Gospel Satisfaction

It was the great theologian

Mick Jagger who once famously said

Actually, I should say famously saying the words I Can't get no

Which actually double negative so makes me think what's he's communicating?

No, he's I can't get no no no no Hey, hey, hey That's what

I say Satisfaction, right? I can't get no Satisfaction the song says

I try and I try and I try and I try but seemingly No satisfaction was to be had apparently though the song itself was satisfactory because in 2011 the

Rolling Stones magazine published the 500 best rock and roll songs of all time and Satisfaction came in at number two

Mick Jagger who a few years ago At least a few years ago was the fifth richest lead singer in the world

Said in the article that this song was my view of the world my frustration with everything.

I think that that was Quote was is very interesting because this isn't just something that Mick Jagger sang about but something that he felt so Now this evening

I invite you to turn in your Bibles to Matthew 5 Jesus says

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness Why are they blessed

Matthew chapter 5 verse 6? Why are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness blessed?

because they will be Satisfied I Don't know the best way to put this.

I was thinking this as we were singing that last song. I Need to do tonight after service and I want to make sure that we're you know, reasonable on our time

But I was just thinking as we sang that last song about pilgrims progress That's thinking about if you if you've never read the story,

I encourage you to read the story. We have free copies free well -printed copies But Pilgrim doesn't reach the celestial city

Without a bit of a limp, right what I mean is like He doesn't make it to the celestial city unscathed

You guys know that I've been running recently I've tried to be running for the last several years, but I've got more into it the last couple of months the other day

This is crazy like a couple weeks ago. I was running. I felt pretty good. So I ran 10 miles

I don't know if I'll ever do that again, but that was just a crazy idea I had as I was running and you know what when you're running

My wife has said it to me before enjoy your run and I've talked with her like I don't enjoy my run, right?

I hate it. It's hard. It feels terrible. My body the whole time is like, what are you doing?

Right, I shouldn't hate that ice cream last night or whatever But but there's this feeling and this is the point like there is this feeling when

I get through I'm like man, I'm so glad I did that and I think about the

Christian life and I think about our walk with Christ and I think about the pilgrim journey and I think about the reality of Mick Jagger There is satisfaction out there

Even if you're you're running in the Christian life like like I'm running my runs like even if you're like man, it's hard It's difficult.

What are we doing here? It seems like all these other people they've got things that are that are going well for them and and and and they don't live

For Christ in it. They're not committed to the church. They don't really care about holiness They may just give a tip of the hat to Jesus and it seems like they're always getting the promotion and and everything's going well in their life and here

I am I'm trying to serve Christ and and it's hard and and and Sometimes I don't know at the end of the month where the ends are gonna meet

I don't know how that's gonna happen and and it's it's painful I've got a deal with sin and my own life sin and others like like like what am

I doing? And yet? Jesus promises here From the lips of Christ Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness

For they shall be satisfied And so if you're like me you need a message like this tonight you need to be reminded of the sweet promises of the gospel and you need to be reminded tonight of Gospel satisfaction, so that's what we turn to Matthew 5 6.

I've already read it Several times but let's just stand as we normally do and let's honor

What we're looking at tonight. We've already covered the first half of this and tonight really we're looking at the second half so the text says blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness for they shall be

Satisfied father help us to understand this text encourage us with it apply it to our heart and life

Lord, I pray that you would just sovereignly use this message as you will for your own glory in Jesus name

Amen, you may be seated. Okay, who will be satisfied verse 6 only those who hunger and thirst for Righteousness, so we want to continue to see what that means as we examine

Gospel satisfaction really we started last time. We called it gospel appetite. So we had a couple points from last time

I'll just review we said the origin of a gospel appetite is faith In other words, Jesus says his followers are

Blessed because they hunger and thirst for righteousness But that hungering and thirsting for righteousness is not looking inside yourself

It's looking outside yourself to Christ And then we said the object of a gospel appetite is

Christ's likeness. That is Everyone is hungry for happiness, but those who hunger and thirst for right for righteousness are hungry for for holiness

So we're already justified as believers. We're already credited with the perfect life of Christ But but now we actually seek to be like Christ and we'll talk about that more

Tonight but this brings us to our third point So the origin of a gospel appetite faith the object of a gospel appetite

Christ likeness Thirdly the opposite of a gospel appetite is a worldly appetite

I Won't spend too long here. But let me just mention that verse 6

Talks about a healthy appetite. The healthy appetite is those who hunger and thirst for righteousness

But but the opposite of a healthy appetite is Manifests itself in a couple ways.

