...For They Shall Be Filled- Matthew 5:6

As I've said before, for most of my life, I have viewed the Beattitudes as instructions of how a Christian is supposed to strive to live. On the surface, this Beattitude, in particular, is one that seems like it could and should be viewed that way. But when you really stop to think about what it means and to whom Jesus was saying it, it makes infinitely more sense as a fact about the kingdom instead of an admonition of how to get into the kingdom. Let me explain.

The word righteousness is the same word that we get the word just from in the Bible. It carries with it the idea of living in conformity to the covenant established. I usually describe it simply as "right living." To describe someone as "just" and "righteous" is essentially the same thing. It means they live right. If I am "hungering and thirsting" for something, it means that I have an incredibly strong desire to pursue it. Which means that an accurate rephrasing of this verse would be, "Blessed are those who really, really, really want to always be right or be in the right, because they will get it."

Now put that statement into the context of the crowd Jesus was addressing...a bunch of Jews. And who do you think the Jews thought of when Jesus talked about someone really wanting to be right or to be in the right? If you said a Pharisee, then you would be absolutely correct, in my opinion. (And I do so like to be right!:) Here's the rub, then-- Jesus spent many of his words throughout His ministry blasting the Pharisees for their self-righteousness and legalistic desire to be right! The message of the kingdom that Jesus preached more than any other was that we can never have access to the kingdom simply by trying harder and being better. We can have access to the kingdom only through Him! That does not leave any room for trying harder. It only leaves room for trusting in Christ's righteousness and not our own.

You see, for years the Pharisees thought they could earn their way into heaven. Just look at Paul's life and the things he said he finally counted as rubbish compared to the surpassing greatness that is in Christ! (See Philippians 3.) I don't believe for a second any more that Jesus would have looked at a crowd that had the Pharisees as their spiritual leaders and told them that the way into the kingdom was for them to increase their desire to be right! That is contrary to the rest of His teaching. Please don't misunderstand me.

It is good to want to be right in God's eyes...BUT IT IS IMPOSSIBLE!!

Impossible, that is, without the blood of Christ.

But even for the Pharisees like Paul...and me...who want to be right so badly that we get disgusted with ourselves for our failures and disgusted with others for theirs, their is a way to finally be filled with righteousness inside the kingdom of heaven!

"He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf so that we might become the righteousness of God."

- 2 Corinthians 5:21

Yes, the spiritually bankrupt are blessed in the kingdom of heaven, the ones who are mourning are comforted, the meek inherit the earth, and even us Pharisees can finally get what we've been trying for our whole lives...we just have to stop working for it and let God give it to us in Christ. And when we finally humbly admit that we will never get there on our own...GOD PUTS US THERE AND SLOWLY CHANGES US INTO THE IMAGE OF HIS SON!

That          is great news!