Monday, March 5, 2012

Hunger & Thirst

My Journey Through the Sermon on the Mount

{Matthew 5:1-5}
"Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him. And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying:
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”
"Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted."
“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.”

"Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for His righteousness, for they shall be satisfied."

Hunger: to famish, to crave; a compelling need or desire for food; the painful sensation or state of weakness caused by the need of food.

Thirst: to have a strong desire.

Are you starving for His righteousness?
Do you crave it?
Do you have a strong desire for it?
A need for it?
Are you weak without it?


I have to be honest . . . this verse has been keeping me up at night. It is something that has deeply bothered me, convicted me, and challenged me.

Do we feel this kind of longing for His righteousness? That we feel like we can no longer go on living without it?

As a redeemed people, citizens of heaven, this is how we ought to live! We are to long for, desire, crave, hunger and thirst for His righteousness. It should be such an overwhelming desire in us, one that is even stronger than hunger and thirst for physical food!

When is the last time you even went one day without food or water? Can you imagine the way you would physically feel? The craving, the yearning you'd have?

What if we yearned like that for Christ and His righteousness?

Notice the rest of His verse . . . those who hunger and thirst for His righteousness will be . . . satisfied.

Satisfied: content

Are you struggling to find satisfaction? Contentment? Gladness? Joy?

Perhaps it's because we hunger and thirst for the wrong things? Perhaps we're looking for satisfaction elsewhere. Perhaps there is a higher calling than just temporary satisfaction in worldly things like bread and water?

Will you seek satisfaction in His righteousness with me? Let's be satisfied in Him alone!

"Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst." (John 6:35)

"Jesus said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” (John 4:13-14)

"They feast on the abundance of your house, and you give them drink from the river of your delights." (Psalm 36:8)

No comments:

Post a Comment