The Bible talks about feasting and food quite a bit.  If you want to let your mind wander through the Scriptures tracing out the theme of food, go read the June 23, 2007 post entitled (creatively enough) “Food.” It won’t do more than just get you started, but you’ll see something of what I’m talking about.  This book is not exactly vegetarian–friendly reading. 

“A cucumber should be well sliced, and dressed with pepper and vinegar, and then thrown out as good for nothing.”
—Samuel Johnson

“Vegetables are interesting but lack a sense of purpose when unaccompanied by a good cut of meat.”
—Fran Lebowitz

Noting God’s interest in food and feasting (both as reality and as metaphor), it shouldn’t surprise us that when the King took his place upon the mountain to teach his people how true godliness is revealed and lived out (Matthew 5.1,2), he said to them, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.” (verse 6)

God promises complete and utter satisfaction to those who hunger and thirst for righteousness. 

But what does it look like to hunger and thirst for righteousness? 

Is Jesus talking our “legal” righteousness before God — that is, our justification?  If so, then that means to hunger and thirst for Christ Himself, for he is our only righteousness. 

Or is Jesus talking about our “moral” righteousness — a righteousness of character and conduct that is pleasing to God?  If so, then we are again driven to Christ Himself because that kind of infinite righteousness will never be achieved by our merely external conformity to a collection of rules.  That would be the deceptive, self–flattering trap in which the pharisees found themselves.  The moral righteousness that God requires penetrates to heart, mind, and motive. 

But perhaps Jesus is pushing us even beyond that.  Perhaps he’s pressing his disciples to cultivate a hunger and craving for the redemptive good of the world itself. Perhaps we should consider this as a call to a greater interest in a “social” righteousness.  God is quite interested in that form of righteousness too, after all.  Indeed, that’s part of the hunger that drove him to the cross.  John Stott puts it this way:

“Biblical righteousness is more than a private and personal affair; it includes social righteousness as well. And social righteousness, as we learn from the law and the prophets, is concerned with seeking man’s liberation from oppression, together with the promotion of civil rights, justice in the law courts, integrity in business dealings, and honor in home and family affairs.  Thus Christians are committed to hunger for righteousness in the whole human community as something pleasing to a righteous God.”

Martin Luther chimes as well:  “The command to you is not to crawl into a corner or into a desert, but to run out, if that is where you have been, and to offer your hands and your feet and your whole body, and to wager everything you have and can do.” He continues, exhorting us to “a hunger and thirst for righteousness that can never be curbed or stopped or sated, one that looks for nothing and cares for nothing except the accomplishment and maintenance of the right, despising everything that hinders this end.  If you cannot make the world completely pious, then do what you can.”

Luther understood the meaning of hunger.  (Reading this, it suddenly occurs to me that my 10 year old boy might just be a Lutheran rather than a Presbyterian.  I’ll have to look into that.)

But what about you?  How is your appetite for social righteousness?  Is it healthy?  Is it increasing?  Or, are you feeling pretty sated?  Or is your appetite for this kind of righteousness perhaps even a little jaded?

It’s so easy to withdraw into our safe little cul–de–sacs and content ourselves with a hungering for nothing more than our next creature comfort.  But following Christ means hungering for righteousness to come to this world. 

The people of God were made for more than the pursuit of their own self–interests.  They were made for a world in which righteousness dwells (see 2 Peter 3.13).  Ultimately, of course, only Christ Himself will bring such a world into being, on that promised day when all wrongs will be overthrown, the good will be vindicated, and everything will finally be set to rights.

But the people of Christ are called to long for that day now.  We’re called to hunger for it.  For selfish sinners, it’s going to be an acquired taste.  But for Christ’s sake, let’s start cultivating it! 

As we consider this, just remember:  God addresses many of his choicest promises to the hungry.