Sunday, June 9th, 2019 - AM

Now I know I'm supposed to dismiss the children right now. But as you go, I just want to share something with you here. I don't have them physically in my pocket, but let's pretend for a minute little little ones are good at doing that. Sometimes as we get older we lose our imagination a little bit don't we? Well, let's pretend that Pastor has two snacks in his pocket. I don't so I don't want to I'm setting you up here. You can feed him something later on. Maybe I've got two snacks in my pocket and then this pocket right here. I pull out o let's say a banana like bananas. Or maybe a nutri-grain bar that being a good snack right some kind of protein and then let's say in Dish pocket. I pull out a new testament. So if I were to eat the banana or the nutri-grain bar, then I would have I would have a nice physical refreshing snack for my body right now and give me some strike me to ride my bike a few more miles or something like that or you know, if I think about in this pocket, I have a new testament that would feed me spiritually, right? So I would eat from the scriptures and I would enjoy the word of God and it would feed me scripturally in that would be able to grow in the Bible says you think about that and you had your class my wife's here by the door. You can go join her. She'll take you down to your classroom. Think about that when you have your neck snack, you can have a physical snack or you can have a spiritual snack and those spiritual snacks or what will carry you through life. You'll remember that we're proud of you guys and so you can follow my wife. She'll help you get to your classroom there aren't you thankful for these little ones that love the Lord join me for those who are going to remain in this service in the Book of Matthew chapter number 5. We continue our Journeys. Threw up the Beatitudes in The Sermon on the Mount in particular and I would like to really pick up where we left off last time and just continue soaking in the scripture looking at these next truths. Now this one almost it was Straits itself. because Jesus uses terminology that speaks to us right where we live. I don't know that a person can go through life and not be able to personally Define hunger, even if they don't know. It's the word hunger they're looking for they know the feeling in their gut when they're hungry. When you're thirsty, I think that you can relate with what Jesus is saying here when you think about thirst? And as you're finding Matthew V. I just want to find a verse in Proverbs. I believe it's in Proverbs 27. I don't want to take too much time to look for it here, but Proverbs 27.

Well there so many verses in Proverbs. I'm going to have to find it. Verse number 7. Here we go. So while you're in Matthew 5 thinking of verse number 6 in particular, I want you to listen to the words of Solomon from Proverbs 27 and verse number 7. He said this the full soul. loatheth and honeycomb

the full soul loza's and honeycomb.

Are You full today I hope not not in this sense. When I was growing up my grandfather raise bees for awhile. Anybody raise bees in here? Anybody got bees? Okay, maybe not right now. Yeah, we had some that they have some beans and maybe some don't want your bees around your house cuz they don't make any kind of my granddad raise bees and I remember we have to get all suited up and go out and I knew you know where to play and we're not to play you don't want to play coast of the bee house could be Hive cuz you might stir them up and then they'll come after he he had honeysuckles. He had Dogwood blooms. He had all kinds of wildflowers out in the woods behind his house and those bees would go out and get the get the nectar and then they'd come back and they would make that honey. And it would taste like the woods at my grandpa's house, right? That's what babies do and those people have told me if you have sinus issues go get some local honey and start eating on that and it might help some of that dissipate a little bit. How do you send a Mason thing? I read an article and I shared this before but I read an article about an archaeological dig that was done in Egypt and they Unearthed like a 4000 year old jar of honey. That was still sealed airtight. And the continent honey never goes bad right unless they are hits it and that honey was just as fresh as a day. The Beast first made it four thousand years ago. Also the Egyptians used to use honey in their bandages because there's a Trace Amounts of hydrogen peroxide in there. So that's a good thing to keep in mind. If you ever need know some healing and their that's coming back in the hospital's isn't it? Have you ever seen those bandages are the honey bandages? They're back in their back in Trend. What do you know Trace Amounts of hydrogen peroxide and in honey? Jonathan would be a Biblical illustration of this when he was so weary from battle against the Philistines and this actually got him in trouble with his dad became didn't it? Remember when Jonathan had a little honey when Saul had commanded everybody too fast that got him in trouble. I'll tell you what Jonathan said about that honey. Was it like and Designs he was able to continue on

Solomon says the full Soul Lotus. And honeycomb.

