Today we conclude the theme we have been discussing over the last few days: the way to a pure heart. We draw on these words of Jesus:
‘It is what comes out of someone that makes that person unclean. For it is from within, from the heart, that evil intentions emerge: fornication, theft, murder, adultery, avarice, malice, deceit, indecency, envy, slander, pride, folly. All these evil things come from within and make a person unclean.’ (Mk 7:20-23)
What has been said about dealing with thoughts also applies to all the other areas referred to by the Lord. It is to be hoped that not all the wickednesses mentioned are found in our hearts, but the tendency to do so lies in our fallen nature. We have to be careful – but not tense and scrupulous – about what we perceive in ourselves and deal with it accordingly.