Keys to a Satisfied Life
Matthew 5:6
INTRODUCTION
For untold years, hunger and starvation have been a chronic problem for many people in various countries. In 436 B. C., famine came to Rome and caused thousands of people to throw themselves into the Tiber River to end their lives. In 1005, famine struck England. In 879, 1016, and 1162, all of Europe suffered from famine. Even in our century with all of its technological advances, hunger still stalks our world. There are many in our own country, as developed and prosperous as we are, who still go to bed hungry on a regular basis. The homeless still wander the streets of many of our cities.
During the liberation of Palestine during World War I, a combined force of British, Australian and New Zealand soldiers pursued the Turks as they fled from the desert. As the allied troops continued northward, they began to outdistance their camel train with the water. As the water ran out, their mouths became dry, they got dizzy and their heads ached. Their eyes became bloodshot, their lips swelled and mirages became common. If they did not make the wells of Sheriah by nightfall, thousands of them would die. Fighting for their lives, they succeeded in driving the Turks from Sheriah. As the water was distributed from great stone cisterns, the able-bodied were required to stand while the wounded and those who would stand guard duty drank first. It was four hours before all had a drink of water. During this time, some of the men stood no more than twenty feet from thousands of gallons of water while the wounded and those who would stand guard drank first. What a thirst they must have had.
Yet this hunger and thirst that has and still afflicts so many pales in comparison with a more serious hunger and thirst that everyone has whether or not they recognize it. In fact, one officer who was present at Sheriah at this great drinking scene said, “I believe that we all learned our first real Bible lesson on the march from Beersheba to Sheriah Wells.” And another says, “If such were our thirst for God, for righteousness and for His will in our lives, a consuming, all-embracing, preoccupying desire, how rich in the fruit of the Spirit would we be.”
And so we continue on the road to happiness as Jesus defines it in the Beatitudes. Thus far we have learned that God blesses or makes happy those who are poor in spirit and recognize their need for him. He blesses or makes happy those who mourn over their sin, the sins of others and sin in the world. He makes happy those who are meek or gentle in spirit-those who are quiet, submissive and tenderhearted. Those who have mastered their wills so that their power is under control and they have no more selfish aims or desires for justice and revenge.
To the above we add the fourth Beatitude, which strikes a positive note and gives a conclusion to the first three. When we are willing to put aside our selfish pursuits, sins and self-centered power, then we will naturally have a hunger and thirst for the righteousness of Christ. If we put aside all these things we will have to put something back on.
There are many wrong things that we can hunger and thirst after, such as praise from others, power, selfish and immoral pleasures, but unless we hunger and thirst after the things of God we cannot truly be happy. Such an enduring happiness comes only when we are clothed in his righteousness.
WE MUST SEE THE TRUE MEANING OF HUNGER
The hunger and thirst that Jesus speaks of is an intense hunger and thirst that most of us have probably never experienced. It is the kind of hunger and thirst such as those in famine lands experience. Not only is the hunger and thirst to be intense but it is also to be a continual longing and seeking for our lives be holy like Christ’s. If we are truly his children, we will have this intense desire. In addition, we will earnestly do whatever it takes to make his holiness a part of our life.
Many Christians would fall short if we would compare the way we normally hunger and thirst for the things of God with the kind of hunger and thirst Jesus speaks of. Studies show that we often have a weak desire for righteousness. We often get mixed up in the things of the world, and we know that to hunger and thirst for Jesus’ righteousness would mean we would have to change our plans or our lifestyle. Jesus expects his children to have a strong desire or passion to live as he commands.
Think of the person addicted to drugs or alcohol. If those substances are taken away, they would have a strong desire to satisfy the craving their bodies are experiencing. Some kill and others steal to satisfy this hunger and thirst. Our hunger and thirst for the things of God should be of that magnitude-that we would even need help if we were deprived of the things of God.
This kind of ambition stands in sharp contrast to the messages we often hear or have taught to us. We are taught to be ambitious for popularity, notoriety or success. Jesus tells us to be ambitious for righteous living. This will bring happiness to the child of God.
Think of Moses. It is said that he talked with God face to face. He observed all the miraculous things God did in Egypt and on the way to the Promised Land. Even though he had experienced all that, he still desired to know more about the righteousness of God.
The apostle Paul was also a man in whose life God worked in marvelous ways. His life is an example for us, but even after experiencing all he did in his relationship with God he still desired to be clothed with more of the righteousness of Christ.