I'll just mention one love of self so so we've seen this already, but it is

The love of self is the love of self preservation love of self promotion

Let me tell you something that in our world today. This is The number one

God perhaps and that is self autonomy has Taken over even above money or anything else is like I it's me.

I get to control. I am a God and I have to look out for number one Because no one else is gonna do it

You can't take risk. You can't risk your stuff for your income or your relationships

You you've got to preserve self above all because if you don't do this who will Some people say

I may go to church and I'll punch my card, but I won't go beyond that I'm not gonna give myself to to the to the one and others in the scripture another area we see self -love

Manifested it is is in self -righteousness. So look at Matthew 5 verse 20, for example go down Where Jesus says for I tell you unless your righteousness exceeds that of the

Scribes and Pharisees You'll never enter into the kingdom of heaven You understand that the Scribes and Pharisees had a love for self their righteousness was was self -righteousness

It's not enough to go through the outward motions like the Pharisees did that's not enough to get into the kingdom a self -righteous person

Has no love for others or no real love biblical love for others or Christ or the church.

It's all centered around Self they don't hunger and thirst for righteousness the opposite of a gospel appetite is a worldly appetite

So so one way that manifests itself is love for self a second way. It manifests itself is love for sin

So let me put it to you this way. This is a this is one of those truisms It's so simple

It almost doesn't even need to be said but I think it does need to be said and I think you need to hear it

And listen and think about it. It is impossible For you to hunger and thirst for righteousness

While simultaneously Hungering and thirsting for sin

You can't have it both ways you can't hunger and thirst for righteousness and simultaneously hunger and thirst for sin in the church

We give ourselves passes on certain sins so we know that there's certain sins out there that are like really bad and we

We don't give a pass on those and there's things in the church that we're okay with prayerlessness anger

Gossip or sometimes even even our own ungodliness at times like we'll say well the church needs revival, but I don't need revival

But the sad reality is that people full of self and full of sin

Like think about think about how the gospel turns things on its head. You think that if you're full you're satisfied, right?

So you're full of self. You're full of sin. You think well, surely there's satisfaction in that But but you understand that people full of self and full of sin are not and will never be

Satisfied it's it's terrible. I won't say their names because it's uh, it's just it's terrible tragedy

But you read all the time you hear stories all the time about famous people people in Hollywood that you think they've got everything

They've got absolutely everything They've got all the money all the fame all the fortune everything that that people around here seem to be chasing

They've reached it. They've got it and then some and then they kill themselves Why Because full of self and full of sin there there is no lasting satisfaction

Only Jesus can satisfy John 6 35 Jesus said to them

I am the bread of life whoever comes to me shall not hunger and whoever believes in me shall never thirst

Which is kind of funny, right? Cuz you're like, okay, which is it Jesus? Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness or Those who come to me will never hunger never thirst.

They're not conflicting here Rather those who truly come to Christ have this perpetual hungering and thirsting

Whereby they are satisfied in Christ So so let me just tell you again because we don't believe it enough

Whatever it is that you've got on your mind in your heart tonight There's so much like and there's so many people different ages.

We have children in here. We have young adults we have senior adult like we have all this age group and it's like There are things this week that you're going to busy yourself with that you're gonna get mad about that You're going to sin against God because of these things that you're like, they may not be bad things

I'm not talking about like going out there and murdering someone or doing drugs Like it may just be at your at your work.

You're gonna snap at somebody at your house You're gonna snap at somebody right? You're gonna you're gonna sin this week

Why because you believe the lie too often and I do too that this stuff in the world is going to bring

Contentment to your heart and I'm just reminding you tonight as we get ready to enter into another work week

It's only Christ So let's talk about this more. What does it look like practically to hunger and thirst for righteousness?

