Be- Attitudes January 15, 2006
Matthew 5:4
Story: On a visit overseas, a wealthy man was fascinated w/ a powerful microscope that allowed him to study the petals of a flower. He was amazed at their beauty and detail, so he decided to purchase a microscope and take it home. He enjoyed using it until one day he examined some food he was planning to eat. Much to his dismay, he discovered tiny living creatures crawling in his food. Since he was fond of this particular food, he wondered what to do. He concluded there was only one option – he had to destroy the instrument that caused him to discover the distasteful fact. So he smashed the microscope! You might say, "How foolish!" But people do the same thing w/ God’s Word. It exposes their true nature so they try to destroy or ignore it.
Trans: Last week we began a study in Mt. 5 on the beatitudes – the attitude we are to be. Jesus offers (8) attitudes we’re to possess as citizens of His kingdom.
Verse: Read Mt. 5:1-10 Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. Mt. 5:4
Insert: We started our study by looking at the condition of our lives – we are poor in spirit (ptochos) spiritually destitute beggars. As we continue our study, we need to investigate the next logical step – mourning. It is one thing to be spiritually poor and acknowledge it; it is another to grieve and mourn over it.
Trans: There is a great need in the church today to cry instead of laugh. I say this b/c spiritual poverty should lead to godly sorrow. Unfortunately though it doesn’t always b/c we live in a world that’s constantly trying to convince us to shun mourning. The world’s says, “Forget your troubles, turn your back on them, do everything you can not to face them. Pain is bad; happy is good. Things are bad enough as they are w/out you going to look for trouble – so don’t worry, be happy.”
Note: The problem is that unless we grieve and mourn our sin and the sin of others, we will miss God and sin will gain a greater foothold on our lives.
Trans: Before we go any further, I want to remind you that Jesus is speaking to His disciples about the attitudes they are to possess as kingdom citizens. If our attitude determines our altitude then it also testifies to our disposition and determination. Let’s not forget that all of the beatitudes refer to a spiritual condition, and the beatitude of mourning shows the necessity of us coming face to face w/ our sin.
I The PROMISE
Word: Blessed (markarios) An inward contentedness unaffected by surrounding conditions whereby we’ll be approved by God and receive the applause of heaven.
Note: In particular, those who mourn over their sinful condition and of the sinfulness of others, God promises to comfort them through forgiveness and His Spirit.
II The CONDITION
Trans: There are (9) words in the N.T. for sorrow which reflects the commonness of mourning in a man’s life. Meaning, grief is woven into the fabric of the human condition. Yet of the (9) words used, Jesus uses the strongest word in this text.
Word: Mourn (pentheo) It represents the deepest, most heart-felt grief a man can experience. The word carries the idea of deep inner agony, expressed by outward weeping. It’s a word used for mourning for the dead and lamenting a loved one.
Note: Yet Jesus is telling His followers that we must mourn over the sinful human condition as we would for a death of a loved one. And when we do mourn over our sin and the sins of humanity, we will find comfort through His forgiveness.
Verse: Draw near to God and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Be miserable and mourn and weep; let your laughter be turned into mourning, and you joy to gloom. Humble yourself in the presence of God and He will lift you up. Jm. 4:8-10
Trans: This verse smacks in the face of the prosperity gospel. God says true faith isn’t found in prosperity but in humility/brokenness. David expressed in this in Ps. 51.
Verse: Wash me completely from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. For I confess my transgressions; and my sin is ever before me. Against You, You only, have I sinned, and done evil in your sight… Purge me w/ hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow… Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit w/in me. Cast me not away from your presence, and take not Your H.S. from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me w/ a willing spirit… For You do not desire sacrifice; or else I would give it; You do not delight in burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and a contrite heart, O God, You will not despise. Ps. 51
Note: David realized the power and penalty of his sin and he mourned his actions and attitude seeking forgiveness from God. He realized that it was not through his efforts or goodness, but by God’s grace alone that he could find comfort. Thus, when David stopped hiding his sin and began to mourn he found God.
Verse: How blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered! How blessed is the man to whom the Lord does not impute iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit! Ps. 32
Note: David expressed a vital spiritual truth. Blessedness doesn’t come in mourning but in God’s response to mourning. Godly sorrow brings God’s forgiveness. Only mourners over sin can be happy b/c they have been forgiven. Contrary to popular belief, sin and happiness are totally incompatible – where one exists the other can’t.
Note: To mourn is to have a deep inner agony over sin as if someone you loved has died.
Trans: I want you to understand an vital truth. Mourning over sin in our lives is essential to spiritual health. If you want to have a vibrant, authentic, relationship w/ God, then you must come face-to-face w/ who you are, grieve your condition, and turn to God.
Verse: Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death. 2 Cr. 7:10
Trans: Jesus isn’t talking about the sorrow of bereavement, but rather the sorrow that leads to repentance. A person who truly mourns his sin will have sorrow over the power and effects of sin in the world as well as over their own condition.
III The RESPONSE
A EXAMINE Your Self
Note: As we confront God and His holiness – we see ourselves as (Ptochos) and we mourn our condition. But mourning doesn’t mean that we wallow in self-pity and false humility, nor does it mean that we are engulfed w/ despair. True mourning doesn’t focus on self but on the God who can forgive and remove our sin.
Quote: Sin must have tears. While we carry the fire of sin about us, we must carry the water of tears to quench it. Thomas Watson, The Beatitudes
Note: The water for our tears is the grace of God found in Christ Jesus. Thus, once we admit that we are ptochos – poor in spirit and unable to save ourselves, we should mourn our condition and turn to God for help. Problem is, we don’t see ourselves as sinners, and if we do, we are not convinced that our sin is really that bad.
