Yearnings, in the biblical context, refer to deep, often intense desires or longings that can be both spiritual and physical. These desires can be directed towards God, righteousness, or worldly things, and they play a significant role in the spiritual life of believers.

Spiritual Yearnings

The Bible frequently addresses the concept of yearning for God and His presence. In Psalm 42:1-2 , the psalmist expresses a deep longing for God: "As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul longs after You, O God. My soul thirsts for God, the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?" This imagery of a deer panting for water illustrates the intensity and necessity of spiritual yearning for God, akin to a vital need for sustenance.

In the New Testament, Jesus speaks to the yearning for righteousness in the Beatitudes. Matthew 5:6 states, "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled." Here, the yearning is not just a passive desire but an active pursuit of living in accordance with God's will, promising fulfillment for those who earnestly seek it.

Worldly Yearnings

The Bible also warns against misplaced yearnings, particularly those directed towards worldly desires. In 1 John 2:15-17 , believers are cautioned: "Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh, the desires of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not from the Father but from the world. The world is passing away, along with its desires; but whoever does the will of God remains forever."

This passage highlights the transient nature of worldly yearnings and contrasts them with the eternal fulfillment found in doing God's will. The desires of the flesh and eyes, along with pride, are depicted as distractions from a life centered on God.

Yearnings for Redemption and Restoration

Yearnings in the Bible also encompass the longing for redemption and the restoration of creation. Romans 8:22-23 describes this collective yearning: "We know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until the present time. Not only that, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies."

This passage reflects the deep-seated desire for the fulfillment of God's promises and the ultimate restoration of all things. It acknowledges the current state of suffering and imperfection while pointing to the hope and expectation of future glory.

Yearnings in Prayer

Yearnings are often expressed through prayer, as believers pour out their desires before God. Philippians 4:6-7 encourages believers to bring their yearnings to God: "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

This instruction underscores the importance of aligning one's yearnings with God's will through prayer, resulting in peace and assurance that surpasses human understanding.

Conclusion

Yearnings, whether spiritual or worldly, are a fundamental aspect of human experience as depicted in the Bible. They can lead to a deeper relationship with God when directed towards Him and His righteousness, or they can lead to spiritual peril when focused on worldly desires. The Bible provides guidance on how to navigate these yearnings, encouraging believers to seek fulfillment in God and His eternal promises.(n. pl.) The maws, or stomachs, of young calves, used as a rennet for curdling milk.

Question of the Contemplative Life
... because they do not afford us delight, or because they are not the ultimate goal
of our desires, and so are incapable of satisfying our yearnings or affording ...
/.../on prayer and the contemplative life/question clxxx of the contemplative.htm

The Great Proclamation
... And what is every man but a great bundle of yearnings and necessities? ... Oh, that
we all knew what these yearnings of our hearts mean! Aye! ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture h/the great proclamation.htm

Persistence of Thwarted Love
... He is seeking us by our unrest, by our yearnings after we know not what, by our
dim dissatisfaction which insists upon making itself felt in the midst of joys ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture b/persistence of thwarted love.htm

Travailing for Souls
... kind. His bosom throbbed and heaved like that of a man made fit to be the leader
of a great revival. What yearnings he had! He thirsted ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 17 1871/travailing for souls.htm

Happy Pilgrims
... And because thus all my nature may reach out its yearnings to Him, and in reaching
out may find that after which it feels, and yet, finding it, must feel after ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture j/happy pilgrims.htm

Impossible with Man, Possible with God
... my heart prays in the first place: "My God, revive Thy Church and people." It is
not for nothing that there are in thousands of hearts yearnings after holiness ...
/.../murray/absolute surrender/impossible with man possible with.htm

Black and Wesley.
... heart of the missionary, who sent reports of his work, sought advice amid the
difficulties which confronted him, and spoke of his spiritual yearnings with the ...
//christianbookshelf.org/maclean/william black/v black and wesley.htm

The Children of the Poor.
... And thus, in the desolation of Jerusalem as described by Jeremiah, the very yearnings
of maternity were swallowed up by this fierce instinct. ...
/.../chapin/humanity in the city/discourse vii the children of.htm

Archaisms in the Hymns
... Of human offspring, sole propriety. In Paradise of all things common else! [37].
RESENT. My inmost bowels shalt resent. The yearnings of Thy dying love. [38]. ...
/.../iii archaisms in the hymns.htm

Letter vi. In My Last Two Letters I have Given the State of the ...
... You in one place, I in another, all men somewhere or at some time, meet with an
assurance that the hopes and fears, the thoughts and yearnings that proceed from ...
/.../coleridge/confessions of an inquiring spirit etc/letter vi in my last.htm

Yearnings (1 Occurrence)
... Multi-Version Concordance Yearnings (1 Occurrence). ... But the Spirit Himself
pleads for us in yearnings that can find no words, (WEY). ...
/y/yearnings.htm - 6k

Yearns (8 Occurrences)

/y/yearns.htm - 8k

Yearning (3 Occurrences)

/y/yearning.htm - 7k

Pleads (9 Occurrences)
... But the Spirit Himself pleads for us in yearnings that can find no words, (WEY).
Romans 11:2 God didn't reject his people, which he foreknew. ...
/p/pleads.htm - 9k

Offer (403 Occurrences)
... in what way to offer them. But the Spirit Himself pleads for us in yearnings
that can find no words, (WEY). Romans 12:1 For this ...
/o/offer.htm - 39k

Apocryphal
... though it frequently is in the strange language of Gnostic thought, served to bring
the Saviour near to men as the satisfaction of the deepest yearnings of the ...
/a/apocryphal.htm - 101k

General (9 Occurrences)
... though it frequently is in the strange language of Gnostic thought, served to bring
the Saviour near to men as the satisfaction of the deepest yearnings of the ...
/g/general.htm - 49k

Prayers (99 Occurrences)
... in what way to offer them. But the Spirit Himself pleads for us in yearnings
that can find no words, (WEY). Romans 8:27 And he who ...
/p/prayers.htm - 51k

Acts (271 Occurrences)
... though it frequently is in the strange language of Gnostic thought, served to bring
the Saviour near to men as the satisfaction of the deepest yearnings of the ...
/a/acts.htm - 101k

What should we learn from the account of Samson and Delilah? | GotQuestions.org

Yearnings: Dictionary and Thesaurus | Clyx.com

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