BIBLE PASSAGE:
“Blessed are they that mourn: for they will be comforted.”
(Matthew 5:4)
MEDITATION:
When Jesus uttered theses words in His ‘sermon on the mount’,
He was teaching others about ‘righteousness’ and ‘godliness’.
We all know that God loves us and wants to comfort us when
we are sad and heart-broken, but when Jesus used the word
‘mourning’, He could have also been referring to a sadness
about unrighteousness and ungodliness (in our own lives
and in the lives of others).
In Matthew 23:34-39 we see how the heart of Jesus ached for
Jerusalem and how sin had effectively reshaped the hearts of
the people. The scriptures tell us that those who “come in the
name of the Lord” will be blessed. If we come in anything less,
then we would have to wonder if we will receive His blessings.
As Jesus spoke about righteousness and godliness, when He used
the word, “comforted”, He could have also been referring to
‘forgiveness’ and a ‘renewed sense of righteousness’ in the
hearts of people.
We can visualize someone who is truly saddened over their
own sin and the hopelessness they feel about overcoming it.
Then, we can visualize that same person feeling comforted when
they discover that they CAN overcome the sin that has held them
captive, and the joy of knowing they now have a renewed hope!
Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation
and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death.
(2 Corinthians 7:10)
Just imagine for a moment someone (maybe you) who has been
a slave to sin and realizes the consequences of their sinfulness.
They can be overwhelmed by the realization that it is causing
separation between them and the Lord, and if they have not
received His salvation, the reality of eternal doom can be
devastating. They are desperate for a change, but have a sinking
feeling of hopelessness that they will ever be victorious over sin.
As long as we ignore the consequences, we can continue in
our sin without any feelings of remorse. But thankfully, the
Lord loves us enough to make us aware that continuing in
sin will have devastating and eternal consequences.
Now, imagine the same person being saddened to the point of
having a burning desire for a change in their life which will
separate them from the sin that has so easily entangled them.
Imagine how they are ‘comforted’ by the knowledge that God
forgives them and will reshape their mind to ‘lean away from
sinfulness’, and ‘lean toward righteousness and godliness’.
We can see how they would be pleased and comforted when they
receive God’s pardon and a restoration of purity and freedom.
Could this also be the type of comforting from mourning
Jesus is sharing with the people gathered together (and us)?
We’ve done all that we can do to keep ourselves from feeling any
pain. We have psychologists who numb our neurosis, counselors
who absolve us of guilt, doctors who sedate our pain, insurance
agents who take away our worries, and even at death, we have the
mortuary which tries to beautify death for us.
However, only a right relationship with Jesus Christ can
remove the pain we have from being held captive to sin.
When Jesus saw the sin around Him, it broke His heart
and as a result of His love, He wanted to see a change
in the heart, soul, and mind of those who were suffering.
He wanted to see us have victory over the bondage of sin.
ACTION:
Do the things that break the heart of Jesus break yours too?
How do you feel when you see the sin around you?
How do you feel when you look at the sin in your own life?
If there is something in our life that is debatable as a sin,
then God is probably alerting us that we should abstain.
No matter how much Satan wants to convince us that we
are hopelessly controlled by sin, we have a God who loves
us and is more powerful than Satan, so we are never in a
totally hopeless situation. We need to ‘mourn’ over our sin
and seek ‘comforting’ from the Lord (and be willing to allow
Him to change us and give us a new life of righteousness and
godliness).
Satan wants to convince us that (1) since God loves us,
He is okay with our unrighteousness, and (2) that our
sinfulness only impacts us and nobody else.
As true believers, we need to have a focus and a desire
to become more like Jesus (the One we are following).
We know when we are living a lie, don’t we? As long
we are living a life with our back to the Lord, we cannot
expect to have a positive impact on the lives of others.
It goes even deeper than ourselves, doesn’t it? We can have a
bad influence on those we love (including those within our own
family). We can claim to love the Lord and pattern our lives after
Jesus, but those closest to us can see past any façade we’ve created.
Our hypocrisy could cause our own children to live the same
type of lives that we are living. So, instead of pointing them
toward the Lord, we could effectively cause them to go in the
opposite direction away from anything related to Him.
We know that children will sometimes make bad choices even
when their parents are not living a hypocritical life, but when
we claim to be followers of the Lord and yet live a life contrary
to our claims, the risk of them making bad decisions is increased.
We also know how Satan has the power to distort our thinking
so that we can convince ourselves that some things God does
not approve are really okay with Him. Satan can be so convincing
that we will justify our choices and vehemently defend what we are
doing (which is a good indication that we really know it is wrong).
As an example, think about this possibility. A person who claims
to be a follower of Christ has decided that God is okay with them
having a few drinks while living as a Christian. Now, assume that
a non-believer sees them having a glass of wine with a meal or at
some social event.
It could cause the lost person to think,
“They say they are a Christian and yet they are drinking. Since I
drink too, why do I need the Lord in my life? They are no different
than I am.” This type of impression by a person who is unsaved
could cause them to miss out on Heaven.
As a follower of Christ, we have a responsibility of pointing others
toward Jesus and not driving them away from Him instead. We need
to understand that the one we are having a bad influence on could be
a member of our own family.
Our children are our closest observers and as a result, our lifestyle
will have a huge impact on the type of life they will choose to live.
If we merely ‘wink’ at sin and continue on, then they will most
likely miss out on understanding the negative impact sin can have
on their own lives.
Let’s be honest, why do we choose to drink alcoholic beverages?
We can say it is because we like the taste, but aren’t there other
drinks we like that will not have a bad influence on a lost person?
Isn’t it because we like the “buzz” we get from the alcohol?
We are responsible to God for the way we live as a member of His
family. If we wear the moniker of a Christian, but have sin in our
life that is impacting the spiritual condition of others, then we are
in essence, “taking the name of the Lord in vain”. The popular
belief is that this phrase is referring to profanity, but it could
also mean “claiming to be something we are not”.
There are many other examples we could reference such as,
– Being rude to others (God says we should
consider them more important than ourselves).
– Allowing our anger to boil over
(God says we should develop self-control).
– Living with someone without being married
(God says we should not be fornicators).
– Having an affair (God says we should not commit adultery).
– Taking something small that isn’t ours or not putting
in a good a day’s work (God says we should not steal).
– Cheating on our taxes or in other ways (God says we should not lie).
Whether we like it or not (and even if we think it is unfair), we are
witnesses for Christ and others observe our lifestyle as a Christian.
Are there ‘things’ in your life that you know God does not consider
a form of righteousness? Maybe you have justified them in your
own mind and have convinced yourself that they are okay, but if
someone asked you if God would approve, you would have to
honestly admit that He would not want any of His children living
with this in their life.
Pray,
“Heavenly Father, thank You for loving me enough to make
me aware of the sin in my own life and for giving me a sense
of guiltiness that causes me to mourn over my condition, Thank
You for creating in me a desire to seek You in order to be comforted
in my sorrow. Create in me a desire to be separated from the
bondage of sin and to develop the characteristics of Jesus Christ,
(the One I claim to be following). Renew my mind so that sinfulness
is replaced with godly thoughts of righteousness. Teach me how to
use all You have given me to point others toward Your Son. Thank
you for Your love and forgiveness, for Your mercy and grace, for
the Holy Spirit, and for a spiritual gift for me to use to express my
thankfulness and to point others to Jesus. Thank You for Jesus
who died for my sins, and for Your salvation available to all who
want to repent and grow closer to You.”
BREAD FOR BELIEVERS 
Discussion
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