We're we're true and everlasting satisfaction is found Christ. What does it look like?

So fourthly the outflow of a gospel appetite is a pursuit of holiness So what does it look like to hunger and thirst for righteousness on the inside?

The the outflow of that is a life that that seeks to pursue holiness So look at verse 6 blessed are those it's interesting grammar, right?

Blessed are those not who hungered and Thirsted for righteousness

But what? It's in the present who hunger and thirst it's a continual hungering and a continual

Thirsting so we understand our helplessness before God and and and look these are the

Beatitudes, right? Verse 3 the poor in spirit So we understand our our bankruptcy and then we we mourn sin and then we see ourselves rightly in light of the gospel and then we

Understand we're changed and we hunger and thirst for rice like we long. Listen. Listen, we we long to be holy

Martin Lloyd -jones put it this way great quote He says I do not know of a better test that anyone can apply to himself or host

Herself and the whole matter of the Christian profession than a verse like this He's talking about verse 6 if this verse to you is one of the most blessed statements of the whole of Scripture You can be quite certain you are

Christian if it is not then you had better examine the foundations again Now think about this for just a second

Martin Lloyd -jones that that great English preacher says if this verse stirs within you great hope and excitement and encouragement and and longing that's good news if it doesn't

Re -examine yourself Jesus says are you hungering and thirsting for for Christ for for holiness for for for things to be set?

Right like even as we talk about in the church Christ is worthy of a healthy church Like like does that stir within you a hunger and thirst like this is what

I want This is what I'm gonna pursue, you know personal holiness corporate holiness these things

Like does this verse bring a fire? To your bones as it were

So, what does this look like practically a few things I want to say One and then maybe you can write these down some of you are taking notes, but just a few thoughts about pursuing holiness a few things

I would mention one a regular feasting on the gospel itself

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness for they shall be satisfied the outflow of a gospel appetite is holiness and we pursue holiness and One of the ways that we pursue holiness is regularly feasting on the gospel itself

What do I mean the daily reminder when you wake up tomorrow? In it in it wild when you wake up tomorrow

It's it's it's a start of a new day and it's the battle all over again with the world the flesh and the devil and No matter how long you've been a

Christian one of the first things that you're tempted to fall back into tomorrow is

Is one of the two ditches of either, you know antinomianism, you know

Not care about pursuing what God would have you do or or legalism or or a workspace Righteousness to to think again that your salvation is wrapped up in in you

But but I'm saying that you need a daily reminder that that I was created to Glorify God and enjoy him forever that that I messed up that I sinned that I went astray

I rebelled I was worthy of wrath and yet God came in the person of Christ That's God the

Son to bear my blame and my shame and my sin and to suffer in my place and to rise again

On the third day in victory and that God the Holy Spirit has has drawn me before the foundation of the world

God had a plan and chose me and the Holy Spirit draw draws me to himself through repentance of sin and faith in Christ to Remind myself.

This is the gospel that the gospel is our foundation for a pursuit of holiness

We don't pursue holiness in order to be accepted by God, but because we've already been accepted by God in Christ Friends, we never grow past our need for the gospel

And I'm just encouraging the church tonight that we must feast on this truth daily

God's love for you tomorrow when you wake up is not based on What you do?

It's based on what's already been done on your behalf Let me let me put it to you this way in the context of the

Sermon on the Mount Christians don't read the Sermon on the Mount and then say I need to live this way

So that God will accept me No, no We read the Sermon on the Mount and we say this is God's plan for the

Christian life and I desire to live this way Because I'm already Accepted in Christ.

I've been changed and now one of the manifestations of that change in my life is I hunger and thirst for righteousness

We pursue holiness By faith the life of holiness is a life of faith.

Look at later later in the Sermon on the Mount Look at chapter 6 for example chapter 6 25

Jesus says Matthew 6 25. This is still in the context of Sermon on the

Mount. Therefore. I tell you do not be anxious That's a command do not be anxious about your life

What you will eat or what you will drink nor about your body what you will put on is not like more than food in the body more than clothing or verse 33

Matthew 6 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things will be added to you

The life of holiness is a life of faith. I by faith Put my anxieties on the

Lord and in essence I'm saying like I am NOT to be worried about the cares of life.