The key to this spiritual thirst is never to be satisfied with our walk with Christ and never to be satisfied with the lifestyle that we live. We need to have more passion to draw closer to God every day. There is always room for improvement. I fear that many times we don’t attempt to improve because we know it would require changes we might not want to make.
One wrote; “To be hungry is not enough; I must really be starving to know what is God’s heart toward me. When the prodigal son was hungry, he went to feed on the husks, but when he was starving, he turned to his Father.”
WE MUST SEE THE NEED FOR SPIRITUAL HUNGER
The righteousness we must hunger for is vital to our spiritual life just as food and water are to the physical life. Food and water are absolutely necessary if our bodies are to live. They keep the body parts functioning properly.
Just as those in famine lands starve for food and water, so those who have never experienced the righteousness of God are starving in a spiritual sense. They are starving to death for righteousness just like others are starving to death for food and water. The tragedy is that they often turn to other things to satisfy that hunger. They turn to alcohol, drugs, immoral sex, pornography, murder, stealing and a host of other perversions in an attempt to fill their God vacuum.
It is true that the wicked may not always appear that they are hurting or starving for spiritual things. God allows the wicked to be blessed simply because they live in a world created by him and inhabited by his people. In other words, they get some fringe benefits because of Christians. They receive blessings because we do. They enjoy possessions, good health and freedom just as we do. They have freedom of religion, opportunities for advancement and success, knowledge and other things just like God’s people do. This is evidence of God’s common grace. Some of the greatest minds of history do not and have not believed in God, yet many of them take these blessings and use them selfishly. Instead of recognizing God as the giver of these gifts, they use them for their own selfish glory.
As a child of God, we are admonished not to love the world or the things of it. We must hunger for spiritual things and for the righteousness of Christ. We must use his blessings in a way that honors him and gives him glory. The Bible says, “For all that is in the world-the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life-is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but the one who does the will of God lives forever.” (I John 2:16)
So necessary is this hunger that it proves the sincerity of our profession. If an individual is striving to be what God wants them to be, if they have a driving passion to be pleasing to him like the passion those have who live in famine-stricken lands, then we can be assured they are a child of God. This hunger is a necessity for the Christian, not an option. Along with this hunger comes the understanding that we do not have the power to live the Christian life but must allow God to live it through us. Still yet, the passion is present.
We meet up with King Nebuchadnezzar in the Book of Daniel. He is walking about the palace in Babylon. As he looked over his empire, he admired all he had done. He hungered for praise from the people because of his accomplishments. But then a voice came from heaven and said; “King Nebuchadnezzar, to you it is spoken: the kingdom has departed from you! And they shall drive you from men, and your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field. They shall make you eat grass like oxen; and seven times shall pass over you, until you know that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, and gives it to whomever He chooses.” (Daniel 4:31)
REALIZE THE GOALS OF SPIRITUAL HUNGER AND THIRST
The first goal is salvation. When a person realizes their position and destiny apart from God, they will turn to him for salvation. The result will be happiness as they find forgiveness from their sins. As long as a person trusts in their own righteousness, they will never turn to God for his.
The second goal is sanctification. We must continually grow in our walk with the Lord while at the same time realizing that we will never receive all the righteousness we need until we are at home in heaven. Being declared righteous by God does not mean we are completely righteous in our actions and attitudes and have no room for improvement.
EXPERIENCE THE RESULTS OF SPIRITUAL HUNGER AND THIRST
The result will be satisfaction. When we hunger and thirst for justice, we will receive it in full. The word is not speaking of partial satisfaction-we are familiar enough with that. It speaks of total satisfaction. It is the idea of a pig that has eaten until he is totally satisfied.
Again this is somewhat of a paradox. Though we will be satisfied, we must continue to hunger and thirst for more of Christ’s righteousness. It is somewhat like eating steak or some other food we dearly enjoy. When we have eaten a juicy piece of steak, we are for the moment satisfied, but this does not mean that we will never desire steak again.
CONCLUSION
Happiness is tied to having a deep desire and passion to be more like Christ and for our lives to be more pleasing to him. This is a continual desire, which calls for continual improvement on our part day by day. When we do this, we will be happy people.
Ross Perot, one-time presidential contender, said; “I’ll never be satisfied, that’s my nature. If everybody pronounces it a Swiss watch that keeps time to a thousandth of a second, I’ll be saying-well, how do we make it keep time to another thousandth of a second? That’s just my nature.”
