Those Who Mourn

(Matthew 5:4)

"Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted".

I have never been very good at giving comfort to those who mourn. Maybe it is because I am not so well acquainted with mourning. I have lived my 53 years with very little to mourn about. I still have both of my parents. My siblings are all alive. Their families are all still around. All in all, I have been blessed to have those that I hold closest to me live long, healthy lives. I have lost friends and church family and when those times come, I am more focused on caring for their families than I am on examining my own personal feelings. But the day will come...

In this "beatitude", Jesus tells us that mourners will be comforted. Ok, I guess that is good news, but is that really what Jesus is telling us or is there a deeper meaning to this short verse. Is He talking about the loss of a loved one and the feeling that follow? Let's consider... the Greek word in view here is "pentheo". In the Greek vocabulary there is no other word that conveys the severity of sorrow or grief that "pentheo". It is used of those that have lost a loved one and cannot be consoled. This type of grief is accompanied by lamentation and weeping. We are talking about intense, overwhelming sorrow that will not leave a person.

Considering the setting and the topic being discussed, it is doubtful that Jesus is discussing the loss of a loved one. Rather, what is in view here is the mourning that occurs when someone recognizes their sinfulness and the sinfulness of others. In the Old Testament, people mourned over the sins of their nation and the judgment that was to come against them. Jeremiah wept over Jerusalem. (Jer 9:1, 18; 13:17; 14:17) Jesus mourned the rebelliousness of Jerusalem as He looked at her. ( Lk 19: 41-44) Paul grieved over his fellow Jews who rejected Jesus. (Rom 9:1-3)

Our own sins will cause us to mourn if we are trying to live rightly. David gives us a great example of how our own sinfulness should affect our lives in Psalm 51:1-4 and 7-12. When we come to understand that our sins break God's heart, we will arrive at the type of mourning that Jesus is calling us to. Paul gives us this encouragement in 2 Cor 7:10...For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death. Godly grief... Godly mourning produces the kind of feelings that motivate us to seek God's help in our struggle to live Godly lives. He says that it produces a repentance that leads to salvation.

You want comfort in your mourning? Confront your sinfulness. Lay it all out for Him to see. Look on it with the understanding... it is those sins that sent His Son to die on the cross. Let that settle in... I am responsible for the death of the Son of God. (and you also) Now, mourn it. Mourn the results of your sins and then turn to Him for comfort. Godly sorrow produces repentance that leads to salvation. Ultimate comfort will only come at His return, but while we are here we need to know that God is in the sin forgiving business. He sent His Son for that very purpose. Then, we can look forward to the day that the God of all comfort will wipe away every tear. (Revelation 7:17)

Wise or Foolish?