From a biblical perspective, the heart is the place where emotions and desires begin; it is that which drives the will of man towards action. The Easton Bible Dictionary says, “the heart is the centre not only of spiritual activity, but of all the operations of human life.” It also says the heart is the “home of the personal life” and hence man is designated, according to his heart: wise (1 Kings 3:12), pure (Psalm 24:4; Matthew 5:8), upright and righteous (Psalm 78:72), pious and good (Luke 8:15), etc.

The heart is also the seat of the conscience (Romans 2:15). Since The Fall in Eden, the heart of everyone, born of a woman, is naturally corrupt (Genesis 8:21) and it contaminates the whole life and character (Matthew 15:18). Therefore, there can be no talk of maintaining a pure heart if the heart of man is not changed. How can you maintain a car you have not bought? You must first own the car before you talk about maintaining it. Likewise, you must first acquire a pure heart before any talk of maintaining it. Job asked, “How can one born of woman be pure?” (Job 25:4). It may have appeared impossible to him in his day, but thanks be to God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

In Jesus, God Gives New Hearts

In Ezekiel 36:26, God had promised: “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols.” Note that this is what God himself does and not another. He doesn’t even delegate it: I will, he says. The Psalmist recognized this fact when he cried out, “Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me” (Psalm 51:10). Are you in need of a pure heart? Make the Psalmist’s prayer yours. Jesus himself said “I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me” (Revelation 3:20). Jesus is knocking and waiting for your permission to move in. He comes bearing a pure heart. If only you would confess your sins and open the door, you will receive a new heart from him as a gift. It is only when you have had this new birth experience that the talk of maintaining a pure heart can meaningfully apply to you.

If only you would confess your sins and open the door, you will receive a new heart from him as a gift. It is only when you have had this new birth experience that the talk of maintaining a pure heart can meaningfully apply to you.

The War for Your Heart

I have said earlier that the heart is that which drives the will of man towards action. It then follows that what or whoever gains control of a person’s heart assumes control of that person’s life. It was what the serpent did with Eve in Eden. Once he got her to see the ‘benefits’ of eating the forbidden fruit, he gained control of her life and here we are. All your victories are first won in your heart; all your defeats are first defeats in your heart. If your heart has not been won, then your life has not been vanquished. Proverbs 23:7 says, “For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he.” It is like the steering wheel of an 18-wheeler – it may look small and insignificant but controlling it determines the direction that the truck drives to. It is in this light that the wise man said, “Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life” (Proverbs 4:24). Your heart should be what you guard the most, above all your earthly treasures. It is what is valuable that is guarded, and the Bible places your heart at the top of the list of things that should be guarded by you. 

All your victories are first won in your heart; all your defeats are first defeats in your heart. If your heart has not been won, then your life has not been vanquished.

Jesus said it is what comes from the heart that determines whether a person is clean or unclean (Matthew 15:10-11). Jesus knows this; the devil also knows it. The big question is, do you know it – really know it? I am referring to the kind of knowledge that stirs you into action. The battle over your life is essentially the battle over your heart. When more than one man is wooing a damsel, the one who wins her heart is the one who marries her. Who will win your own heart? Someone has said all our interpersonal conflicts are mere skirmishes compared to what goes on inside of us; the real war is the war of the heart. That is why you must guard your heart above all else and take charge of your life.

Someone has said all our interpersonal conflicts are mere skirmishes compared to what goes on inside of us; the real war is the war of the heart.

Maintaining A Pure Heart

There may be some reading these lines, who have opened their doors to the Saviour but continue to battle impure thoughts. Fellow soldier, you are in a battlefield so fight on. The enemy doesn’t quit attempting to win over your heart because Jesus has changed it; the battle may be even fiercer so you should quit yourself like a man and fight. But how?

