NOTE: WE WILL BE UNABLE TO HOLD OUR OUTDOOR SERVICE IN SPRINGFORD TODAY
As usual, you can read the transcript of the sermon below.
Psalm 119:33-40
33Teach me, Lord, the way of Your decrees,that I may follow it to the end.34 Give me understanding, so that I may keep Your lawand obey it with all my heart.35 Direct me in the path of Your commands,for there I find delight.36 Turn my heart toward Your statutes and not toward selfish gain.37 Turn my eyes away from worthless things;preserve my life according to Your word.38 Fulfill Your promise to Your servant,so that you may be feared.39 Take away the disgrace I dread,for Your laws are good.40 How I long for Your precepts!In Your righteousness preserve my life.
Matthew 5:6
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
Psalm 119:33-40; Matthew 5:6 BLESSED ARE THOSE WHO LONG FOR GOD
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness for they will be filled.” Matthew 5:6
How can we understand this promise of blessing from Jesus and apply it to our lives? We all know what it is to be hungry and thirsty don’t we? Our bodies are designed to notice when we need food and drink so that our needs can be met, so that we can be filled and satisfied.
When several businesses were shut down at the outset of the Covid pandemic, grocery stores remained open. Why? They are an essential service. We need food in order to survive. If you have been sick and unable to eat for a while, you know how weak you become.
The cues our body gives us of hunger and thirst ensure that we can respond and remain healthy. The reality is that just as our bodies need food and drink, our souls need God
It is only when we recognize our emptiness without God and long for Him that we can be filled and satisfied by God’s holy Presence.
We are wanting to engage in, LEARNING THE WAY OF BLESSING.
The Message translation expresses Matthew 5:6 this way, “You’re blessed when you’ve worked up a good appetite for God. He’s food and drink in the best meal you’ll ever eat.”
When we turn our attention to Psalm 119:33-40, we can see that the Psalm writer has learned the way of blessing that comes from hungering and thirsting for God, longing for God.
The verses we are examining this week, are a heartfelt prayer to learn from God and His ways:
“33Teach me, Lord, the way of Your decrees,that I may follow it to the end.”
This longing for God can only be satisfied by God. Nothing else can fill the emptiness in our souls, but God.
There is understanding here that when God reveals Himself and His ways, that the desire will be to follow Him to the end. This is not a passing phase of life, this is lifelong commitment.
The next verses of Psalm 119 emphasize this same hungering and thirsting after God and His ways:
34 Give me understanding, so that I may keep Your lawand obey it with all my heart.35 Direct me in the path of Your commands,for there I find delight.
Let me ask you, do you find delight in following God and his ways?
We can talk about the delight of a chocolate brownie or a butter tart. When we describe some of our favourite foods, our “mouths water” and we wish we could have the delight of what has stimulated our appetites.
Do we delight in God like that? There is blessing in having this kind of longing for God. Remember Jesus promised, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness for they will be filled.” (Matthew 5:6)
Imagine if someone invited you over for supper. You would really be looking forward to what they were going to serve. You arrive at their house and the table is nicely set. You chat for awhile and then move to the table and are seated. Now you are feeling really hungry and thirsty too, but nothing is served… An invitation to a meal without any food and drink would be extremely disappointing!
God would never do this. He would never invite us to receive the blessing and fullness of what He can supply when we hunger and thirst for Him, and then not keep His promise for us to be filled, to be filled with delight in Him.
The prayer of Psalm 119 continues:
36 Turn my heart toward Your statutesand not toward selfish gain.37 Turn my eyes away from worthless things;preserve my life according to Your word.
This emphasizes the need to make wise and healthy choices in “LEARNING THE WAY OF BLESSING.”
If we truly are hungering and thirsting for God, then we will need to choose nutritious spiritual food, not junk food. Setting our hearts on “selfish gain” and “worthless things” is like eating junk food that has nothing with which to nourish us. Rather than satisfying us and making us healthy and well, it will cause us to be weak and sickly.
When God keeps His promises, then it leads to others also understanding who God is and what He has to offer. Yes, God has promised to bless us with the contentment that comes when we hunger and thirst for Him and are filled. God’s way, God’s laws are good. The writer of Psalm 119 had experienced this and so can anyone who longs for God.
38 Fulfill Your promise to Your servant,so that you may be feared.39 Take away the disgrace I dread,for Your laws are good.
The final verse we are looking at today from Psalm 119 is:
40 How I long for Your precepts!In Your righteousness preserve my life.
Do we long for God? Have we an appetite that is hungering and thirsting for God and His righteousness, His right ways?
I often hear people talking about needing to change their eating habits so that they can be healthier. What habits do we need to change when it comes to our spiritual appetites?
Jesus gives us a healthy spiritual eating plan: “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness for they will be filled.” (Matthew 5:6)
What will it mean for us to receive this blessing of longing for God and being filled with what He longs to supply?