satisfaction (Matt 5:6)

Matthew 5:6

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.

Satisfaction is the elusive goal that motivates the modern world. A wife, a husband, a different wife, a house, a different car, a job, a promotion, a reputation, more money, more power, more sex, more comfort, more control - these are the things we chase thinking that, when we have got them, we will be satisfied. But when they are achieved they leave us hungry for more.

Jesus says that those who will be satisfied are those that hunger and thirst for righteousness. This is not people who want to appear righteous to gain approval from others or God, but people who have recognised they have no righteousness of their own and their absolute dependance on God. Not people who have a passing interest in theology or a vague belief in God but know they need God's word like they need bread, who know they need the Spirit like they need water. This is not Christianity as an beneficial add-on to life - it is life itself.