Matthew 5:6
" Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled."
Ephesians 5:18
"And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;
"Terms such as "The Baptism of The Holy Ghost",
"The Outpouring of The Spirit"
"The Enduement of Power"
denote action on God's part - the granting of a Divine gift.
"Enduement" (verb)
to invest or endow with some gift, quality, or faculty.
to put on; assume:
When we read concerning the early church that they were all filled with The Holy Spirit or that certain believers were full of The Holy Ghost, it denotes supernatural power resting upon them. This action again, is on God's part.
But, the injunction "be filled" means that as believers we may - we can - and we must do our part. Our text declares that the individual who hungers and thirsts will be blessed with God's fullness.
Many of God's promises are conditional.
"They which do hunger and thirst after righteousness".
A person that is hungry, thirsty and has a good appetite for the natural food can't wait to get to the dining table. The one who is hungry, thirsty and has a good appetite for spiritual food will be anticipating and longing for spending time in the Word of God, praying and communicating with their Lord. A hungering and thirsting soul will long for a outpouring of God like a starving man longs for food.
God's fullness and blessings are for those who
eagerly desire them and reach out for them.
The implication is that our failure to receive is due to insufficient desire.
God demands a hunger on our part.
If we want the blessing, the condition(s) must be met.
Blessed is the one who hungers and thirst after Salvation.
Blessed is the one who hungers and thirst after the fullness of The Holy Spirit.
No one could hunger and thirst for any greater gifts than these!
Let's notice now the spiritual sufficiency that God declares.....
"They which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled".
This is a promise of God.
God says that if you come desiring, you are hungry and thirsty, He will bless you and He will "fill" you with "His fullness".
This word "filled" means here to be stuffed full to the point of overflowing.
When God fills you, you are full. You will be stuffed full to the point of complete satisfaction!
God will bless that one whose most passionate desire is to be "full" of "His Spirit".
Desire precedes possession.
How much do we really want God's very best?
How hungry are we?
How thirsty are we?
Those who intensely desire and who urgently seek are not going to go away unblessed. God declares: "they shall be filled". All the promises of God can be had by those who will hunger and thirst after righteousness.
To hunger and thirst is not just a passing feeling or a passing desire.
It is a deep consciousness of a desperate need and it keeps on until it is is satisfied!
It is not to hunger and thirst after an experience of after a blessing.
That is not nor should it ever be, our goal.
But, blessings are the results of a pure motive, a true hungering and thirst after righteousness.
God gives His gifts to those
who covet His righteousness!
No comments:
Post a Comment