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

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.” (NIV)

Unsurprisingly, I’ve never met someone who said they want to go to hell. 

But I have met far too many people who want the pleasures of this life more than those of heaven…

I will never forget one of these conversations that I had with a friend. He claimed to believe in Jesus. His life, death, and even His resurrection. Yet he went on to admit that he didn’t fully trust everything Jesus said.

At the heart of it, he didn’t believe Jesus’ vision of the good life was better than his own. He believed in Jesus but told me he didn't trust Him, and therefore, was unwilling to follow Him. Ultimately, he longed for the pleasures of the world more than any hunger he had for righteousness. 

Truthfully, the world does offer pleasure. On a silver platter, I might add. It’s accessible, easy, and quick…But it fades, and even worse...it takes. It steals from you, kills your hunger for what is truly good, and slowly destroys your entire life. As Jesus says in John 10:10, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.” (ESV)

I was shocked and broken by this honesty. Though what became more real to me through this conversation is this: we are not called to merely believe in the man Jesus, but to completely put our trust in Him as Savior and Lord of our lives.

We can’t just remain at acknowledging Jesus’ life, but continue on to hunger and thirst for the one He lived.

To hunger and thirst for righteousness is to ache for and trust in God’s will more than your own. Believing all the way down that the life He lived wasn’t just the most holy, but also the most blessed and sweet. That His way is truly better. 

Here is our promise: those who hunger and thirst for this righteousness will be satisfied.
Not temporarily filled. 
Not numbed.
Satisfied….forever.

Friend, what do you hunger and thirst for?

“As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God.” ‭‭Psalm‬ ‭42‬:‭1‬ 

Written by Blake Stanley