October 27, 2022 | Silver Spring, Maryland, United States | Ted N.C. Wilson, President, General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists
Hello, friends. Have you ever been really hungry or thirsty? Perhaps circumstances were such that you had to go one or more days without food. You felt a gnawing pain in your stomach and a growing desire for food. As time went on that desire became stronger and your thoughts became more and more focused on obtaining something to eat. Or maybe you have known the power of thirst–when, hot and thirsty, you longed for a cup of cool water, but none was available. Then, at last, relief came when you were finally able to drink some water or eat some food. How wonderful, how satisfying, to finally have those longings fulfilled!
Jesus tells us in the fourth beatitude: “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled” (Matt. 5:6).
He is not talking here about physical food and drink, but instead is speaking about even more important spiritual nourishment. It is a longing after righteousness. But what is righteousness?
“Righteousness is holiness, likeness to God, and ‘God is love,'” writes Ellen White in Thoughts from the Mount of Blessing (p. 18). It is conformity to the law of God, for “all Thy commandments are righteousness” (Ps. 119:172), and “love is the fulfilling of the law” (Rom. 13:10).
Righteousness is love, and love is the light and the life of God. This love is embodied in Christ, so we receive righteousness by receiving Him. This righteousness is not something we can ever earn! It is a free gift from God.
“Not by painful struggles or wearisome toil, not by gift or sacrifice, is righteousness obtained” wrote Ellen White, “but it is freely given to every soul who hungers and thirsts to receive it” (Thoughts from the Mount of Blessing, p. 18).
It has been said that in every human being there is a “God-shaped hole”–a place inside our hearts that only God can fill. And Ecclesiastes 3:11 seems to verify that thought as it states that God has “put eternity” into our hearts.
Though many people try to fill that special place with other things—philosophy, materialism, secularism, and more—nothing but God Himself can truly satisfy the hunger and thirst of the soul. Jesus says to us today, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst” (John 6:35).
Just as we need food to sustain our physical strength, so we need Christ, the Bread from heaven, to sustain spiritual life and impart strength to follow where He leads. And the more we know God, the more we will long to reflect who He is.
“A divine element combines with the human when the soul reaches out after God,” writes Ellen White. “If you have a sense of need in your soul, if you hunger and thirst after righteousness, this is an evidence that Christ has wrought upon your heart, in order that He may be sought unto to do for you, through the endowment of the Holy Spirit, those things which it is impossible for you to do for yourself” (Thoughts from the Mount of Blessing, p. 19).
Then comes this magnificent promise:
“The words of God are the wellsprings of life. As you seek unto those living springs you will, through the Holy Spirit, be brought into communion with Christ. Familiar truths will present themselves to your mind in a new aspect, texts of Scripture will burst upon you with a new meaning as a flash of light, you will see the relation of other truths to the work of redemption and you will know that Christ is leading you, a divine Teacher is at your side” (Thoughts from the Mount of Blessing, p. 20).
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled”
(Matthew 5:6) is a precious promise we can claim today.
Friends, we are reviewing some of the highlights from the wonderful book, Thoughts From the Mount of Blessing by Ellen G. White. If you would like to follow along and have not yet downloaded your free copy of this wonderful book, I encourage you to visit egwwritings.org [Insert: egwwritings.org] where you can download a copy in your own language today.
Let’s take a moment now to thank the Lord for His wonderful promise to satisfy the deepest longings of our hearts when we turn to Him. Father in Heaven, we come to you asking that you will help us to be those who seek after righteousness, those who are hungry and thirsty for the righteousness of Christ. And that coming to you, we will be filled. Thank you for the Word of God. Thank you for the spirit of prophecy. Thank you for the way that you work in us to help us fully be filled with your righteousness. Thank you for hearing us in this prayer. In Jesus name, we ask it. Amen.