Blessed Are Those Who Hunger for Righteousness

Matthew 5:6
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Pastor Colin Smith revisits the first three Beatitudes, emphasising our spiritual poverty, mourning over sin, and the meekness that arises from experiencing God’s grace. These reflect the roots of a thriving spiritual life. This Beatitude, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,” signifies a deep, intense desire that stems from experiencing the Holy Spirit’s work.

Pastor Colin uses metaphors such as hunger and thirst to capture the profound need and relentless pursuit of righteousness in a believer’s life. He quotes various authors and scripture passages to emphasise that true spiritual life encompasses a continuous hunger for more of Christ, despite being partially satisfied by His presence.

He challenges believers to evaluate their lives, questioning whether they genuinely hunger and thirst for righteousness or have replaced this noble pursuit with lesser desires. He remarks on the paradox of being both satisfied and continually hungry in the Christian walk and elucidates the final satisfaction promised in eternity with Christ.

Pastor Colin concludes with an impactful prayer, invoking God to intensify our longing for Him so that our walk reflects a constant pursuit of righteousness, ultimately leading us to be fully satisfied in His presence. He calls believers to draw near to Christ, who provokes this divine hunger within us.

1 00:00:00,000 –> 00:00:07,060 You’re listening to a sermon from Pastor Colin Smith of Open the Bible. 2 00:00:07,060 –> 00:00:11,860 To contact us call us at 1-877-OPEN-365. 3 00:00:11,860 –> 00:00:15,080 Or visit our website OpenTheBible.org. 4 00:00:15,080 –> 00:00:20,840 Let’s get to the message, here is Pastor Colin. 5 00:00:20,840 –> 00:00:25,520 Well would you open your Bible at Matthew chapter 5 and verse 6 where we come again 6 00:00:25,520 –> 00:00:27,520 to the words of the Lord Jesus Christ. 7 00:00:27,520 –> 00:00:31,559 This time in the fourth Beatitude Matthew 5 and verse 6. 8 00:00:31,559 –> 00:00:37,160 And the Son of God says to us blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness 9 00:00:37,160 –> 00:00:42,160 because they shall be satisfied. 10 00:00:42,160 –> 00:00:48,740 Now the fourth Beatitude is really a turning point in our series. 11 00:00:48,740 –> 00:00:53,139 The first 3, as we’ve seen, have really been about our own need, about our desperate 12 00:00:53,139 –> 00:00:54,139 position. 13 00:00:54,139 –> 00:00:56,580 We started with this truth. 14 00:00:56,580 –> 00:00:58,320 Blessed are the poor in spirit. 15 00:00:58,320 –> 00:01:03,080 To be poor in spirit means that I know that before God I do not have what it takes. 16 00:01:03,080 –> 00:01:06,180 Then we read, blessed are those who mourn. 17 00:01:06,180 –> 00:01:07,180 Why would I mourn? 18 00:01:07,180 –> 00:01:12,059 I mourn because seeing my own spiritual poverty I am compelled to see that my own sins are 19 00:01:12,059 –> 00:01:13,620 not few, but they are many. 20 00:01:13,620 –> 00:01:15,220 They have been costly to me. 21 00:01:15,220 –> 00:01:21,879 They have been costly to others and they have been supremely costly to my Lord Jesus Christ. 22 00:01:21,940 –> 00:01:25,639 From that we came to the next Beatitude, blessed are the meek. 23 00:01:25,639 –> 00:01:26,639 What is that? 24 00:01:26,639 –> 00:01:31,839 I grow in meekness because I see that God has not treated me as my sins deserve, but 25 00:01:31,839 –> 00:01:36,480 He has shown me grace, He has shown me kindness, He has shown me favor. 26 00:01:36,480 –> 00:01:42,839 And as I have received it, so that begins to work in the heart of the receiver. 27 00:01:42,839 –> 00:01:49,120 So these first three Beatitudes then are all about seeing our own position. 28 00:01:49,239 –> 00:01:55,040 And the fourth Beatitude really moves us forward from there because it speaks to us about the 29 00:01:55,040 –> 00:02:02,879 desire that arises out of the work the of the Holy Spirit in the first three. 30 00:02:02,879 –> 00:02:07,080 At the beginning of this series I suggested that there is actually, using our orchard 31 00:02:07,080 –> 00:02:12,880 language, a roots life fruit pattern in the Beatitudes. 32 00:02:12,880 –> 00:02:14,259 Think of it this way. 33 00:02:14,259 –> 00:02:19,679 These first three Beatitudes deal with the roots of a growing and thriving spiritual 34 00:02:19,679 –> 00:02:26,580 life, being poor in spirit, mourning, becoming meek rather than being self-willed or defiant 35 00:02:26,580 –> 00:02:27,580 towards God. 36 00:02:27,580 –> 00:02:34,479 I’ve come to see I don’t have the wisdom to lead my own life rightly and so I submit 37 00:02:34,479 –> 00:02:36,740 to the hand of God in the light of that. 38 00:02:36,740 –> 00:02:37,740 These first three Beatitudes deal with the roots of a growing and thriving spiritual 39 00:02:37,740 –> 00:02:38,740 life, being poor in spirit, mourning, becoming meek rather than being self-willed or defiant 40 00:02:38,740 –> 00:02:39,740 towards God. 41 00:02:39,740 –> 00:02:40,740 I have come to see I don’t have the wisdom to lead my own life rightly and so I submit 42 00:02:40,740 –> 00:02:41,740 to the hand of God in the light of that. 43 00:02:41,740 –> 00:02:42,740 That’s what meekness is. 44 00:02:42,740 –> 00:02:43,740 These are the roots of a godly life. 45 00:02:44,059 –> 00:02:50,619 Well, a life that is animated by a desire for something, a desire for righteousness. 