I think that there's times where we can get in our lives spiritually speaking where we're just kind of full. in a bad way Let's talk about Thanksgiving dinner. Now is it we're far from Thanksgiving. I understand that but maybe you can relate with this a little bit. I'll SAU come over for Thanksgiving and and my wife puts together a nice meal for us. And of course you got to have the turkey going to have all the fixings guy have the dress and she's got to have the dressing and all that your potatoes and the spread is there and we come and we just eat and so when you sit down from the table, you want to sit about 4 to 6 inches away from it because by the time you get up you're going to be touching the table you understand what I mean? And so you just eaten and if you're you know, maybe given to us spending time with family and and that nature. Maybe you find a nice recliner guys, you know out in the the room there and you just kind of sit with it sedative in that turkey starts to kick in it. You just you know, you get up from the table thinking man. I just don't know if I ever really want to eat again. And then lo and behold about you know, six or seven in the evening. What are you doing guys? You're back in the refrigerator pilfering around trying to find something else as we think about the the full Soul loading and honeycomb. I've had you no occurrences like this in my life where I've I've sat down and I've started eating and man. I had a nice cup of orange juice and orange juice was so refreshing and maybe I had a little cereal with my breakfast and by the time I got through the milk and I go back to the orange juice. It was a little bitter that didn't taste like the orange juice. I had to start smelling it did the orange juice change now the assistant change a bit who changed I did because I started getting full and that which was so sweet and that which was so refreshing before now. I'm kind of loathing. It's like, okay, let's get this over with us just down the rest of this juice because it doesn't taste as good as it did when I first sat down. The full Soul loaded and honeycomb in there and this leads us to Matthew 5:6. I'm going somewhere with this. But to the hungry Soul every bitter thing is sweet. I believe God created us to have a hunger that would continually come back and we're created that way and that's probably a good thing because if we were never hungry, maybe we would deplete our body of nutrients that we needed because we would ignore it. We wouldn't know was there to say the same thing pain triggers. Let us know something hurts and we need to maybe get it checked out in those things alert systems all of that connecting her body were fearfully and wonderfully made but let's think about what Jesus says in Matthew Chapter 5 and verse number six as we continue in the in the Beatitudes Jesus sitting on the hillside there with his disciples and the multitudes within earshot having already said blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven blessed are they that mourn for they shall be comforted blessed are the meek for they shall inherit the earth. We look at chapter 5 and verse number. 6 and see this last part really under the heading that I have given it of Learning to Lean on the Lord working from the inside out. The character that we are to have as followers of Christ. Jesus says blessed. Are they which do Hunger notice its do Hunger not once hungered or have hungered in the past they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness. The promise here is

They shall be filled. I think I could meditate on this verse alone for the rest of my life and really not exhaust the truth of what's here. This is one of those statements that Jesus made that is simple, you know words the vocabulary is not hard to grasp necessarily the concepts hungering and thirsting and in righteousness and and those things being filled being contented. But when you put them all together in this formula that Jesus is used and you start to delve into the Theology and the truth behind it. It just leads you further and further away from the world and closer and closer to God. And I think that was Jesus's intent one preacher who's now with the Lord. He said Jesus Christ is Heavens bread for man's deepest hunger. That's a great statement. Jesus Christ. Heaven's bread for men's deepest hunger the world. Uses up uses terminology psychology and different things they'll actually use Greek language to talk about hungering and thirsting. The word the word in the original language is an interesting one to study but I I just want to challenge you to have an appetite have an appetite for the things of God. There is a secret for satisfaction as you follow the lord, we've heard tremendous testimonies giving God glory this morning and I think these testimonies are indicative of a hunger and a thirst that this world is not all that. There is that there is something greater Beyond. And this hunger and thirst is something that only only God can fill. In his book Sahara unveiled William language. I probably just write his name over the coals and I apologize for that. But he tells a story of an Algerian named Ladwig. In a companion who's truck broke down while they were crossing the desert remember this is this is Sahara unveiled gets that switch desert there in they nearly died of thirst during the three weeks that they waited before being rescued and as their body is dehydrated. They became willing to drink anything in hopes of quenching their terrible thirst the Sun the scorching Sun force them to take shade underneath the truck where they dug out of shallow trench just to try to survive day after day. They're laying there no food, but even if they had it, I'm not sure that they would have eaten it because they'd be afraid that it would magnify their thirst, you know, if you don't have enough water in your body to help consume that food. It's just going to make things worse. Show dehydration starvation is what kills wonders in the desert dehydration. Thirst is the most terrible of all human suffering physiologists. I mentioned the Greek based words describing the stages of human thirstless is interesting to me cuz as you study the word you'll see the the Greek words behind what Jesus says in thirsty and what they use today humans are stages for example in the Sahara Desert. Dipsogenic dipsogenic that that would mean thirst provoking by Genesis dip. So thirst you're provoking thirst and lags case. Am I say he progressed from you dipsea? Ordinary Source that's you dipsea through bouts of hyperdipsia. That's temporary intense thirst hyperdipsia. All the way onto polydipsia sustained excessive thirst is how they Define polydipsia means. It's the kind of thirst that would drive you to drink anything to try to live anything let that sink in just to try to survive before word Enthusiast, you know, that's heady stuff. Right we get into etymology and we had one preacher over the weekend. So that's a really big word appreciated. If I think it was brother gas from Craig. He said etymology that's a big word. But as we think about, you know, the words that are used. I'll tell you the Lexicon. I don't think you'll find a dictionary definition in a dictionary Alexa, That's really going to do justice. You won't find a word to fit what lag lag. Was going through in the Sahara Desert. You might try but I guarantee you're not going to coin a suitable word for drinking Rusty. radiator water