What out it God's gonna take care of me I'm not to seek all these other things God if I don't seek this thing

These other people will bypass me in the workplace, right? If I don't seek these things first, then I won't get ahead

I won't get to be somebody in the world and Jesus reminds us. No, no, no seek first by faith seek first the kingdom

We'll be reminded that That's where our satisfaction will be found Christ Okay, so what does it look like to pursue holiness?

There's a regular feasting on the gospel what God has done for us in Christ Secondly, there is a love for Scripture Verse 17

Jesus says it this way Matthew 5 17. He says do not come Or sorry, do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets

I've not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. Let me make a let me make a side note here Jesus has a very high view of Scripture, right?

So some people today will say like well, I don't care about Moses I don't care about the

Old Testament I don't even know if I believe all that stuff Jonah got swallowed by a big fish I don't know if I believe all that stuff.

I just follow Jesus You actually have people today like Andy Stanley will say things like who cares about the older?

It's just about you just need to follow you. Well, listen to me Jesus Has a very high view of the

Bible He didn't come to abolish the law of the prophets But to fulfill them

Jesus stands behind and in and through and the foundation of the law and the prophets

The Christ's view of the Bible is high and those who hunger and thirst for righteousness

Love the Bible because we love Christ The Bible is a priority to followers of Jesus.

We we hunger to know it We we long to have our thirst quenched by its sweet and clear streams

We we trust what it says we submit to what it says Don't tell me that you're a Christian and you have no relationship with the

Bible, right? I don't care about the Bible I just love Jesus then you don't love the Jesus of the Bible those who hunger and thirst for righteousness

Love the scriptures How much time do you spend in this book compared to other things?

Your Phone your television Sometimes even other good things

We really live in a world today with such access and time to the Bible that Believers you ought to be reading the

Bible every day Gotta be in the book. Do you long to be holy be in?

the book thirdly, I'll mention So we're trying to pursue holiness.

We hunger and thirst for righteousness. What does this look like? We have a we have a gospel appetite that we that we feast on the gospel.

We read the Bible thirdly We have a commitment to prayer Look at Matthew 6 verse 6 still in the context of the

Sermon on the Mount. Jesus says but when you pray When you pray not if you pray, but when you pray that was

Matthew 6 6 followers of Jesus pray We're we're committed to prayer What part of what it means to hunger and thirst for righteousness is that we we long for sweet communion in prayer with the triune

God Like to not pray to not spend significant time in prayer is to say

God. I don't need I don't number one I don't need you. I don't care to spend time with you and I don't need you.

I've got this. Yeah, you know other things are more important Prayerlessness is not an option

For those who hunger and thirst for righteousness and it's only those who hunger and thirst for righteousness who will be satisfied fourthly

What does it look like to hunger and thirst for righteousness? Is that there's an outflow of pursuing holiness? We we feast on the gospel daily.

We we read the scriptures. We we we we're committed to prayer fourthly

We're committed to giving and fasting. Look look at chapter 6 again again. This is all in the context

So Jesus kind of gives us introduction with the Beatitudes and then he he throws this out He expands on these things in a way for us

So so he shows us what the Christian life looks like in Matthew chapter 6 verse 2 when you give to the needy

Not if you give but when you give like generosity is an outflow of hungering and thirsting for righteousness

Show me a person who is greedy Show me a person who is

You know snooty when it comes to their stuff And hold on to it like this.