46 00:02:50,619 –> 00:02:54,000 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness. 47 00:02:54,000 –> 00:02:58,559 There is a desire that comes out of these roots to be like the Lord Jesus Christ, a 48 00:02:58,559 –> 00:03:01,460 desire for godliness. 49 00:03:01,460 –> 00:03:08,419 And the desire to be godly is the very life that springs from the work of the Holy Spirit 50 00:03:08,419 –> 00:03:10,460 in a Christian believer. 51 00:03:10,460 –> 00:03:16,139 And then we’ll see later in our series that out of this life that comes from the roots, 52 00:03:16,139 –> 00:03:24,500 there is wonderful, beautiful fruit that Jesus Christ forms, mercy, forgiving other people, 53 00:03:24,500 –> 00:03:30,419 and purity of heart comes out of all this, and the wonderful, wonderful gift of being 54 00:03:30,419 –> 00:03:32,160 a peacemaker. 55 00:03:32,160 –> 00:03:34,460 And one more thing is added at the end. 56 00:03:34,460 –> 00:03:39,220 Know this, that if this root is in you and this life grows within you and this fruit 57 00:03:40,160 –> 00:03:45,779 is seen in you, you will be blessed by God, but you will also be persecuted by the world, 58 00:03:45,779 –> 00:03:48,100 says our Lord Jesus Christ. 59 00:03:48,100 –> 00:03:52,259 Now that’s the pattern, that’s the overview, and we’ve come now to the turning point. 60 00:03:52,259 –> 00:03:57,639 We’ve seen the roots that give rise to this life, and now we’re going to look at the life 61 00:03:57,639 –> 00:03:59,720 itself and what is it all about. 62 00:03:59,720 –> 00:04:04,380 It is a hunger and thirst after righteousness. 63 00:04:05,339 –> 00:04:10,559 Again we’re following our usual pattern in which today we’re going to try and get on 64 00:04:10,559 –> 00:04:15,440 the inside of what Jesus Christ is calling us to here, and then next week, God willing, 65 00:04:15,440 –> 00:04:18,559 we will look at how we can pursue this life. 66 00:04:18,559 –> 00:04:23,980 Understanding what Jesus is calling us to in this fourth beatitude, our purpose today 67 00:04:24,000 –> 00:04:30,480 are four headings, a relentless pursuit, a holy passion, a strange paradox, and a glorious 68 00:04:30,480 –> 00:04:31,799 prospect. 69 00:04:31,799 –> 00:04:33,359 Let’s start here. 70 00:04:33,480 –> 00:04:36,239 A Relentless Pursuit. 71 00:04:36,239 –> 00:04:46,079 Blessed are those, who Jesus says, hunger and thirst for righteousness. 72 00:04:46,079 –> 00:04:53,920 Not those who have a vague interest, not those who consider righteousness from a distance. 73 00:04:53,920 –> 00:05:01,019 The words hunger and thirst speak of an intense desire that motivates action. 74 00:05:01,359 –> 00:05:06,119 A person who is really hungry will do almost anything to get food. 75 00:05:06,119 –> 00:05:12,760 And Jesus uses this word that suggests the strongest of motives, it has energy in it, 76 00:05:12,760 –> 00:05:15,220 it drives decisive action. 77 00:05:15,220 –> 00:05:17,559 It’s powerful. 78 00:05:17,559 –> 00:05:24,459 And this intense desire, this hunger and thirst for God, this passion to pursue righteousness 79 00:05:24,459 –> 00:05:30,000 is a hallmark of a genuine Christian Believer. 80 00:05:30,000 –> 00:05:33,299 Now, of course, you’ll be familiar with this throughout the Bible. 81 00:05:33,299 –> 00:05:36,119 Listen to how David puts it in the Old Testament. 82 00:05:36,119 –> 00:05:43,239 He says, “…as a dear pants for flowing streams, my soul pants for You, O God. 83 00:05:43,239 –> 00:05:45,200 My soul thirsts for You.” 84 00:05:45,200 –> 00:05:50,059 There is David, the Holy Spirit is at work within him, and the evidence of the life of 85 00:05:50,059 –> 00:05:54,640 the Spirit is this great thirst for God, this hunger for God. 86 00:05:54,640 –> 00:05:56,920 Psalm 63 in verse 1, the same thing. 87 00:05:56,920 –> 00:05:58,519 O God, You are my God. 88 00:05:58,519 –> 00:06:02,040 Earnestly, I seek You, my soul thirsts for You. 89 00:06:02,040 –> 00:06:07,920 My flesh faints for You, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water. 90 00:06:07,920 –> 00:06:10,980 Think of the apostle, Paul, in the New Testament. 91 00:06:10,980 –> 00:06:15,239 What’s so striking to me about what he says in Philippians and chapter 3 is that it’s 92 00:06:15,239 –> 00:06:17,440 towards the end of his life. 93 00:06:17,440 –> 00:06:20,040 He’s been in ministry for years. 94 00:06:20,040 –> 00:06:24,119 He’s done just about everything that you could do in church, planting. 95 00:06:24,119 –> 00:06:26,880 And towards the end of his life, when he’s in prison, what’s he saying? 96 00:06:27,320 –> 00:06:32,480 I want to know Christ, like he didn’t know Him already. 97 00:06:32,480 –> 00:06:34,440 I want to know more of Him. 98 00:06:34,440 –> 00:06:35,440 That’s the passion. 99 00:06:35,440 –> 00:06:40,700 I want to know more of the power of His resurrection and more even of the fellowship of his sufferings, 100 00:06:40,700 –> 00:06:44,559 writes this man, even while he is there in prison. 