BLESSED ARE THE HUNGRY...

Last Sunday was an unusual day because the winter storm forced us to pause our normal in person worship services. Instead, we gathered from our individual homes, hopefully staying warm, and we were able to watch the sermon together on our YouTube page.

Even though we weren’t all in the same room, the Word still met us right where we were. We continued our series through the Beatitudes by looking at the hinge point of Jesus’ teaching, the moment where the focus shifts from what has been exposed in us to what we now long for.

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

Jesus is not talking about a casual religious interest. He is talking about a hunger that feels like survival. A craving as real as food and water. That’s why the sermon opened with a picture from the age of sail, shipwrecked men surrounded by water, yet dying of thirst. Some even drank seawater because it looked like relief, but it only made the thirst worse. The real question was never, “Am I thirsty?” The real question was, “What am I going to drink?”
That image carried straight into our guiding question for the day.

What does it mean to hunger and thirst for righteousness?

First, we asked who hungers and why. Jesus is speaking to His disciples, not the crowds. That matters because spiritual hunger doesn’t come from a dead heart. It comes from a heart God has already made alive. Left to ourselves, we don’t seek God. But when God gives a new heart, He also gives new desires. What used to satisfy starts to taste empty, and what used to seem unnecessary, now becomes essential.

Second, we asked what kind of hunger Jesus is describing. This isn’t about moral performance or trying harder to be a good person. Biblical righteousness begins with standing, being made right with God. That righteousness can’t be achieved by effort. It must be received through faith in Jesus Christ. But it also doesn’t stop there. The same grace that justifies also sanctifies. The believer who has been declared right before God begins to long to live right before God. This hunger isn’t perfectionism, it’s direction. You may stumble, but you can’t make peace with sin. You may struggle, but you can’t stop wanting holiness.

Finally, we asked what God promises to those who hunger. Jesus doesn’t offer a possibility. He makes a guarantee. “They shall be satisfied.” Not necessarily with comfort or ease, but with the only true satisfaction, peace with God now, real growth in holiness over time, and a final fullness in eternity when hunger and thirst will be no more.

We ended by coming back to the shipwreck illustration. Everyone is thirsty for something. That’s not the question. The question is what you’re drinking. Sin promises relief but never satisfies. Self righteousness promises control but leaves you empty. Religion without Christ looks safe but can’t give life. Jesus doesn’t offer saltwater. He offers Himself.

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.”
That promise still stands.

– Pastor Charley Munro
Living Grace Church, Tyler, Texas