radiator water that's what lag lag Resort at 2 to drinking. Do you have those are mechanics in here? Maybe not even understand what's in your radiator right leg leg in essence Resort it to drinking poison because of polydipsia. It had driven him to the extreme that in order to survive their Willington into drinking affect poison. Can I tell you I'm convinced today that so many people are doing the same thing spiritually.

Think about what this world has to offer. How many people live their life with strongholds they live their life allowing things in their life because they're craving. Whether we name it money or sex or power. They're trying to quench a spiritual thirst. And as Solomon wrote Ecclesiastes, we know everything under the sun leaves this lacking. There is no deep satisfaction apart from God living living after God. That's the only thing that'll quench a spiritual thirst. That won't that's the only thing that will fill you with God's goodness is finding him. When you think about the world's thirst quenchers in reality sex money power drugs, whatever you want to say anywhere in Colorado, right? Cuz it's the sky's the limit on some of that stuff and it never ceases to amaze me the ways that people dream up to sin against God here in Colorado. Should be amazed. What a dangerous what a poisonous substitute. For The Living Water that Jesus Christ as promised The Living Water that he told us a thirsty Woman by well when they serve you give me this water, I wouldn't have to come here to draw again. Remember that one from Samaria if I could just have this water. That's living water. I came to the well and up from my soul came a spring of life eternal life. Not only did my thirst quenched when I found God and I continue to hunger after him. I haven't arrived Paul set up not arrived forgetting those things which are behind I press toward the Mark Paul even as he wrote that verse in Philippians 4:13. He was still hungry for God. He was still thirsting after that prize for the high call of the righteousness in Christ Jesus. You see how that fits with Matthew 5:6 Are You full today? Then you're not hungry. When you get hungry and you have this. Almost up aching down inside of you. Have you ever been that hungry where it almost hurt? Some of us would probably call that hangry. You're around somebody who's hangry. I'm not talking about getting angry. I'm talking about hungering after God that deep down yearning that only he can satisfy so many people never find it. They go to the world's thirst quenchers Witcher in reality spiritual poison a dangerous substitute for The Living Water that Jesus Christ Jesus Christ promised those that would come to him as we think about hungering and thirsting after righteousness. We've talked about Learning to Lean on the Lord by finding is favored in spiritual dependents. Are you poor in spirit? Are you bankrupt? Are you destined to before God we've covered what Jesus said about finding his favor and insoluble reflection because this were destitute before him at leads us to consider personal scent sending the world around us and we realized that were poor in spirit and it causes us to mourn and shed tears before God. Do we mourn over sin in particular? We talked last time about finding his favor in gentle straight meekness and what an illustration that we had with Moses the meekest man and I'll bring that back to your mind about how he let God take up his cause and he was making that And the promise that Jesus gave his that the meek shall inherit the earth. We covered the tests of meekness. Now, I want to spend just a few moments looking at at this with you about finding his favor in longing for righteousness. I mean true righteousness. No one will ever have a problem with you for doing good in a humanitarian sense. But the moment you start doing righteously is the moment you're going to have plenty of enemies because if you're doing righteously that means somebody has to be wrong somewhere along the line and Paul said it this way let God be true and every man a liar there is one source of Truth unadulterated truth it is this blessed. Holy book and anywhere that the world or the flash would cause us to depart from this we are on faulty ground. We are not on firm footing as we think about longing after righteousness when I studied and preached to the Book of Romans. I came across Verses 16 17 and 18 and I understood that in a way that really kind of it was a lightbulb moment for me. I'd read it so many times before that and that's the passage that talks about the the gospel being the power of God, you know, I'm not ashamed of the gospel of Christ. Where does the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believe it to the Jew first and also to the Greek but if you look at what Paul is doing there, he is talking about Revelation Illustrated at this way. We had a little fun. You know, how many of you used to watch those door game shows, you know behind door number one behind door number to kind of thing. Remember those that used to be really big at it. Maybe they have something like that today behind curtain number one is and you can pick and you choose easy. Well if you approach it that way in just a little straight what polls doing there behind door number one Paul revealed to us or really God does through Paul in the Holy Spirit you open that door and behind that is the righteousness of God for here in in the gospel in the good news that Jesus Christ died was buried and rose again for the sins of those that would believe on him. Yay for all since he died two to rescue many behind that door of the Gospel that we see the righteousness of God revealed from Faith to Faith as it is written the just shall live by faith. If you ever expect to stand before Thrice, holy God and find pardon for the sand that beset you in the sin that plagues your life. You will not make it without the righteousness of Christ imputed to your life. Not not inherent in you. The righteousness that Jesus is talking about here could be looked at in two ways. As one old preacher said it could be inherent righteousness we want to do. What's right naturally, but that's not going to get you to heaven because there's no amount of good you can do to ever cover the amount of sand that you've already committed against God all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. Every one of us is revealed the righteousness of God and that's through Jesus Christ. You can have his righteousness. You can be declared righteous in God's eyes being justified by grace through faith. That's door number one. That's a great door, isn't it? I love door number one. You're number one is was my way out of of hell was my way out of sin because I believed on Jesus and God gloriously saved at age 14. I trusted Christ and it wasn't anything that I did not by works of righteousness, which we have done. But according to his Mercy he saved us now, we're not done because Paul also inverse number 18 goes on behind door number two. Something else is revealed and we always like to focus on preaching about the righteousness and and all of that is good. But the other side of that behind door number two, also the wrath of God is revealed go read it Romans 1:18 and following behind that door is the wrath of God that's revealed on sin and that downward slide begins with an unthankful heart. Neither were they thankful and it ends in a reprobate mind because we were jacked the good news of got we reject the provision of God for us to be right with him. We reject that and we try our own way. We step in our neck against him. We hold the truth or that is we suppress the truth. So we have two things review. We have the righteousness of God through Jesus Christ, which can be imputed to us. We have the wrath of God revealed against sin. You have to have both or you don't have the god of the Bible. I'm sorry, you don't. Jesus said blessed are they? that do hunger and thirst after

