BEATITUDES SERIES:
HUNGRY FOR HIM
MATTHEW 5:6
#Beatitudes
INTRODUCTION… Abby Making Chicken Parmesan (p)
https://www.youtube.com/c/JoshuaWeissman/about
I think it was about 2 weeks ago that my daughter Abby said that she wanted to make dinner and wanted to make a recipe she saw on a Youtube cooking show… Chicken Parmesan. The Youtuber Joshua Weissman has been on Youtube since 2014. The recipe is from his 2,000,000 subscriber video. Ok. Whatever. Maybe the guy knows what he is doing.
Abby bought all the ingredients. I am going to poke a little fun at Abby because when she cooks she makes an absolute disastrous mess. She could be making tea and there is a mess. Stuff is everywhere all over all the time. For this particular recipe, I am pretty sure she used every single pot and pan and dish that we own. She probably cooked for 2 hours. She is cutting this and that and pounding chicken and breading things and mixing this and that and frying this thing over there. I was just trying to ignore the mess and let her do her thing. I did help her by grating the parmesan cheese and adding a little bit of myself into the mix. I had skin in the game… literally.
So I get to the table after her cooking bonanza and what I see is absolutely beyond appetizing. Chicken and sauce and cheese. What I ate that night is literally legendary. By far one of the best chicken dishes I have ever had. Ever. You have never had a dish that is better… I know you are thinking about your mom’s this or that… but this dish is supremely better than anything you have ever eaten. She made the sauce and it was spicy-perfect. The chicken was cooked to perfection. The cheese was amazing. I ate the whole thing. I don’t eat leftovers, but I ate leftovers the next day for breakfast so the hungry boy teenagers of my home would not get to it first.
The meal was so good I would eat it every day. The meal was so good I will request it for my birthday in years to come. It is worth you watching the 10:05 YouTube video and making it at home. This dish was so good that I am hungry for it. I want her to make it again. I’m hungry for it.
THREAD: ARE YOU HUNGRY FOR IT?
Perhaps there is something like that in your life that you are hungry for. It could be a recipe your mother or grandmother or dad used to make. It could be a family secret recipe. Perhaps it is a favorite dish at a restaurant.
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus Christ begins His most famous sermon with the Beatitudes. We have been looking at them over the past few weeks. The beatitudes are a series of statements where Jesus describes people who are in the Kingdom of Heaven. Many times we look at these as isolated phrases, but in fact they are interconnected and build on one another. Jesus begins by telling us that we must be “poor in spirit” which means to understand our place in God’s design under Him and understand our sinfulness and confess Jesus. He then says that when we think about our sin, we will mourn it and have comfort from the blood of Christ. We then commit to being under God’s command and following His lead in all things.
As I think about Jesus words in Matthew 5:6, I see Him sharing with us now another element in this process of being part of the Kingdom of God. He frames this thought with the metaphor of being hungry and thirsty. We are meant to think about good food. We are meant to think about refreshing drink. We are meant to think about how our body feels when it is hungry or thirsty. We are meant to think about the different feeling after a great meal.
Matthew 5:6 is an essential element of being a follower of Jesus Christ. It is as non-negotiable as faith in Christ (5:3), repenting of sin (5:4), and submitting to God’s will (5:5) which is basically what He’s talked about thus far.
READ MATTHEW 5:6 (NIV)
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
READ MATTHEW 5:6 (AMP)
Blessed [joyful, nourished by God’s goodness] are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness [those who actively seek right standing with God], for they will be [completely] satisfied.
TRANSITION
Let’s break down the verse and see what God is serving up for our hearts and minds today. Matthew 5:6 is good food for our soul.
HUNGER AND THIRST
Jesus talks about being blessed when we hunger and thirst for righteousness. He uses the body functions of hunger and thirst. Hunger and thirst are normal experiences that every person has that keeps our bodies functioning. We are hungry and we eat and get nourishment and energy. We are thirsty and we drink and our organs stay hydrated and work properly. A body that has solid proper nutrition and good liquid intake is healthy and functions well. Jesus knows this. The people listening to Jesus know this. You and I know this. This creates a base connection in what He is describing.