101 00:06:44,559 –> 00:06:50,059 So all through the Bible, there is this hallmark that when the Holy Spirit is present in a 102 00:06:50,079 –> 00:06:54,640 person’s life, there’s this hunger, there’s this thirst, there’s this passion that is 103 00:06:55,299 –> 00:06:59,820 energized to know more of God, and to know more of His righteousness. 104 00:06:59,820 –> 00:07:02,239 Three observations about hunger. 105 00:07:02,239 –> 00:07:07,119 Very simply and obviously, hunger is a sign of need. 106 00:07:07,119 –> 00:07:09,399 When you’re hungry, your body’s telling you something. 107 00:07:09,399 –> 00:07:12,660 It’s too long since your last meal. 108 00:07:12,660 –> 00:07:15,579 Hunger indicates an absence. 109 00:07:15,579 –> 00:07:18,079 An absence of food. 110 00:07:18,079 –> 00:07:23,100 It’s the way in which the body indicates its need to you. 111 00:07:23,100 –> 00:07:28,739 And Jesus says, now the people who are really blessed, think about it, are the people who 112 00:07:28,739 –> 00:07:30,559 hunger and thirst for righteousness. 113 00:07:30,559 –> 00:07:36,079 In other words, when it comes to righteousness, the people who are really blessed are not 114 00:07:36,079 –> 00:07:38,040 the ones who think they have it. 115 00:07:38,040 –> 00:07:42,179 They’re the ones who know they need it. 116 00:07:42,179 –> 00:07:44,579 They hunger and thirst for it. 117 00:07:44,579 –> 00:07:50,959 Now, friends, this is very important, because this is describing to us what it feels like 118 00:07:51,299 –> 00:07:53,440 to be a Christian. 119 00:07:53,440 –> 00:07:57,839 Some of us are newer Christians and you think, you know, I really don’t feel I’m a very holy 120 00:07:57,839 –> 00:08:01,720 person, and you wonder if that may mean that you’re not actually a Christian. 121 00:08:01,720 –> 00:08:04,959 Let me tell you what it feels like to be a Christian. 122 00:08:04,959 –> 00:08:09,440 You do not feel that you have arrived when you’re a real Christian. 123 00:08:09,440 –> 00:08:11,859 You find yourself longing for more of Christ. 124 00:08:11,859 –> 00:08:14,339 You say, I wish I was further on. 125 00:08:14,339 –> 00:08:17,079 That’s the mark of genuine spiritual life in you. 126 00:08:17,079 –> 00:08:20,839 That should be an encouragement to every real Christian. 127 00:08:20,839 –> 00:08:22,320 Because not everyone is like that. 128 00:08:22,320 –> 00:08:25,040 Some people are confident of their own righteousness. 129 00:08:25,040 –> 00:08:28,279 Jesus said that about some folks, some Pharisees. 130 00:08:28,279 –> 00:08:31,920 And you remember, Jesus did not pronounced them blessed, if they were confident of their 131 00:08:31,920 –> 00:08:32,919 own righteousness. 132 00:08:32,919 –> 00:08:33,919 Why? 133 00:08:33,919 –> 00:08:41,159 Because the blessing does not belong to people who see themselves as little paragons of virtue. 134 00:08:41,159 –> 00:08:46,659 The blessing, Jesus is saying, belongs to those who know their own need, who are very 135 00:08:47,380 –> 00:08:53,400 of how far they have to go and very, very little of how far they have come. 136 00:08:53,419 –> 00:08:57,460 And there are other people who, at the other end of the spectrum, as it were, they are 137 00:08:57,460 –> 00:09:01,020 very content in their own sins. 138 00:09:01,020 –> 00:09:05,200 They don’t really feel a need to change. 139 00:09:05,200 –> 00:09:07,659 And Jesus does not pronounce these people blessed either. 140 00:09:07,659 –> 00:09:13,979 No, the blessing does not belong to people who are content to remain as they are. 141 00:09:13,979 –> 00:09:21,000 The blessing is on those who have a strong desire, Jesus says, to gain more of righteousness. 142 00:09:21,000 –> 00:09:26,460 If this is you, then, Jesus says, you are blessed. 143 00:09:26,460 –> 00:09:29,039 Hunger is a sign of need. 144 00:09:29,039 –> 00:09:31,679 Hunger’s a sign of life. 145 00:09:31,679 –> 00:09:36,580 Nobody teaches a newborn baby to be hungry. 146 00:09:36,580 –> 00:09:41,099 You don’t have mentoring on how to become hungry for newborn children, right? 147 00:09:41,520 –> 00:09:44,799 It simply arises out of the fact that there is life. 148 00:09:44,799 –> 00:09:46,900 Where there is life, there will be hunger. 149 00:09:46,900 –> 00:09:53,780 Spurgeon says this, to hunger after righteousness is the sign of spiritual life. 150 00:09:53,780 –> 00:09:57,900 Nobody who was spiritually dead ever did this. 151 00:09:57,900 –> 00:10:02,400 If you hunger and thirst after righteousness, you are spiritually alive. 152 00:10:02,400 –> 00:10:03,960 This is how you know you’re a Christian. 153 00:10:03,960 –> 00:10:06,700 That you experience this hunger within you. 154 00:10:07,400 –> 00:10:08,159 Spurgeon again. 155 00:10:08,159 –> 00:10:13,539 He says, when the Spirit of God has changed our nature, that new nature hungers and thirsts 156 00:10:13,539 –> 00:10:15,119 after righteousness. 157 00:10:15,119 –> 00:10:20,659 The old nature never did, it never could, and it never would do so. 158 00:10:20,659 –> 00:10:23,119 So the flesh never hungers after righteousness. 