Be - Those Who Mourn

Tonight, we look at another be-attitude that might surprise you. This attitude begins like last week and it declares that whoever displays this attitude will be… blessed.

But the attitude, on the surface, might not sound like one we would normally display. We’ll dive into that in a moment, but first, a quick review.

Building foundations for spiritual transformation. That is the focus of this series. That is why we are studying Jesus’ sermon on the mount.

Remember what Jesus said at the end of this sermon. If we desire to build our lives on a STRONG foundation, we must do two things:

HEAR the Word.

Hearing is listening or reading. It is taking in God’s truth.

LIVE the Word.

Living is applying and adhering. It means we listen AND DO what the Word says. It is placing action to the truth God has given us.

As His words become the foundation of our lives, a STRONG foundation is built. His words bring stability, security, hope, joy, and blessing. His way is the only way and… and His way… THE BEST WAY!

Jesus’ sermon begins with a focus on attitude. Last week, we talked about what it means to be poor in spirit – what it means to acknowledge our need for a Savior.

Jesus is teaching the crowd to hold certain attitudes in life no matter what kind of external circumstances may come our way.

Have your mind made up on how you will respond BEFORE you face certain situations.

My mentor taught me a valuable lesson a LONG time ago that has saved me from making bad choices in the heat of any moment. He taught me to learn how to respond… instead of react.

Quick question: who can tell me the difference between a response… and a reaction?

A response is a thought-through action to the circumstance at hand. It is based off what we know and comes from a place of reasoning and understanding.

A reaction is impulsive, emotion driven, raw, and unfiltered. It is what comes to mind without stopping to process whether or not it is appropriate.

Storing up the attitudes Christ gives us in Matthew 5 helps to establish a base to our understanding. It is pre-determined response to potential situations we might face.

So with all that said, let,s dive into the be-attitude Jesus gives the crowd next.

Matthew 5:4 NIV

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

Uh… this doesn’t sound like much fun! Is Jesus asking us to walk around looking sad all the time? On the surface, one might think of “mourn” in the sense of losing someone close to us. In a sense, you’re right.

In most cases, mourning takes place at the loss of a relationship. And… A relationship was lost very shortly after God made the heavens and the earth. The relationship lost was between God and humankind.

Sin entered the picture and mankind was separated from God because of their disobedience.

The closeness to God and His presence was lost. A system of sacrifice was established to make payment for sin but was ultimately insufficient.

Jesus became the ultimate sacrifice destroying the separation sin had created for those that would choose repentance.

The only way for the relationship to be restored is through the death and resurrection of Jesus. For believers, the relationship has been restored through the blood of Christ. But what about the rest of God’s creation? What about those who have yet to choose to repent?

HEAR The Word

Sin grieves God. It breaks His heart. It’s direct disobedience against His Word.

I’m curious… have your parents ever said “This is going to hurt me more than it hurts you?” when you are receiving discipline for wrong behavior? My mom used to say it all the time. God knows what this feels like. Why? Because He created us for relationship.

First, relationship with Him.

Second, relationship with others.

He makes this clear in the greatest commandments given my Jesus.

Sin grieves God because it separates Him from those He loves.

God has never nor will He ever stop loving you. Sin cannot keep God from loving anyone. Romans 8:38-39 says

Romans 8:38–39 NIV

38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Paul was convinced of this truth… are you convinced of this truth? Let me show you another passage that talks about God’s love for us. It is found in Romans 5:8

Romans 5:8 NIV

8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Jesus’ work on the cross was a demonstration of whose love? GOD’S LOVE. And He did this while the world turned its back on Him.

God sent Jesus to the cross so that our broken relationship could be made whole again.

The point I want you to understand is this: The grief that OUR sin caused God moved Him to do something about our situation.

John 3:16-17 proves it once again.

John 3:16–17 NIV

16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.

God does NOT want to see us lost and broken in sin. He did not create us for sin. He created us for His glory!

