Create in Me a Pure Heart

Chuckle: "I'm supposed to respect my elders, but it’s getting harder and harder for me to find one."

Quote:  “The heart in the biblical sense is not the inward life, but the whole man in relation to God.” –Dietrich Bonhoeffer

"Create in me a pure (clean) heart (mind), O God, and renew a right spirit within me" (Psalm 51:10 NIV).

We continue to learn from Psalm 51 as we study King David's prayer of repentance following his adultery with Bathsheba and having her husband, Uriah, killed so he could have Bathsheba for himself. In verse 1, David pled for God's mercy and forgiveness. In verse 2, he asked God to wash and cleanse the stain of sin from his life. Then in verse 10, he asks God to give him a pure heart and mind and renew his spirit.

What does it mean to have a clean/pure heart and mind? Simply stated, every sin we commit begins as a seed of impure thought and desire within our minds. Because we are born sinners (v. 5), our natural inclination is to please ourselves rather than God our creator. Only the power of God can cleanse us within by filling our hearts and minds with new and pure thoughts and desires. We can only live a righteous life after our minds have been transformed. "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is -- his good, pleasing, and perfect will" (Romans 12:2 NIV).

Listen to James as he describes the process of sin from it's conception to it's devastating conclusion. "When tempted (to sin), no one should say, 'God is tempting me.' For God cannot tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire (thought), he is dragged away and enticed. Then, after desire was conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death" (James 1:13-15 NIV).

David was so distraught over his sin that he asked God to do major spiritual surgery on his heart and mind -- a heart transplant if you will. He asked god to "create" a pure heart. The very word, "create" suggests the making of something completely new and fresh. It's as if David didn't want just an overhaul of his old heart; he wanted a brand new pure one. When it comes to avoiding sin, a new God-created heart is the only answer. Listen to God's words by the prophet, Ezekiel concerning His people. "I will give you a new heart with new desires, and I will put a new spirit in you" (Ezekiel 36:26 NLT). Have you asked God to create a pure heart and spirit within you??

Love, Jerry & Dotse