Sermon on the Mountainside What do you Hunger and Thirst for?

Sermon on the Mountainside

What do you Hunger and Thirst for?

It is nice to know that if you hunger and thirst your next meal is not too far away

We are always missing the mark of Righteousness

Sometimes our cravings for the lust of the flesh seem so great

 We lose an appetite for righteousness

But we should never forget the feeling of being right

In right standing with others and with God

The hunger to be free from guilt 

The feeling of innocence

Let that hunger drive you to crave Righteousness

Jesus has created a banqueting table for the righteous

Crave Righteousness because you will be filled

The satisfaction of His food will satisfied you more than anything else

So if you are not eating from God’s table

“GET HUNGRY”

For the right food and drink, only found in the Kingdom of God 

“Give us this day our daily bread”

What do you Hunger and Thirst for?

We all know what it is to be hungry or to thirst?

Food and drink are things we

crave every day unless we are sick.

But do we know what it is to crave “Righteousness”?

What does Righteousness taste like?

What would make us crave righteousness?

For something or someone to be

righteous it has to be “justified”.

Righteousness has to be proven to be right.

Doing the right thing is not a

matter of what you think is right.

In a society, righteousness is being

in right relationship with others.

Our ideas of what is right is tested all

the time and not just in court rooms.

Your family, friends, even neighbors

test your actions all the time.

If you say something offensive, you can quickly

find out how fast your words are judged.

You will be in question to whether you

were justified in saying what you said.

The Bible is true…

There is a way that seems right to a man

but the end leads to destruction.

  Proverbs 14:12; 16:25

It is also true finding out what is right by our

own standard does not always prove to be right.

The first to present his case seems right,

till another comes forward and questions him.

Proverbs 18:17

The way of a fool seems right to him,

but a wise man listens to advice.

Proverbs 12:15

Why is it we are not good judges of ourselves?

Our emotions get in the way of reality.

We all speak and act from a bias.

Example…

 I am buying a new car so I don’t have to

worry about repairs and I drive a lot of miles.

When the fact of the matter is your

income can not afford a new car which

means you should look to find a good used car.

How many times have you justified buying

something because of how much you saved

to cover up spending more than you should.

Have you ever made a commitment to

do something like losing weight or a 

regular spiritual activity…

 But later came up with reasons to modify or quit?

It is important that we are in right relationship

with ourselves and also with others…

But we have a hard time keeping

a standard of righteousness.

Never the less God’s Word lays

a lot of weight on relationships…

“Love your neighbor as yourself.”

If you have ever offended someone you love…

 You probably understand what it means to hunger

and thirst for that relationship to be “right”.

We do not always have friends and family around us.

There are times we are alone and times

we think things no one will ever know.

In those times we can also be wrong.

Our plans are not always right even if we

spent the whole night worrying about it.

With all our experiences and knowledge,

 we are not always right or righteous.

God knows our ways seem right

 to us so He gave us His Spirit…

 When he comes, he will convict the

world of guilt in regard to sin

and righteousness and judgment:

John 16:8

Along with the Holy Spirit is

the Good News of God’s Word…

For in the gospel a righteousness

from God is revealed,

 a righteousness that is by faith from

first to last, just as it is written:

 "The righteous will live by faith.

Romans 1:17

In order for us to be “Righteous”,

 we have to trust in God’s Word as a judge.

God’s Word is able to justify or

condemn our thought and actions.

  

To be Righteousness is to be “Innocent”.

To be innocent is to have a lack of guilt…

No guilt before others, no guilt before God.

If you have ever felt the weight of guilt,

 you know what it is to hunger

and thirst for righteousness.

 

One of the images we find in

Scripture for innocence is a lamb.

When God’s people sinned,

“missed the mark of righteousness”…

 A lamb was sacrificed for their sins.

Jesus became the “Lamb of God”

to take away the sins of the world.

His Death became the sacrifice for our unrighteousness.

Why is this important…

 Because the wages of sin is death.

 Romans 3:23 

Remember there is a way that seem right

to a man, but the end is destruction.

Mercy and forgiveness is our

only hope for unrighteousness.

It is easier for me to forgive you

because I know I can be offensive.

But God, Jesus Christ the Lamb

of God was and is “Righteousness”…

But God demonstrates his own love for us in this:

While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Romans 5:8

This is our opportunity to become “Righteous”.

Again look at Romans 1:17…

 A righteousness from God is revealed,

a righteousness that is by faith from first to last,

 just as it is written:
"The righteous will live by faith.

God has revealed what righteousness

is through Jesus.

And that righteousness is revealed as we by

faith believe in that standard of righteousness.

You see we cannot live on our own

righteousness and not fail and die.

But we can live by the righteous

standard of God and live.

Living by faith changes our standard.

We live by God’s justice of right and wrong.

Righteousness is not a one time event.

Everything you do in word and deed is measured

by the Righteousness of Jesus the Lamb of God.

Those of us who have turned our lives over

to Christ as Lord,

the One who helps us make our decisions…

Still miss the mark of perfection.

 

It says in 1 John 1:9-10…

 If we confess our sins,

he is faithful and just and will forgive us our

sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

 If we claim we have not sinned,

we make him out to be a liar and

his word has no place in our lives.

It is nice to know that if you hunger and thirst,

 your next meal is not too far away.

We are always missing the mark of Righteousness.

Sometimes our cravings for the lust of the flesh

seem so great we lose an appetite for righteousness.

But we should never forget the feeling of being right…

In right standing with others and with God.

The hunger to be free from guilt.

 

The feeling of innocence.

Let that hunger drive you to crave righteousness.

Jesus has created a banqueting table for the righteous.

Crave righteousness because you will be filled.

The satisfaction of His food will

satisfied you more than anything else.

So if you are not eating from God’s Table…

“GET HUNGRY”

For the right food and drink,

only found in the Kingdom of God. 

“Give us this day our daily bread”

Scripture Reading

Matthew 5:6 NIV

6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,

for they will be filled.

Luke 14:16-18 NIV

16 Jesus replied: "A certain man was preparing a great banquet and invited many guests. 17 At the time of the banquet he sent his servant to tell those who had been invited, 'Come, for everything is now ready.'

18 "But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said, 'I have just bought a field, and I must go and see it. Please excuse me.'

Matthew 26:27-29 NIV

27 Then he took the cup, gave thanks and offered it to them, saying, "Drink from it, all of you. 28 This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. 29 I tell you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it anew with you in my Father's kingdom."