159 00:10:23,119 –> 00:10:25,179 The flesh is always wanting to go and sin. 160 00:10:25,179 –> 00:10:29,580 If you have a hunger after righteousness, it is a sign that you are spiritually alive 161 00:10:29,580 –> 00:10:32,940 and thank God for it. 162 00:10:32,940 –> 00:10:38,539 Not only is a hunger a sign of need, not only is it an evidence of life, it is a sign of 163 00:10:38,539 –> 00:10:40,400 health, isn’t it? 164 00:10:40,400 –> 00:10:45,960 When someone is unwell and they’re beginning to recover and they start eating a little 165 00:10:45,960 –> 00:10:46,960 more. 166 00:10:46,960 –> 00:10:50,119 Well, the doctor comes round, and he is pleased that this is a good sign. 167 00:10:50,119 –> 00:10:52,119 Oh, you’re getting your appetite back. 168 00:10:52,119 –> 00:10:53,400 That’s the sign you’re getting better. 169 00:10:53,400 –> 00:10:58,520 A healthy appetite is a sign of health. 170 00:10:58,520 –> 00:11:02,880 And losing an appetite may in some cases mean that something is seriously wrong with the 171 00:11:02,880 –> 00:11:04,859 body. 172 00:11:04,859 –> 00:11:10,080 Now apply this spiritually, because this is the analogy that the Lord Jesus is using here. 173 00:11:10,080 –> 00:11:16,419 If you have a deep longing within you to grow in Jesus Christ, that is a good statement 174 00:11:16,419 –> 00:11:18,900 about your spiritual health. 175 00:11:18,900 –> 00:11:27,320 The sign of spiritual health – understand this – is never to feel that you have arrived, 176 00:11:27,320 –> 00:11:32,619 but always to feel that you have a great longing for more and a sense that you have a long 177 00:11:32,659 –> 00:11:34,020 way still to go. 178 00:11:34,020 –> 00:11:39,640 This is what it is like to be a Christian, let this encourage you, the mark of a Christian 179 00:11:39,640 –> 00:11:42,780 is that he never feels he has arrived at a righteous life. 180 00:11:42,780 –> 00:11:43,780 What does he do? 181 00:11:43,780 –> 00:11:48,919 He hungers, he thirsts after righteousness. 182 00:11:49,020 –> 00:11:53,159 Here’s the second thing, it’s relentless pursuit, that was the first. 183 00:11:53,159 –> 00:11:55,700 Second it’s a holy passion. 184 00:11:56,059 –> 00:12:01,000 Jesus said blessed are those who hunger and thirst for what? 185 00:12:01,000 –> 00:12:05,080 For righteousness. 186 00:12:05,080 –> 00:12:11,679 Now all of us folks are involved in a great search for satisfaction, the big question 187 00:12:11,679 –> 00:12:15,039 is where do we think we’ll find it. 188 00:12:15,039 –> 00:12:20,000 What do you think will satisfy you? 189 00:12:20,000 –> 00:12:23,840 Because whatever you think will satisfy you, that will become the consuming passion of 190 00:12:23,859 –> 00:12:24,859 your life. 191 00:12:24,859 –> 00:12:29,219 If you think that a certain achievement will satisfy you, then the consuming passion of 192 00:12:29,219 –> 00:12:31,739 your life will be that achievement. 193 00:12:31,739 –> 00:12:35,039 Because we all go after satisfaction. 194 00:12:35,039 –> 00:12:41,239 If you think that leisure or retirement is going to be the thing that will satisfy you, 195 00:12:41,239 –> 00:12:43,280 then all your affections will be set on that. 196 00:12:43,280 –> 00:12:47,080 How long will it be until we get that? 197 00:12:47,080 –> 00:12:49,039 What do you think will give you satisfaction? 198 00:12:49,039 –> 00:12:51,599 Is it to be loved? 199 00:12:51,599 –> 00:12:52,799 Is it to be appreciated? 200 00:12:52,799 –> 00:12:56,599 Is it to get revenge? 201 00:12:56,599 –> 00:13:02,000 Whatever it is that you think will satisfy you most deeply, that will become the consuming 202 00:13:02,000 –> 00:13:10,919 passion of your life, and Jesus tells us right here, there is one desire, and only one that 203 00:13:10,919 –> 00:13:15,719 will be completely satisfied, the only one that is. 204 00:13:15,719 –> 00:13:20,460 Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for this thing, righteousness. 205 00:13:20,460 –> 00:13:21,460 Why? 206 00:13:21,479 –> 00:13:29,320 Because they are the ones, and they alone, ultimately, who are really going to be satisfied. 207 00:13:29,320 –> 00:13:34,500 And here’s my question. 208 00:13:34,500 –> 00:13:41,400 Is this, then, what Christians today are looking for? 209 00:13:41,400 –> 00:13:46,940 Is it what we who profess faith in Jesus Christ, is this what we want? 210 00:13:46,940 –> 00:13:50,059 Is it what we’re going after? 211 00:13:50,059 –> 00:13:54,940 Is this what we really want from God, this thing, righteousness, or are we actually looking 212 00:13:54,940 –> 00:13:57,960 for something else? 213 00:13:57,960 –> 00:14:01,239 You go into a Christian bookshop, you’ll see what Christians are looking for. 214 00:14:01,239 –> 00:14:09,960 It’s a happy family life, growing churches, fulfillment in ministry. 215 00:14:09,960 –> 00:14:14,539 Try and find 10 books on the pursuit of righteousness. 216 00:14:14,539 –> 00:14:17,419 Is this what Christians want today? 217 00:14:18,039 –> 00:14:23,260 Or have we sold out to the idea that God is there to give us something else which we think 218 00:14:23,260 –> 00:14:27,700 is actually a higher priority? 219 00:14:27,700 –> 00:14:33,820 What do we know as those who profess faith in the Lord Jesus Christ about this hunger 220 00:14:33,820 –> 00:14:37,440 for righteousness? 