WEBVTT 00:00:02.160 --> 00:00:05.320 You open the refrigerator door, and you stand 00:00:05.320 --> 00:00:09.660 there, and you stare inside, and you say there's 00:00:09.660 --> 00:00:14.919 nothing to eat. There is food in your home. There's 00:00:14.919 --> 00:00:18.359 pasta in the pantry, soup on the shelf, frozen 00:00:18.359 --> 00:00:21.339 vegetables, although it's those weird mixed ones 00:00:21.339 --> 00:00:24.920 that nobody really likes. There might be a forgotten 00:00:24.920 --> 00:00:28.280 TV dinner in the freezer. But what are we really 00:00:28.280 --> 00:00:31.190 saying? We're not saying there's actually nothing 00:00:31.190 --> 00:00:33.390 to eat. We're saying there's nothing I want to 00:00:33.390 --> 00:00:37.810 eat. Nothing easy, nothing immediate, nothing 00:00:37.810 --> 00:00:42.289 you just pop in the microwave, nothing that requires 00:00:42.289 --> 00:00:48.729 being able to be impatient, right? But sometimes 00:00:48.729 --> 00:00:54.630 hunger is not about patience. Sometimes our hunger 00:00:54.630 --> 00:00:59.659 is realizing that it's not about absence. It's 00:00:59.659 --> 00:01:03.399 about our desire. And that is where Deuteronomy 00:01:03.399 --> 00:01:08.519 has taken us. Deuteronomy 8 .3, He humbled you 00:01:08.519 --> 00:01:13.239 and let you hunger and fed you with man. God 00:01:13.239 --> 00:01:17.560 let them hunger. That is uncomfortable language. 00:01:18.219 --> 00:01:21.200 He did not accidentally forget them. He let them 00:01:21.200 --> 00:01:27.579 into it. There's real physical hunger in this 00:01:27.579 --> 00:01:31.310 world. There are people who truly do not know 00:01:31.310 --> 00:01:34.450 where their next meal will come from. So when 00:01:34.450 --> 00:01:37.709 we say, I'm starving because dinner is delayed, 00:01:38.769 --> 00:01:42.090 we are quietly comparing ourselves to those who 00:01:42.090 --> 00:01:47.670 genuinely are in heat. We flatten the difference 00:01:47.670 --> 00:01:51.549 as if we are the same. Is it any wonder that 00:01:51.549 --> 00:01:56.980 compassion can sometimes feel so thin? because 00:01:56.980 --> 00:02:00.439 we have often confused our inconvenience with 00:02:00.439 --> 00:02:05.180 actual deprivation. But hunger, even small hunger, 00:02:05.879 --> 00:02:08.780 it actually does something to the mind and the 00:02:08.780 --> 00:02:13.340 body. It may sharpen our attention. It may clear 00:02:13.340 --> 00:02:16.879 away distractions. It can even force awareness. 00:02:17.439 --> 00:02:21.539 Psalm 107 -9 says he satisfies the longing soul 00:02:21.539 --> 00:02:25.740 and the hungry soul he fills with good things. 00:02:26.509 --> 00:02:30.370 Physical hunger reminds us we are not sustaining 00:02:30.370 --> 00:02:34.810 ourselves. We are creatures, which means we have 00:02:34.810 --> 00:02:40.770 a creator. We need daily bread. And when we truly 00:02:40.770 --> 00:02:44.949 are in need, if and when that does happen, there 00:02:44.949 --> 00:02:49.289 are ways that we seek help. We know how to ask, 00:02:49.409 --> 00:02:52.590 how to search, how to receive with those that 00:02:52.590 --> 00:02:56.780 we know love us. but it also reminds us to ask, 00:02:57.060 --> 00:03:00.639 to search, and to receive from the God who is 00:03:00.639 --> 00:03:05.280 truly over all things. That posture is not weakness. 00:03:07.060 --> 00:03:10.500 That is vulnerability with God about the reality 00:03:10.500 --> 00:03:14.419 of our life. But you see, it's not just about 00:03:14.419 --> 00:03:19.620 our souls. It's about our whole life. Notice 00:03:19.620 --> 00:03:22.689 the Gospels switch from those who are hungry 00:03:22.689 --> 00:03:25.770 to those who thirst and hunger for righteousness. 00:03:26.509 --> 00:03:29.650 Because we, as people, we do hunger for purpose. 00:03:30.110 --> 00:03:34.430 We hunger for joy. We hunger for love. We hunger 00:03:34.430 --> 00:03:39.550 to matter. To know we have a reason to be. Jesus 00:03:39.550 --> 00:03:43.349 says in Matthew 5 -6, Blessed are those who hunger 00:03:43.349 --> 00:03:45.590 and thirst for righteousness, for they shall 00:03:45.590 --> 00:03:50.009 be satisfied. Notice He does not shame hunger. 