“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled”
Matthew 5:6
In this saying from the sermon on the mount, Jesus did not teach that we are to hunger and thirst for happiness, nor are we to hunger and thirst for blessedness. And yet, that is what most people are doing, including many professing Christians, and that is why happiness always eludes them. In the Bible, happiness is never something that should be sought directly. It is always something that results from seeking something else. Here Jesus taught that true blessedness and happiness is the direct result of hungering and thirsting for righteousness. If happiness is put before righteousness, then one will always be disappointed.
But how do you know if you are one who hungers and thirst for righteousness? Are there ways to examine yourself? It’s a vital question. It directly affects your present earthly pilgrimage as a Christian, and is therefore worth your utmost and diligent attention.
Firstly, do you see your own righteousness for what it is? In his letter to the Philippians, the Apostle Paul likened his own righteousness to rubbish, which can also be translated as putrefying refuse. He also wrote, “I know that in me (that is in my flesh) nothing good dwells” (Romans 7:18). Therefore, to cling to any sense of self-satisfaction in anything that is within us, or anything we’ve done is not to hunger and thirst for righteousness. No one, including Christians, can ever say their every thought, word, and deed is out of love for God heart, soul, mind, and strength. To truly hunger and thirst for righteousness is to see that in and of yourself, you have absolutely nothing that would commend you in anyway to God. This means that one should then have a great awareness of his need of a Savior for deliverance from the bondage of sin. As D. M. Lloyd-Jones put it, “We must recognize our utter helplessness, and see that, if someone does not come and take hold of us, or do something to us, we are altogether lost.”
A second way is to examine yourself is see if you’re actively avoiding those things that are opposed to God and His righteousness. These are those activities that are sinful, or even certain company that may be harmful. Presently, we are being instructed, and in some cases mandated, to actively avoid any form of exposure to the Covid virus. How much more active diligence and care should be taken in steering clear of those things that might be spiritually harmful. Just like a contagious disease, they need to be avoided like one would avoid a plague. A more subtle form of this negative influence comes from things or activities which are harmless in and of themselves, but which tend to unduly distract one from the things of God. Ask yourself if something in your life is taking the edge off of your desire for God and His righteousness. To truly hunger and thirst for righteousness is to be honest with yourself, and walk away from anything that robs your interest and affections away from God.
Another test is to see if you are hungering and thirsting for righteousness is to see if you are placing yourself in the way of obtaining it. Bartimaeus was blind and could nothing about it, but there was one thing he could do. He could place himself in the path of Jesus Christ whom he knew could give him what he desired, which was his sight. God has provided means of grace where one may cultivate this desire for righteousness. Clearly, one way to place oneself in this stream of grace is to regularly meet with God’s people for fellowship, sitting under the preaching and teaching of God’s Word, prayer, and the sacraments. If you find yourself easily finding excuses not to assemble with God’s people, whether it be Lord’s Day worship, or other opportunities to meet, then you have to question whether you are really hungering and thirsting for righteousness.
What about your private activities of daily reading of the Bible, and prayer? Do you spend more time with a newspaper, or novel, or just plain plopped in front of the tube, or should I say flat-screen? Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness spend much time seeking those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God, setting their minds on things above, not on things on the earth (Colossians 3:1-2).
Lloyd-Jones asked regarding hungering and thirsting for righteousness, “Is it the greatest desire of our life? Is it the deepest longing of our being? Can I say quite honestly and truly that I desire above everything else in this world truly to know God and to be like the Lord Jesus Christ, to be rid of self in every shape and form, and to live only, always and entirely to His glory and to His honor?” If you’re anything like me, you will be ashamed of yourself in that light. Let us truly, by God’s grace, and using the means He has graciously given us, be ones who hunger and thirst for righteousness. There, and there only, is to be found the true blessing from God Himself.
Matthew 5:6
In this saying from the sermon on the mount, Jesus did not teach that we are to hunger and thirst for happiness, nor are we to hunger and thirst for blessedness. And yet, that is what most people are doing, including many professing Christians, and that is why happiness always eludes them. In the Bible, happiness is never something that should be sought directly. It is always something that results from seeking something else. Here Jesus taught that true blessedness and happiness is the direct result of hungering and thirsting for righteousness. If happiness is put before righteousness, then one will always be disappointed.
But how do you know if you are one who hungers and thirst for righteousness? Are there ways to examine yourself? It’s a vital question. It directly affects your present earthly pilgrimage as a Christian, and is therefore worth your utmost and diligent attention.
Firstly, do you see your own righteousness for what it is? In his letter to the Philippians, the Apostle Paul likened his own righteousness to rubbish, which can also be translated as putrefying refuse. He also wrote, “I know that in me (that is in my flesh) nothing good dwells” (Romans 7:18). Therefore, to cling to any sense of self-satisfaction in anything that is within us, or anything we’ve done is not to hunger and thirst for righteousness. No one, including Christians, can ever say their every thought, word, and deed is out of love for God heart, soul, mind, and strength. To truly hunger and thirst for righteousness is to see that in and of yourself, you have absolutely nothing that would commend you in anyway to God. This means that one should then have a great awareness of his need of a Savior for deliverance from the bondage of sin. As D. M. Lloyd-Jones put it, “We must recognize our utter helplessness, and see that, if someone does not come and take hold of us, or do something to us, we are altogether lost.”
A second way is to examine yourself is see if you’re actively avoiding those things that are opposed to God and His righteousness. These are those activities that are sinful, or even certain company that may be harmful. Presently, we are being instructed, and in some cases mandated, to actively avoid any form of exposure to the Covid virus. How much more active diligence and care should be taken in steering clear of those things that might be spiritually harmful. Just like a contagious disease, they need to be avoided like one would avoid a plague. A more subtle form of this negative influence comes from things or activities which are harmless in and of themselves, but which tend to unduly distract one from the things of God. Ask yourself if something in your life is taking the edge off of your desire for God and His righteousness. To truly hunger and thirst for righteousness is to be honest with yourself, and walk away from anything that robs your interest and affections away from God.
Another test is to see if you are hungering and thirsting for righteousness is to see if you are placing yourself in the way of obtaining it. Bartimaeus was blind and could nothing about it, but there was one thing he could do. He could place himself in the path of Jesus Christ whom he knew could give him what he desired, which was his sight. God has provided means of grace where one may cultivate this desire for righteousness. Clearly, one way to place oneself in this stream of grace is to regularly meet with God’s people for fellowship, sitting under the preaching and teaching of God’s Word, prayer, and the sacraments. If you find yourself easily finding excuses not to assemble with God’s people, whether it be Lord’s Day worship, or other opportunities to meet, then you have to question whether you are really hungering and thirsting for righteousness.
What about your private activities of daily reading of the Bible, and prayer? Do you spend more time with a newspaper, or novel, or just plain plopped in front of the tube, or should I say flat-screen? Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness spend much time seeking those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God, setting their minds on things above, not on things on the earth (Colossians 3:1-2).
Lloyd-Jones asked regarding hungering and thirsting for righteousness, “Is it the greatest desire of our life? Is it the deepest longing of our being? Can I say quite honestly and truly that I desire above everything else in this world truly to know God and to be like the Lord Jesus Christ, to be rid of self in every shape and form, and to live only, always and entirely to His glory and to His honor?” If you’re anything like me, you will be ashamed of yourself in that light. Let us truly, by God’s grace, and using the means He has graciously given us, be ones who hunger and thirst for righteousness. There, and there only, is to be found the true blessing from God Himself.