possessors of the earth

Matthew 5:6. Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.

Well a blessed Thursday to all you my Scrip-Bit friends and family! May the Lord indeed bless you and keep you safe today as you go about doing His work.

And let me ensure you that though it’s wet and dark and dreary in my little corner of the universe, I can still see the bright and brilliant light of the Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ shining through the gloom.

Likewise, whatever the physical characteristics of the day may be in your area, please be assured that the light of Christ is also shining through to you. You just have to accept it and bask in its eternal glow.

Now here is something from our One Year Book of Bible Promises with writings by Ruth Harms Calkin that spoke to me and asked to be shared. (smile) It’s called ‘My Glorious Enough.’

Please read with me. ‘Oh, how I LOVE You, my Lord – But not enough. How I hunger and thirst for You – But not enough. How I rejoice in your inimitable goodness – But not enough.

Pour Yourself lavishly, dear God Into every vacant hollow Into every cluttered chamber Of my longing heart. Free me from every shallow substitute From every hidden pretense Until I shall know With deep, consuming conviction That You are my Glorious Enough.’

Isn’t that a beautiful prayer? It surely is! It just has us clamouring for God ‘s righteousness, because we know that in Him we have more than enough of everything.

And the promise for that poem, as well as our Bit for today is the wonderful Beatitude from Christ’s Sermon on the Mount. ‘Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.’

Now that’s definitely an awesome promise, and we know that Christ never reneges on any of His promises, but are we truly hungering and thirsting after the Lord and His righteousness?

Now that’s the priceless question? I do hope so, because it’s essential if we are to grow and mature as true Christians.

And the scholars explain. ‘5:6. These future possessors of the earth are its presently installed rightful heirs, and even now they hunger and thirst after righteousness. They experience a deep desire for personal righteousness, which in itself is proof of their spiritual rebirth.

Those who are poor and empty in their own spiritual poverty recognize the depth of their need, and they hunger and thirst for that which only God can give them. They shall be filled (Gr. chortazo) refers to a complete satisfaction. The psalmist proclaimed: “He satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness.” (Ps.107:9).’

Yes friends, if we hunger and thirst after the things of the Lord, He will fill us with them. Even before Jesus came along, we had this promise from the Father. Hear Isaiah declare it.

‘Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat: yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.

Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? And your labour for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness (abundance).

Incline your ear, and come unto me: hear, and your soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David.’ (Is.55:1-3)

What an invitation my people! Let’s hope we are wise enough to accept it. For as the scholars tell us: ’55:1-7. God’s free gift of salvation is offered to all who will receive it. Those who are spiritually hungry and thirsty may come and eat and drink without money (or freely).

He promises an everlasting covenant to the Gentiles like the one He established with Israel. His invitation to all men is clearly stated by the appeal, Seek ye the Lord and call ye upon him.’

Oh friends, what a wonderful God we serve, it never ceases to amaze me! Where else can we go and get spiritual food and drink for free eh? Absolutely nowhere else!

Who else is prepared to make a covenant with us Gentiles eh? None but the amazing God of Abraham Isaac and Jacob!

And He did it through the heartbreaking sacrifices of His Son Jesus Christ! Now what more do we need to believe that He is truly sincere in His deep and abiding care, compassion and LOVE for us eh?

Anyway, my people, it’s imperative that we stay as close as possible to Christ as we can, if we want to enjoy all the benefits and blessings that He has to offer.

And speaking of blessings, today is Thursday, so let’s go home declaring our Thursday Blessings over ourselves, for remember that a blessing is not a blessing until it’s been spoken over someone.

Now with much enthusiasm and strong faith let’s do it: ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance!

I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline! I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment! I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life!

I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and everyday! Amen!’

Yea mih breddren! And now that we’ve been gloriously blessed, let’s go out and win back the world for Christ! Much LOVE!

…the deep longing for Christ in our hearts…should make us always want to do our best on His behalf…

P.S. Please excuse the lateness, it was just one of those late hockey filled nights. (smile) Much LOVE!

Matthew 5:6. Blessed are they which hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.

Ah mih people, one more day has been added to our years on earth…!

