Purity and Righteousness
By Donna Bullard
Psalms 24:3-5 NKJV “Who may ascend into the hill of the LORD?
Or who may stand in His holy place?
He who has clean hands and a pure heart,
Who has not lifted up his soul to an idol,
Nor sworn deceitfully.
He shall receive blessing from the LORD,
And righteousness from the God of his salvation.”
In my early days of ministry with The LORD I would often be called to speak to groups of
women. This began my study through the scriptures for what it means to have a pure heart.
In Matthew, Jesus said “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.”
The Greek word for “pure” in Matthew 5:8 is katharos and can refer specifically to that
which is purified by fire or by pruning.
John the Baptist said that Jesus would baptize with the Holy Spirit and fire (Matthew 3:11).
Malachi speaks of the Messiah as being like a “refiner’s fire” (Malachi 3:2).
Jesus says believers are the branches and He, Himself, is the vine (John 15:1-17).
For a vine to produce fruit, it must be pruned.
To be pure in heart means to be blameless in who we actually are. The only way we can be
truly pure in heart is to give our lives to Jesus and walk as the righteousness of God in
Christ Jesus. God sees our hearts pure through the Blood of Jesus. We all have lifelong,
refining and purifying, experiences as we are transformed into the image of Christ Jesus.
Those who are truly “pure,” then, are those who have been sanctified by the work of Jesus
~ by His refining fire and His pruning.
Psalm 51:10 says, “Create in me a pure heart,
O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.”
Have no fear. Ask Him, and allow Him to do the necessary cleansing. His Love covers all,
heals all, delivers all, and blesses all.
Prayer: Lord Father GOD, I pray in the name of Jesus, that You would create in me a pure
heart and clean hands. I love You and anything not of You, I ask now, that You would burn
or prune it out of me. My heart is Yours to refine, to cleanse, to prune as needed. I freely
submit myself to You. My heartfelt desire is to stand in Your holy place with You Lord Jesus!
I thank You in advance for a renewed steadfast spirit within me! I pray for opportunities
and for boldness to share this to our future generations in an effort to birth within them a
desire for pure hearts. May all that we do bring You glory. We magnify You; we exalt You,
and we wait expectantly to see You with pure hearts and clean hands. We worship You in
Truth and in Spirit! All of this and more I pray in Jesus’ Name, Amen and Amen