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We are Filled and Being Filled!

Matthew 5:6

We are Filled! – today, I decided we would do things a little differently. Our talk today is based on the fourth beatitude in Matthew 5:6 so feel free to turn to Matthew chapter 5 if you would like to follow along, and it divides itself into two distinct parts, so I will speak now and a little later. The song Jimmy just sang, “I still haven’t found what I’m looking for” from the band U2 is exactly what we look like to everyone who is watching us. It doesn’t matter that we are not we actually singing these lyrics…what we say…how we live…it all sings this idea. In fact, we exude this idea constantly that we haven’t found what we are looking for. So, what is it that we are looking for?

Rolling Stone Magazine reported that this song is basically about the band having some questions regarding their faith. In this song they are basically saying that they love their religion, but they still have some unanswered questions. So in a way they are questioning their faith. Not many people know this but this song was very controversial back in Ireland where the band is originally from. The Church hit hard at the rock band for writing this song and demanded an apology. There are many believers who have questions about their faith and they echo U2 in singing “I still haven’t found what I’m looking for.” Maybe you are asking why does God allow bad things into your life; or why won’t God bless me with someone to love or bless me financially. So, we have questions because we are looking for something in God that we have not found.

All of us are looking for God’s will; we desire God’s direction constantly; we are always looking for something. Personally, I think it is just fine for all of us believers to have questions for God; the prophet said that God’s thoughts and ways are higher than our thoughts. So, things aren’t always going to make sense to us. This is why our lives cry out to everyone around us…I still haven’t found what I’m looking for. While the God-questions are good, we encounter a problem when our God-questions consume us.

Maybe you have experienced a God-question that has overtaken you; this happened to me. I remember that God told me to do something very specifically. I was walking the beaches of Miami early one morning and God absolutely overcame me telling me to do this one thing. So, I came home and was ready to make these big changes. But, what God told me to do did not happen in 2000, or 2001 and my God-question of why is this not happening was consuming me. It did not happen in 2002 or 2003, and during this time people could see that I was spiritually confused because I thought God was supposed to do something. It continued for a another few years, and during this entire time I would call myself spiritually unattractive because I lacked the spiritual confidence of a winner. I looked like the person who still hadn’t found what he was looking for.

This world is filled with people singing the song that they still haven’t found what they’re looking for. In this world of confusion, people are looking for answers. People are attracted to winners, not defeatists, not even so-called realists, people are attracted to spiritually confident people who live like they have found satisfaction. The bible clearly states that there is no satisfaction apart from God, that means that all people who do not believe in Jesus will never taste genuine satisfaction; God will not permit them the joy of true satisfaction. The only people who discover the treasure of true, genuine, long-lasting satisfaction are believers, they are the citizens of the kingdom of heaven.

Matthew 5:6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.” So, here is the problem: the only people who have ever tasted satisfaction are believers – and it is this satisfaction that God wants to use to attract unbelievers to the kingdom life. While the kingdom life and its citizens have satisfaction they don’t look like. We do not come across to unbelievers as being satisfied – we come across as dissatisfied – and this is why we are spiritually unattractive; this is why we have such limited impact in seeing people we care for come to a saving relationship with Jesus.

This weekend I watched the movie Gameplan with my kids about a quarterback of a professional football team who had an eight year old daughter. In the movie, the 8 year old asked a question over and over again – what is the best thing that ever happened to you? I started thinking about that question. What was the best thing that ever happened to me? Was it landing my first big job? Was it the day I was married? Was it the day my kids were born? What was the best thing that ever happened to you? The promise Jesus offers to us kingdom citizens is satisfaction; and this satisfaction offers deep, lasting happiness. This idea of satisfaction is also translated using the word “filled.” The best thing that ever happened to me happened when I was only 8 years old. Upon my belief and confession that Jesus is Savior, I was filled with Jesus’ righteousness immediately. Jesus’ righteousness, his holiness, his perfection was placed upon me and inside of me when I was only 8. Why was that the best day of my life? Because when I wanted Jesus as my Savior, God looked at me through the righteousness of Jesus, and He no longer saw my sin. He sees us as sinners whom He has forgiven. Believer, know now that you are forgiven.

You should not be seeking this righteousness, for you own it already. If you have embraced Jesus as your Savior then you have found what you are looking for; You have right standing before God; You have been justified. You have been forgiven. You are a child of God, you have been adopted and he will not sever that adoption. We are filled immediately in one sense in that we no longer seek forgiveness to become a child of God.

Illust – Jesus said in the fourth beatitude that anyone who desires Jesus’ righteousness would be given it and they would be filled, satisfied. This is like God took an empty vessel like this empty glass and he filled the glass full to the top. When God fills us, there is nothing left empty. Upon our salvation, we are not filled with water but with the Holy Spirit, that is God himself. The holy Spirit makes his home within us. Upon salvation, we are filled with Christ’s righteousness. With Jesus’ righteousness you have discovered true, joy-filled happiness. What is the best thing that ever happened to you? The day we met Jesus and the day he placed his righteousness on us. You have found what you were looking for. If we live our lives as if we still haven’t found what we are looking for, we will be spiritually unattractive, no one will be interested in our God because it does not appear that his righteousness translated to your happiness. On the other hand, once you realize that Jesus Paid It All that is Jesus has done everything to give us his holiness so that we could have a relationship with God, then our salvation is the best day of our lives; we see that we are filled, we are satisfied and this translates into a happiness that attracts a lost world. You really have found what you are looking for.