00:03:51.370 --> 00:03:55.870 He blesses us. But what are we actually hungry 00:03:55.870 --> 00:03:59.129 for? How often is it that we are actually hungry 00:03:59.129 --> 00:04:02.449 for a deeper life, and how much is it that we're 00:04:02.449 --> 00:04:06.169 actually just wanting to upgrade? When we say 00:04:06.169 --> 00:04:09.110 that we lack fulfillment, but often what we mean 00:04:09.110 --> 00:04:11.889 is that we lack the version of life that we would 00:04:11.889 --> 00:04:15.530 prefer. The vacations we want, the recognition 00:04:15.530 --> 00:04:19.250 we hope for, the security we long for, the comfort 00:04:19.250 --> 00:04:23.870 we cling to. Those things are not evil, but they're 00:04:23.870 --> 00:04:28.689 not ultimate They're not the point Sometimes 00:04:28.689 --> 00:04:31.189 we face a wilderness season where they are not 00:04:31.189 --> 00:04:36.329 readily available Where our career stalls recognition 00:04:36.329 --> 00:04:42.009 fades in excitement dims Where every day we wake 00:04:42.009 --> 00:04:45.709 up and see the same dresser and the same nightstand 00:04:45.709 --> 00:04:49.649 I wonder if anything will ever change the wilderness 00:04:50.269 --> 00:04:53.509 is a place where what we thought would satisfy 00:04:53.509 --> 00:04:58.069 us does not. Here's the danger, is that when 00:04:58.069 --> 00:05:01.470 we are hungry, we oftentimes we go to the first 00:05:01.470 --> 00:05:04.829 fast food place that's right there, but it's 00:05:04.829 --> 00:05:08.410 not just in regard to McDonald's or KFC. When 00:05:08.410 --> 00:05:11.569 we are hungry in our soul, we grab for the first 00:05:11.569 --> 00:05:15.550 drive -through that meets our spirit. Achievement, 00:05:15.850 --> 00:05:20.100 control, scrolling. comparing ourselves to others, 00:05:20.319 --> 00:05:25.540 even our religious performance can do so. Israel 00:05:25.540 --> 00:05:30.360 was grumbling, Adam was grasping, and we try 00:05:30.360 --> 00:05:35.060 to manage life. But Deuteronomy says God let 00:05:35.060 --> 00:05:37.620 them hunger so that they would learn something, 00:05:38.139 --> 00:05:43.019 not about how strong they are. But that man does 00:05:43.019 --> 00:05:47.129 not live by bread alone. But by every word that 00:05:47.129 --> 00:05:51.209 comes from the mouth of the Lord, you see, hunger 00:05:51.209 --> 00:05:55.910 exposes what we depend on. And at moments like 00:05:55.910 --> 00:06:00.670 that, maybe we should also say man should not 00:06:00.670 --> 00:06:05.730 live by bread alone. But you see, we hunger not 00:06:05.730 --> 00:06:08.610 just for ourselves, not just the physical hunger, 00:06:08.829 --> 00:06:11.949 not just the cravings for life around us, but 00:06:11.949 --> 00:06:15.519 often we may hunger for the world. We hunger 00:06:15.519 --> 00:06:18.579 for justice. We hunger for fairness, for righteousness, 00:06:18.879 --> 00:06:22.220 for healing in broken systems. Micah 6, 8, He 00:06:22.220 --> 00:06:24.199 has told you, O man, what is good and what does 00:06:24.199 --> 00:06:28.100 the Lord require of you. But to do justice, to 00:06:28.100 --> 00:06:31.339 love kindness, to walk humbly with your God, 00:06:31.620 --> 00:06:36.040 we see what is wrong. We feel the ache. We long 00:06:36.040 --> 00:06:40.579 for things to be set right. But even here, we 00:06:40.579 --> 00:06:43.800 need to ask. Are we seeking God's righteousness? 00:06:44.839 --> 00:06:47.480 Are we actually seeking our preferred version 00:06:47.480 --> 00:06:51.819 of it? It's easy to champion causes that cost 00:06:51.819 --> 00:06:55.319 us very little. Wear the t -shirt, hold the mug. 00:06:56.319 --> 00:06:59.500 It's harder to examine the small injustices that 00:06:59.500 --> 00:07:03.240 are in our own hearts. We want equality in the 00:07:03.240 --> 00:07:05.420 world, but do we practice humility in our homes? 00:07:06.279 --> 00:07:08.540 We want righteousness in our institutions, but 00:07:08.540 --> 00:07:11.579 do we hunger for righteousness in what we say? 00:07:12.589 --> 00:07:18.709 World hunger can turn into outrage without repentance. 00:07:21.230 --> 00:07:25.730 It turns to outrage when we ourselves do not 00:07:25.730 --> 00:07:30.810 have repentance. Because the wilderness is meant 00:07:30.810 --> 00:07:34.750 to humble that too. Deuteronomy says he humbled 00:07:34.750 --> 00:07:41.230 you. Hunger humbles. It reveals what we can survive 00:07:41.230 --> 00:07:46.019 without. what we truly depend on, what actually 00:07:46.019 --> 00:07:50.139 satisfies. We notice as we go through hunger, 00:07:50.860 --> 00:07:53.759 we see what we can actually survive without. 