Be Still and Know Daily Bible Devotion - October 23rd - Matthew 5:6
Matthew 5:6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. I wonder when you last felt painfully hungry or thirsty. I suspect for most of us that if it has ever happened, it is a distant memory. However, it is likely that Jesus’ hearers would have been very familiar with both. Harvests could be good or bad, and it was impossible to achieve a reliable flow of food. Additionally, in a hot country, people would often have felt desperately thirsty, and finding a good supply of clean water would never have been easy. Jesus wanted His followers to have just this kind of desperate longing for God’s will to be done in the world. Christianity suffers desperately from those who give it merely polite agreement. They live respectable and considerate lives and consider that Christian faith is generally a very good thing. Jesus is looking for something completely different. He wants us to have the same passion for His kingdom as a hungry and thirsty person has for food and drink. He wants our lives to be dominated by the longing to see His will done and for society to be ordered in a way that honours Him. The wonderful promise is that God will answer the prayers of those who have this passionate longing for His kingdom. For as long as we live on this earth, we will be battling with the reality of sin and injustice. They are sadly an inevitable part of a fallen world, but we can be sure that if we hunger and thirst for righteousness, God will satisfy us completely. Question How hungry and thirsty are you for God’s kingdom? Prayer Dear Lord, forgive me for my half-heartedness. Give me a passionate desire to do Your will. Amen
