Hungering and thirsting for righteousness (Quality: Very good)

[0:00] As the Lord may be pleased to help me, I would direct you prayerfully to Matthew's Gospel, chapter 5, and reading verse 6.

[0:15] Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled. Lord, we're reading here of Christ's Sermon on the Mount, oh how feeble we feel to be in this solemn position that we're in, to continue in the footsteps of Christ, and yet feeling so unworthy, so ignorant and foolish.

[0:52] And yet venture we must, because we trust of his leanings and guidings, to join the church, and to be sent forth with the approbation of the church at Metfield those many years ago, and having obtained help of God, dare I say, having been helped of God thus far, to declare his counsels.

[1:23] And Lord, we look to him, to truly bless his own word, that we might be led to speak today, but above all to know these blessings, of these beatitudes as they are referred to here below, in particular, but in particular, this hunger, and thirst after righteousness.

[1:50] Or how countless millions will be void of this knowledge of the truth, will be devoid of being born again by the Spirit, and will die in their sins.

[2:04] and we privileged souls if we're not mistaken have been called by his grace we're not what we would be trust or we're not what we once were but we might be careless and prayerless because we have not been taught to pray as Jesus said that men are always to pray not to faint but the blessing of the Lord remember maketh rich and addeth no sorrow with it there is sorrow in the world we see it and hear of it day after day but oh how solemn if we're never born again if the word of truth doesn't search us and try us and show us our wickedness and lead us into the way of everlasting and so we must feed we must be blessed with crumbs of mercy from his table we must be blessed with a desire and those people desires those wishes so weak tis Jesus inspires and causes us to seek and you will know if you have received that instruction to seek the Lord while he may be found and call upon him while he's near hunger and thirst by nature we are brought to hunger and thirst for food for our bodily sustenance but oh what a mercy if we are lifted out of their natural mind and have that spiritual mind which will be seeking peace and seeking that our souls might be nourished and fed with living bread and living water and the Lord alone can grant the blessing or you may have sought the blessing in many things in providence and the Lord has appeared to you and for you and favoured you with tokens of his love but oh how much more needful is the spirit of truth to come down to reveal the things of God to make to us salvation known and witness with the blood blessed are they and it will be these are they that came up at a great tribulation and washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb that's the sustenance that keeps your soul in line seeking the blood of Christ that cleanseth from all sin hunger and thirst after righteousness the object of your soul's desire having this living bread living waters not like the Catholics dear friends that sprinkle a lot of so-called holy water what a delusion

[5:13] God has sent them but let's turn away from that but to see that the Lord alone can unite your soul and mind to walk in his fear reverence his holy name reverence his house reverence the holy word that he's given to us and will open the eyes of your understanding to understand the scriptures they shall be filled what a mercy dear friends then if he's filling your soul with knowledge and understanding of the scriptures they shall be filled joy and peace in believing that he's the only begotten son of God full of grace and full of truth grace then being born again by the water and the spirit teaches you and me to bear witness to bear witness you've been with Jesus those sweet moments that you might record in your mind when Jesus himself drew near he became the one thing needful he became the one that could feed your soul and water your soul that it might be as a well watered garden flourish and bear fruit in the courts of your Lord oh surely you have known something of this hunger and this thirst it's the imputed righteousness of Christ to cover with a mantle of his forgiving love all your sins and all your transgressions you're bound up bound up in the bundle of life blessed Jesus yes you will have those that will persecute you those that will revile you and laugh you to scorn and say all manner of evil against you falsely for my sake and so it is the day that you'll laugh to scorn because you attend the means of grace but what will it profit you and me if we go in the whole world and lose our soul it's Jesus alone can feed your soul with the knowledge of the truth he said you know the truth and the truth shall make you free oh may we have this hunger and this thirst after his righteousness the pardon of all our sins the washing away of all that filth of nature cover with a mantle of his giving love all your sins and all my sins and be brought into his banqueting house and his banner over you and me and will be love blessed Jesus then as you hunger and it is but a remnant that call the election of grace will know the joyful sound of the gospel the sum and substance of your soul he will perfect that that concerns your soul he feeds you with food convenient for you oh what a favour to know this in your heart that Jesus has caused you to be born again by the water of the spirit making you wise to observe these things even they shall understand the loving kindness of the Lord that after all it's his love his sermon on the mount dear friends found an abiding place in his hearers at the time but old man was still those that would revile him and so it's to have your treasure in this earth a vessel that the excellence of power may be of God and not of man so no matter what man strives to do dear friends in his own wisdom he will never succeed unless the spirit of the truth comes down and applies this and that promise to their hearts and this is a mercy you can seek all their lives if it's in the only strength of natural wisdom but it's to seek the Lord he's the object of faith

