Hunger for Righteousness (and More Uncomfortable Discipleship)

Scripture — Matthew 5:5-6 (NRSV)

Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

Devotion

I’ve been reading Life for Leaders regularly since the Fuller De Pree Center started publishing them. I rarely miss any, and on days I do, I usually go back to the missed devotional a day or two later. But on days my own devotions get published, I’m often tempted to skip them—because, of course, I already know what I wrote! And since I typically finish editing them only two or three weeks before they’re published, the thoughts are usually still fresh in my mind.

My reasons for reading daily devotions, however, isn’t merely to gain intellectual insights (though I do find they are rich in that way), but to take the time to reflect and pray and be challenged to grow in spiritual maturity: to allow the Holy Spirit to use the words of scripture and of that morning’s devotion writer to work in my life. So when, in early February, my devotions on 2 Timothy 2:2-4 and “Uncomfortable Discipleship” were published (here and here), I took the time to read my own words and do the exercises of reflection and action even though I thought I already knew what I would hear.

In that 2 Timothy passage, Paul writes of folks preferring to hear comfortable messages rather than uncomfortably challenging ones, and looking for teachers who will feed them what they want to hear. The charge to Timothy (and, I believe, to other leaders) is to speak the truth—including the hard parts of the Gospel message—even when it is not popular. And a step of discipleship for all followers of Christ is to be willing to listen to those challenging messages rather than just seeking out the comfortable parts.

The recommended an exercise at the end of my February devotion that involved reading Matthew 5:1-12, a passage of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount known as the Beatitudes. So I did. And I found myself suddenly feeling challenged and uncomfortable by what Jesus had to say. So much so that I’ve felt compelled for the last two months to sit in the Sermon on the Mount and continue to reread it (in multiple translations) and wrestle with just how counter-cultural and difficult to live by Jesus’ words are—and therefore, not surprisingly, just how much resistance there often is even within the church to these words.

One of the sections that jumped out at me was verses 4-5, where Jesus speaks of the blessedness of practicing meekness and of hungering for righteousness. The adjective translated as “meek” in the NRSV can also be translated as “gentle”. It is related to the noun used in Galatians 5:23 to describe the fruit of the spirit as “meekness” or “gentleness.” I think the characteristic of meekness/gentleness is closely related to the hunger for righteousness that Jesus refers to right after speaking of meekness.

The culture of the United States tends to idolize power and wealth. Though I profess a Christian faith, it is easy for me to get caught up in those cultural values. When we desire power (for example, political or economic power) or comfort (which often comes from wealth or power), then we are unlikely to value meekness. We might even despise it, belittle it, and give reasons why we shouldn’t be meek. (I will return to this tomorrow.) But if we hunger for righteousness, then we should desire to see in our lives _all _of the fruits of the Spirit, including meekness/gentleness.

The epistle of James raises a question that is a good one to end on: “Who is wise and knowledgeable among you?” James goes on to answer his question, using the same word for gentleness/meekness in verse 13 that we find in Galatians, as well as another word for gentleness in verse 17. “Show by your good life that your works are done with gentleness born of wisdom. . . . But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without a trace of partiality or hypocrisy” (James 3:13,17). James’ message is clear: Although worldly wisdom does not value meekness, God’s wisdom does. We may find ourselves drawn to messages that tell us we don’t need to be meek; that it isn’t practical, or that our current situation is too desperate and we can’t afford it. That message, James tells us, is of the world and not of God. Those called to preach should instead preach the true wisdom of the Gospel (even if it isn’t popular), and those who want to be disciples should listen to it (rather than clinging to the worldly wisdom that suits our desires).

Find all Life for Leaders devotions here. Explore what the Bible has to say about work at the unique website of our partners, the Theology of Work Project. Reflection on today’s Life for Leaders theme can be found here: “Blessed Are Those Who Hunger and Thirst for Righteousness” (Matthew 5:6).