What’s the most incredible thing you’ve seen?
I’ve seen some wonderful sights – the white capped 14ers of the Rockies, sunset over the Pacific, the soaring giants of the Sequoia forest.
In 1998 I happened to be in Turin, Italy for a mission trip when the Shroud of Turn was put on public display for the first time in ages. In a 5 week period, 3.5 million people from all over the world traveled to the city to buy a ticket and get a glimpse of an extraordinary piece of cloth.
We will pay good money and give up good time to see something fantastic.
In the beatitudes, Jesus offers an invitation to the most glorious experience any human will ever witness – God himself. What’s the ticket cost for that?
Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God. -Matthew 5:8
A heart that is pure is undivided and therefore clean. That is the ticket price to see God.
There are 3 things that can give us this kind of heart – the blood of Christ (1 John 1:7), the Spirit of Christ (Titus 3:5) and the Word of Christ (John 15:3).
The one who has trusted in Christ and received his blood, Spirit and Word is now clean and will one day see God in glory!
In the meantime, our purity of heart must be worked out in practice. As we partner with Jesus and his means of cleansing grace, our vision of God becomes ever clearer and more satisfying.
Let’s pray this week that our heart will be pure in practice and that the eyes of our heart will be enlightened to behold the glory of God.
Teach me your way, LORD, that I may rely on your faithfulness; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name. -Psalm 86:11