righteousness For they shall be filled. Think about what he's saying here. If he's already covered being poor in spirit if he's already covered morning for sin, then I submit to you if a person is poor in spirit and they're seeking righteousness. They've already got Door Number 1 and door number to figure it out. Don't they? They do they are hungry after God's righteousness hungering and thirsting after God really you could say it almost that way. We're hungry to do righteously, we're hungry. We're Desiring righteousness and others. Would it be great as that song saying that everybody around us had a christ-like spirit every player be found send the light. I wish I could say that Denver had a christ-like spirit. I have to go very far to find out that's not true Broomfield in a lot of ways doesn't even have a christ-like spirit. Everybody's in it for themselves. So selfish the day in which we live. When's the last time somebody thought about somebody else? That wasn't your living for God the way the Bible teaches out of there's good people out there. Don't get me wrong. I Don't Wanna Die aggressive but we desire to do righteously ourselves. We want to do that which pleases God when we're hungry for righteous is where does on ring righteousness and others. We just want people to do right like old like Bob Jones senior used to say all the time. I heard I heard many of my mentors quote it from him. I never heard him say it myself. I wasn't privileged to hear that but old Bob Jones senior would say do right and we sing that song Do Right till the stars fall do right. Just do right and if you ever get a chance to listen to his little 10-minute Chapel talks man. Those are good things. They just they just I'm thankful for his his testimonies influence. Bob Jones senior just do right we want to do right. We want to see others do right. We desire God's righteousness on Earth. I would say even so come Lord Jesus cuz I know that's when it'll actually be handled with a rod of iron until then we put up with a Fallen World. So let's look at those Desiring God's righteousness on Earth. There's an action there's an object and there's a reward the action is seen in hungering and thirsting we're not talking about just a mere casual hunger here. We're not talking about just a casual thirst the kind of hunger that Jesus is describing describing his he is annoying desire that consumes his life ever seen somebody who was desperately hungry.

