July
31
2016
The Sermon on the Mount: The King’s Mandate-What are You Hungry and Thirsty For?
Sermon Series: The Life of Jesus: From Creation to the Cradle to the Cross to the Crown
Sermon Title: The Sermon on the Mount: The King’s Mandate-What are You Hungry and Thirty For?
Sermon Text: Matthew 5:6
Sermon Date: 7-31-16
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled.
Matt. 5:6
For the last few weeks we have been dealing with the "Beatitudes" here in Matt. 5. Have you noticed how that all of these Beatitudes point to man’s greatest need? How that they all build on one another? We have looked at:
"Blessed are the…
Poor – see themselves bankrupt before God
Who mourn – truly repentant for their sin
Meek – surrendered to Christ’s total authority
And this morning, Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled.
Righteousness in the Bible is wrapped up in a person and that person is Jesus Christ. Listen to Paul in I Cor. 1:30 – But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God – and righteousness and sanctification and redemption
Jesus is our righteousness, and when we "hunger and thirst after righteousness" we are hungering and thirsting after Jesus. Now get this because if you don’t you won’t get the rest of the message.
Jesus Christ is our righteousness.
Man’s hunger can be filled by only Jesus. Man’s greatest need can be found in a right relationship with Jesus Christ.
Has that need been filled in you this morning?
Christ is the righteousness of God to which we are to hunger after.
So then, how are we to hunger and thirst for Jesus Christ?
Matt. 5:6
For the last few weeks we have been dealing with the "Beatitudes" here in Matt. 5. Have you noticed how that all of these Beatitudes point to man’s greatest need? How that they all build on one another? We have looked at:
"Blessed are the…
Poor – see themselves bankrupt before God
Who mourn – truly repentant for their sin
Meek – surrendered to Christ’s total authority
And this morning, Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled.
Righteousness in the Bible is wrapped up in a person and that person is Jesus Christ. Listen to Paul in I Cor. 1:30 – But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God – and righteousness and sanctification and redemption
Jesus is our righteousness, and when we "hunger and thirst after righteousness" we are hungering and thirsting after Jesus. Now get this because if you don’t you won’t get the rest of the message.
Jesus Christ is our righteousness.
Man’s hunger can be filled by only Jesus. Man’s greatest need can be found in a right relationship with Jesus Christ.
Has that need been filled in you this morning?
Christ is the righteousness of God to which we are to hunger after.
So then, how are we to hunger and thirst for Jesus Christ?
1. WE ARE TO DESIRE JESUS PREEMINENTLY
That is, we should desire Him above all others.
Colossians 1:8 says that in everything he might be preeminent.
"Jesus Christ is heaven’s bread for man’s deepest hunger." (Adrian Rogers)
"Thou hast made us for thyself and our hearts are restless until they find their rest in thee." (St. Augustine)
Jesus Christ will not work in second place in our lives.
Problem with most folks is they don’t want to seek righteousness. They want to seek blessedness. Problem with that is they never find happiness or satisfaction.
Blessedness is the by-product of seeking Jesus.
2. WE ARE TO DESIRE JESUS PASSIONATELY
What Christ is talking about in our text is hunger/thirst.
It is a picture of a man who is starring. He doesn’t want a little piece of chicken; he wants the whole chicken. He doesn’t want a drop of water; he wants a pitcher of water. He is hungry and thirsty.
What are the marks of a man who is hungry, who is thirsty?
A. He is on a deliberate quest for food
Jesus isn’t talking about a man who just has an appetite. He is speaking of a man who is bankrupt, broken. He is starving and parched.
What are the marks of this kind of hunger? Well if you were starving, would you be interested in how good you looked or what the score is for the sport of the day?
When someone is truly hungry, he is interested in one thing and that is getting "filled". He is interested in food and water. He is deliberate in his quest for it.
Many folks sit in church Sunday after Sunday with their mind 1,000 miles away and you know why? They aren’t hungry.
A man who is on a deliberate quest for food sets his face toward it and he then finds it.
B. He is on a determined search for food
That is, he is going to get fed, and he is going to get some water.
I have seen folks come in to God’s house and their body language just says, "I am here. Now let’s see if this preacher can teach me anything"
So then what happens is their minds begin a mental argument. The "Yah, buts" start happening.
You know what? These folks aren’t hungry; they are not being deliberate; they are not being determined.
Could you imagine a hungry man saying, "Well if anybody wants to feed me, they can" or "I don’t like this or that. Give me something else to eat."
No friend. A hungry man is grateful just to find food.
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled.
C. He is on a desperate search for food
A desperate man lays aside his pride, his criticism, and he just wants to eat.
Are you hungry this morning?
3. WE ARE TO ENJOY JESUS PERPETUALLY
The verb is a present active indicative that means a continuous action.
I don’t know how much of God you have, but I do know you got all you want.
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled.
Are you hungry? What are you searching for? May I say, your search won’t be satisfied in a "what" but rather in "whom". Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for JESUS.