Beatitude #6 “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God” Matthew 5:8
Saturday, March 7, 2026
by Chris Veley
- A few months ago, I asked Mike if I should speak again one morning. Without missing a
beat he said, “yes, why don’t you teach on Beatitude 6. It’s down the road ad will give
you plenty of time to prepare”. I had no idea where this journey would lead me. - I want to read you a letter and have you and ponder a moment about how you might
feel. I want to talk about Beatitude 6 today, specifically the heart and our relationship
with God. - The Beatitudes & Attitudes. Matthew 5:3-12.
- Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of God …Humility
- Blessed are those that mourn, for they shall be comforted …Repentance
- Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth … Gentleness
- Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled
…Obedience - Blessed are the merciful for they shall receive mercy … Forgiveness
- Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God …Integrity
- Blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called the children of
God…Reconciliation - Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven … Courage
Introduction
Irony
I have been journaling for almost 20 years and I journal during services. I hope someday my
children will ponder what I’ve written after I’m gone. My journals have scripture at the bottom
of each page.
As I remember, on January 4 th of this year my wife and I were at the 9am service as usual. She
would put her arm through mine, which always made me feel secure. Our guest speaker was
Greg Smith, and his message was “Love Doesn’t Lose it; love is not easily provoked”. We had
an argument that next Friday, and I lost my temper. Greg’s message evidently didn’t impact my
heart. We didn’t go to church on Sunday the 11 th . On Sunday, January 18 th , I’m sitting in church with my Brotherhood friends, Mike and Rich, to protect me from questions, “where’s your
wife?”. As I open my Journal and read the scripture at the bottom of the page I see, “Blessed
are the pure in heart, for they shall see God”. This is what my story is all about.
Blessed:
To be biblically blessed means living in God’s favor and alignment, with deep assurance that He
is with you—no matter the circumstances.
Heart:
Translated from the Greek word “kardia”, from which we get “cardiac” and similar terms (e.g.
cardi = heart, ology > the study of). Metaphorically, it encompasses the inner person, motives,
attitudes, and the center of one’s personality.
Pure:
Derived from the Greek word “katharos” from which we get the word catharsis. Meaning to
make pure by cleansing, removing dirt and contamination.
In so many places in scripture, God associates the “heart” with an individual’s relationship with
Him. God is concerned about the inner self of man, in the deepest sense, the condition of his
heart. In Matthew 6:21 Jesus said: “For where your treasure is, there will be your heart also”
John Macarthur said, “God gave Saul’s kingdom to David because Saul refused to rule with the
new heart God gave him”. In 1 Samuel 13:14 David, was “a man after God’s own heart”. David
pleased God’s heart because God pleased David’s heart.
1 Samuel 16:6-7 “When they arrived, Samuel saw Eliab and thought, “Surely the Lord’s anointed stands here before the Lord”. But the Lord said to Samuel, “do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him”. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”
Romans 10:9 “If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord”, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved”.
Meaning
As John MacArthur notes, Christians want to be single-minded in their hearts. That is, to live
their lives in a godly way and live up to God’s expectation of man. But we live in a fallen world
and fall into the trap of being double-minded. A struggle striving to be godly but falling into sin.
James 4:8 “Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.”
Pitch
Now and then you may see me get up during a message here in the barn and I’m making sure
there is wood on the fire. Inevitably, I get pitch on my fingers. It’s sticky and annoying. Almost
nothing will get it off. Soap and water won’t, degreaser won’t. The one thing that will work is
paint thinner. It takes the pitch off immediately.
I’m realizing that in my new chapter of my life, my divorce, I have been more double-minded
than I’d like to admit. During my life I’ve prayed many times that I long to hear “well done my
good and faithful servant” when I look into the eyes of Christ. But I’m hearing “do you really
know what you’re asking Me? You have “pitch” in your life, good deeds won’t get it off, being
nice won get it off, and nothing will remove it but Me. You want affirmation to hear “well
done”, but you haven’t removed the pitch. I want you to show Me your redeemed heart”.
Grace does not remove the suffering but can transform me through it.
Romans 7:15, 21, 25: “For that which I am doing, I do not understand; for I am not practicing what I would like to do, but I am doing the very thing I hate… I find then the principle that evil is present in me, the one who wishes to do good… So then, on the one hand I myself with my mind am serving the Law of God, but on the other, with my flesh the law of sin.”
My wife of 15 years has filed for divorce. I did not expect it. I did not want it. And I will not
pretend it hasn’t shaken me. When something like that happens, my first instinct is to look
outward. To replay conversations. To analyze what the other person did. To build my case in my
own mind. But the Lord has been asking me one question:
“Chris, is your heart pure before Me?”
Not “Are you right?”
Not “Were you misunderstood?”
Not “Can you defend yourself?”
But “Is your heart clean?”
1 John 1:9. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness”
I heard a story:
A man was driving into the mountains at dawn hoping to see a spectacular sunrise. He had
heard it was breathtaking. But as he drove higher, he complained that the colors looked dull.
Nothing impressive.
Finally, he stopped for gas. When he stepped out, he realized the problem wasn’t the sunrise —
it was his windshield. It was dirty. Once he cleaned it and looked again, the sky exploded with
color.