I heard a story told about this and let's say that that I was going to eat you were going to have me over for I'll just use myself for this. You know, I'm the one that I know that when I come over to your place, you're going to have some of the best food there and I've heard rumors about how good your your cooking is and so I skipped breakfast, right and I'll come to your place hungry. And so I come and knock on the door and pastors there and you let Pastor come in and he said he'll Pastor. I'm so glad you're here. Let me come show you my garden and take me out back and you know, I skip breakfast and it's almost dinnertime. You know, I'm pretty hungry and you show me your garden you say look at all the beautiful flowers are planted aren't these flowers are those are some nice flowers. Hey Pastor, let me show you my I got this new book over here. We spend some time in your library. Maybe you pulled this new book off the shelf and and I'm going that's a great book. But when do we eat that? Maybe I don't say it out loud, but I've got that by the time I sit down to the table YouTube maybe you spread it before me. I know it's silly but just just follow it through cast it down in the silverware is all there and everything's nice and you put some flowers on. Table in the book is there and I'm looking around and I'm saying this isn't going to get it. When do we eat? Hungering now that again Jesus isn't talking about some casual hunger. I'm ready never been so hungry that you sit down and feel like you need a cow. He's a horse. We say that sometimes. This is a gnawing desire. You can't stop until it's satisfied hungry is not enough. I would say you need to be starving. Starving and if you've ever seen anyone who starving eat they leave nothing left. Nothing behind they consume it all so that's the action. That's the hungering. There's an object. What are we hungry after notice? Very carefully. Jesus said blessed. Are they that do hunger and thirst after what?

righteousness

not as Pastor Larson gave testimony happiness Jesus did say did not say blessed. Are they that hunger after half happiness as a tremendous message on the difference between happiness and joy, there is a distinct difference. If you will hunger after righteousness not happiness Owen in Matthew. Let's think about righteousness context this King, right? So how does Matthew use righteousness in in specificity? So righteousness I submit to you Matthew is talking about Conformity to God. Blessed are they that hunger and thirst to be conformed after God? To look more like him today than I did yesterday. I'm hungry for righteousness those who hunger and thirst. They're not only hungry for a piece of bread. You want the whole loaf I want all of Jesus is my all and all. Not just a piece here and there no you're hungry for the whole thing. Not thirsty for just a glass of water. But you are thirsting for the whole picture a drop won't do I need the whole picture just bring the picture out. We're so thirsty for a nice steak, but you're hungry for the whole cow. You're ready to Cal. That's the object. So the action is hungry that knowing desire that just won't stop. It won't let up until you till it's satisfied. And what are you hungry after the object of your hunger has to be righteousness has to be conforming to God always hungry to conform to God. What do you get for it? What's the reward? What's the promise? This is really deep. I'm glad you're sitting down. Hold on. They shall be filled.

If you're looking for some magic formula. That's what Jesus said. They shall be filled.

I can't explain that and words to you. I can only encourage you to experience it for yourself get hungry to be conformed after God and see how he feels you see how he quenches. Oh That's blessedness Not Mere happiness. That's contentment. That's trusting God with everything. Oh taste and see that the Lord is good Psalm 38. As the Hart panteth after the water Brooks, so my soul panteth after the oh God the hungry Soul or the full solo this the honeycomb, but to the hungry every bitter thing is Sweet Lord. That's a bitter trial but I'm hungry for you. And I'm so hungry to see you in this to be conformed after the image of Christ that This Bitter trial is sweet to me now because all that drops is getting burned off blessed. Are they blessed are they that do hunger and thirst after righteousness if you want a Biblical illustration of this, I'm at a time. I don't have time to do it. Maybe this afternoon just sit down sometime go through Revelation chapter 2 Go to Revelation chapter 3. Look at the promises that attend the Overcomers. And that would be a good description. I think of what the feeling is that's promised here. The Tree of Life the name of the white stone will promises were given to the churches that would overcome through Christ. Faith is the victory that overcometh the world John tells us what a blessed blessed truth that we have before us blessed. Are they that hunger and thirst after righteousness for they shall be filled. I read a story about the classroom. There was there were some English tunison there and there is also a Chinese girl that was there and the teacher asked you know, what does it mean to be? What is what is salt? Do you know they were talking about salt and this is interesting a ties into this cuz Jesus talks about salt and I'm closing with this so we'll pack it up and we'll move out here in just a minute. But the teacher was asking what is salt and so the the students were all listing and no salt is is a preservative, you know salt makes food taste good some of the little ones knew that you know, if you put salt on it taste better and and are they went on and on and on but there was there something that little Chinese girl said that none of them and thought of and she had experienced salt where she was from and she piped up and she said to the teacher well salt makes you thirsty.

Ye are the salt of the earth. I wonder if more people are not thirsting after God because Christians. Have lost their saver.

Jesus is going to go on to say

that the world might see your good works and glorify your father, which is in heaven. You might be the only Bible somebody ever reads, right? You've heard that before. Salt if you're going to be the salt that you need to be as a Christian. Are you making people thirsty for God? Are you showing them who he really is? Do they yearn for him after having been around you? Because your cup just runs over. And goodness and mercy, follow you all the days of your life. Your dwelling in the house of the Lord forever.