Blessed are Those Who Mourn…

Last Friday I said I would be doing a series of posts on the beatitudes. My goal is to take one beatitude per Friday -- and in eight weeks this worthwhile task should be complete. But, as you may have noticed -- I just missed the Friday mid-night deadline, sorry about that! I'm sure there are folks all over blog-world not sleeping tonight over this. (I'm joking of course)

Last week we looked at the first beatitude… "blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."(Matthew 5:3)

The first beatitude is the foundation on which the rest of the beatitudes are built. So, if you're interested in brushing up a bit on what it means to be "poor in spirit" – please click the link on the right side column that says blessed are the poor in spirit…

Otherwise we'll press on with the next beatitude.

Matthew 5:4
Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

This is a very convicting passage. As we established last week – the first part of each beatitude would capture the intended meaning better if they were stated more in this way… Oh the bliss of those who…

Now for the second part… Oh the Bliss, of those who mourn,
for they shall be comforted.

When Jesus spoke of mourning here, he was not actually speaking of the type of mourning that leaves us broken over someone else’s loss. To be broken over such a loss is right and good – it’s just not what Jesus was really getting at here.

When Jesus spoke this beatitude, he was building on the first one (“blessed are the poor in spirit.") He was making the point that – when we finally realize just how destitute we are before God, it should break our hearts and drive us to our knees in mourning – Or another way to say it is… when I realize just how bankrupt I am before God – it should crush me, and cause me great agony in my spirit to realize how great a distance there is from his pure heart, to my distracted heart.

Psalm 51:17
The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.

Oh the bliss of those whose hearts are broken over their sin and distance from God. For they shall find themselves being comforted by him.