00:07:55.300 --> 00:07:57.839 We realize what we've been depending on that 00:07:57.839 --> 00:08:01.480 maybe we shouldn't. And then we look and say, 00:08:02.100 --> 00:08:05.699 these are things that actually satisfy. And verse 00:08:05.699 --> 00:08:08.600 5, as a man disciplines his son, the Lord your 00:08:08.600 --> 00:08:12.779 God disciplines you. This is not punishment. 00:08:12.759 --> 00:08:18.139 This is formation. It is meant to change us. 00:08:18.339 --> 00:08:21.860 The wilderness is not abandonment. It is training. 00:08:22.620 --> 00:08:26.319 God did not let Israel hunger to destroy them. 00:08:27.180 --> 00:08:29.800 He fed them with manna that they did not expect. 00:08:31.800 --> 00:08:35.559 Rather, the wilderness was meant to change them. 00:08:36.860 --> 00:08:39.399 Their clothes did not wear out, their feet did 00:08:39.399 --> 00:08:42.500 not swell, even in hunger there was preservation. 00:08:43.419 --> 00:08:47.360 Let's be honest, after 40 years, I'm sure somebody's 00:08:47.360 --> 00:08:50.179 clothing wore out, and I'm sure somebody's feet 00:08:50.179 --> 00:08:54.679 swelled up. But the point though, is that even 00:08:54.679 --> 00:08:57.659 if that clothing wore out, there was clothing 00:08:57.659 --> 00:09:00.759 to replace it. And even for the times when the 00:09:00.759 --> 00:09:03.779 feet swelled, you could still pause and rest. 00:09:04.200 --> 00:09:07.000 because even in hunger there is preservation. 00:09:07.879 --> 00:09:10.259 When Jesus stands in his own wilderness hungry 00:09:10.259 --> 00:09:13.799 after 40 days, he quotes this very passage. He 00:09:13.799 --> 00:09:18.019 does not deny his hunger. He does not despise 00:09:18.019 --> 00:09:21.440 the bread, but rather he refuses to let the hungry 00:09:21.440 --> 00:09:25.279 define his identity at that moment or anytime. 00:09:26.299 --> 00:09:30.019 He trusts the Father. Where Israel doubted, where 00:09:30.019 --> 00:09:36.500 Adam grasped, where we swam. from Christ trusted. 00:09:37.759 --> 00:09:40.159 And the one who refused to turn stones into bread 00:09:40.159 --> 00:09:44.799 would later say, I am the bread of life. Jesus 00:09:44.799 --> 00:09:49.620 not only endured hunger, he became the provision. 00:09:50.899 --> 00:09:54.120 It is not just to wait until we find it or wait 00:09:54.120 --> 00:09:56.960 until we can make it. It's to realize it is already 00:09:56.960 --> 00:10:02.539 ours in the one place it should be. This is not 00:10:02.539 --> 00:10:05.889 a sermon. for you to get better coping mechanisms. 00:10:07.549 --> 00:10:11.409 It is not a call to make sure you improve yourself 00:10:11.409 --> 00:10:15.529 spiritually. It is an invitation to notice your 00:10:15.529 --> 00:10:20.909 hunger and bring it honestly before God. Because 00:10:20.909 --> 00:10:22.830 in the Lord's Prayer we say, give us this day 00:10:22.830 --> 00:10:27.330 our daily bread. Daily. Not yearly. Not lifetime 00:10:27.330 --> 00:10:31.129 guarantees. Not whenever we think about it. Daily 00:10:31.129 --> 00:10:34.879 dependence. Because sometimes God lets us feel 00:10:34.879 --> 00:10:39.259 hunger so we learn to pray. Sometimes we need 00:10:39.259 --> 00:10:43.419 to remember we are not self -made and we discover 00:10:43.419 --> 00:10:48.659 that our greatest need is not comfort, but communion. 00:10:50.700 --> 00:10:53.299 The wilderness is not where God stops speaking. 00:10:53.779 --> 00:10:56.340 It is often where we finally start listening. 00:10:58.860 --> 00:11:03.710 So you may be hungry later today. May be hungry 00:11:03.710 --> 00:11:10.330 in your body You may be hungry in your purpose 00:11:10.330 --> 00:11:13.649 Or you may be hungry for the world to be a little 00:11:13.649 --> 00:11:17.309 different than it is But that hunger is not proof 00:11:17.309 --> 00:11:20.649 that God has abandoned us It may be the very 00:11:20.649 --> 00:11:22.830 place where he is teaching us what truly beats 00:11:22.830 --> 00:11:27.750 us He let them hunger, but he fed them. He led 00:11:27.750 --> 00:11:31.080 his son hunger, but he did not forsake him And 00:11:31.080 --> 00:11:33.740 because Christ endured the wilderness faithfully, 00:11:34.340 --> 00:11:38.500 our hunger does not end in emptiness. It ends 00:11:38.500 --> 00:11:42.659 at a table. A table where bread and wine are 00:11:42.659 --> 00:11:48.919 given, not earned by us, but given by the cross. 00:11:50.059 --> 00:11:50.700 In Jesus' name.