Satisfaction

Matthew 13:44 The Kingdom of Heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.

Consider the search for satisfaction in a song that most of you will know: "I can't get no satisfaction", by the Rolling Stones.

When I'm drivin' in my car
And a man comes on the radio
He's telling me more and more
About some useless information
Supposed to fire my imagination
I can't get no, oh no no no
Hey hey hey, that's what I say

I can't get no satisfaction
I can't get no satisfaction
'Cause I try and I try and I try and I try
I can't get no, I can't get no

When I'm watchin' my TV
And a man comes on to tell me
How white my shirts can be
But he can't be a man 'cause he doesn't smoke
The same cigarrettes as me
I can't get no, oh no no no
Hey hey hey, that's what I say

I can't get no satisfaction
I can't get no girlie action
'Cause I try and I try and I try and I try
I can't get no, I can't get no

When I'm ridin' round the world
And I'm doin' this and I'm signing that
And I'm tryin' to make some girl
Who tells me baby better come back later next week
'Cause you see I'm on losing streak
I can't get no, a no no no
Hey hey hey, that's what I say

I can't get no, I can't get no
I can't get no satisfaction
No satisfaction, no satisfaction, no satisfaction

Honestly this could be theme song of our day. If you look deeply into the heart of the lyrics you will see a character that is looking to have his desires met and needs and wants satisfied. He wants to be fulfilled and pleased. His problem is that he is looking for it in all of the wrong places. He is listening for satisfaction through his radio listening to modern rhetoric of news,thoughts and politics. He is looking for satisfaction on his TV by watching cool products and advertisements that promise to make him feel better about himself. He travels the world famously, leveraging his fame for hit and run sex opportunities. In all of these things, he comes up empty. He is unsatisfied. The big question is why? Is it wrong to search for satisfaction?

In Matthew 13:44, and throughout the Bible,it is clear that we can truly be permanently satisfied by one thing. The treasure of knowing Jesus Christ. There is a hole in our souls that sin has created that longs for its maker. I believe that God designed us to search and long for joy, joy in Him. Our problem is that our sin sends us out searching for satisfaction in everything but Christ. Sin has left a gaping whole in our hearts that only He can fill. He is a treasure to be desired and enjoyed, and we are prone to bypass Him and desire other things. For most of my life, I desired everything but Christ, but knew I needed Him as a Savior. I was completely unsatisfied, dabbling in multiple sin habits until I truly saw Him as my treasure. The greatest prayer in my life is that I desire Him more, and that I will see Him alone as treasure. It is a very satisfying prayer and God that I serve. Desire in itself is a drive for joy and pleasure and that is in our created design. It is who or what we seek in our desires that is the key. If we desire Christ and treasure Him, we will be drawn to Him and live in faith. If we desire to be filled with the things of this world we will be left only wanting more as we are unsatisfied, walking in sin.

Nothing but treasuring Christ can satisfy us. Look at people who desire for money. They get it and guess what? They have to have more? The same for drugs, sex, gambling, vanity surgeries, worldly success, tobacco, abusive power and pornography. they are false treasures that deceptively look like oasis as we stand on the edge of a desert. They lure us in to the desert with the promise of satisfaction. After we drink our fill of it, we see a bigger oasis deeper in the desert with a larger promise of provocative pleasure. This occurs over and over as we are led so deep into a dry and parched land that we are lost, empty and completely shackled with the false allure of sinful desires. It starts ever so subtly, but as we all know as our false desires are met with temporary treasures it ends up sucking the life out of us and driving us away from our only hope in being satisfied, Jesus the Christ.

So let me ask you: Is Christ your treasure? Is He the satisfaction of your life?

Or are you getting your satisfaction elsewhere and then coming to Him in an empty religious routine, as if you really want Him when you really don't?