Blessed are Those Who Hunger and Thirst

The first three verses of Jesus sermon showed man’s need and the approach he must make to be spiritually happy in God. He must recognize he is spiritually bankrupt, he must mourn over his sin, and he must be humble and lowly before the Lord.

In this verse, Jesus gives the remedy to man’s condition: he must desire righteousness, he must desire a perfect (divine) righteousness, and he must desire this righteousness with an intensity that leads to an abandonment of any other options of obtaining it.

• Desire with intensity – hunger and thirst for righteousness as a starving and dehydrated person would for food or water. This is passionate desire for fulfillment, not just a passing interest in things of God.
• Desire righteousness – many come to God seeking other things (happiness, healing, comfort in life, etc), but they really don’t care to be righteous themselves. Righteousness speaks of living rightly – both in right relationship with God and others, as well as in obedience to the commands of God as the sovereign Creator.
• Perfect righteousness – not just being good enough, but being like Christ. We often settle for less than God’s design and desire. We compare ourselves to other people and think, “Glad I’m not as wicked as them.” However, when we place ourselves up to the standard, Jesus Christ, we must recognize that we fall short of God’s design and desire.