A Clean Heart
George Asbury McLaughlin
Chapter 2: The Importance of a Clean Heart
No one prays either successfully or earnestly, for what he does not consider of any great
consequence. The man who does not consider a clean heart of any special importance, will not
pray for it very earnestly. He may mouth a prayer, to be heard of men, but will never pray for it
from his heart, in dead earnest, unless he feels its great importance. Not to pray for anything in
deep earnest is not to pray at all, and hence is not to receive. Those people who think that the
experience of a clean heart is not of much importance not only make a great mistake, but, by this
false notion, rob their souls of a great necessity. The great importance of having this prayer
answered is seen for the following reasons:
1) The heart rules the world. It is the mightiest power in the world. The love either of good
or evil sways mankind. There is an old adage that "knowledge is power." This is true. There is
power in knowledge, but there is a greater power in love, either for good or evil. Men are moved
to action more by what they love and hate than by what they know. There are men who are great
thinkers, who sit and think all their lives, but never carry their thoughts out into action. But the men
who go forth to carry on those things that they are moved to by strong desire are the men that rule
the world and make the wheels of progress turn. Tell me what a man loves the most and I will tell
you what he will do every time. The man who loves a course of dissipation more than he loves
self-respect, the respect of community, prosperity and virtue, will give himself to dissipation
because he loves it the best, no matter if he does have the knowledge of all its dire effects. The
man who is covetous will give himself up to that, and sacrifice many comforts, because he loves
money better than the things which he foregoes, to get it. A slothful man will give himself to sloth
because he loves it better than the rewards of industry. The likes and dislikes of mankind rule the
world. Solomon says out of the heart "are the issues of life."
If there are evil affections in the heart they will issue from it and influence all the life. If
our hearts are wrong it will be very difficult to keep our lives right, hence it is of the utmost
importance to have our hearts free from all evil affections.
When the heart is free from sinful affections it is easy to do the will of God. It can never be
difficult to do the will of God when there is nothing in the heart contrary to the will of God; when
there is nothing contrary to his love in the heart. Love lightens labor in every department of life.
The mother will, out of love for her child, do the most menial tasks that money could not hire her to
do, for any one else. No man is a profitable servant whose heart is not in his work. He only is a
profitable servant who puts his whole soul into his master's business. Then the work is well done.
So it is if we make a success of the service of God. Every unholy affection within us is an inward
traitor, who makes it difficult for us to be at our best for God.
We have heard a story of a farmer's wife who arose in the morning for daily work feeling
scarcely strong enough to go through the day. At the thought of the churning, baking, dish-washing
and other duties of the day she was discouraged and began to complain of the hard lot in the life of
the farmer's wife. The more she sighed the worse the situation appeared. In the midst of this
discouragement her husband appeared from the farm on some errand. He perceived her condition,
and after uttering some word of endearment went on his way to the field. Instantly the situation
brightened. The baking and churning and dishes seemed very small affairs after all and she
exclaimed, as a ray of sunlight seemed to illuminate the place, "After all, we farmers' wives have a
fine time of it." That is the great secret of having a good time in the service of the Lord. It is to
have a heart so full of love to him that there is no room for any sin. Then the words of Jesus, "My
yoke is easy and my burden is light," have a real meaning. To most of the church they seem only the
high wrought figures of exaggeration.
We have heard of the old Scotch preacher who read to his congregation one morning in his
service a part of the 119th Psalm. As he read these words of the psalmist, ''I will run the way of
thy commandments," he said, "stop David that boasting!" He continued, "When thou shalt have
enlarged my heart. O, David, no credit to you. A man could not help running when his heart was
enlarged." When all evil affections are cast out and the heart is enlarged with the pure love of God,
we will find our activities and desires are untiring to do the will of God. The heart will be in
perpetual motion and tireless in its activities to do the will of God. This is the only perpetual
motion that has yet been discovered, and it comes from the only enlargement of heart that allows a
man's running. Hence here we have two anomalies which are above nature. Perpetual motion
discovered at last and caused by enlargement of the heart. It will be seen, then, that it becomes a
duty and delight to serve God under such conditions. Such Christians never have to sing,
"Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it,"
in order to tell the truth, but the hindrances to love having been removed from their hearts by the
cleansing blood, they sing truthfully with Faber,
"I worship Thee, sweet will of God,
And all thy ways adore,
And every day I live I seem
To love thee more and more."
2) The great importance of obtaining a clean heart is seen when we remember that we can
not enter heaven without it. It is something more than a luxury. Heaven is quarantined against sin.
Only holy people will ever enter heaven. It is an eternal necessity. Some one says very truly,
"Morality will keep us out of jail, but it will take holiness to keep us out of hell." The psalmist
says, "Who shall ascend into the hill of the Lord and who shall stand in his holy place? He that
hath clean hands and a pure heart." Jesus declared, "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall
see God." And the sight of God is promised to no one else. The wicked will see Jesus as an
offended judge, but only the pure in heart shall see him with any favor or delight. The inspired
penman commands us to "follow peace with all men and holiness without which no man shall see
the Lord." Holiness is the wedding garment which we shall have to wear or we shall never get into
the marriage supper of the Lamb. We may try to think it is of little importance, but we shall not
think it is of little importance when we come to the death bed. We may despise those who now
advocate it, and declare that they are specialists, but we will be glad to make it our specialty the
last day of life and anything that will be the specialty of our last day ought to be the specialty of
every day. Reader, do not trifle when you pray for a clean heart.
Continue to Chapter 3: The Possibility of Such an Experience
