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The Nature of

Spiritual

HUNGER

Oyewole O. Sarumi |PhD|

Scriptures:

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Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for

righteousness, For they shall be filled.

Matthew 5:6

New Living Translation

God blesses those who hunger and thirst for

justice, for they will be satisfied.

Scriptures:

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Psalm 63:1

A Psalm of David, when he was in the

wilderness of Judah. O God, You are my God;

I shall seek You earnestly; My soul thirsts for

You, my flesh yearns for You, In a dry and

weary land where there is no water.

Introduction

u We are examining the fourth step of

blessedness in the beatitude: ‘Blessed are

they that hunger'.

u These words are in two parts:

– A duty implied

– A promise annexed.

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u A duty implied: Blessed are they that

hunger'.

u Spiritual hunger is a blessed hunger.

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What is meant by hunger?

u Hunger is put for desire (Isaiah 26:9).

Spiritual hunger is the rational appetite

whereby the soul pants after that which it

apprehends most suitable and proportional

to itself.

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Whence is this hunger?

u Hunger is from the sense of want. He who

spiritually hungers, has a real sense of his

own indigence. He wants righteousness.

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What is meant by righteousness?

u There is a twofold righteousness:

– ….of imputation;

– ….of implantation.

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1. Righteousness of Imputation,

u A righteousness of imputation is Christ's

righteousness. He shall be called the Lord

our righteousness' (Jeremiah 23:6).

u This is as truly ours to justify, as it is

Christ's to bestow.

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u By virtue of this righteousness God looks

upon us as if we had never sinned (Numbers

23:21).

u This is a perfect righteousness. Ye are

complete in him' (Colossians 2:10).

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2. Righteousness of Implantation:

u A righteousness of implantation: that is,

inherent righteousness, namely, the graces of

the Spirit, holiness of heart and life, which

Cajetan calls universal righteousness'.

u This a pious soul hungers after. This is a

blessed hunger.

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u Bodily hunger cannot make a man so

miserable as spiritual hunger makes him

blessed. This evidences life.

u A dead man cannot hunger. Hunger

proceeds from life. The first thing the child

does when it is born, is to hunger after the

breast. Spiritual hunger follows upon the

new birth (1 Peter 2:2).

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The Appetite & Food are from

God

u 1. Check out at what a low price God sets

heavenly things. It is but hungering and

thirsting. ‘Ho, every one that thirsteth, come

ye to the waters, buy without money' (Isaiah

55:1).

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u 2. It shows us a true character of a godly

man. He hungers and thirsts after spiritual

things (Isaiah 26:9; Psalm 73:25). A true

saint is carried upon the wing of desire. It is

the very temper and constitution of a

gracious soul to thirst after God (Psalm

42:2).

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Those who doesn’t hunger after

Righteousness

u That men do not have this hunger after

righteousness' appears by these seven

demonstrations:1. They never felt any emptiness. They are full of their

own righteousness (Romans 10:3). Now the full

stomach loathes the honeycomb'. This was Laodicea's

disease. She was full and had no stomach either to

Christ's gold or eye-salve (Revelation 3:17).

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u 2. That men do not hunger after

righteousness appears because they can

make a shift well enough to be without it.

Grace is a commodity men never missed.– Do they hunger after righteousness who are satisfied

without it? Nay, who desire to be excused from feeding

upon the gospel banquet (Luke 14:18). Sure he has no

appetite, who entreats to be excused from eating.

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u 3. It is a sign they have none of this spiritual

hunger, who desire rather sleep than food.

They are more drowsy than hungry.

– Some there are who come to the Word that they

may get a nap, to whom I may say as Christ did

to Peter, Couldest thou not watch one hour?'

(Mark 14:37).

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u 4. It appears that men have no spiritual

hunger because they refuse their food.

Christ and grace are offered, nay, pressed

upon them, but they put away salvation

from them as the froward child puts away

the breast (Psalm 81:11; Acts 13:46).

– Such are your fanatics and enthusiasts who put

away the blessed ordinances and pretend to

revelations.

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u 5. It is a sign they have none of this spiritual

hunger who delight more in the garnishing

of the dish than in food. These are they who

look more after elegance and notion in

preaching than solid matter. – It argues either a wanton palate or a surfeited stomach

to feed on salads and fancy dishes, neglecting

wholesome food. If any man consent not to wholesome

words, he is proud, knowing nothing . .' (1 Tim. 6:3, 4).

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u 6. They evidence little hunger after

righteousness that prefer other things before

it, namely, their profits and recreations. – If a boy when he should be at dinner is playing in the street, it is a

sign that he has no appetite to his meat. Were he hungry he would

not prefer his play before his food. So when men prefer vain things

which cannot profit' before the blood of Christ and the grace of the

Spirit, it is a sign they have no palate or stomach to heavenly

things.

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u 7. It is a sign men have no spiritual hunger

when they are more for disputes in religion

than practice.

u When men feed only on hard questions and

controversies (1 Timothy 6:3,4), they are

strangers to this text. ‘They do not hunger

and thirst after righteousness’.

