I am a Jesus pusher!!! “Blessed are the pure in heart” (Matthew 5:8). Throughout the law structure of the Old Covenant a basic premise is proposed. The presupposition is that impurity and Jehovah are irreconcilable opposites. Purity is the norm qualifying one to take part in worship; impurity separates one from worship and from God’s people. The Old Testament Scriptures declaring our premise are too many to list. God called out to His people through the prophet Isaiah saying, “Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; nor His ear heavy, that it cannot hear. But your iniquities have separated you from your God; and your sins have hidden His face from you” (Isaiah 59:1-2). The Hebrew word “awon,” translated iniquities, is one of four main words indicating sin in the Old Testament. It conveys the idea of twisting or perverting deliberately. In the noun form, it carries along with it the idea of guilt from conscious wrongdoing. “Iniquities” is sin involving an impure heart.
The blockage of God’s power in the desperate situation of Israel was not because God lacked power. His hand or arm was not too short to reach them. He was not hard of hearing, therefore unable to answer their need. It was their personal impurity that separated them from Him. Regardless of how much He loved them, their impure hearts would not allow God to intervene. Impurity and God are irreconcilable opposites. No wonder I am a Jesus pusher!! He is the only possibility we have of a pure heart allowing intimacy with God.