What Do You Hunger and Thirst for?

February 01, 2023

What Do You Hunger and Thirst For?

What Do You Hunger and Thirst for?

By Brooke Holt

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.” Matthew 5:6

God created you with human needs such as hunger and thirst. You feel the need to eat and drink so that you will partake of food and water. Your body needs both to live and function in this world. While these human needs and desires are good and healthy, they are not meant to be all-consuming. Many people eat far too much food or drink too much of the wrong substances. Others consume too much social media, television, work, etc. Humans are consumers, and the media loves to capitalize on both the need and the desire to consume.

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus challenges his audience to consider what they consume, what they hunger and thirst for in this world. Are they the things of righteousness or the substances of this world? Jesus wanted his followers to search themselves, to humbly consider if the Lord was the primary love and desire of their lives. If not, disordered love resides within them.

Now make it personal. Remember that his followers include you. Do you have some disordered love in your life? Yes, acknowledging it is hard, yet it can also be the awakening that leads you to true satisfaction. Jesus knows that the things of this world will never truly satisfy you. You can have all the money in the world and still be lonely. You can have the finest foods in the world and still be hungry for significance and meaning in your life.

Remember when Jesus was driven into the wilderness to be tempted by Satan? He fasted for forty days and nights and had to be famished. When Satan came to him with each of his temptations, Jesus did not satisfy his fleshly desires but demonstrated what it means to desire the will of God above all things. Jesus modeled perfect righteousness.

Through the gift of the Holy Spirit, God empowers you to live in this righteousness. He does it first by the gift of redemption and salvation offered through Christ’s perfect obedience here, his death, and his resurrection. He washes you clean of every sin, and then he pours out his Holy Spirit upon you. That power that enabled Jesus to withstand the temptations of Satan is the very same power that lives in you. You now can also overcome, and you now can have your disordered desires made right.

Today, will you allow that Holy Spirit to search you, to reveal the deepest hunger and thirst of your heart? Then, will you allow him to replace anything that has taken the place of Jesus? The Lord wants to satisfy you with himself!

Reflection:

Consider Jesus’ words, “If anyone thirsts, let him or her come to me and drink” (John 7:37). We would love to hear your thoughts in the comments.

Recommended Resource:

The Crucified Life small group Christian study is designed to reflect upon the Seven Last Words of Christ from the cross and what they mean for us today. Walk the road of Calvary with Jesus in order to grow closer to Him. The Crucified Life small group study examines human suffering as it is mirrored in Christ’s suffering on the cross and what His seven last words say to a hurting world. Find out incredible insights into these words as Jesus teaches us, even in death, how we can use our suffering and triumph over it for His glory. Begin your Crucified Life today.