there is no such thing in this world, nor ever has been, as a Non-Tempted Heart,
(d) It is the Heart that loves righteousness and hates iniquity. When God says, "My son, give Me thy heart, He means "Come along, young man or woman, and love Me and holiness, and Souls, and hate the Devil and Sin, with all the powers you possess."
(e) It is the Heart that molds the character, guides the choice, and masters all the course and conduct of a man's life. The heart is the captain of the ship. It determines whether a man shall accept mercy, serve God, follow righteousness, live for the Salvation of his fellows, and finally enter the Heavenly Harbor in triumph, or whether he shall live a life of rebellion, die in his sins, and finish up a wreck on the rocks of everlasting despair. How important it is to each one of us that we should have a good -- a right -- a Pure Heart.
Now, seeing that the Heart is so thoroughly the master of the man, nothing can be much plainer, can it, my Comrades, than the necessity for that Heart being pure? But what is a Pure Heart? What is it to have a Heart that has been cleansed by the Power of the Holy Spirit through the Blood of Jesus Christ? That is a very important inquiry. and I do hope that my dear Soldiers will give me their careful attention while I strive to answer it.
1. And first, a Pure Heart is not a Heart that is never Tempted to do evil Possibly there is no such thing in this world, nor ever has been, as a Non-Tempted Heart, that is, a man or a woman who has never been exposed to temptation to commit sin, of one kind or the other. Not only was our Blessed Lord tempted by the Devil in the wilderness, but He was beset with evil attractions all the way through His life. St. Paul expressly tells us that our Saviour was in all points tempted like as we are, but hallelujah! He effectually resisted the world, the flesh, and the devil, and came through the trying ordeal without a stain. He triumphed over all, for the Apostle exultingly assures us, that "He was without sin."
You will be tempted, my Comrades, all through your earthly journey, even to the very gates of Heaven; but, thank God, temptation is not sin, and Grace, abundant Grace, is provided to enable you to triumph over all the fascinations of earth and all the devices of hell. You can come off more than conqueror. But, remember, although you may have a Pure Heart you will have to fight temptation.
2. A Pure Heart is not a Heart that cannot suffer. Beyond question, Jesus Christ had a Pure Heart; He was Holy and undefiled, and yet He was "The Man of Sorrows." Paul tells us that although he exercised himself to have always a conscience void of offense towards God and towards man, yet was he not saved from being, at times, "in heaviness through manifold temptations."
All the Saints of old had hours of darkness and depression, many of them going through seas of anguish. And as with the Saints of old, so is it with the Saints of modern times. It is not sinful to weep and be cast down, if in our distress we do not give way to unbelief and despair and wrong-doing. Cheer up, brothers and