The Beatitudes: Global Perspectives on the Way of Jesusنموونە

“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.” 

Doesn’t purity seem sort of radical today? Again, Jesus’ words in the sixth Beatitude radically shock us. “Pure in heart”? It almost makes you want to scream, Have you seen the world around us, Jesus?! 

But the thing is, He has. He experienced the worst of the world’s evil and brokenness while He was here on earth. Each year on Good Friday, we remember the ultimate instance of this: when Jesus was arrested, mocked, whipped, spit on, tortured, and crucified. 

Sometimes, in the midst of a world filled with so much brokenness, it seems impossible to keep your heart pure. Cynicism, apathy, despair, bitterness, and rage seem so much easier. Or perhaps, we’re tempted to “turtle”—to desperately try and hide from the world in order to keep ourselves separate from all that threatens the “purity” of our hearts. 

But Jesus shows us a different way. In Jesus’ life, we see Him enter the brokenness of our world and face it head-on—to the point of death on a cross. We see in Jesus’ life that it is not the separation from the brokenness that keeps us pure and leads us to see God, but our pursuit of pure hearts in the midst of brokenness that allows God’s presence to be that much more impactful in our lives and the lives of those around us. 

This truth is evident in the life of Guillermo from Bolivia. His life has been one of hardship—marked by deep brokenness that he struggled to reconcile with a good God as a child. Despite hearing about the love of God at his Compassion center, the addiction and neglect that plagued his home led him to reject God and embrace a life amongst his neighborhood’s dangerous gangs. 

Guillermo’s life spiraled into one of crime, violence, and addiction. But when he eventually ended up in prison, something began to shift. He prayed to the God he’d heard about as a child, begging for help. God responded. Once he was released, a slow process of discovering God’s pure love began in Guillermo’s heart, fuelled by the commitment of Compassion center staff who never gave up on him. 

Today, after a radical transformation, 22-year-old Guillermo will soon graduate from seminary with a theology degree. He is the co-pastor of his church and leads the youth group. “I was dead before. My life didn’t have a meaning, but when I received Christ in my heart, He brought life to me and gave me meaning,” he says. “I was resurrected along with Him. I don’t feel proud to say I was a drug addict, but I’m proud to say that Christ changed my life.” 

Like Christ’s victory after the crucifixion, the purity of Guillermo’s heart is all the more radical in the face of the pain and brokenness he’s faced. How can you pursue a pure heart today, even in the midst of a broken world?  

Prayer: 

Dear God, the words ‘pure in heart’ feel so fragile in face of the brokenness in our world. And yet I know that you don’t call us into your presence in spite of the brokenness but because of it. So, I echo the words of David in Psalm 51: Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Thank you that I don’t walk through this broken world alone, God, for you are with me. Amen.