1 Samuel 16:7, from above:
“People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”
Matthew 23:25-26 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean”
A silversmith was asked how he knew when silver was pure. He said: “When I can see my
reflection clearly.”
God refines men the same way — through our:
Trials
Conviction
Discipline
Accountability
Charles Spurgeon said:
“The refiner sits by the fire. He does not leave the metal.”
(Spurgeon, Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, on refining imagery)
The fire is not to destroy you. It is to purify you.
The application to Men is this:
Install guardrails on your devices.
Seek male accountability.
Lead your home with integrity.
Finish life strong.
Divorce has a way of stripping a man down to what he really is. It exposes control. It exposes
anger. It exposes bitterness waiting at the door. It exposes pride.
Pride?
About 2 weeks ago I was at the gym and saw an older man being very kind and gentle toward
his wife, helping her adjust the weight machine. She appeared to be struggling, perhaps
recovering from a stroke. He was walking around the gym, and he walked past me and I said, “I
have to compliment you on how gentle and caring you are toward your wife”, and he thanked
me. As he walked by again, I asked. ”can I help you look for something” “My wife lost her phone
somewhere here”. “I’ll help you look for it”, I replied. I prayed, Lord, please help me find this
man’s phone for his wife. After about 30 minutes, I saw him with a look of relief, “we found it”,
he said. I felt a little uneasy. “I thought I asked You for me to find it, Lord”. Did I want to be
their savior? Was this pride?
I have been on my knees before God many times lately and said:
“Lord, search me. If there is impurity in me — show me. If there is hardness in me — break it. If
there is pride in me — remove it.” I don’t stand before You as a man who has done everything
perfectly. I stand before You as a man who wants, more than anything, to finish with a clean
heart. I want to hear my Savior say, “well done, my good and faithful servant”. Because I have
realized something in this season:
I cannot control another person’s decisions. But I can guard my heart before God.
I cannot control the outcome. But I can refuse the bitterness.
I cannot rewrite the past. But I can walk clean today.
And — that is what this Beatitude means. “Blessed are the pure in heart.”
Group questions:
In the last 30 days, when and where have you “seen” God? What did you see? How did
you know it was Him?
Have you had struggles that changed the course of your life? If not, could an unexpected
challenge be ahead of you… the unknown?
Would it be wise to change the trajectory of your life now (purify your heart) to prepare
for an upcoming struggle you didn’t see coming?
How do you perceive an unexpected struggle? Is it there to punish you or could God
place it in your life to teach and purify you?
Summary
Even the thought of divorce brings on stress. I tend to worry about how this will impact me
financially, emotionally and spiritually. But, when I calm down from those kinds of thoughts, I
try to concentrate more on Matthew 6:25-26, “Therefore, I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?”
If this trial does nothing else in me, I want it to burn away anything that keeps me from seeing
God clearly. Because at the end of the day — marriage, reputation, comfort — all of that is
temporary. But one day I will stand before Him. And in that moment, the only thing that will
matter is whether my heart was pure before Him.
I want to bring this back to where we started. “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see
God.”
I don’t know how your stories in this room turn out.
Some of you are fighting silent battles in your marriages.
Some of you are carrying regret.
Some of you are trying to finish well after decades of faithfulness.
And for me — I don’t know how my own situation will resolve. But I know this:
I want to come through this season with a clean heart.
Not bitter.
Not hardened.
Not compromised.
Psalm 51:10 Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew my steadfast spirit within me.
Hebrews 9:27 Just as people are destined to die once, and after that to face judgement.
Because one day — sooner than we think — we will all stand before our Lord.
Careers won’t matter
Bank accounts won’t matter.
Who was right won’t matter.
What will matter is this:
Was your heart His? Did you guard it? Did you surrender it when it was wounded? Did you
refuse to let sin take root in your pain? The world tells us strength is winning. Christ tells us
strength is purity.
And the promise attached to that purity is staggering: “They shall see God.” When this life is
over — when the arguments fade, when the disappointments dissolve, when the tears are
wiped away — the pure in heart will look into the face of Christ. And in that moment, no
sacrifice of pride, no refusal of bitterness, no discipline of holiness will feel wasted.
I asked God, longer than I can remember, that I would so much like to hear, “well done my
good and faithful servant”. As I reflect, I believe I was double minded when I asked Him for
those words of affirmation. I was more in this world. I’m now beginning to understand that
where I am is less about divorce and more about my heart and God’s mercy. Like sackcloth in
mourning, the pain of divorce is keeping me focused on humbling myself before God and
purifying my heart. If I’m truly the Christan, God-fearing man I want to be, then the condition of
my heart is much more important to Him than my marriage.
Before I finish, I’d like to read something I found on a website titled servantsofgrace.org:
“As we carry the scars of this world’s brokenness, while dressed in the hope of salvation
through Jesus Christ, we will come to understand and believe these words of Paul more
deeply”:
2 Corinthians 4:16-17
Therefore, we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are
being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal
glory that far outweighs them all.
Proverbs 4:23
“Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.”
So, whatever you are walking through — guard your heart. Because the man who keeps his
heart clean will see God. And that is worth everything.