221 00:14:37,440 –> 00:14:39,219 We want to be blessed. 222 00:14:39,739 –> 00:14:51,099 Oh yes, we want to be blessed to prosper, to have health, to have peace, to have security. 223 00:14:51,099 –> 00:14:55,500 We want to be blessed, but think about this. 224 00:14:55,500 –> 00:15:03,299 Jesus did not say, we are righteous if we hunger and thirst to be blessed. 225 00:15:04,179 –> 00:15:10,820 He said, we are blessed if we hunger and thirst, to be righteous. 226 00:15:12,659 –> 00:15:15,859 You see how easy it is to get the whole thing completely the wrong way around, 227 00:15:15,859 –> 00:15:17,619 even as Christian people? 228 00:15:19,380 –> 00:15:22,820 He did not say that we are righteous if we hunger and thirst to be blessed. 229 00:15:24,020 –> 00:15:29,539 He said, we are blessed if we hunger and thirst to be righteous, which raises the 230 00:15:29,539 –> 00:15:33,780 question that I’ve been pondering, and I ask you to ponder, is this what I’m 231 00:15:33,780 –> 00:15:36,500 hungering and thirsting after? Is this what I really want from God? 232 00:15:38,340 –> 00:15:42,099 Or has the agenda of my life sold out to something else that I think ultimately is 233 00:15:42,099 –> 00:15:47,539 going to be more satisfying for me? Let me turn the question another way and put it this way. 234 00:15:49,940 –> 00:15:51,460 Why did Jesus Christ die? 235 00:15:53,700 –> 00:15:58,179 Now if someone asks you that question, why did Jesus Christ endure everything that he went 236 00:15:58,179 –> 00:16:02,500 through on the cross? There are obviously many answers that you could give that are 237 00:16:02,500 –> 00:16:08,659 faithful to the Bible. You could say that Jesus Christ died so that we might be forgiven. 238 00:16:09,780 –> 00:16:15,299 You could say that Jesus Christ died so that we might have eternal life. 239 00:16:17,299 –> 00:16:22,900 But I want to suggest to you that if you look at the great statements of the purpose 240 00:16:22,979 –> 00:16:26,020 of the death of Jesus Christ in the New Testament, 241 00:16:27,059 –> 00:16:36,099 you will find that God places something else at the center. Let me give you three examples. 242 00:16:36,820 –> 00:16:41,460 Three of the greatest statements about the atonement in all of the New Testament. 243 00:16:43,059 –> 00:16:50,500 They all contain clear statements of what Christ did that are immediately backed up by why he did 244 00:16:50,500 –> 00:16:57,700 it. Number one, Second Corinthians chapter five in verse 15, do you see the pattern here? What 245 00:16:57,700 –> 00:17:08,180 did Christ do? Christ died for all. Great statement. Why did he do that? Answer. That those who live 246 00:17:08,180 –> 00:17:14,180 might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised. 247 00:17:15,140 –> 00:17:23,099 Why did he do it? So that there would be a transformed life that is no longer about the 248 00:17:23,099 –> 00:17:30,280 self but gives evidence of the pursuit of righteousness. That’s why he did what he did 249 00:17:30,280 –> 00:17:39,260 on the cross. Think of another one, First Peter chapter two in verse 24, what did Jesus do? He 250 00:17:39,260 –> 00:17:46,540 himself bore our sins in his body on the tree. Isn’t that a marvellous thing? He bore your sins, 251 00:17:46,540 –> 00:17:55,239 but why did he do it? Here’s why, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. It’s the 252 00:17:55,239 –> 00:18:01,339 same thing, the pursuit of a holy life. Number three, Second Corinthians chapter five in verse 253 00:18:01,339 –> 00:18:08,459 21, what did God do for us in Jesus Christ? For our sake here’s what he did, God made him who 254 00:18:09,099 –> 00:18:17,040 knew no sin to be sin. Christ himself became sin for us. And why did he do that? Why this 255 00:18:17,040 –> 00:18:25,579 extraordinary atonement? Answer, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. 256 00:18:25,579 –> 00:18:32,859 So you put these together and I could list many more but just these three for the sake of time, 257 00:18:32,859 –> 00:18:38,339 we have to come to this conclusion that we can state the purpose of the passion of Jesus Christ 258 00:18:38,500 –> 00:18:43,619 in many ways. The New Testament again and again and again focuses our minds and our hearts on 259 00:18:43,619 –> 00:18:49,459 this. The purpose of the passion of Jesus Christ is that we should have a passion for righteousness. 260 00:18:50,420 –> 00:18:51,459 It’s that important. 261 00:18:53,459 –> 00:19:00,180 Christ died to redeem a people who no longer live for themselves but are marked by a passion for 262 00:19:00,180 –> 00:19:06,020 holiness, which is why he says, seek first, the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these 263 00:19:06,020 –> 00:19:11,540 things will be added to you as well. Blessed, he said, are those who hunger and thirst after 264 00:19:11,540 –> 00:19:16,739 righteousness. Why? Because they are the ones who are going to be satisfied. So I have to ask this 265 00:19:16,739 –> 00:19:24,900 question, what then do I know about this mighty longing after God, this passion to live in a way 266 00:19:24,900 –> 00:19:33,540 that really pleases him, to be done with sin? Is that longing more intense than it was a year ago? 267 00:19:34,099 –> 00:19:39,619 Is it growing or is it receding? Have I become casual and compromised in my Christian life? 268 00:19:40,660 –> 00:19:45,939 Because in the light of the cross, the Lord Jesus Christ is calling me to this. He died for it. 269 00:19:47,540 –> 00:19:55,300 So we’ve thought about a relentless pursuit. We’ve thought about a holy passion. Here’s the third 270 00:19:55,300 –> 00:20:02,979 thing, we’re trying to understand what Jesus Christ is calling us to here. And it’s a strange paradox. 