Verse: There is none righteous, no not one; there is none that understands, there is none that seeks after God. Rm. 3:10-11 For the wages of sin is death. Rm. 6:23
Note: God says that we are all sinners and that our sin separates us from Him condemning us to eternal separation in hell. And unless we accept this truth, mourn our condition, and turn from sin to Christ – we will face the condemnation of our sin.
Insert: Can I be blunt. I’m broken over the willful disobedience of many professing Christians including some of you here today. My heart aches over the sinful choices you’ve made expecting God and His church to overlook them. Whether it is gossiping, lying, cheating, or living w/ someone outside the bonds of marriage it doesn’t matter. Not only should you not expect God and godly people to accept it – but neither should you! God can’t bless you if you’re willfully living in sin. Now I’m not saying this to throw stones, we’re all sinners, but if we think that God excuses us of our responsibility for holy living then we’re sadly mistaken.
Note: We have to take sin as serious as God does and He hates it. He loves us, but He hates our sin. And to knowingly live in sin is to spit into the face of God abusing the purpose of the cross. Jesus didn’t die on the cross to afford you the opportunity to sin w/out consequence – Jesus died on the cross to set you free. Thus, no matter how you might attempt to justify you actions, it will never work. God expect of you the same thing He expected of the prodigal son in Luke 15.
Insert: Lessons from the Prodigal Son – the Biblical Process of Repentance (Lk. 15)
1 REALIZATION Admit Your Need
2 REPENTANCE Get Right w/ God
3 RESTITUTION Get Right w/ Others
4 RETRIBUTION Face the Consequences
5 RECONCILIATION Reunite in Relationship
6 RESTORATION Enjoy New Life
Verse: But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled w/ compassion for him
Note: God is not seeking to condemn us, but neither will He condone our sinful behavior. We condemn ourselves by refusing to repent, and yet God continues to work in our lives to bring us to repentance and restoration. It’s no accident that the father was looking down the road that evening? He missed his son and he longed to have him home – so too does God long for us to be re-united to Him. He waits for repentance.
B EXPERIENCE Brokenness Over the Sins of Others
Verse: Streams of tears flow from my eyes, for your law is not obeyed. Ps.119:136
Note: David expressed God’s heart that we should grieve for our own sins, and also for the sin of others in the church and in the world. As I thought about this I remembered a clip I saw that illustrated this sad condition. (Video: Awe and Reverence)
Trans: I don’t know about you but my heart aches over the condition of lostness in our world. The attitude in our world is that, “If it feels good do it.” But not only is it and attitude, but it is also and action. Consider the following.
Stat: Pornography:
The use of porn is directly connected to the rise in sexual crimes including rape, incest, sodomy, prostitution, and child solicitation.
Abortion:
According to the Allan Guttmacher Institute., there are approximately 1,370,000 abortions annually in the U.S.
Alcoholism:
Alcohol contributes to 100,000 deaths annually, making it the 3rd leading cause of preventable death in this the US. (www.alcoholism-statistics.com)
Crime: (Headlines from Nashville this week)
3 Putnam-area men plead guilty in drug scheme
Family fight ends in bloodshed
EMT charged w/ incest, rape while providing care
Woman’s slaying is Metro’s first homicide of 2006
Elderly Woman Kidnapped, Robbed, and Raped
Insert: Church – this sinful and disregard for God and His word should grieve us to action. It should drive us to our knees in prayer and to our communities for prevention.
Quote: Man calls it an accident; God calls it an abomination. Man calls it a blunder; God calls it blindness. Man calls it a defect; God calls it a disease. Man calls it a chance; God calls it a choice. Man calls it an error; God calls it an enmity. Man calls it a fascination; God calls it a fatality. Man calls it an infirmity; God calls it an iniquity. Man calls it a luxury; God calls it leprosy. Man calls it a liberty; God calls it lawlessness. Man calls it a trifle; God calls it tragedy. Man calls it a mistake; God calls it madness. Man calls it a weakness; God calls it willfulness.
Story: Paul Harvey tells of incident in which (3) firemen burst into a burst into a house in Manchester, England to rescue a family, but the family refused to leave until their favorite show was over.
Insert: The lostness of people is astounding, and yet we should grieve over it instead of becoming apathetic to it. Are you broken over the sin in our country?
C EXPECT God to Bring Comfort
Note: Jesus reminded his disciples through the prophet Isaiah that the Messiah would “comfort all who mourn” (Is. 61:2).
Quote: O the bliss of the man whose heart is broken for the world’s suffering and for his own sin, for out of his sorrow he will find the joy of God! Barclay
Word: Comforted (parakaleo) the same word used in John 14:16 in reference to the H.S. Jesus tells us that He is our helper but that he is going to send a comforter.
Verse: And I will pray to the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter, so that He may be w/ you forever. Jn. 14:16
Note: The idea is that God will bring comfort through confession and contrition. As we mourn and turn from sin to God he will give grace to wipe away our tears and fears.
Note: But notice that comfort comes after mourning. When we honestly come to grips w/ the sin in our lives and in our country we will be comforted. It is only those who mourn for sin who will have their tears wiped away by the loving hand of Jesus.
CONCLUSION
Story: A man continually rededicated his life and always prayed the same prayer, "Lord, take the cobwebs out of my life." His pastor had heard this prayer more times than he cared to remember. Finally, when the man uttered the prayer into his pastor’s ear at the altar, the pastor responded with a prayer of his own, "Lord, kill the spider!" Repentance requires change in both our attitudes and our behavior. (Our Daily Bread, March 19, 1992)