I'll show you a person who is not hungering and thirsting for righteousness verse 16

Sometimes those who are hungry and thirsting for righteousness are literally hungry Matthew 6 16 says when you fast

So we give because we want to see God's glory manifested to the ends of the earth We fast because we're hungrier for God than we are for physical nourishment

I'll give a plug. We're gonna do a another global day of prayer and fasting in October. I believe the date is

October 4th It's a Wednesday. I could be wrong. No, actually, it's the third I think October 3rd

Let's prepare for that. Let's do that. That's something that Christians do because we hunger and thirst for righteousness fifthly

You know, you literally know I'm not gonna go through these points without mentioning this one and that is

There is a commitment to the church Okay preacher you're pulling a fast one

Jesus doesn't say the word church one time in the Sermon on the Mount. Okay granted, but listen when he teaches us in Matthew 5 for example 13 through 16

There's other places we can look but Matthew 5 13 when he says you are the salt of the earth

Oh, here we go. Let me use this. You'll love it. If I was translating this in the Perry County translation,

I would put there y 'all Y 'all are the salt of the earth

And why would I say that because the you there is plural? You plural are the salt of the earth, but if salt is lost it stays

How shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people's feet verse 14

You y 'all are the light of the world the city on a hill cannot be hidden nor do people light a lamp and put it

Under a basket but on a stand and it gives light to all in the house in the same way let y 'all's all y 'all's light

Shine, I'm not trying to be irreverent I'm just trying to show you that these are in the plural that Jesus is not just talking about you

Individually need to be a light you individually are a city on a hill No, no, he's saying the church the disciples those who gather together surrender

So so what I'm saying is if you're hungry and thirsting for righteousness That is impossible apart from a commitment to the church because holiness is not just personal

It's corporate like we long like one of the things here. We long for a holy church a pure church

We're we contend for the purity and the and the loveliness of the church at one person a professor.

Dr Bench, Dustin Bench from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary has written a book. It's called the most beautiful place on earth

It's about the local church. I love it, right? It's a good book too. By the way, it's the most beautiful place on earth

It's worthy to hunger and thirst after a holy church An author

I read sometimes and I'm appreciative of him in many ways, but I do have a serious problem With him in this regard.

His name is a W pink He has written some very good Resources, he's passed on and I believe he was a

Christian but later in his life a W pink

Completely separated himself from the church He and we can all see this right?

Like you just got frustrated. He's just felt people were just Playing games the church wasn't serious so he took it upon himself to Abandon the church and to isolate himself and to live in his own little holy huddle and he wrote and those things

And again, I'm grateful for much that he did but he was wrong about that Holiness shouldn't lead you to go off on an island and get away from the church

True personal piety true pursuit of holiness leads you deeper into the church

It increases your commitment to the church and love for those in the church. We're salt and light together

We are together as a local church a city on a hill. I want you to just think about that for just a moment

Now I know that you can look around Perryville and you can say look at these churches churches churches churches churches fine

Okay, but we don't have control over all those churches nor should we know nor do we even design

But but we do have a control here and then I want you to think about Providence Baptist Church I want you to just think for just a moment

I want you to see Perryville, you know as as a as a dark place. So there's much losses there but there's a dark place and and God in in his sovereignty and Kindness and goodness to our city and our county and the area of our state

He's he's put a little city on a hill above this dark place And so in this dark place you you look and you see this city and it's on a hill and there's light

Shining and it reminds you that even in this darkness. There's hope. What is it? What is it? It's Christ the church

Providence Baptist Church is a light to this area And if we're not gonna shine a light who will if we're not gonna go out and preach the gospel

Who will if we're not gonna pass out tracts and do evangelism who will God loves our city?

He loves our area. I'm convinced of that. Why because he's put a church here And we're the hope

For our area Don't hear me say that. I think we're the hope in the sense that You know these walls or these people know we're the hope in the sense that God has called us to point these people to Christ and As we hunger in thirst for righteousness

We've must move past Selfishness and sin and we see that as the people of Perryville see a holy church.

Listen, some people will hate it Don't Misunderstand that we're reading.

I hope you're reading Hope you're reading through the Bible. Hope you're reading our plan. If you're reading our plan, we're in Nehemiah right now in Nehemiah Nehemiah and and and and the people rebuilding the wall and There's guys

Great great names sand ballot, right? That sounds like a villain's name and To buy to buy us

I always get that one wrong they Laugh, they're ridiculing.

They want to hurt them even though Nehemiah is doing the good work And I'm saying if we're committed to being holy and and healthy in our church some people won't like it.

But listen some People God will use these very means in the articulation and proclamation of the gospel to draw sinners to himself

The outflow of a gospel appetizer pursuit of holiness, I've stayed on that one long enough lastly

The outcome of a gospel appetite is satisfaction So What is the outcome of hungering and thirsting for righteousness?

