Hungering And Thirsting Series

Hungering and Thirsting

Matthew 5:1-6

August 7, 2022

Have you ever been hungry? I mean really, really hungry. So hungry you’d even consider eating the least liked food on your menu. For me that would be eating celery. I don’t think I could ever learn to like it, but I suppose it’s better than eating some locusts . . . maybe.

Yet, the reality is the fact that I have more food than I know what to do with. We may not always have the choicest meats, but we have meat; we have clean water. We really won’t die of hunger ... even though there are moments we feel that way.

It’s estimated that on Super Bowl Sunday, Americans consumed - - -

• 1.3 billion chicken wings are eaten

• 20 million pounds of chips;

• 139 million pounds of avocados;

• 4 million pounds of popcorn;

• 3 million pounds of nuts are eaten

• 325 million gallons of beer will be consumed

• 13 million pounds of bacon, and

• 10 million pounds of ribs will be eaten

Now, let me ask you about your thirst ... Have you ever been really, really thirsty?

You know those days when you are working in the garden, your doing some yard work, or you’re out in the sun. Your throat is parched and you can’t wait to have that great ice cold drink which will satisfy your thirst.

Did you know that our bodies are comprised of about 60-70% water. When we eat, breathe, use our muscles, our body’s water supply is also used. Did you know - - -

• 75% of Americans are chronically dehydrated

• 37% of Americans mistake their thirst mechanism for hunger pains

• Mild dehydration can slow down your metabolism as much as 5%

• A lack of water is the number 1 trigger of daytime fatigue

Well, those are our warming up facts for the day. We’re in a study of the Beatitudes from Matthew 5, which tells us - - -

1 Seeing the crowds, Jesus went up on the mountain, and when He sat down, His disciples came to Him. 2 And He taught them, saying:

3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

4 “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

5 “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. - Matthew 5:1-6

This is what we’re looking at today. Of course, Jesus isn’t talking about hunger and thirst like we think.

Today we’re looking at what I believe may be the most important of the Beatitudes. Jesus began the sermon on the Mount with 8 Beatitudes, and we’ve been looking at what these back-sided, counter-intuitive statements mean.

Most of us have never had to deal with major issues of hunger and thirst. After all, our water is clean and free. Yet, who ever heard of buying bottled water? It seems ridiculous, yet, bottled water sales were around $220 billion last year. Does that really make sense?

You see in the days of Jesus, the people around Him were hungry and thirsty. They understood what it meant to physically hunger and thirst for food. The common people in ancient Israel were on the brink of starvation. That’s why Old Testament law required an employer to pay wages to the employees each evening.

The people often lived pay check to pay check, which meant living on a day to day basis. They were living to meet their needs for the next day. There wasn’t a retirement plan, no money for health insurance. The poor were all over.

If the workers were paid as we are, on a weekly or even worse bi-weekly, or catastrophically on a monthly basis, they would go hungry. And having an available well was a matter of life and death.

So, the phrase to hunger and thirst doesn’t have the same impact/meaning on our physical being, as it did in Jesus’ day; or as it does in so many parts of our world.

Babies understand what it means to hunger. They instinctively know when they need food, and they show their dissatisfaction when they are not being fed. They also show their satisfaction when food comes.

But Jesus isn’t talking about being satisfied with a good meal, then taking a well deserved nap. He’s talking about having a hunger and a thirst for something called RIGHTEOUSNESS!

When we think about hungering, thirsting and longing for something, we hunger --

• for significance for attention

• for affection for control

• for relationships for money

• for love for success

• for 1001 other things we believe holds the key to our happiness.