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The Word reproves those who

hunger and thirst…

u The Word reproves them who hunger and

thirst after unrighteousness.

u Here we indict three sorts of persons:

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u 1. It reproves such as thirst after other

men's lands and possessions. This the

Scripture calls a mighty sin' (Amos 5:12).

Thus Ahab thirsted after Naboth's vineyard.

– This is an hungry age wherein we live. We have

a great deal of this hungering and thirsting,

which has made so many state-thieves. Men

have fleeced others to feather themselves.

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u 2. It reproves such as hunger and thirst after

revenge. This is a devilish thirst. Though it

were more Christian and safe to smother an

injury, yet our nature is prone to this disease

of revenge.

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u 3. It reproves such as hunger and thirst to

satisfy their impure lusts. Sinners are said to

sin with greediness' (Ephesians 4:19). So

Amnon was sick till he had defiled Tamar's

chastity (2 Samuel 13).

– Never does an hungry man come with more

eagerness to his food than a wicked man does

to his sin.

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Five Signs to know if you are

hungry and thirsty….

u Let us put ourselves upon a trial whether we

hunger and thirst after righteousness.

u There are five signs by which you may

judge of this hunger.

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1. Hunger is a painful thing.

u Esau, when he was returning from hunting,

was almost dead with hunger (Genesis

25:32). Hungry and thirsty, their soul

fainted in them' (Psalm 107:5). – So a man that hungers after righteousness is in anguish

of soul and ready to faint away for it. He finds a want

of Christ and grace. He is distressed and in pain till he

has his spiritual hunger stilled and allayed.

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2. Hunger is satisfied with

nothing but food.

u Bring an hungry man flowers, music; tell

him pleasant stories; nothing will content

him but food. Shall I die for thirst?' says

Samson (Judges 15:18).

– So a man that hungers and thirsts after

righteousness says, Give me Christ or I die.

Lord, what wilt thou give me seeing I go

Christless?

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3. Hunger wrestles with difficulties

and makes an adventure for food.u We say hunger breaks through stone walls

(cf. Genesis 42:1, 2). The soul that

spiritually hungers is resolved; Christ it

must have; grace it must have. – And to use Basil's expression, the hungry soul is almost

distracted till it enjoys the thing it hungers after.

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4. An hungry man falls to his

meat with an appetite.

u You need not make an oration to an hungry

man and persuade him to eat. So he who

hungers after righteousness feeds eagerly on

an ordinance. Thy words were found, and I

did eat them' (Jeremiah 15:16).

– In the sacrament he feeds with appetite upon

the body and blood of the Lord. God loves to

see us feed hungrily on the bread of life.

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5. An hungry man tastes

sweetness in his meat.

u So he that hungers after righteousness relishes

a sweetness in heavenly things. Christ is to

him all marrow, yea the quintessence of

delights. If so be ye have tasted that the Lord

is gracious' (1 Peter 2:3). – He that spiritually hungers tastes the promises sweet, nay tastes a

reproof sweet. To the hungry soul every bitter thing is sweet' (Proverbs

27:7). A bitter reproof is sweet. He can feed upon the myrrh of the

gospel as well as the honey.

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Persuading Men to Hunger…

u To persuade men to hunger after this

righteousness, consider two things:u 1 Unless we hunger after righteousness we cannot obtain

it. God will never throw away his blessings upon them that

do not desire them.

u 2 If we do not thirst here we shall thirst when it is too late.

If we do not thirst as David did My soul thirsteth for God'

(Psalm 42:2) we shall thirst as Richman did for a drop of

water (Luke 16:24).

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Some helps to spiritual hunger.

u 1. Avoid those things which will hinder

your appetite: While Israel fed with delight

upon garlic and onions, they never hungered

after manna. – The soul cannot be carried to two extremes at once. As

the eye cannot look intent on heaven and earth at once,

so a man cannot at the same instant hunger excessively

after the world, and after righteousness!

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u 2. Do all that may provoke spiritual appetite.

There are two things that provoke appetite.

– Exercise: A man by walking and stirring gets a stomach to his meat.

So by the exercise of holy duties the spiritual appetite is increased. Exercise

thyself unto godliness' (1 Timothy 4:7). Many have left off closet prayer.

– Affliction. God often gives us this sauce to sharpen our hunger

after grace. Reuben found mandrakes in the field' (Genesis 30:14). Penury is

the sauce which cures the surfeit of plenty. In sickness people hunger more

after righteousness than in health.

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Conclusion

u The ongoing revelation of God's nature

increases our hunger for Him, and we begin

to understand why the psalmist declared, "Whom have I in heaven but You? And there is

none upon earth that I desire besides You. My

flesh and my heart fail; but God is the strength of

my heart and my portion forever" (Ps. 73:25-26).

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u Can you identify with the psalmist's

sentiments? Are you one who desires

nothing on Earth besides God, who will not

be satisfied with just a taste of Him?

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u We must press in to know God, to

experience Him. It's not enough to have just

one touch or visitation. That would be like

surviving the rest of our lives on only one

meal!

u We need to develop a lifestyle of "tasting

and seeing that He is good.“ [Psa. 34:8]

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