“Blessed are they who do hunger and thirst after Righteousness—for they shall be filled.”
Matthew 5:6
True “soul-satisfaction” can only be found when He is our Magnificent Obsession (Phil. 3:10).
What’s your favorite food, Pilgrim? Steak and baked potatoes? Fried chicken? Steamed vegetables? Hot rolls with honey and butter? Ice cream and cake? And, when you have them, do you find that you often overeat and still want more?
If so, you’ve only caught a small glimpses of what it means to “hunger and thirst after Righteousness”—which really is God Himself, not some spiritual character trait. And, it’s only when we view this “hungering and thirsting” like that of someone who’s starving to death or dying of thirst that we understand their incessant, intentional craving.
“Water. Please give me some water,” the lost wanderer in the desert with dry, slaked throat cries.
“Food. Food. Will somebody give me something to eat,” begs the weak, emaciated, starving man languishing near the point of death in a dungeon somewhere.
Yet, neither of these can (or should) compare to the “longings of soul” we should have to “know Him (Christ) and the power of His Resurrection” (Phil. 3:10a). When we pause long enough to think that the God of the universe has intentionally chosen to reveal Himself to us and then invited us into an intimate relationship with Him, it should leave us both breathless and speechless.
Think of it:
Our infinite, immanent, invisible God. . .the One Who made all that is. . .has willingly chosen to call us His own. . .through Jesus’ Death on the Cross (Rom. 5:6-11; II Cor. 5:17-21). And, He’s done so simply so we can enjoy the pleasure of His company and love Him in return because of His great Love toward us.
How does that make you feel, Pilgrim?
When you think of your Creator desiring fellowship with you, what’s your reaction? Or, when you realize that He “loved you so much that He willingly sent His one-of-a-kind Son into this sinful world to die IN YOUR PLACE on the Cross” (Jn. 3:16), how do you feel?
Overwhelmed? Overflowing with joy, gratitude or praise?
It should instill within us a deep desire—yea, a sense of “desperation”—where we say, “Thank You, Lord, for loving me so. Oh, Lord, I want to know You. I want to love you with every part of my being. I have such a longing in my soul to be ‘one’ with You. Purge me from anything that’s keeping that from happening. And, help me, dear Savior, to spend the rest of my life in pursuit of You even as You have been pursuing me (Phil. 3:13-14).” Amen and amen.
May 17, 2011
