HUNGRY AND THIRSTY HEARTS (3)

“HO! EVERYONE WHO THIRSTS, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come…” – Isaiah 55:1a

Blessed Hearts are HUNGRY and THIRSTY HEARTS – hearts yearning for Righteousness: “HO! EVERYONE WHO THIRSTS, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat. Yes, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Why do you spend money for what is not bread, and your wages for what does not satisfy?” (Isa.55:1-2a). The Lord invites His covenant people to come and eat freely that which is good to eat, cease being preoccupied with the world’s false offers, and take advantage of what He has made readily available, to purposefully pursue righteousness. Isaiah’s prophetical call foreshadowed the words of our Lord Jesus: “BLESSED are those who HUNGER and THIRST for righteousness, for they shall be filled” (Mt.5:6).

“Hunger and thirst” is a metaphor that doesn’t resonate in our modern age as it did in Jesus’ day. These words didn’t describe casual hunger and thirst. The ancient world, to which Christ spoke, had no modern gadgets. Most families in Palestine could only eat meat once a week. Wages were low. Poverty was prevalent. Pipe-borne water was non-existent. Only the wealthiest rode the fastest means of movement – camels! Multitudes trekked under burning, windy, stormy skies, with thirst as their common companion. Real hunger and thirst are not the ordinary emptiness we feel between meals, but the needs of someone who is starving for food or might die without a drink! Nothing will satisfy a person who is desperately hungry and thirsty – not a beautiful sunrise or sunset, entertainment or rest – only food and water will do. This should aptly express our passion for righteousness.

Metaphorically, to hunger and thirst after righteousness, denotes a passionate striving. These are God-created appetites that begin when He calls us into His Family. God is in the FILLING business: “For they shall be filled”! The word “fill” means to be satisfied in the sense of being stuffed after a sumptuous meal! God creates a hunger and thirst in us that He may fill it. When He creates a need in us to know Him, understand His will and be like Him, it is for the precise purpose of drawing us to Him to embrace all these virtues in ourselves. There is an initial and a continuous filling. The initial filling – Imputed Righteousness, puts us in right standing with God. The continuous filling – Progressive or Practical Righteousness, is about walking with God, right thinking in self, and right doing towards men. Those who truly pursue righteousness will be filled with it and blessed with God’s Love, wanting nothing more!

The pursuit of Practical Righteousness is also called Sanctification, pursuit of Holiness, going to Perfection, or growing in the Grace and the knowledge of Jesus Christ (2Pet.3:18). God does not create His holy and righteous character in us by fiat. It requires the willing devotion and conscious cooperation of the called. We are to bear our crosses and count the cost (Lk.14:26-28). These are serious challenges. How much do we want the righteousness of God? Is it as much as a starving man desires food or a parched man wants water? Would we cheaply abandon our faith as the Israelites – save Joshua and Caleb – did in the wilderness? They heard the good news, but did not believe it sufficiently or hunger for it, and were cut short (Heb.4:1).

Many Christian confessors have a nebulous desire for God's Kingdom and His righteousness. They’re ill-prepared for the required choices, effort, sacrifice, and pursuit. They rarely desire righteousness above all else. God fills us with what He is and what we need to negotiate our pilgrimage in His Kingdom, safely, securely, and to perfection. He fills us with understanding of His perspective on the affairs of this life and a clear vision of His future Kingdom. He fills us with wisdom to apply the understanding. He fills us with a peace that passes all understanding in the midst of a troubled world. He fills us with His Fullness for His Praise and Glory. He fills us with Faith, Hope, and Love that we might be like Him (1Jh.3:2).