ILLUSTRATION… Jamaica 2010 (p)
In 2010, I had the opportunity and pleasure to go on a mission’s trip to Jamaica. We worked in the interior of the island in St Catherine’s Parrish which is a very rural and poor area. It was hot. It was sticky. We worked very hard each day to finish up a church building for the local people in a town called Lluidas Vale. Anyway, one day we were done working and I was so very thirsty. We walked to a corner store in town and I purchased a DG Genuine Jamaican Ginger Rootbeer. I thought I’d try something new and fix my thirst at the same time. I popped the metal top to the ice cold soda and just downed it. This was a terrible idea. My insides burned. My throat was on fire. I may have made a fool of myself right there in the middle of town hacking and almost puking and carrying on like an idiot. The worst thing was… I was still thirsty. Some things just don’t satisfy our thirst.
Jesus is not the first to describe spiritual matters in terms of hunger and thirst. The Old Testament also terms seeking after God in hunger and thirst terms.
READ Isaiah 55:1-3 (NIV)
“Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost. 2Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen, listen to Me, and eat what is good, and you will delight in the richest of fare. 3Give ear and come to Me; listen, that you may live. I will make an everlasting covenant with you, My faithful love promised to David.”
God tells us through the prophet Isaiah that we have a natural desire in our souls like hunger and thirst. Specifically, in these verses God talks more about hunger and bread and wanting to eat what is good. Our spirits are hungry for the “richest fare.” Every soul hungers and this is normal. Every soul searches for meaning... this is normal.
It is the everlasting covenant relationship that God offers through Christ that satisfies our deepest hunger and our longings. In verses 1-2, God does not want us to chase after false things of this world that do not satisfy our souls. Rather, He wants us to come to Him for the truth and meaning and way of life that truly satisfy our spiritual hunger.
We then have the prophet Jeremiah…
READ Jeremiah 2:11-13 (NIV)
“Has a nation ever changed its gods? (Yet they are not gods at all.) But My people have exchanged their glorious God for worthless idols. 12Be appalled at this, you heavens, and shudder with great horror,” declares the LORD. 13“My people have committed two sins: They have forsaken Me, the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water.”
God tells us through the prophet Jeremiah that we have a natural desire in our souls like hunger and thirst. Specifically, in these verses God talks about thirst in terms of “living water” and self-made cisterns that cannot hold water.
We can seek after truth in this life that is completely empty. We can seek after meaning that leaves us empty. Material wealth is a broken cistern. Business success is a broken cistern. Heaping all your hopes on your children or grandchildren is a broken cistern. Sports is a broken cistern. None of these things can hold true meaning for our souls which is why God describes these types of things as self-made broken cisterns.
People are tempted to exchange God and a fulfilling relationship with Him for other idols. They are nothing at all really… just emptiness. We are to seek after God… He describes Himself as “the spring of living water” in Jeremiah.
SERMON ILLUSTRATION… For My Birthday This Year, 2020 (p)
One of my favorite dishes at a restaurant is an appetizer at a restaurant called Johnny Carino’s. The Italian Nachos at this place are wonderful. Unique chips. Flavorful chicken. Cheese. Great spices. The Johnny Carino’s where we used to live closed down about 10 years ago and I have not had those wonderful Italian Nachos since. I found out there was a Johnny Carino’s in Greenwood. Yes, the Greenwood that is 1.5 hours away.
My birthday was earlier in the month and I decided that it was worth the 1.5 hour drive for my birthday. We all loaded up a few Fridays ago to get Johnny Carino’s. I did not eat breakfast because I was going to Johnny Carino’s. I did not eat lunch because I was going to Johnny Carino’s. I was hungry and cranky all the way to Greenwood. I did not count on was the 1 hour wait once we got to the restaurant. We were all very hungry once we sat down and we enjoyed a wonderful meal.
I have to say though… the Italian Nachos were the fantastic all-consuming dish that I remember. The nachos definitely were not worth the 3 hours of driving to and from and the 1 hour wait for a table. If there was a Johnny Carino’s in Bloomington… it would be so worth it!
THREAD: ARE YOU HUNGRY FOR IT?
RIGHTEOUSNESS
READ MATTHEW 5:6 (NIV)
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
Jesus is clear that we need to hunger and thirst after “righteousness.” What does He mean by that word? To be honest, in Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount He mentions the word “righteousness” 5 times: 5:6, 5:10, 5:20, 6:1, and 6:33. If we want to understand this beatitude, we need to know what Jesus means by the term “righteousness” and we are going to look at these other passages in the same sermon to help us. Scripture always interprets Scripture. Scripture always interprets Scripture. Scripture always interprets Scripture.
