I
love that the Amplified Bible has it this way “completely satisfied.” Not just,
satisfied, not just, they will get what they are hungering after and thirsting
for, but they will be completely satisfied. The world preaches that
satisfaction comes from evil hungers and desires, but Jesus says, if you hunger
for righteousness, you will be satisfied in every area of your life. It is
funny how hard we try to hold onto some of our old stuff, habits, sins etc.
Many a man has stayed away from God for a time, because they did not want to
give up some secret sin, and knew that God would never allow it. But the truth
is that God invented pleasure, and
really knows how to make it work.
David
says this in Psalm 16:11, “Thou wilt make known to me the path of life; In Thy
presence is fullness of joy; In Thy right hand there are pleasures forever.”
Heaven is a place of complete pleasure, like you have never experienced. God completely gets you, and knows
exactly how to satisfy your desires.
During
a study of the Song of Solomon we looked at 7 longings of the human heart as
identified by Mike Bickle and Deborah Hiebert. You can get his book on the subject here: http://www.amazon.com/The-Seven-Longings-Human-Heart/dp/0977673847
These longings are not sin and are not to be repented of. They are not even
part of our sin nature. These are all God designed longings and appetites that each of us
must manage and discover God's intended fulfillment. Bickle details these
7 longings, which he says every human has.
A
longing to be fascinated
A
longing to possess and feel beautiful
A
longing to be great and successful
A
longing to know intimacy without shame
A
longing for assurance of being enjoyed
A
longing to be wholehearted and passionate
A
longing to make deep and lasting impact
These
longings are often satisfied in unholy ways causing guilt and separation from
God and from one another. These unholy actions need to be dealt with
specifically in repentance. (2 Cor 7:10-11 holds the process of repentance in
detail – see blog post June 13th: God's Upside-down Kingdom Step 2 )
However, because there are so many ways to fulfill these longings that are not glorifying to God, it is easy for us to despise the very longings themselves. Rather than managing them, and directing them with godly wisdom and the Word of God try to get free from them or to suppress them. A longing to be great can be look upon as pride, and we could try to suppress that drive for greatness that God has put in our soul. Instead we should look to the Lord for instruction. When the disciples were arguing over which was the greatest, Jesus did not rebuke them, but rather pointed them in the right direction (humility - classic upside-down strategy for greatness.)
See if this question for God works for you: Father, am I feeling guilt for passions You gave me?
Thanks for reading!
Ben
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