Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. Matt 5:6
Food and water are fundamental to health and life. Without them we experience hunger and thirst that inevitably motivates us to satisfy the longing these conditions evoke. Note that Jesus does not explicitly laud righteousness, but focuses on a deep and passionate desire for righteousness that arises from an inner longing to embody it.
When you hear the word righteousness, your thoughts may be drawn to Ten Commandments and your own personal behavior in light of that standard. Yet, righteousness is so much more than striving to follow a set of rules. Thinking of righteousness in this way strips it of depth, meaning and any real connection to life. To better understand what Jesus has in mind when he encourages us to seek righteousness it will be helpful to dive into the Scriptures:
“Thus, says the LORD: “Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD who practices steadfast love, justice and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the LORD.” Jer 9:23-24 ESV
If you're familiar with Scripture you know that justice and righteousness are often associated, being that they constitute the act and the manner of our relating; God and humanity, and people, one with another. In the Hebrew, tzadeqah (tsad·dēk') translated as righteousness, can be understood to be a life characterized by right relationships as Jeremiah explains.
Thus says the LORD: Do justice and righteousness, and deliver from the hand of the oppressor him who has been robbed. And do no wrong or violence to the resident alien, the fatherless, and the widow, nor shed innocent blood in this place. Jer 22:3 ESV
To further illustrate, let’s look briefly at the Book of Job. You’ll recall that Job literally loses everything of value: family, wealth and health in quick succession. Job’s friends come to him, ostensibly to comfort him in the midst of his misery, though they begin with the assumption that Job has in some way angered God and is suffering the consequences of his unrighteousness. Aware of their assumption, Job makes the case that he is in fact a righteous man undeserving of what has befallen him. He summarizes his defense in these few verses:
“I delivered the poor who cried for help, and the fatherless who had none to help him. The blessing of him who was about to perish came upon me, and I caused the widow’s heart to sing for joy. I put on righteousness, and it clothed me; my justice was like a robe and a turban. I was eyes to the blind and feet to the lame. I was a father to the needy, and I searched out the cause of him whom I did not know. I broke the fangs of the unrighteous and made him drop his prey from his teeth.” Job 29:12-17
Job makes his claim of righteousness on the basis of how he has treated the powerless, the needy and the stranger. It is clear that justice and human relationships, how we treat and care for one another regardless of our station life, are fundamental and essential aspects of righteousness. It should be evident at this juncture why justice and righteousness are inseparably linked; there can be no righteous relations with God or our neighbor without justice.
The True Meaning of the Law
Jesus opens his Teaching on the Mount with the Beatitudes, and then goes on to redirect his follower’s focus from the letter of the Law, “You shall not commit murder”, to the heart of the matter: motives, thoughts, feelings and attitudes that define our relationships with God and one another.
But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire. Matt 5:22
Righteousness, at its core, is not adherence to statutes and pious living. Righteousness is fundamentally concerned with the fabric and texture of our relationships, the warp and woof of any human society. Yearning for righteousness is born of a passionate desire to draw near to the heart of God and to know Him intimately.
Meditating on the Beatitudes, one comes to understand them as the profile of a Kingdom citizen. In a very few words Jesus characterizes the heart and mind attuned to God and passionately in love with Him. It is unbounded love for God that fuels the desire for righteousness. And it is the love of God and the power of the Spirit that calls and enables us to live into God’s vision for righteous relationships that constitute the Kingdom of God now and forever.
Lord, inspire each of us to desire you above all things in this life, and keep our hearts and minds fixed on you day by day that we may live a life pleasing to you. Amen
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