What Are You Thirsting For?

This is a brief recap from my sermon,  "What Are you Thirsting For," delivered at Christian Health Care Center West on Sunday, January 31st in Louisville, Kentucky.  I thank my brother, Chaplain Michael Lee for the invitation; Min. Marian Anderson, Demetrius Gunn, Rev. Dennis Prince, and Yvette Bentley for participating on the program.

Webster Dictionary defines “thirst” as an uncomfortable feeling that is caused by the need for something to drink;  a strong desire for something; a craving or longing, a thirst for success.  To desire for something is a part of what it means to be human.  What is it that people often thirst for?  Some thirst for power.  They want to rule and control governments and economies, to be King or Queen or President of the United States. Some thirst for knowledge.  That is why people often spend thousands of dollars for college degrees.    Some thirst for fortune and fame.  The Bible warns us about the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life, and declares the love of money to be the root of kinds of evil. The thirst for love is natural.  It is in our DNA to love because humans were created in the image of God and God is love. The woman at the well, however, thirsted for love in all the wrong places.  She had five husbands and the one she was living with was not her husband. What are you thirsting for?

Then there is the thirst for water.  Our bodies are made up of 60%-70% water and we need it to survive. Research has shown that we can survive longer without food than we can without water. We can survive three weeks without food, but only one week without water. Nothing quenches your thirst after a long run or vigorous workout like a tall cup of cold water. Are you drinking enough water and the right kind of water?   The people of Flint, Michigan are not.  Through no fault of their own, they have been made to drink for the past two years cloudy, toxic, lead-contaminated, odorous river water. Many have gotten sick, and ten have died from Legionnaire's Disease. The FBI is investigating. The people of Flint are thirsting for clean water. Jesus thirsted on the Cross. What are you thirsting for? 
Why was Jesus thirsty? Jesus was thirsty because of how he was structured, he was fully man and fully God; because of how he secured salvation, for others first, and himself last; and because of how he satisfied, the Scriptures and not himself.  Isn't it ironic that in this crazy, mixed up world with which we live, we are quick to satisfy self and not Scripture? Having been separated from his Father for the first time in his life, above all, Jesus thirsted for God.  Jesus was thirsty because of how He satisfied the Father at the Cross, and He ought to be our source of satisfaction today.  Drink from His cup!