self-righteousness. We may say, "I'm better than others because I'm obedient to God's Word." or...
We may respond like the Rich Young Ruler and basically say, "Skip it, I'm out of here." We become rebellious and reject God.

Jesus shows us a better way. He shows us that the Father is the one to initiate the cycle. He makes it clear that God is the One who does all the work. (See image below) Throughout the writings of Paul, among others, there are a plethora of verses speaking to the truth of our identity in Christ. By this viewpoint, we can clearly see how our "good behavior" is based solely in Him. Pastor Joe mentioned here about how the Fruits of the Spirit* are displayed as we abide in Christ.* We will learn to trust and rest in Him by spending time with God and seeking His face. -- Amen!!

-- God Bless!!

Footnotes:
1. I don't have an asterisk for it, but IDK why my laptop (or Wix) won't let me go back to the original left margin after bullet points... ggggrrr...
2. In brief, Mike went to his friend's house when he was supposed to be home cooking my Valentine's Dinner. It's not that he doesn't love me well enough, it's just that there's too many "distracting habits" that he has trouble giving up when I'm over there. Visiting this friend is the major one.
3. The last time I owned a vehicle was before I moved into this apartment in May of 2014. Before that, I've always lived in places that had off-street parking.
4. Concerning my parents' plans, it's not that I don't care; it's the fact that I don't have a car unless Mike is here, nor do I have the extra money to help much. If I could help more, I would. But then there's the question of how much they'd let me. As it is, they didn't allow me to help them move out of the house I grew up in back in 2017 until things were nearly done already. We knew going into this move, that they wouldn't be able to afford to stay there more than about 5 yrs. with the money they got from the sale. Now, it's nearly 3 yrs. beyond that, and these "guests" have been draining money they don't have. :/
5. The only times my father has been away from my mother overnight were 2 times. Once, when my mother went to her cousin's house in Connecticut after having her gal bladder removed, and then there was 6 weeks when I was in 10th grade when we both lived apart from her when she was home. Both of these were in the mid 1980's. They will have been married for 57 years in April.
6. Speaking of Jeremy, I forgot to mention in my personal news that he has his ticket to the Philippines. He'll be visiting his gf, Sharon, for about 2 weeks in April. Pray for safety, discernment, and wisdom during his time with her.
7. I've actually asked Jeremy about Narcissism, due to the fact that he was studying to be a Clinical Therapist during his time here. (He had already started, and was nearing the end of his book-work. Sadly, he was unable to complete his degree for lack of Internship and Practicums) Anyway, I asked him recently if Narcissists were born or made. He said they're always made. My follow-up question was whether or not they can be "un-made". He said, potentially, yes; but it would require the person seeing a problem with their own behavior, and that would be a monumental effort. So, yeah... not holding my breath on either Rob or my mother...
8. The fact of the additional insights provided by multiple translations is something that the KJV Only crew should pay attention to. :p
9. In turn, vanity and deceitfulness are the 2 major hallmarks of Narcissism. Although in reality, the vanity (or self-love) commonly associated with Narcissism is a mistake in itself. The truth is, Narcissism is just self-loathing disguised in conceit. (I came up with that a few years ago and posted it on my FB) I feel it's a more accurate assessment.
10. This is one example of Jesus having accepted worship, for those who deny Jesus' Divinity.
11. As per usual, parenthetical thoughts are mine.
12. Although in this passage, God is speaking directly to Israel, we find that in Joel 2:28, He definitively says, "all flesh". This, along with the fact that, in Ezekiel, God is referring to "the Nations" as Babylon, and other "enemies of God", supports the truth that God did not ONLY come to Israel. The fact is, as we plainly see from Joel, Isaiah 32:15, Zechariah 12:10, and Acts 2:17, along with Paul's listing of the Spiritual Gifts in 1 Corinthians 12 and 14, and the various places in the NT that speak to the Gentiles being "grafted into the promises of God", that He essentially GAVE UP on Israel after they refused to follow His command to share His Gospel with ALL THE WORLD. This is further supported by Jesus' conversation with the Woman at the Well, and Phillip's conversation with the Ethiopian Eunuch. (See also, Jesus' healing of the Centurion's servant) (Sorry, it's just that I've been in a Quora discussion with a Messianic Jew lately) ;p ;p
13. A brief search proves that the Fertile Crescent is encompassed by 2 mountain ranges, so this is totally possible.
14. Be sure to listen to " He Sees me in Him" in the music shown below. (it's the 3rd one down)
15. The Fruits of the Spirit are listed in Galatians 5:22-23, and the concept of Abiding in Him is found in John 15.

Music -- Never a right here!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zundjUFazfg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XjWvbV6ohVc

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PALxiTHEc5E

Unfortunately, due to the current inability to restore the left margins, I cannot add images at this time. I will come back in later and try again.