When Jesus says in His Beatitudes, "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God" (Matthew 5:8), He refers not only to clean or chaste thoughts but also to "undivided," "unmixed," "unadulterated," "genuine," and "sincere" ones. Bible translators used the English word "pure" to replace the Greek word katharos, which conveys the meaning of "to cleanse" or "to purge," as in a refining process in which the impurities and alloys are drained off. The English terms "catharsis" and "cathartic" (describing the cleansing or purging of unhealthful emotions) carry this extended meaning.

The intent of katharos suggests harboring no guile or deceit, the trait Jesus recognized in children, telling the disciples, "Assuredly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter it" (Mark 10:15). Our Savior is seeking those who carry no admixture of good and evil but have rejected the bad and purged it, leaving them clean and focused on only the good.

Defilement and deceit are not recognized instantaneously. The Father of Liars looked perfect on the outside, as Ezekiel 28:15 implies: "You were perfect in your ways from the day you were created, till iniquity was found in you." We later learn that defilement came to Helel because of pride in his wisdom and brightness (Ezekiel 28:17).

In their mythology, the Romans concocted a two-faced god, Janus (from whom we get the name of the month of January). Supposedly, he had a dual nature that permitted him both to open and close things. In his tragedy, Othello, Shakespeare picked up the inherent connotation of duplicity, deceit, and two-facedness in this figure when he had one of his archvillains, the deceitful and two-faced Iago, invoke the name of Janus.

The real two-faced god is the prince of the power of the air (Ephesians 2:2), who, despite his vile, iniquitous core, has been "transformed into an angel of light" (II Corinthians 11:14). Double-mindedness represents Satan's character. The Devil has convinced humanity that harboring a little recreational sin will not hurt as long as the "job approval ratings" remain high. Sadly, some of us have bought into this demonic lie of good outer actions but rotten inner motives.

The late motivational author and lecturer Stephen Covey suggests that an insidious paradigm shift has occurred in our country. He claims our traditional Character Ethic, which proceeds from a moral and ethical core, has been displaced by a Personality Ethic, which is driven by outer things—focus groups, opinion polls, social media popularity, and the like—and contains little or no conscience or inner character. Covey suggests, "We cannot have the fruits without the roots."

God Almighty demands that the whole course of life become rendered pure, from the heart's motives and desires to the outward words and behaviors. Our behavior must be completely pure (from motive to behavior) and not just the outer appearance, or we will ultimately lose contact with our Creator. For us, loss of connection with God is tantamount to eternal death.

Some misguided individuals have tried to bring about a bifurcation between the two parts of the greatest law, "You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart . . . [and] your neighbor as yourself" (Mark 12:30-31). By their actions, some insist on a two-tiered relationship, professing allegiance to God but despising their brothers and sisters. This double-dealing stance destroys both our relationships with God and with our brethren.

However, these two great commandments cannot be separated. The apostle John warns, ". . . he who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen?" (I John 4:20). He goes on to write, "And this commandment we have from Him: that he who loves God must love his brother also" (I John 4:21, emphasis ours). Jesus stresses that it is futile to bring a gift to the altar (an attempt to communicate or have a relationship with God) if we have not reconciled with our brother (Matthew 5:23).

This principle is especially crucial in our most intimate relationships. The apostle Peter extends it to husbands who do not treat their wives with honor and respect, warning that, if they fail in that, they cannot expect their Creator to keep the lines of communication to Him open (I Peter 3:7). It is a heavy curse!

Some individuals have found themselves in what they considered dead-end jobs, performing thankless tasks for ungrateful people. Perhaps they realize they are surrounded by workers or clients who show no respect for God's laws or principles. Does this give them license to do their jobs in a lackluster manner? Even in the most mundane and irksome tasks, God Almighty demands that we approach our work wholeheartedly as though we were rendering the service directly to Him. Ecclesiastes 9:10 commands, "Whatever your hand finds to do [regardless of how irksome, frustrating, or thankless it may seem], do it with your might." Solomon also warns, "He who is slothful in his work is a brother to him who is a great destroyer" (Proverbs 18:9). Singleness of mind and a wholehearted approach represent a 24-hour-a-day task, whether we work, play, or relax.

Singleness of focus and purity of heart become increasingly difficult in the fast-paced Information Age. The Internet entices us to fall down rabbit holes, leading to distraction and wasting time. In this context, the web becomes an appropriate metaphor for the entrapment of our minds. It takes a special kind of self-discipline to responsibly stay within reasonable boundaries of a search and not become distracted.

Maintaining singleness of focus and avoiding double-mindedness are not easy. Doing them well becomes a full-time struggle. But the opposite, failing to attain a pure heart, causes us to lose contact with our Creator.

The other night, hearing a nearby train whistle, I reflected on the unpleasantness of its dissonant sound. The dissonance (caused by two competing, out-of-sync tones) brought about a feeling of alarm and repulsion. God feels a similar feeling of repulsion toward our behavior when we are out of sync with His moral law when we vacillate between hot and cold (Revelation 3:16). In nature, dissonance seeks resolution. Likewise, God demands that we stop halting between two opinions (I Samuel 18:21, KJV), deciding upon either one or the other.

To attempt to perform an act while balancing fear and doubt with faith leads to a state of dissonance, disharmony, or double-mindedness. God cannot bless the double-minded man until he chooses to step out on faith. Romans 14:23 reminds us, ". . . for whatever is not from faith is sin." As John Ritenbaugh once stated, the ingredient that makes the action pure is faith. Equally, the ingredient that makes the heart pure is faith. Only with an undivided, pure heart founded on faith can we expect to maintain contact with our Creator.