[9:38] Jesus crucified for me making you wise and he comes right where you are and sometimes when you least expect it when your mind is set on something else that you think is good for you to have here below but oh to have this hunger to have this desire to be delivered of the lust of the flesh and the pride of man to be humbled in the dust if so be there might be hope of obtaining this great salvation you want that passport to heaven and it is through these tokens of his love that opens the windows of heaven and pours down a blessing such as there shall not be room enough to receive it blessed Jesus then that he has brought you into his banqueting house he's given you a desire and you've had the discernment being born again of what you want to know and what you long for to be enabled to be blessed indeed the blessing of the Lord that maketh rich and addeth no sorrow thereto oh what a favour the righteousness of Christ it's not you feeling right it's what the

[11:08] Lord bestows upon you crumbs of mercy from the master's table and they stick fast in your soul and still you realise there is sin to be cleansed from still need the pardon of your sin need to be prepared for those prepared mansions in the sky and where do you find it by being drawn by the courts of man by the bands of his love who says come unto me all that labour and heavy laden and I will give thee rest and you'll have you'll have something to make you feel heavy laden and burdened and he said cast thy burden upon the hunger you see you want the Lord to give you a living testimony we must have a testimony I believe from the Lord to assure our conscience of his part in the dear redeemer's blood this will feed your soul it won't be the vain things of this world will feed your soul they may feed your body they may feed the lust of the flesh and the pride of life but it's hungry and your hope will be in the merits of

[12:32] Jesus say unto my soul Lord I am thy salvation prepare me for the unknown prepare me for death and after death the judgment that I might prove that Jesus is that advocate with the Father Jesus Christ the righteous who will plead for your case stand in your room place instead and get the victory over this body of sin and death through the merits of Jesus he's given you a hunger you want righteousness you want evidences that you have that robe of Christ righteousness imputed to you and they shall be filled this is something for you and me to be pleading for and want to be filled fulfilling of my hunger fulfilling of my thirst for the imputed robe of Christ righteousness covered with a mantle of forgiving love all my sins and all my guilt and all my iniquities and receive that pardon here's the security of sin be pardoned

[13:46] I'm secure death and no sin besides the Lord gave sin its damning power Christ my ransom died and so how we need the Lord in his mercy don't we to grant us that deliverance from the fire of hell and so he brings your soul then out of trouble he brings you into that wealthy place where he speaks to you and me pardon when he bears witness of shedding his blood for you on Calvary's tree sin be pardoned I'm secure that's what we want Lord do fill me fill me with joy and peace my cup right run over joy and peace in believing that he has redeemed me from the curse of the broken Lord he's the object of your soul's desire it isn't having bountiful blessings in providence that may be a sign that he has favoured you and you'll acknowledge it that the

[14:53] Lord is good and stronghold in the day of trouble but he knoweth them the trust in him so we shall mourn over our sins and after him and pray Lord oh that I might have some substance some real evidence that I had been fed and watered my soul nourished and fed with living bread and living waters that impute to me the righteousness of Christ and so the righteous he said shall hold on their way it is here little and there little line upon line preset upon preset a journey dear friends for the sinner saved by grace and oh how it troubles us to think there are those that we know yes and even love that have no concern for the welfare of their souls they lie down in sorrow and this is a thing that is a great burden to believers they have those that they witness around them that have no knowledge of the truth oh it's all very well manufacturing some religion but that won't do you and me any good will it it's hunger you see you want the Lord to give you this hunger and this thirst and then satisfy your longing soul soul with desire desire to see the Lord