What is the outcome of all these labors of getting of going through life with the limp as it were of this heart?

It's hard. This stuff is hard right even just like in your own like to wake up every day and to be in the by like these things are hard sometimes a

Healthy church. It's hard. So so what do we get out of it? Well this Satisfaction now notice in verse 6 will be satisfied is passive.

That's passive It well, in other words, it's not something done by us, but something done to us

It's not those who hunger and thirst for righteousness will satisfy themselves Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness will be satisfied so It's something done to us two ways.

We're satisfied first right now in part right now In part if you're in Christ, there's a satisfaction and contentment that you feel now

Psalm 107 9 says for he satisfies The longing soul and the hungry soul he fills with good things

We must understand that God is for our sanctification and our fullness in Christ God says seek him and and keep on seeking him and we must believe that this is for our good

God is actually after our satisfaction in Christ the weary soul

Will not and cannot get no satisfaction Anywhere else again real and true satisfaction now

Christ is not a life insurance policy whereby We say oh at least

I know where I'm going where I die. No, he brings real actual Satisfaction to our lives now there is available to you weary soul contentment in Christ the joy of knowing

Christ Even in the midst of pain and trial the joy of delighting in Christ and communing with Christ of reading his word and speaking to him in prayer of Worshiping him with the

Saints the American dream is not going to ultimately satisfy a perfect family will never satisfy

Some people are kind of control freaks. They think if I just get all this in order I'll be satisfied your lust will not satisfy you your anger will not satisfy you your pride or your greed

None of these things will satisfy you but Christ Satisfies the hungry

There's an old heavenly highway hymn, I should have remembered it tonight and I would have had gunner Try it for us.

It's called come and die come and die the master call it come and die and it reminds us that Christ Satisfies the hungry, but secondly not just now there's a full and final satisfaction that we will experience in eternity

This age is still an age of groaning and mourning and fighting we will never be fully and finally free from sin

It's a fight. It's a fight. It's a fight. It's a fight. It's a war. Welcome to the war We're fixing to get to that in Ephesians 6 we fight not with flesh and blood

But with the principalities of the air the powers of darkness with our own sin We fight we fight we fight but Revelation 7 16 and 17 says they shall hunger no more

Neither thirst anymore The Sun shall not strike them praise

God for those of us who are balding Nor any scorching heat for the lamb in the midst of their throne will be their shepherd and he will guide them to springs of Living water and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes

We live we hurt we we we go through the pain and the sorrow and the struggle Oh, but we have

Christ and we experience in part that satisfaction now but we're going to a place where that satisfaction will be full and Forever I look forward to such a day.

I Pray that you do too Are you hungry now? He will be satisfied

Do you already think you're satisfied with self and sin the world? You will hunger and thirst for all eternity separated from Christ in hell

That's as plain as I can put it so Mick Jagger was wrong we can get satisfaction

We were made to be satisfied in Christ alone

Do you have tonight an appetite for the things of God? Do you hunger and thirst for righteousness to walk with God?

To long for Christ and his word his family. These are some evidence of whether or not

Your relationship with Christ is saving. So, you know, some people say I have a personal relationship with Christ.

Well, guess what? Spoiler everyone has a personal relationship with Christ by virtue of Adam Meaning in Christ we are personally guilty responsible vile and rejected

I'm not asking if you have a personal relationship What I'm asking is Do you love

Christ? And if you don't what is your hope left to yourself?

There is no But the call of the scriptures is to repent

Turn from this junk food that you're feeding yourself Turn from the sins and the cares of the world turn from your shame and your guilt and turn to Christ and You will be saved

And dear Christian I say I know it's a Sunday night group. So Dear Christian I say to you

Will you ask God? even tonight Increase my appetite for you

So that I may have even more Gospel satisfaction

Let's pray father. We thank you for Your word tonight. We thank you for our

Lord Jesus and his teaching and we thank you that we have full and free atonement in him and not just that but we have a purpose for our life and Satisfaction in his sweet and blessed gospel