And all God’s children loudly and gratefully declared: ‘Thank You most gracious Lord, for allowing us to see another beautiful day here on planet earth! Please guide and bless us, so that we can walk worthy of You. We LOVE You and praise your Holy Name! Amen!’

Well Friends, if we’re so thankful, then let’s put our money where our mouth is nuh, by ramping up that project we began yesterday, of trying to change the world. Remember we said we’d take it one day at a time, so that means we have to continue doing it today too, and every day that we draw breath in this world.

And just so that you’ll remember what we’re talking about, here’s Johnny Reid, in his Kenny Roger’s sounding voice, to remind us.

‘Today I’m gonna try and change the world. I’m gonna take it one day at a time. I’ve made my resolution, opened up my eyes. Today I’m gonna try and change the world.’

That’s just the chorus, now here’s the second verse… and it’s not the same as the first. (smile)

‘I’m gonna make sure my children know right from wrong. Never turn my back on those in need. Always gonna try to see myself through another’s eyes. Today I’m gonna try and change the world… Chorus.’

Yes my brethren, some more ways in which we can try changing the world every day that we’re alive!

And Friends, those things might seem simple, but they are ever so important, for they are the very things we need to deal with if we’re going to change this god-forsaken, ungodly world in which we live.

We’re talking about things like making sure our children know right from wrong… Steups! Many parents don’t even know that, so how are they going to teach it eh, even if they could find the time?

And then ordinary things like not turning our backs on those in need… Chuh! That’s now a mainstay of our society, for too many of us do it too often. That’s where the servant part, the servant mentality of Jesus comes in. But how many of us supposed Christians want to be servants eh?

Not a whole lot, for in spite of Jesus’ command to the contrary, we still prefer to be served rather than serve, because the name implies a derogatory situation, and being served makes us look important in the hypocritical eyes of the world. But Friends, in Jesus’ eyes, that makes us look real foolish, faithless and spineless.

And before critically and oftimes harshly judging others, many who are less fortunate than us, let’s first try and put ourselves in their place nuh, and see how we’d like others to see us, if the situations were reversed. We so get off on judging others these days, even though we don’t know them from Adam, or have a clue about their circumstances. That’s certainly a big part of why our world is in such a disastrous mess.

However my people, we can’t make any of those worthwhile changes unless we have the words of our Bit buried deep in our hearts, souls and minds. ‘Blessed are they which hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.’

Yeh Friends, it’s another Beatitude from Jesus’ famous Sermon on the Mount. It seems like we’re dealing with Beatitudes this meeting, so though we’ve done this one already, some 17 months ago, it’s useful to do it again, because every so often we need reminders. (smile) And I’m sure there’ll be new and different stuff than the last time.

Now here’s what the scholars’ have to say about our Bit: ‘5:6. These future possessors of the earth are its presently installed rightful heirs, and even now they hunger and thirst after righteousness. They experience a deep desire for personal righteousness, which in itself is a proof of their spiritual rebirth.

Those who are poor and empty in their own spiritual poverty recognize the depth of their need, and they hunger and thirst for that which only God can give them. They shall be filled (Gr. chortazo) refers to a complete satisfaction. The Psalmist proclaimed: “He satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness.” (Ps.107:9)’

And that’s indisputable truth, as many of us can testify to! The problem though is to recognize the dearth, or lack of spiritual depth and then sincerely try to fill it. That means coming to God in humility and hunger of soul, so that He can generously and mercifully fill up that empty space that’s keeping us back from truly enjoying all He has to offer.

Remember Jesus’ promise: ‘The thief cometh not, but for (except) to steal, and to kill, and to destroy; I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.’ (John 10:10)

That simply shows my people, that we can’t have abundant life, unless Jesus dwells in us abundantly. Let’s ponder on and consider all these things today, then take them all to God in prayer to help us fix whatever needs fixing. That’s wisdom from on high… therefore of the highest order! Much LOVE!

…oh to be meek and humble…hungry and thirsty for righteousness…so that our eyes can be opened…and cause us to make a sincere resolution…to try and change the world today…

SCRIP-BITS

Today’s Scrip-Bit 27 October 2016 Matthew 5:6.

Today’s Scrip-Bit 24 October 2013 Matthew 5:6

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