[16:36] Jesus and to follow him drawn by the cords of man by the bands of his love he won't let you go of your ears he won't pass you by you may be desperately in need of a token of his love the time is set set time to favour you and you see he tells us about killing and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgement or when we think of the murderings that's going on the lack of respect for the bodily life of those around us but oh what a mercy if you and I have been spared from that man in his anger whoever he is is capable of murder if left to himself but oh what a mercy to be brought here Lord preserve me from bringing shame upon that dear head of thine preserve me from causing harm one to another and grant that I might live peaceably realising that without him we can do nothing he warns us hear this

[17:55] I say unto you except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees you shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven these are definite words of scripture these are the words of the Lord Jesus in this very precious gospel sermon that he preached on the mount but oh how many how few that were blessed indeed with being filled with this joy and this peace my peace I leave with you he says in John and so it is the case my peace I leave with you not as the world give I give unto you let not your heart be troubled ye believe in me you see this faith which he's the author of to believe in him to believe what he's preached to them there's no doubt he said he's seen the multitudes he went up into a mountain and when he was set his disciples came up to him and he opened his mouth and taught them who teaches like him he may raise up servants that are feeble for the work and need the

[19:17] Lord to continually loosen their stammering tongue and bless them with liberty in the gospel but still they have doubts and fears in their mind whether they are truly sons and daughters of God by blessed adoption they have a good hope your aunt still had a good hope but you see how humble she was and we need to humble ourselves before almighty God that we might be exalted in due time casting all our care upon him for he does care for his chosen people and we cannot boast or glory in it but it humbles you and me to think that he has touched your heart spoken to you and said the blessing of the Lord make you rich not with finances dear friends here below with filthy lucre which men have hunted after we have that natural mind that we would desire this and desire that in life's journey what a mercy to have these feeble desires these wishes so we to feed upon the truth he says ye shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free from the condemnation of a broken law but oh this blessing of the

[20:45] Lord that maketh rich to all intents of bliss that when you and I and the Lord is finished with our life on the earth that we might have an abundant entrance into his everlasting kingdom to be with the Lord forevermore this then is the prospect of a sinner saved by grace and he will know that his sins are so sanctified that they seek one thing and that is one thing needful and Mary had chosen that good part though you and I might be very much careful and troubled about many things and yet a believer was Martha but hunger thirst righteousness to be filled to have that living testimony and evidence that the Lord has called you by his grace enabled you and me to cast all your cares and your burdens upon it

[21:51] Lord I've been following in the word for many years but have I found him have I found him whom my soul loveth the Lord must give you this love for the truth you should know the truth and the truth shall as I said just now will free you from the condemnation that you are each underborn in as I said conceived in sin we're full of sin but you'll hang your helpless soul upon the Lord dependence by whole dependence on me fix nor any thought thy worthless scares with mine amidst venture to be not always a hard thing to be brought into your nothingness your poverty but to whom else can you go for the Lord alone has eternal life to give to you and to me and you will be

[22:57] I believe jointly blessed with this catalogue here of blessings upon his people for they you know you'll be merciful and you'll obtain mercy and mercy is welcome news indeed to sinners distressed with their trials you see you won't always be in this good frame when you're hung hungry and thirsting for Christ but you'll see that the Lord alone is right and what he doeth for you and me is perfect and he will perfect that that concerns your soul and mine and he favour you and me with tokens and evidences to the end that he has called you by his grace and all this unmerited mercy and love of Christ to your soul to give you the blessing of the

[23:58] Lord that maketh rich rich to all intents of bliss to have that treasure in your earthen vessel that shall be of God and not of the flesh and you pray Lord do undertake for me do grant me that hope that I am one of thy chosen vessels that thou hast laid down thy life for on Calvary tree thou shed thy blood and when he came to die on the cross the body said it is finished the work that he came to do was an instruction from the father and in your day and age it's the blessed spirit will bring to you and me those tokens and evidences that you're born of God and your treasures above because you have a good hope through grace you are cast down but hope though in