1. The Word. The Psalmist asked, “How can a young man keep his way pure?” His response was, “By living according to your word.” “I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you”, he adds. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly (Colossians 3:16); meditate on it day and night (Joshua 1:8). Jesus prayed, “sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth” (John 17:17). Fill your heart with the word; think the word; act the word. It is God’s tool of sanctification.
2. Guard your heart. It may sound repetitive, but it is not. Assume watchman duties over your heart. Be careful what you see, hear (listen to) and read. Your eyes and ears are gateways into your heart, and it is your duty as a watchman to screen what is allowed entry. Some Christians think lightly about listening to secular music. Some of those lines are quite erotic and leave an aftereffect. Besides, you have been admonished to sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs (Colossians 3:16), making melody in your heart to the Lord. Is it from those erotic lyrics that you would make melody to the Lord? Never you think you have grown in your walk with God that this no longer matters. Let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall. What you hear, see or watch lingers on in your heart and forms your thoughts. As you think, so are you.
3. Watch your company. The Psalms open with a declaration of the blessedness of the man who shuns the ways of the wicked, sinners and mockers but delights in the law of the Lord. It is he who is like a tree planted by streams of water and fruits in season (Psalm 1:1-3). The bad company keeps the man from bearing good fruit while avoiding them contributes to fruitfulness. Paul was crystal clear to the Corinthian Church: “Bad company corrupts good character” (1 Corinthians 15:33). Paul told Timothy to “flee the evil desires of youth, and pursue righteousness, faith love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart” (2 Timothy 2:22, my italics). The company you keep will determine what you hear and see. These will in turn influence how you think. Remember, as you think in your heart so are you. Out of the abundance of the heart, your mouth will speak. It is what comes out your heart (like through your mouth) that Jesus said will determine your cleanness or otherwise. Guarding your heart therefore includes guarding your relationships.
4. Choose your thoughts. For the person who has been fighting a losing battle with impure thoughts, this may sound like an impossible feat. What is impossible with man is however possible with God, for with God, nothing will be impossible (Luke 1:37). The believers in Philippe were admonished: “Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy, – think about such things” (Philippians 4:8, my italics). Identify what possesses these traits and think about it. In the battle against impure thoughts, victims many times think they are helpless. They erroneously assume that what they feel is who they are: “I feel, so I am.” This scripture clearly disagrees. You must learn to distinguish clearly between your thoughts and what the enemy whispers into your heart’s ear and attempts to get your buy-in. Refuse to buy into those thoughts. That a thought entered your mind doesn’t make it yours or make that who you are. Instead, do what this scripture says – choose your thoughts. Consciously come up with what is pure, right, noble, admirable, excellent, or praiseworthy and fix your thoughts on it. Sometimes you may need to do something as simple as moving away from where you are in the moment, and you’d notice a change in your prevailing thoughts.
5. Pray. O soldier, in this war of purity, summon divine help. David cried out to God to create in him a pure heart and renew a steadfast spirit within him (Psalm 51:10). Make that prayer yours as well. The earnest prayer of a righteous man makes tremendous power available (James 5:16). Even here, watch, and pray, because the enemy can also take advantage of this time to perpetuate his works. When you pray, you focus your heart on the issue you are speaking to God about. In praying against impure thoughts, if you do not watch, you can easily move from praying over the problem to engaging in the very unclean thoughts you started out to pray against. By the time you realize it, you are very far down the road and then you start asking for forgiveness over them and the cycle can be difficult to break. On this matter, say a brief prayer and move on to something else. Apply the wisdom of point 4 above: choose your thoughts; you are not helpless. In fact, quite the opposite, you are where there is the greatest help available – the throne of grace. Here you can obtain mercy and find grace to help in your time of need (Hebrews 4:16).

You have been called to be pure (1 Thessalonians 4:7) and you need a pure heart to ascend the hill of the Lord (Psalm 24:4). You need it to enter the new Jerusalem He is preparing for those who love him (Revelation 21:27). “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God” (Matthew 5:8). There is no greater motivation for maintaining a pure heart than this. I pray Paul’s prayer for the Philippians for you and me, that we “may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ” (Philippians 1:10).