The Beatitudes: Mournful
5:4 Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted
We are all familiar with the act of mourning, whether it’s from watching people mourn on television, reading about it in a book, or experiencing it personally. Mourning is associated with death and intense personal loss. To mourn means to express grief or sorrow, to grieve, to be sorrowful, to lament, to grieve for (as in for others), or to wear the customary habit of sorrow. It’s expressed by weeping or audible sounds, or by sobs, sighs, or inward silent grief. When we mourn, it is an emotional response to a physical condition or circumstance in our lives. Losing a loved one, lamenting with someone else, or receiving heartbreaking news can all cause the kind of grief that leaves us feeling that type of pain. It’s sharp, intense, and unavoidable, like a loud panging in the chest.
In Matthew 5:4, Jesus says “blessed are those who mourn,” making it a present tense verb. We also must remember that, although this can apply in the natural, the act of mourning mentioned here is done in the spirit. It’s an emotional response to recognizing the spiritual condition of ourselves, others, and the evil in the world that affects us all. When we mourn in the spirit, we actively grieve over spiritual death and loss, and this grief expresses a deep connection to the weight of that loss.
As Believers, we mourn lost souls and those who are dead in the spirit — we are not meant to show pity nor pass judgment. Instead, we tarry, we cry, and we pray for those who are lost and dead because Jesus mourns the loss of even one of His sheep. It’s important to note that when a person is considered spiritually dead, they’re not physically dead. In the Word, death is associated to a spiritual condition as it relates to Christ. A person living according to the law of Moses and by the flesh, being ruled by the power of sin and not being awakened to the saving power of Jesus Christ is dead. When they’re made awake, their eyes open to the revelation of the glory of Christ, and they become alive in the Spirit and are reborn.
— I’ll do a study on what I just mentioned about death and birth later on, but you can read this as a general reference to learn the significance of those things —
In addition to mourning for others, we’re to also mourn our own spiritual condition, that is, our sinful nature. Yes, Believers do sin.
Sin in the Greek is hamartia, which is a failure characterized by missing the mark, resulting in guilt, a sin, fault, failure, or sinful deed. There’s obvious sin, and then there’s secret sin. (Make sure you write this down. Sin will be mentioned in the next Beatitude study) When people sin, they can do it in an obvious way that’s plain and visible or a hidden way that is only visible to God, who is omniscient and omnipresent.
In 1 John 1:8, it is clear that if we say we are without sin, then we deceive ourselves and the truth is not with us. It’s like that old adage ‘The truth will set you free.’ Y’all, the temptation to miss the mark of perfection is everywhere. People aren’t always going to be kind, compassionate, patient, just, righteous, holy, honest, and generous all the time. We all fall short of God’s standards for living because we aren’t perfect. He knows we aren’t perfect, and that’s why Christ became the perfect atonement for sin and we are given grace. BUT we don’t use that as an excuse to keep doing what we know is wrong because of grace. No, we accept the grace as an opportunity to improve, but we must always be willing to admit our own weakness and be honest with ourselves and God. “We grieve because we sin; we grieve because others sin; we grieve because Jesus is robbed of His rightful glory.” (God’s Word) When we admit this, we mourn, we grieve, and we repent. Ken Boa shares that
“A real conviction of sin must come before there can be a true joy of salvation, thus the need for self-examination. The (wo)man who truly mourns because of their sinful nature and condition is a (wo)man who is going to repent; (s)he is, indeed, actually repenting already… (S)he looks at life seriously, contemplates it spiritually, and sees in it sin and its effects…”
When we self-evaluate honestly, we see just how much and how often all of us miss the mark — even my self-evaluations leave me wondering how I could’ve overlooked even the smallest of things. When we realize just how deeply affected we are by our failure to “get it right,” our repentance is fueled by our change of mind. leads us to our desire to no longer be a prisoner to sin, and encourages to become better. This only comes from taking an honest look in the mirror and recognizing the need for change.
And in that need and desire IS HOPE AND GOOD NEWS:
they shall be comforted.
That comfort is in the hands of the Potter who made us and tells us He knew us before we were born.
Jesus died on the cross with you in mind.
I remember seeing on Instagram a funny post that is, honestly, true. It read something along the lines of when God calls you, He factors in your stupidity. LOL okay, so maybe that’s a bit harsh, so let’s put it another way:
God imagined exactly who you are and put you together intricately, with His thoughts and words. He then designated a certain day and time for you to be born and made you with His hands while you were in the womb. In addition to all of this, God knew your personality. You know what else He knew? Your flaws, insecurities, weaknesses, strengths, confidences, impotence, inabilities, skills, talents, deficiencies; He knew it ALL. He knew when and exactly how you’d miss the mark of perfection; He knew how long you’d do it for and how often you’d do it. He knew when you would struggle and when you wouldn’t. He also knew how genuine you would be about changing your heart and mind — and that’s the key. [Jeremiah 1:5; Psalm 139:13-16; Jeremiah 17:10; Psalm 139:1; Romans 8:27]
God knows your heart and mind. By that alone, God knows your faith in Him and His saving grace. He also knows when you’re being honest and are repentant. Again, temptation is everywhere, EVERYWHERE, but that doesn’t mean that we are alone. Our heavenly Father is longsuffering, and waits for every man to come to repentance so that He will provide us with the eternal comfort of His presence. Jesus is our eternal Comforter, and He lives in us by His Holy Spirit. [2 Peter 3:9; John 14:16]
The sacrifice on the cross covered us in God’s forgiveness which cannot be taken away. His love covers a multitude of sins, and by His love we are forgiven. When temptation comes your way, know that Jesus overcame the world and its temptations. By His Holy Spirit, which lives in us, we can also overcome and our minds can be changed.
Don’t be discouraged if it doesn’t happen in the blink of an eye. Transformation takes time, sometimes longer than it might take others. The time isn’t what’s important, the destination is. By faith, we can believe that God is with us and we will change. He will keep us accountable, honest, and guided so that, as we continue our walk, we can live in the freedom that is found in Christ being changed and dead to sin. [John 16:33]
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