[24:58] God I should yet praise him you have this hope but you will yet praise him for his feeding yourself a crumb a sip it's not in great volumes but here little and there little line upon line and precept upon precept where the Lord bestow upon you you go in the strength of that righteousness the object of Jesus to cover you with the mantle of his forgiving love they shall be filled they've not yet perhaps been filled in your circumstances but they're an appointed time a set time to favour you and me when you're brought to feel he's the one thing needful without him I must perish in my sins and that justly he's a just God he will not at all acquit the wicked if you and me are in an unregenerate state we need to look for this filling for these blessed spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ

[26:09] Jesus that he might favour you and me with fulfilling my desires Lord fulfil those desires that are feeble and faint to confirm myself with signs following and don't leave me Lord to mock thee or to have an imagination casting down imaginations and bringing every thought to the obedience of Christ you think of that every thought it's when he girds up the launch of your mind your hope your sober and hope to the end for his appearing all the perfection different in the pathway you and I in this side of the grave no other refuge he's the refuge of your weary soul weary do not be wearied in well doing for in due season ye shall be blessed even though you feel to faint faint not he says faint not men ought always to pray not to faint but oh can we find matter for prayer he'll give it you he'll give it you you wonder sometimes where's the scene going to end am I really right am I made right am I kept right thy whole dependence only fixed not entertained

[27:39] I thought my worldly schemes with mine but venture to me naught nothing in my hand I bring but their mercy is blessed are they this is the object of your souls these blessings blessings he opened his mouth and taught them saying all you say teach me then Lord teach me to do thy will do lead me the plain path may Christ be formed in my heart the hope of glory the refuge of my weary soul yes because what wearies you why your infirmities your outer man decaying you want the inward man to be renewed day by day because the inward man is the never dying soul it never dies as your soul but our mercy is if you and

[28:44] I have that body of the flesh given to you to be reconnected again to your never dying soul these are they that came up out of their great tribulation we can't escape tribulation but these are they to come out of the great tribulation and wash their robes and made them white and the blood of the lamb righteousness put on for you and for thee they shall be filled and we shall need to die in the body dear friends before we shall have this fulfilled when he covers your sins and mine with that robe that glorious robe wrought out on Calvary stream and so this pardon and assurance of heaven it'll be well done thou good and faithful servant hearer believer well done thou good and faithful servant enter thou into the presence of your

[29:55] Lord forever more the sermon of the man will be fulfilled dear friends in the souls of many that he has chosen before the world that they might live to show forth his prayer to rejoice and be exceeding glad he tells us here or may we know this joyful sound may we not despise it or reject it men will revile you and persecute you and say all manner of evil against you for my sake rejoice and be exceeding glad for great is your reward in heaven filled dear friends your cup running open joy and peace in believing in the merits of Jesus what a privilege if you know a little of these things that we trust we brought forth by the spirit's teaching and all to know this great reward in heaven laid up in store the souls such as you and me redeemed from the curse of the

[31:02] Lord blessed Jesus your sake and your failure when I see the time is gone I must leave it for the time may the Lord pardon all the mess and get to himself honour and glory anything accepted in our message this morning we ask you for Christ's sake Amen Let us conclude with hymn 979 the tune is Brillington 309 Jesus those happy souls that bless who hunger for his righteousness who seek the smilings of his face and thirst for fresh supplies of grace they cannot hear contented live on all the daint his earth can give their soul can feast on nothing less than Christ's eternal righteousnessymph

[32:04] Heavy 509�leye pe quantify saiyanák אני hateilling aqui jح He gives us the patience of God's love His love before His righteousness Who seek a small and ring of His face

[33:06] And the merciful friends supplies all praise They cannot hear God's elect and prayer On all that they may be perfect Loose gleaming with some Thanks Glory to God There's some grace on my campus I take fast your falou my0000 every love

[34:25] But the bright water which they gather Build them a glorious banquet of Then shall their souls be ready for him May this my gift lift me around me There are hell of us and birds of the sea

[35:27] And come thy righteous name to God When scambles burn and calm on me When they have blessed my soul shall rise To the blessed banquet in the skies I shall but lay the heavenly storm

[36:32] And give them sing for me May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ The love of God the Father The fellowship of the Holy Spirit Rest in the Bible this age Amenillance.

[37:06] Object dabble to the Holy Spirit�이 aoen añanta