We are Being Filled! As I explained, we are doing things a little differently today and I am giving the second half of my sermon. So, if you are interested in following along, I will be Matthew chapter 5. Let me ask you this, is it possible to be absolutely full, but still want more? This is my dilemma at every meal; I am full and content but that little dessert devil that stands on my shoulder whispers in my ear…you are full of dinner but you are empty of dessert. Yes, we are filled, and we are satisfied for Christ has given us his righteousness, his holiness. We have been given a right standing with God. And even though we are satisfied, we still hunger and thirst for more. As a deer pants for water so my heart longs for God. How is it that I am completely filled and satisfied yet I want more?

Matthew 5:6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.” The fourth beatitude rises and falls on the term righteousness. This is a religious term than many people struggle with, so heads up let’s learn this and commit it to our vocab. Righteousness includes justification – that is a right standing before God – and it also includes sanctification – that is a right life before God. So, today we have already learned that everyone who believes already has Jesus’ righteousness in them so we are satisfied that the cup is full. But, when Jesus talks of righteousness there is more than that one full cup. Jesus’ righteousness includes a second cup.

The second cup is sanctification – living the right life. Upon believing and being saved, God creates a new spiritual person who is given Jesus’ righteousness, but as long as we live we have our old sinful self that tags along with the new spiritual guy. Our old sinful self loves one thing – sin. Our new spiritual guy infuses us with a new desire – hatred toward sin. So, we have this battle inside of ourselves – the spiritual guy hates sin but the old sinful self loves sin. Sanctification is the process of the new spiritual guy persuading the sinful self to sometime not choose sin. Illust: The first cup of justification is completely full, but the second cup of sanctification or right living is only partially filled. When our lives sing that we still haven’t found what we are looking for what we are really saying is that although completely satisfied with my right standing before God I lack the right life with God. What we want is for our second cup to be filled. Our yearning and longing is to see that cup filled which means that the spiritual guy is successfully persuading the sinful self not choose sin all the time. The question we face is how do we fill the second cup? This is a great question, reflecting a spiritually growing person. The biblical answer is not found in you doing something like I will fill that cup by…fill in the blank…It is not so much about doing certain actions; instead, filling the second cup is entirely about drawing closer to Jesus. As we draw closer, he will change us.

2 Corinthians 3:18 “And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another.” How do we fill the second cup? We come into the presence of the one true holy God; and, as we enter his sacred presence we behold this awesomely terrifying God. And, as we do this, God transforms us from degree of glory to another degree of glory. Let me illustrate it like this: upon our salvation God fills our first cup with his righteousness; and we are given a second cup that is partially filled and because it is partially filled we struggle with sin. How do we fill that second cup, we can’t fill it by any act or good deed but we get God to fill it by coming into his presence. When we come into his presence, he changes us, he transform us, he fills us and satisfies us. This is how our second cup is filled. Illus: fill 2nd cup. Please ask the next question…how do we come into Jesus’ presence? Consider the blind man Bartimaeus, he could not heal himself. So, he went and put himself in the way of getting his sight. He heard that Jesus was traveling a certain way, so he put himself on Jesus’ pathway. He could not give himself sight, but he put himself in the way of the one who could give him sight.

The person who hungers and thirsts for righteousness never misses an opportunity of being in those certain places where people seem to find righteousness. While we are not a blind man, we are a spiritually needy person who want his second cup filled. Where can we go? The house of God, the local church, is a great place to come to put yourself in the way of Jesus. God chose the local church to image forth Jesus – Jesus and the local church are attached at the hip. Jesus is invested in the local church; Jesus’ plans happen because he makes them happen through the local church. The person who really wants to spend time with Jesus is the one who puts himself in Jesus’ path, he is here at church every Sunday. The people who hunger and thirst after righteousness are frantic about running into Jesus, being in his presence; this is not casual; this is not optional this is an incredible opportunity. They keep coming back to the same place time after time in order to meet up with him, because they know he is here. Put yourself in Jesus’ pathway, so that you spend time with him. As we spend time with God beholding him, he will change us by filling our second cup; that is the new spiritual guy will have more sway over the sinful self to persuade him not to choose sin as often. Let me take you to another spiritual dimension. There is something I have not told you yet that happens when you consistently run into Jesus as you put yourself in his pathway. The Bible promises that God will fill you.

Ephesians 5:15-18 “Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit…” If you walk wisely then you will find that God will fill you with the Holy Spirit. He will fill your cup. It doesn’t end here but it gets even better. David wrote in Psalm 23 that God overflows our cups. Illus: overflow cup. Many of us have experienced those times when God fills us and keeps filling us so that our cup overflows, our lives overflow with the Spirit. In this moment, God gives us a new capacity to experience more of him. He gives us a new cup that is larger and can hold more of the holy spirit. God promises all of his children they will be satisfied, thereby discovering happiness. Upon our salvation, he fills our first cup with Jesus’ righteousness placed upon and inside of us. We are given a right standing before God. The second cup we are given is partially filled as we hunger and thirst for this cup to be full. God teaches us to put ourselves in Jesus’ pathway, if you know God will be at a place then go there and maybe just maybe Jesus will speak with you. When we find God he will change us from one degree of glory to another degree of glory filling us with more of his Spirit so much so that we overflow and he gives us a new cup to overflow into. This is a larger cup, it is a greater capacity to behold more of God, to be filled with more grace than before. As you pursue the incredible filing of the second cup, never forget that you have been given immediate satisfaction upon the first filling. When you were given Jesus’ righteousness you were filled, and satisfied. Live in this world with that fullness and the confidence of an adopted child of God. Stop living and singing the song “I still haven’t found what I’m looking for.” You have found it, you found Jesus. Live with the authority of your great discovery; your relationship with God is the best thing that ever happened to you. If you live with this reality, then you will spiritually attract the lost who are desperately looking for happiness.