Today, it seems like it’s all about me, what’s mine, what will satisfy me. Whatever is ‘new’ always appeals to us, because our heart is never satisfied. We are so inclined to look for satisfaction in ourselves! Yet, the moment we do, we have chosen the path to ruin. The things of this world will never satisfy the human heart and life, no matter what amount we may acquire. So many of us put most of our time and energy into our job or business or career. How hard we work for things that do not last! But none of these can relieve the thirst of our soul. 

Our Possessions Will Never Satisfy Us

Many of today’s Christians are so attached to and preoccupied with their possessions that they have become spiritually weak, lukewarm, blind and naked. But in the end, it only leaves them depressed and completely dissatisfied. We need to realize that the ways and things of the world can never satisfy the deep longings of our heart. Our house, car, clothes, motorcycle or boat—none of these are of interest to God. Since He owns the cattle on a thousand hills, He doesn’t need anything man has. Jesus told how we can satisfy our heart with a delight that wealth cannot give, no matter how great it may be. 

What we really need is to seek the conscious presence of God. And we need to bring Him into the picture when we first begin to think seriously about eternity. Then we’ll discover that all our longing and searching after something that will satisfy and fulfill our heart are the evidence that we have not been listening to God. What the soul of man is hungry for is God. We can only find satisfaction in Him—never in the things of the world, because only He is able to satisfy our soul.

Contentment is Only Possible Through Jesus

There is nothing and no one else in this world that is able to bring contentment to our human heart but Jesus Christ and Him crucified. If we have allowed ourselves to become content with all the things we own instead of God, we need to realize that we still have a chance to change our mind and attitude toward them. God’s presence is sufficiently able to satisfy every longing we may ever have. And His Word is able to satisfy our thirst to know more about Him.

When the time comes for our earthly journey to end, we need hope that we’ll find fullness of life and contentment. And that hope comes from God’s Word. “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end” (Jeremiah 29:11). We can be sure that God’s Word will find a special place in our heart, if we will make it welcome there.  

Self-centeredness Will Never Lead to Satisfaction

What are we really searching for? Is it what Jesus is searching for? Or are we only seeking contentment just for ourself? Our self-centeredness that is never satisfied makes us want to boast about our spiritual or moral abilities. We know it’s wrong for us to break the Ten Commandments because God said so. But it is right for us to break our life, to stop yearning for satisfaction, and to pour the whole thing out.

Once Christ has been formed in us, we become an unending source of contentment to His heart, no matter where He puts us. This should be enough to make the heart of every child of God content. But as long as we are perfectly gratified with what we have or what we are, we’ll never see God. After we discover this, we can stop wondering how we’re going to find satisfaction. Then the question which becomes all-absorbing is—How can God be satisfied? 

Jesus died on the Cross to glorify His heavenly Father. He thereby satisfied His Father’s holy demands by shedding His blood on the Cross. Now He wants man to repent and believe in what He has done for us on the Cross. His ultimate sacrifice satisfied His Father and made salvation possible for the whole world. We should never let this depart from our thoughts.

All spiritual desires are gratified by Christ. He’s the only One Who is able to, and He will satisfy the desire of all nations. But our lust for things, for self-contentment, is never-ending—because the more we sin, the more we are forced to sin. “Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us, and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins (1 John 4:10). “Propitiation” is the sacrifice which completely satisfies the requirements of the broken Law. This was done by Jesus’ crucifixion on the Cross of Calvary.

We Could Never Fulfill the Requirements of God

We could not pay the requirements here ourselves, so we were therefore doomed to pay for our sins in Hell forever. But Christ could satisfy the Law, and He did—by suffering the death penalty on our behalf. Therefore, if we will put our full and complete trust in Him, the demands of the Law regarding our sins will be met. This could only be done through what Christ did on the Cross. He is and always has been the only One who could satisfy God’s requirements. Therefore, the highest and deepest need we have can be met, not by receiving all the gifts of God—but only by receiving Him.

“He shall see of the travail of His soul, and shall be satisfied: by His knowledge shall My righteous servant justify many; for He shall bear their iniquities.”

Isaiah 53:11

Only Jesus can meet the need of the great empty space in the human heart. He wants to have first place in the heart of all who call themselves by His name. We will never be satisfied in this present time; the future is what our souls really sigh and long for. But, what the Lord supplies will always satisfy! Let’s be the ones who will satisfy His heart.

[Additional image credits: Featured image (when applicable) from Silvia by Pixabay; Opening photo from Gerd Altmann by Pixabay]