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"Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
For they shall be filled."
(Matthew 5:6, bold added)
Jesus said that those who hunger and thirst for righteousness will be filled. The Greek word is chortazo, which literally means to fatten as you would an animal. It means to be absolutely satisfied. It makes perfect sense that the God who created us and imputed His righteousness to us is the God who knows how to satisfy us, fulfill us, and fatten us with manifold spiritual blessings.
One author put it this way: "Jesus satisfies, and yet there is a blessed dissatisfaction that wants even more and will be satisfied only when we see Jesus Christ. A kingdom person has a consuming ambition, not for power or pleasure, not for possessions or praise, but for righteousness." This same author made a statement that was especially powerful and convicting to me: "I can recognize somebody who is seeking righteousness, because when God brings devastation into his life, he is filled and satisfied." (MacArthur, The Beatitudes, p. 123-24).
Psalm 1:3 describes the truly blessed, satisfied, righteous person this way: "He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither; and whatever he does shall prosper."
The final question is, how does one become and stay hungry and thirsty for God?
To have a hunger and thirst for God, you must first know God. When a person receives Christ as his or her Lord and Savior, then God declares him or her righteous. When we are sick and tired of being spiritually sick and tired, we will turn to God. J.N. Darby said, "When the prodigal son was hungry, he went to feed upon husks, but when he was starving, he turned to his father." (Lloyd-Jones, Studies in the Sermon on the Mount, p. 68)
John Baker shares the following story: Charles was in a hotel in Bakersfield, California, in August 1997, and he was at the bottom. He said, "After years of making poor choices, I had no material possessions, three failed marriages, four estranged children, no job, no friends, no food, and no money. All I had was a lifetime of trying to fill the hole in my heart with sex, alcohol, drugs, pornographic videos and magazines, countless affairs, fast money, fast times, high-risk jobs, and living on the edge. All the things I sought to ease the pain, I came to realize, only made things worse. I could no longer go on living this way." But the good news is, Charles turned to Jesus and committed His life to Him. "I had tried it all and came up empty. I cannot begin to explain the freedom and the peace I experienced when I was finally able to let go and let God have control and care of my life." (Baker, Life's Healing Choices, p. 96-98)
When we turn to the Father and believe in His Son, that Jesus died for our sins, and He arose from the dead, then God works a miracle in our lives. We are clothed with the robe of righteousness, and it is an imputed righteousness, not one that we can create or earn.
Becoming hungry and thirsty for God and for His righteousness begins with salvation, and staying hungry for God involves sanctification. Sanctification is when the child of God grows in grace and continues to pursue our Lord and His righteousness. One of the ways this happens is through serving others.
Jesus' Beatitudes or blessed statements were not spoken to please us or try to make us happy. He spoke these words so we could know Him, be holy, live in victory in this world, and be blessed both now and for eternity. How hungry and how thirsty are you for righteousness, for holiness, and for God Himself?
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