God gave us the standard of righteousness… and we chose to break that standard. When that standard was broken God’s heart was broken - AND SO WAS OUR RELATIONSHIP WITH HIM BROKEN

LIVE The Word

As God is grieved by sin… so should we be grieved by sin. Sin… should cause us to mourn as it breaks our relationship with God.

Sin literally divides and destroys.

It divides us from God. It destroys us spiritually

Those who “mourn” are those who are aware of sin and its destructive properties. Their hearts are broken and grieving because of what sin does.

We mourn for our own sins…

I want you to see what I believe is one of the most transparent verses in all the Bible. Paul, the man who wrote much of the NT as guided by God, says something I think many of us can relate to. I call it… the do do verse.

Romans 7:15 NIV

15 I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do.

The battle against sin is not an easy battle at all.

The enemy of our souls certainly will not make this battle an easy one. Remember how I said that sin separated us from God all the way back at creation? The enemy… was there!

Satan twisted the words of God and tempted Adam and Eve to go against God’s instruction.

He does this same thing today! He tries to make sin look like… A GOOD THING!

The enemy and the world will try to make sin look and sound like a good thing. Sin is NOT something to be celebrated, it should cause our hearts to mourn. Sin… should break our hearts.

We should also mourn For the sins of others…

We should mourn for those who do not know the Lord. The spiritual condition of our nation and culture should greatly concern us. It should move us to pray those lost in sin and to reach out with truth in love.

God’s desire is to see all come to repentance. That is His heart. Jesus died for the sins of ALL people. ALL people matter to God! How many desire to have that same heart? Do you have that same heart tonight?

Again, we were made for relationship.

We are to love God, first - with all that we are.

We are to love others, next - as we love ourselves.

The greatest thing you could ever do for your friends… is tell them about Jesus. The greatest thing you could do for your family… is tell them about Jesus.

I’m not talking about convincing them to change their outward behavior through religious motions… I am talking about leading them to relationship through Jesus Christ our Lord!

He gave His Son in the greatest demonstration of love this world has ever seen… FOR SINNERS.

Closing

When it comes to our attitude toward sin… Jesus desires for His followers to mourn - to be heartbroken regarding sin and its effects.

Those who mourn… will be comforted. This comfort ONLY comes through Christ.

Sin is VERY real… and its effects are VERY real. But I fear we lose sight of this reality as we have become desensitized by the frequency and severity of sin.

Jesus calls us to live in the world… but not of the world.

We can become desensitized to sin and its effects when we allow improper influence in our lives. The Bible tell us to steer clear of sin and to, in a sense, reprogram our minds.

1 Thess 5:22 Abstain from all appearance of evil.

Romans 12:2 2 Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.

2 Cor 6:17 Therefore, “Come out from them and be separate, says the Lord. Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you.”

Sin should not be entertaining. Sin should not be stimulating. Sin should not be considered, welcomed, or harbored in our lives. Sin ALWAYS leads to death.

The best way to keep from becoming desensitized to the sin of the world is to stay in the Word of God. Continually remind yourself of God’s standards of righteousness.

Be careful of what you allow into your life. What you watch, listen to and who you hang out with can and will influence you. Be sure that you surround yourself with people who believe what you believe. Be sure that what you watch and listen to promotes Godly principals

So I leave you this as we close:

Recognize sin for what it is - action that separates us from God - it is something that should grieve our hearts.

Find comfort through Jesus Christ. We are comforted in a few of ways.

One: through salvation through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Our relationship with God can be restored because of what Christ did for us on the cross.

He was victorious over sin and the grave. He has made salvation available to ALL who choose repentance.

Two: through conviction or convincing of sin.

How does this bring comfort? Because it exposes our faults and encourages change. The Holy Spirit continually works in us and helps us in our every day interactions and behavior.

Three: through the hope that we have in His return.

The Bible tells us that Jesus is coming back… soon. We don’t know when that will happen but when it does, sin will FOREVER become a thing of the past.

The days of having to contend with sin… are numbered. But those who place their faith in Jesus will live forever - in relationship with God.

Prayer

Salvation

Pray for strength in our own struggle against sin

Pray for our nations struggle against sin and for help in reaching the lost.