The Blessing of Clean Hands and Pure Heart

The Blessing

By William M. Self, Sr.

 

 The sleight of hands can be a lot of fun with magic tricks

But deception will keep you from the blessings of God

 

The Blessing of Clean Hands and Pure Heart

One of the greatest hindrances

to God’s blessings is deceit.

Deceit is like a magic trick.

Things appear to be one way but with a

move of the hand everything is different.

Intentionally and unintentionally

people are deceived every day.

  

Many times the deception comes from personal bias.

This keeps certain parts of the story in the shadows.

Other times deception manipulates.

This limits your options to

 the desire of the manipulator.

To have clean hands and a pure heart, we

must not allow our heart to hang on to illusions.

When we lift up our heart to something other

than God’s truth, we live out the illusion of a lie.

  

Psalms 24:4 also says our hands and heart

are not pure when we “swear by what is false”.

The word false means deceiving or fraud.

The word swear is interesting because it means…

 To be complete and the root word brings out the idea

seven times, declaring something seven times.

Seven like seven days complete a week.

Seven refers to the number of God,

 number of completion or protection.

The word is “Shaba” to swear by

repeating a declaration seven times.

 

Deception comes to all of us.

It becomes a part of us when it is repeated seven times.

If you and I live a lie too many times, we

 can begin to live it as if it were the truth.

Mathew 5:8 says…

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

God makes a promise to the one

with clean hands and a pure heart…

“He will receive blessing from the Lord

and vindication from God his Savior.”

The word “Swear”, “Shaba” is a vow, oath, commitment.

Make your “Shaba” to the truth.

Don’t allow deception to be in your heart.

Or, let it give illusions with the sleight hands.

Scripture Reading

Psalm 24:1-6 NIV

24 The earth is the Lord's, and everything in it,

the world, and all who live in it;

2 for he founded it upon the seas

and established it upon the waters.

3 Who may ascend the hill of the Lord?

Who may stand in his holy place?

4 He who has clean hands and a pure heart,

who does not lift up his soul to an idol

or swear by what is false. 

5 He will receive blessing from the Lord

and vindication from God his Savior.

6 Such is the generation of those who seek him,

who seek your face, O God of Jacob.