271 00:20:03,780 –> 00:20:12,579 Look at the verse again, blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, 272 00:20:12,579 –> 00:20:17,140 for they shall be satisfied. Now, you see the paradox 273 00:20:18,579 –> 00:20:26,099 that Jesus Christ here is talking about hungering and being satisfied at the same time. 274 00:20:26,420 –> 00:20:36,739 Now how are we to understand this? When you feel hungry and you go out and you eat a meal, 275 00:20:36,739 –> 00:20:41,300 then you are satisfied and by definition when you’re satisfied you are no longer hungry. 276 00:20:42,099 –> 00:20:46,900 The food takes away the hunger. That’s what we experience at least for a time. And when you’re 277 00:20:46,900 –> 00:20:52,900 satisfied, what satisfied means is that you are no longer hungry. But Jesus speaks here 278 00:20:52,900 –> 00:21:03,859 about a hunger and a thirst that exist at the same time as a satisfaction. They exist together. 279 00:21:05,380 –> 00:21:10,660 Let me quote a couple of authors who speak about this helpfully. AW Pynk says this question. 280 00:21:12,020 –> 00:21:16,979 ”Can one who has been brought into vital union with him who is the bread of life 281 00:21:17,540 –> 00:21:22,420 he is still hungering and thirsting and he answers yes.” 282 00:21:23,859 –> 00:21:29,859 This is the experience of the renewed heart, and thats what Jesus is saying here. 283 00:21:31,219 –> 00:21:36,979 Dr. Lloyd-Jones puts it this way. ”The christian is one who at the same time is both hungering and 284 00:21:36,979 –> 00:21:42,900 thirsting and yet is filled. And the more he is filled the more he hungers and thirsts.” 285 00:21:42,979 –> 00:21:50,739 This is the blessedness of the christian life, he says it goes on. Hunger and thirst. I experience 286 00:21:50,739 –> 00:21:55,459 more of christ. And the more i experience of christ the more i hunger and thirst and the 287 00:21:55,459 –> 00:22:00,260 more i hunger and thirst the more i experience of christ. And so it goes on, this is the dynamic 288 00:22:00,260 –> 00:22:05,219 of a growing christian life throughout all your years, until faith is turned toside. 289 00:22:06,979 –> 00:22:12,660 Nobody has spoken in my view about this more compellingly than A.W Tozer. 290 00:22:12,660 –> 00:22:17,619 If you’ve never read A.W Tozer’s book the pursuit of god it is a must read i think 291 00:22:17,619 –> 00:22:21,699 for every christian and right in the first chapter he says this marvelous. 292 00:22:22,500 –> 00:22:30,739 To have found god and still to pursue him is the soul’s paradox of love. 293 00:22:32,180 –> 00:22:40,979 To have found god and yet still to pursue him, to know him and yet still to hunger and thirst 294 00:22:40,979 –> 00:22:51,780 after him. Godly men and women over centuries have rejoiced in the mystery of 295 00:22:53,219 –> 00:22:58,660 this hunger that is satisfied and this satisfaction that produces hunger. 296 00:23:01,780 –> 00:23:08,900 When i was a boy growing up in Scotland we used to sing a hymn that was written in the 12th 297 00:23:08,900 –> 00:23:15,300 century. That’s a long time ago that’s an oldie. Written by Bernard of Clairvaux 298 00:23:16,500 –> 00:23:19,939 and I don’t know that any words have been written in poetry that capture 299 00:23:19,939 –> 00:23:24,579 this mystery more beautifully than Bernhard’s words from the 12th century. 300 00:23:24,579 –> 00:23:29,780 Some of you may know them think of this around the communion table. We taste thee 301 00:23:30,660 –> 00:23:39,300 O thou living bread, and long to feast upon thee still. We drink of thee 302 00:23:39,859 –> 00:23:49,859 the fountainhead, and thirst from thee our souls to fill. You see what he’s saying? 303 00:23:51,380 –> 00:23:58,420 The more I taste of Christ, the more I long after him. The more I drink of the water of life that 304 00:23:58,420 –> 00:24:05,859 Christ gives to me, the more I thirst after more of the knowledge of this Christ. I thirst my soul 305 00:24:05,859 –> 00:24:15,540 from thee to fill. Deep, speaks to deep. This is the life of the spirit. This is the life that 306 00:24:15,540 –> 00:24:20,099 rises up from everything Jesus has been teaching us in these first three Beatitudes. 