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Matthew 5:4
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus lays out before us the foundational attitudes and conduct He commands and looks for in His disciples. He says in Matthew 5:4, "Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted." Human nature hates mourning. If given any choice at all, we shrink from mourning as rapidly as we can. Yet, Jesus says that those of His disciples who mourn are blessed! This begs the question, "If they are blessed, why do they mourn?" Surely, this is an anomaly that the unconverted find hard to believe. One thing is certain: Jesus does not speak here of every kind of mourning. Scripture shows us three kinds of mourning. Millions, indeed billions, mourn over dashed hopes like financial reverses, failure to land a job, rejection by a highly respected person, or the loss of a loved one. Many of these people may actually be under God's condemnation without any promise that they will be comforted. In addition, there is sinful mourning—like the hopeless sorrow of Judas Iscariot—that is disconsolate and inordinate, that refuses to be comforted. Finally, there is godly sorrow, a spiritual mourning authored by God, which is the subject of Matthew 5:4. This mourning begins and then proceeds from a genuine conversion upon repentance after God calls us. It is the beginning of a real sense of sin and its disastrously evil effects. Many thousands confess that they are sinners, but how many have never mourned over this fact? How many of us have mourned like the woman of Luke 7:37-38, who washed Jesus' feet with her tears? The publican in Luke 18:13 smote upon his breast, crying out, "God be merciful to me a sinner!" He did this because he felt the plague of his own evil heart. On that great day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit was given and Peter preached a truly inspiring sermon, Acts 2:37 tells us that the people were "cut to the heart" and said, "Men and brethren, what shall we do?" This mourning springs from a sense of sin combined with a tender conscience and a heart broken over the cost to receive forgiveness. This mourning springs from the agonizing realization that my sins nailed Jesus to the stake. Zechariah 12:10 prophesies, "Then they will look on Me whom they pierced. Yes, they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn." By no means is this mourning confined to our initial contrition. It should be a present and continuous experience as we grow in understanding that we can say with Paul, "Oh wretched man that I am!" (Romans 7:24). He was undoubtedly at times acutely aware of the swellings of his pride, the coldness of his love, or the lack of fruit. In the same way, we, too, groan at times within ourselves as the sharpness of our memories chasten us as we meditate on the course of our lives. As we approach Passover, now is a time for deep introspection. We must do this, beginning with a profound appreciation for the sacrifice of our Savior, so that we may receive God's gracious promise to be comforted.
John W. Ritenbaugh
A Man of Sorrows
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