Spiritual Mourning
Matthew 5:4
#2 of 8 in series
INTRODUCTION
Last week we started a series of sermons on the Beatitudes of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. We considered poorness of spirit and the role it plays in salvation. One must first realize that he is in sin before He can come to salvation; this is being poor in spirit.
"Blessed are they that mourn for they shall be comforted." Matthew 5:4
As much as being "poor in spirit" is diametrically opposed to the conventional wisdom of today’s culture, so to with the thought that happiness could be connected with mourning. If there is one thing that the world tries to avoid it is mourning. Everything that the world has to offer is designed to promote happiness. Yet the Lord said that true happiness can only come through mourning.
MAIN BODY
I. Biblical Mourning Explained
A. Sinful Mourning
1. That which results from sin
2. Genesis 4:13—14
3. Matthew 27:3—5
B. Natural Mourning
1. Mourning, as spoken of by the Lord in this sermon, has nothing to do with the sorrow or sadness that we experience naturally at the loss of a loved one or some other tragedy.
2. It is quite natural to mourn over events that bring us sorrow and while the Lord’s comfort does extend to these situations, there is a more specific application of this verse.
C. Scriptural Mourning
1. As we learned last week, the first step in being saved is acknowledging that we are totally poverty stricken spiritually.
2. The second Beatitude turns our attention to the result of seeing our own spiritual bankruptcy.
3. Isaiah 6:5
II. Aspects of Scriptural Mourning
A. Initial Mourning (2 Corinthians 7:10—11)
1. Initial Mourning refers to "godly sorrow" that always precedes genuine conversion.
2. Acts 2:37
B. Continual Mourning
1. Scriptural mourning is not confined to that initial experience that leads us to repent of our sins. The word mourn is in the present and continuous sense in the Greek. It is something that persists even after our initial salvation.
2. The truth of the matter is, the closer we get to God, the more mournful we become over our sin, knowing that it dishonors Him. Psalm 51:3—4
III. Being Comforted
A. The Comfort of Salvation
1. The sorrow in heaviness of heart that is found in the repentant sinner is soon replaced with comfort as this lost soul comes to Christ in repentance and faith.
2. This comfort comes as we experienced the free and full pardon of sin. (2 Thessalonians 2:16—17)
B. The Comfort of Forgiveness
1. Comfort is not only received at the time of salvation, but it is something the child of God continues to experience.
2. As the child of God finds himself guilty of sin, he mourns over that sin, which in turn leads him to confess and forsake his sin. (1 John 1:9—2:1)
C. The Comfort of Judgment
1. There is coming a day when we will leave this world and be done forever with sin.
2. 2 Peter 3:10—13
Mitchell Skelton, Minister
Midway church of Christ
http://www.TheLordsWay.com/Midway