307 00:24:21,780 –> 00:24:26,020 Tozer has a remarkable phrase that I found so helpful. He says this, 308 00:24:26,020 –> 00:24:32,579 that we have been snared in the coils of a spurious logic that if we have found God we 309 00:24:32,579 –> 00:24:39,219 need no longer seek Him. And I think we can adapt that today and put it this way, that we have been 310 00:24:39,859 –> 00:24:45,939 snared in the coils of a spurious logic that if we are righteous in Christ we need no longer 311 00:24:45,939 –> 00:24:51,140 hunger and thirst after righteousness and Jesus says we do. He calls us to it, 312 00:24:51,140 –> 00:24:59,219 blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be satisfied 313 00:25:01,140 –> 00:25:04,020 Did you see that’s what you find all over the Bible. The apostle Paul 314 00:25:05,140 –> 00:25:12,579 is saying I want to be found in Christ, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, 315 00:25:12,579 –> 00:25:16,819 I want to have that righteousness that’s through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. So he’s talking 316 00:25:16,819 –> 00:25:22,660 about his justification is standing in God but why does he want that, he goes on to say, 317 00:25:22,660 –> 00:25:28,099 so that I may know him. Press on after him, no more of the power of his resurrection, 318 00:25:28,099 –> 00:25:32,819 even enter into the fellowship of his sufferings, that’s the position I want to be in. 319 00:25:34,420 –> 00:25:39,219 John says something very similar when he lays out that marvelous truth about heaven, 320 00:25:40,099 –> 00:25:50,979 but where does that truth take the Christian, answer, everyone who has this 321 00:25:50,979 –> 00:25:58,180 hope of one day being pure like Jesus Christ in him or in her, that person will purify themselves 322 00:25:58,660 –> 00:26:04,819 even as Christ himself is pure. So here’s what we’re learning, 323 00:26:04,819 –> 00:26:10,900 the distinguishing mark of those who are righteous in Jesus Christ is that they long 324 00:26:10,900 –> 00:26:17,140 for righteousness. They are not people who sit around saying, I made a decision 25 years ago. 325 00:26:18,579 –> 00:26:26,739 There is a momentum of hunger and of thirst that is moving them forward in an active pursuit of 326 00:26:27,459 –> 00:26:32,979 living faith in and obedience towards Jesus Christ. That’s the hallmark of a true Christian. 327 00:26:32,979 –> 00:26:36,260 Folks, we said at the beginning of this series, one of our objectives 328 00:26:36,260 –> 00:26:39,699 is to discover afresh what a real Christian is, 329 00:26:42,339 –> 00:26:46,339 and so as we see what a real Christian is here in this fourth Beatitude, 330 00:26:46,339 –> 00:26:54,819 I have to ask this question. Is this you? Is this you? Are you a person who feels your need 331 00:26:54,819 –> 00:27:00,979 of righteousness? Has God awakened within your heart a real desire to be holy? 332 00:27:01,540 –> 00:27:06,339 Is there a sense of discontent about your present spiritual position, 333 00:27:06,339 –> 00:27:12,099 a desire to move forward, a desire to advance or has somehow all of that been lost? 334 00:27:13,780 –> 00:27:19,540 Is there a longing to be done with sin? If this is the desire of your heart, 335 00:27:19,540 –> 00:27:24,020 you can be very sure that you are indeed a Christian. It is an unfathomable hallmark, 336 00:27:24,579 –> 00:27:32,420 but if it is not true of you, I pray that God will use this theme from the Scripture to 337 00:27:32,420 –> 00:27:41,540 waken you up. Great paradox. Last heading, a glorious prospect. Look at what he says here. 338 00:27:42,180 –> 00:27:53,380 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, why? For they shall be satisfied. 339 00:27:53,380 –> 00:27:57,699 Choose the wrong thirsts and you will never never be satisfied. 340 00:27:59,459 –> 00:28:04,099 Hell is a place of unending hungers and thirsts 341 00:28:05,540 –> 00:28:09,619 where the soul is always being destroyed because it can never be fulfilled. 342 00:28:11,459 –> 00:28:14,739 But Jesus says, people who hunger and thirst for righteousness, 343 00:28:14,739 –> 00:28:18,260 they are blessed, why? Because they will be satisfied. 344 00:28:18,979 –> 00:28:24,020 The beginnings of that are known now because Christ is given to us by the Spirit 345 00:28:24,020 –> 00:28:30,180 as we pursue him. But the fullness of it lies in the future in the presence of the Lord Jesus 346 00:28:30,180 –> 00:28:34,900 Christ. And you remember the book of Revelation gives us a glimpse of what it will be like 347 00:28:34,900 –> 00:28:40,020 when the whole family of God is in the presence of Jesus and before the throne 348 00:28:40,020 –> 00:28:47,060 and John says this, they shall hunger no more and neither shall they thirst. Why? Because the lamb 349 00:28:47,060 –> 00:28:52,260 who’s at the center of the throne will be their shepherd and he will lead them where? Into springs 350 00:28:52,260 –> 00:28:59,300 of living water. So, God’s people will be satisfied because Christ will give them the righteousness 351 00:28:59,300 –> 00:29:06,579 that they seek. And this is the great promise of the gospel. Christ has become for us wisdom from 352 00:29:06,579 –> 00:29:15,060 God. He is our righteousness, sanctification, and our redemption, 1 Corinthians 1 in verse 30. 353 00:29:15,060 –> 00:29:21,219 And that is why Jeremiah says, thinking of the last day, he says that, the family of God will 354 00:29:21,219 –> 00:29:30,180 give to their Lord, this name. He will be the Lord our righteousness, the Lord our righteousness. 