It’s not what goes into your body that defiles you; you are defiled by what comes from your heart.
September 1, 2025
In this passage, Jesus corrects a common misunderstanding of the Pharisees. They believed external rituals and dietary laws defined holiness. Jesus shifts the focus from the outside to the inside, teaching that the true measure of a person’s purity is not found in food or customs but in the condition of the heart. What flows out of the heart, words, attitudes, actions, reveals who we really are before God.
For men today, this truth speaks directly to the battle of integrity. It is easy to appear righteous by following rules or maintaining an image, but Jesus reminds us that holiness is a matter of the heart. Anger, lust, bitterness, and pride defile more than anything we consume. The call is to examine the heart daily, to let God cleanse and renew what lies beneath the surface.
The practical application is clear: guard your heart, because from it flows the direction of your life. Men who prioritize internal purity over external appearances walk with authenticity. By inviting God to transform the heart, we live in a way that reflects Christ genuinely, not as an act for others, but as a true outpouring of who we are becoming in Him.