5:10: Righteousness is living noticeably opposite of the world.
Jesus said, "Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matt. 5:10). We are to hunger and to thirst after the kind of life that will cause some people to be completely uncomfortable in our presence. Not uncomfortable because we are a weirdo, but because God shines through us and makes sinfulness painful. That uncomfortableness will lead to persecution. Righteousness is living noticeably opposite of the world.
5:20: Righteousness is not just actions.
Righteousness is right living, but it does not start there… it starts in the heart with our motivations. Jesus Christ said, "For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven" (Matt. 5:20). The Pharisees were some right living people who followed all the rules God laid down in Leviticus and even followed their own traditional rules to make sure they followed God’s rules. They were some right living people, but according to Jesus their hearts were dead inside (Matthew 23:27) so the righteousness was empty. Based on the examples a little later of anger, lust, and love for enemies, righteousness starts in the heart and changes a person from the inside out.
6:1: Righteousness is for God.
Jesus said in Matthew 6:1, “Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.” The Pharisees loved to pray loudly in public, dress up in religious clothes, give offerings publically, and do everything so people could see how religious they were. People have to clap for it to mean anything. Jesus wants His disciples to seek God for God and to be motivated by personal faith.
6:33: Righteousness is correct priorities.
Jesus also said, “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” Jesus is talking about correct priorities. What is it that you are seeking in life? Fame or Fortune? Career advancement with a good salary? A secure future with a happy retirement with no money troubles? A perfect marriage partner? The dream home? Most of that stuff is pretty awesome, but not as awesome as putting God's kingdom and God's righteousness first. The standard to shoot for in all things is what God considers good and right.
SUMMARY
What does “righteousness” mean? Scripture always interprets Scripture. Righteousness here means: Living for God from the inside out with priorities opposite of the world.
ILLUSTRATION… CS Lewis Quote from Mere Christianity
“God made us: invented us as a man invents an engine. A car is made to run on gas [petrol], and it would not run properly on anything else. Now God designed the human machine to run on Himself. He Himself is the fuel our spirits were designed to burn, or the food our spirits were designed to feed on. There is no other. That is why it is just no good asking God to make us happy in our own way without bothering about religion. God cannot give us a happiness and peace apart from Himself, because it is not there.”
THREAD: ARE YOU HUNGRY FOR HIM?
READ MATTHEW 5:6 (NIV)
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
FILLED
The word Jesus uses here is a word that means “filled,” “satisfied,” “well fed,” “gorged.” The joy and blessing and fulfillment from “Living for God from the inside out with priorities opposite of the world” is that God feeds our souls. How can I say this so we get it? God wants to stuff you with His presence so you are completely full of Him.
APPLICATION
Are you afraid of dying of the CoronaVirus? Hunger after God and He will stuff you full of faith.
Are you worried about your future? Thirst after God and He will fill you with His purpose.
Are you angry over politics? Hunger for God’s Word which will overwhelm you with Truth.
Are you struggling in your marriage? Thirst after Him who completely restores all relationships.
Are you frustrated how your life has turned out? Hunger after Him and see how He feeds you.
Are you sad? Thirst after Him who will meet you in your sadness and stuff you with His joy.
I do not know…
… what you might particularly be facing this day.
… the condition of your heart.
… the condition of your faith.
… the mess of your life or those around you.
I do know…
… Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
… Living for God from the inside out with priorities opposite of the world is how you need to live.
THREAD: ARE YOU HUNGRY FOR HIM?
GOSPEL PRESENTATION
If you are here today and you do not know Jesus as your Lord and Savior, I would like to challenge you this next week to do some reading. I would like to challenge you to read Matthew 5-7. This is the “Sermon on the Mount” I have been talking about over the past few weeks. It is a great summary of how Jesus calls us to live. None of it can be done without Him.
Nestled in the verses you will read is Matthew 7:7–8 (NIV) which says, “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.” Please understand that God wants you to find Him. You have to seek Him. Jesus is ready and available because He has already finished everything for our salvation.
If we ask, He forgives us.
If we seek, we will find Him.
If we knock, Jesus lets us in.
PRAYER
INVITATION