355 00:29:31,459 –> 00:29:38,180 Christ is our righteousness and here’s what that means. If you are in Christ 356 00:29:38,180 –> 00:29:46,979 and Christ is in you, then not only will you have a great hunger and thirst of righteousness, 357 00:29:46,979 –> 00:29:50,140 that’s the life that inevitably flows out from the presence of the spirit, 358 00:29:50,140 –> 00:29:54,540 but that desire for righteousness that is in you will be satisfied. 359 00:29:54,540 –> 00:30:03,520 The holiness that is begun in you in this life will be brought to completion 360 00:30:03,520 –> 00:30:09,819 beautifully in all its perfection in the presence of Jesus, and you, Christian 361 00:30:09,819 –> 00:30:18,459 friend, will sin no more. Won’t that be marvelous? Can you even imagine yourself 362 00:30:18,459 –> 00:30:24,199 without a trace of sin and not only will sin have no place within you, it will 363 00:30:24,199 –> 00:30:28,560 have no place in anyone who is around you. There will be a new heaven and a new 364 00:30:28,560 –> 00:30:35,040 earth, it will be the home of righteousness, and all who hungered and 365 00:30:35,040 –> 00:30:41,719 thirsted for righteousness will be there. And I’m asking you again then, today, is 366 00:30:41,719 –> 00:30:47,760 that you? Is that you? Ask yourself, I plead with you. 367 00:30:47,760 –> 00:30:52,599 Do I have this desire for righteousness? What do I know about this 368 00:30:52,979 –> 00:30:56,520 all-consuming passion? Is holiness really the great quest of 369 00:30:56,520 –> 00:31:02,400 my life, or have I substituted it with something else? What have I put in its 370 00:31:02,400 –> 00:31:07,260 place? Ask yourself, is there anything of the spirit of David in me, when he said 371 00:31:07,260 –> 00:31:11,540 there is so longed for God? Is there anything of the spirit of Paul in me, 372 00:31:11,540 –> 00:31:15,900 when he said, I want to know Christ, and I really want to know the power of his 373 00:31:15,900 –> 00:31:21,000 resurrection and even the fellowship of his sufferings? And if the message today 374 00:31:21,000 –> 00:31:29,380 it makes you feel your own need, then thank God, because it is the Holy Spirit 375 00:31:29,380 –> 00:31:34,439 that brings that awareness. He’s creating the hunger and thirst even now 376 00:31:34,439 –> 00:31:38,719 within you, and if that’s what’s happening, I say to you, from Isaiah 55 377 00:31:38,719 –> 00:31:45,339 that was read earlier, come, anyone who thirsts, come to the waters, come to the 378 00:31:45,339 –> 00:31:52,479 one who is the bread of life, come to the one who is the living water. If you have 379 00:31:52,479 –> 00:32:00,319 any hunger and thirst for righteousness at all, it is Christ who is provoking 380 00:32:00,319 –> 00:32:06,439 this and creating this within you, and he does not do this to mock you, he does 381 00:32:06,439 –> 00:32:12,880 this so that you will draw near and so that you will receive, and so that you 382 00:32:12,880 –> 00:32:18,579 for all eternity will be satisfied. 383 00:32:19,500 –> 00:32:28,300 Once in a while you come across a prayer that is profoundly useful in your own 384 00:32:28,300 –> 00:32:36,560 walk with God, and I want to end the message today by leading us in a prayer 385 00:32:36,560 –> 00:32:41,800 that I have found many times to be so useful in my own life. It’s from A. W. 386 00:32:41,839 –> 00:32:47,579 Tozer and from his book The Pursuit of God. It’s a prayer simply that God will 387 00:32:47,579 –> 00:32:52,739 intensify our own longing, and I want to invite you even now to join me in prayer 388 00:32:52,739 –> 00:33:00,520 as we seek to respond to God’s Word coming before him today. Let us pray. 389 00:33:00,520 –> 00:33:11,619 O God, I have tasted your goodness and it has both satisfied me and made me 390 00:33:11,619 –> 00:33:19,459 thirsty for more. I am painfully conscious of my need of further grace 391 00:33:19,459 –> 00:33:26,880 and I am ashamed of my own lack of desire. 392 00:33:27,540 –> 00:33:38,560 O God, Triune God, I want to want you. I long to be fille with longing. I thirst 393 00:33:38,560 –> 00:33:47,780 to be made more thirsty still. Show me your glory I pray that I may know you 394 00:33:48,020 –> 00:33:59,560 indeed. Begin in mercy a new work of love within me. Say to my soul, rise up, my love, 395 00:33:59,560 –> 00:34:11,139 and come away and then give me the grace to rise and follow you up from this 396 00:34:11,139 –> 00:34:24,899 misty low land where I have wandered for so long, in Jesus name. Amen. 397 00:34:26,060 –> 00:34:30,179 You’ve been listening to a sermon with Pastor Colin Smith of Open The Bible. 398 00:34:30,179 –> 00:34:37,179 To contact us call us at 1-877-open-365 or visit our website 399 00:34:37,179 –> 00:34:39,159 openthebible.org

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Colin Smith

Trustee / Founder and Teaching Pastor

Colin Smith is the Senior Pastor of The Orchard Evangelical Free Church in the northwest suburbs of Chicago. He has authored a number of books, including Heaven, How I Got Here and Heaven, So Near – So Far. Colin is the Founder and Teaching Pastor for Open the Bible. Follow him on X formerly Twitter.

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