Walk This Way: Empty Yet Filled
Matthew 5:5-6
Everyone is born with a deep longing for something in their life. They try to satisfy that longing in all sorts of ways. Some ways seem like good things and others they know are not, but ultimately, they are never truly satisfied with what they have chosen and are left wanting something more. Last week we started a new series in which we looked at the way God has called all believers to walk with Him. Our first step was to be poor in spirit and realize our desperate and total need for Jesus Christ in our lives, our complete reliance on Him, and to mourn the sin that caused this spiritual poorness. When we put our faith in Him, we are forgiven of those sins and saved from the punishment that we deserve. These are things that must happen internally. While there is a strong internal component to these next two steps, we will begin to see external changes and begin to see good fruit produced in our lives.
I. Walking with God means to be meek; Matthew 5:5 - NIV
5 Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
The next step in walking the way God has called us to walk is to be meek. Meekness is not timidness or shyness, but rather it’s the opposite - it’s power. It is power that is under control. The good news is that we don’t take this step alone (and as a Christian we never do) because meekness (or gentleness as it is interpreted elsewhere in scripture) is a fruit of the Spirit. It’s a product of having the Holy Spirit living inside you. This is a promise made to all who have made Jesus the Lord of their lives. Even though this step seems difficult or even impossible if we try it in our own power, it’s through the Holy Spirit that we can overcome this difficult step in walking with God.
Paul tells us in Galatians that the Holy Spirit and our sinful nature are constantly fighting each other. Because of that we are not free to carry out our good intentions, but rather we must make the decision each and every day to be led by the Spirit rather than our own sinful nature. When we are led by the flesh we are like a wild stallion or a wild raging river - not much use in its wild and untamed state, but when that raw power is brought under control it can be used for much good.
II. Walking with God means we must empty ourselves of our sinful nature and bring it under His control.
When we walk with God, we must make the decision to be meek in everything. We have already submitted ourselves to God and now we are submitting to those around us. We are making a decision to do things in a different way that doesn’t come naturally, and in doing so we have to get rid of our sinful tendencies in every situation in which we find ourselves. For example, look at Moses, he was called the most humble man on the face of the earth. In Numbers 16 we see Korah and 250 leaders stand up and accuse Moses. Instead of hitting Korah across the face with his staff, Moses instead fell on his face praying and seeking God. This is meekness in action because Moses could have done anything in that situation. He had the power and the authority, but he did what no one expected. He was meek and gave the situation to God.
Now don’t misunderstand. Meekness is not a weakness, and meekness is not being a doormat. After all Moses is the man who stood up to Pharaoh with a message from God. Rather being meek is being powerful in many ways, but knowing when, where, how much, and for how long one should speak or respond to situations. This can only be done when we submit to the Holy Spirit. Meekness is strength.
Not only does meekness call for us to bring our responses under control, but it calls for us to bring our plans under control. Abraham showed us what it means to be meek when it comes to our plans and pursuits. Abraham was ready to settle in a new land with Lot, but a dispute arose. Abraham’s response wasn’t to argue and take the land that was best for him, but rather he said if you want that land on the right then I’ll take the land on the left, but if you want that land on the left, then I’ll take that land on the right. Abraham brought his personal preferences under control, demonstrating a meekness that is not of this world. Meekness takes everything under control and submits it to God.
These are just two small examples of what meekness looks like in the real world, and we could spend all day looking at ways and examples of people in scripture demonstrating a supernatural meekness that can only be lived out through Christ. Proverbs tells us “As a man thinks, so he is”. Paul says that we have to bring every thought into captivity and into obedience and that’s where all of us need to start. Only some of us will blow up when we respond in certain situations and only some of us will always selfishly seek what is best for us no matter the situation, but all of us have thoughts that have to be brought into submission in order for us to be meek. We must empty ourselves of our sinful selves if we want to be meek, and that starts in our minds.
Once we are taking this step in meekness, we see that the promise is that those who are meek will inherit the earth. When we see this term, it is referring to the idea of the children of Israel and the promise they were given of the promise land. This land represents God’s favor and the ability for all of us to experience all good things in Him that we can only experience through obedience. So, when we submit ourselves to both God and man and bring our sinful nature under God’s control in meekness, we will experience all the wonderful things God has in store for us.
Now that we are empty of our sinful nature that has been submitted to God, what do we do now? We need something to fill the gap. That is what Jesus addresses in the next step in our walk with God.
III. Walking with God means being desperate for His righteousness; Matthew 5:6 - NIV
6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
Jesus then says that walking with Him means we must hunger and thirst for righteousness, but this is not a simple hunger where you can eat a Snickers and be fine. This is an almost unquenchable thirst and a desperate hunger not for anything man can provide, but rather it’s a hunger for the righteous things of God. This isn’t a hunger where we just want God to help in one area of our lives while we hold on to the rest. This is a hunger that can only be stopped when we have all of God’s righteousness. This includes everything that makes us who we think we are. It’s giving it all to Him, bringing it under control, and seeking God’s way instead of our way in everything. We do need to be careful here because we can fool ourselves by thinking the good things we do (charity, good deeds, church attendance, etc.) can quench this hunger and thirst. We must remember our righteousness is like filthy rags and will give us a self-righteous attitude, instead we must seek the righteousness of God. We yearn for the things only God can give, but not just a little here and a little there, but all of it - consuming all parts of our lives.
His promise for those who do long to fill themselves not with their own sinful desires but rather the righteous things of God, they will be filled, and they will be satisfied. You will get all of God that you want.
So, I guess this all boils down to the question, “What are you hungry for in life?” Are you hungry for all the things of God, or are you longing for another taste of this world that is full of shifting sands? One will leave you disappointed, broken, and hungry for something else, but when you choose God, you will be satisfied - not just for today and tomorrow, but for all eternity. Seems like an easy choice, but it’s a choice that has to be made by you each and every day. What are you hungry for?
