Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. Matthew 5:6 NIV
We all know what it feels like to be hungry and thirsty, I mean really hungry and thirsty. The almost unquenchable need to either have food to eat or water to drink. This is the level of hunger and thirst that Jesus is talking about in this verse. However, He is not talking about food and water, He is talking about righteousness.
Righteousness, not only in the sense of holiness, but also in the sense of behaving the way Jesus behaved. Loving others, treating others correctly, being in the right kind of relationship with others, being at peace. This verse is talking about a personal code of conduct that imitates Jesus. He lived in such a way that rendered He strange to the people of His time. He was kind when others were mean, He was generous when others were stingy, He was loving when others were hateful. He lived according to God’s will, not according to the way the world states that He should have lived.
He demonstrated throughout His entire life that this sense of righteousness, being righteous in God’s sight also included about how He treated others because in God’s kingdom, relationships are very important. This righteousness is not about personal gain, as this world would have us believe, but about having the right attitude, an attitude of humility. For example, the idea of things being right or righteous in our communities becomes more important than which person is helping to get that done.
The second half of the verse states that those who are seeking and searching after righteousness will be filled. They will be filled with righteousness because they are living a Godly life, a life modeled after Jesus. When we seek after God’s will and do our best to follow God’s will then we will be satisfied because God fills our hearts with Him. He is the only way to stop the longing for that personal relationship with our Creator because He is our Creator, who we long to be connected to.
Do you hunger and thirst for self promotion. self-gratifying achievements or do you hunger and thirst for God? Today I encourage you to look at what you are chasing after and determine if it is the worldly things or if it is the Godly way.