He who loves purity of heart, and whose speech is gracious, will have the king as his friend. (Proverbs 22:11)
Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. (Matthew 5:8)
Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person. (Colossians 4:6)
Recently I mentioned how among other qualities purity is one that I admire highly. When I first came across it, the context was in reference to sexual conduct. Being bombarded with so many messages about sex and sexuality the majority of which would go against God’s design it’s understandable to be aware of the dangers that lie in that department. Yet as I got to read more about what purity is all about I was somewhat bemused by how little purity is mentioned in terms of the state of our hearts towards God, ourselves and others.
I mean consider purity as a quality that God expects from those who see God. That’s not just about sex. That’s about attaining an innocence of intent, free from cynicism, free to approach every situation believing the best for it. Viewing things from God’s eyes, as it were, seeking for truth and righteousness and expressing it with the love that comes from above. Being motivated by these issues marks us out in a world where those qualities and motivating forces are rare.
The fact of its rarity is seen with the plethora of talk-shows both on radio and television. What sells, what titillates the public mind? Quests for truth and righteousness? Hardly. And what tends to be said by those who want to share their views. Does that reflect purity of heart? Sure, we’re not all innocent and not all have that element of complete lack of selfish desire? Hardly. Rather what is promoted is the whole – get-it-off-your-chest and give-you-a-piece-of-my-mind splurge of bile.
Once more, however, we see Jesus’ wisdom in saying that what defiles a man isn’t about what comes from without but what comes from within. So it’s no surprise that if we’re called on to share what we really feel and give a piece of our mind, what’s in there isn’t so pure. It’s anger, it’s rage, it’s a spoilt sense of having the self not satisfied and seeking revenge. It’s selfish, ego-centric, covetous pride in all of its glory. It’s not pretty because what’s within isn’t pretty.
But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere. (James 3:17)
Notice the quality of wisdom marked here, perfectly reflecting the sentiment of the wise man in this proverb. Thus the relational element plays a key part again, that’s where purity comes from. If our vertical connection remains in place it leads to a desire to be pure from within. Indeed because of God clearing the way so that we can see Him clearly it gives us clarity to see everything else for what it really is.
That wisdom, then, is as much about the state of the heart as it is about the state of our practical activities. Yet also notice how that wisdom affects our language. When asked to give someone a piece of our minds, that piece is about peace. It’s about giving good even in the light of whatever bad we maybe faced with. That takes a tremendous strength of character that is often beyond a man’s capacity, but is well within the character of God.
Gracious talking, eh? It’s not a specious tendency to spout out whatever positive mantra is doing the rounds, it’s a heart-felt, compassionate approach to looking for where God is any given situation and pointing it out so that others will be edified, encouraged and enabled to see Him for themselves. Where it’s meant, because we mean it from the heart.
For His Name’s Sake
Shalom
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