Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.
(Matthew 5:4)
Jesus taught these Beatitudes across the region of Judea as countless numbers heard something new, fresh and divine, which if they had taken it to heart, could have immediate yet eternal impact on their lives.
I have heard it said that Jesus' Beatitudes are meant to reorient our thinking into "having the attitude of.....(fill in the blank)...or "be of this attitude".... That is certainly a great interpretation, or way of looking at the Lord's teachings, as we will discover while digging into the riches of His Word.
In the second Beatitude, we see the Savior proclaim the following "Blessed are those who mourn. for they shall be comforted".
What positive, warm and healing truth from the Creator of the World! BUT, hold on, there is more...as there always is, with King Jesus! If we examine the original language closer, we find another gold mine (with more to follow in the other Beatitudes).
Here we have mourning and comforting. We are all acquainted with the mourning, grieving and sadness that comes with losing a loved one. The older we get, we face the stark and sad fact that our grandparents, parents and other loved ones pass on from this earth, into eternity. Even if our loved ones are solid, born-again Christians, we still grieve and mourn their passing. The loss is actually our loss, as our believing loved ones have just happened to have gone ahead to their eternal reward with Christ. This is the "mourning" with which we are most familiar.
However, the word "mourn" in the Bible, (pentheó in the original Greek) means more than just grieve at the death of a loved one! It means to lament and feel a measure of guilt, over a sin, shortcoming or transgression against the Lord that is so strong, sadness and guilt takes possession of our spirit.
How a person processes this guilt over loss of a relationship, person, or something important to them, is indicative of the maturity or strength of their walk with Christ. In 2 Corinthians 7:10-11 we read the following:
"Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation without regret, but worldly sorrow brings death. Consider what this godly sorrow has produced in you: what earnestness, what eagerness to clear yourselves, what indignation, what alarm, what longing, what zeal, what vindication!"
This is it right there! When we are pressed down, overwhelmed and feel defeated by life, or by something someone has done to us...or most likely, by the thing we have done to ourselves, being sorrowful about it is perfectly legitimate!
In this case, this sorrow should lead us to confess and repent of our sins to God. Then, we apologize and attempt to make it right (if possible, if not -move on, God sees the heart). What an example of "Godly mourning" over shortcomings!
The Lord does not leave us there, though, after we have exhibited the sort of sorrow of which He speaks in this second Beatitude! Look at the next step towards the healing process which began with Godly Sorrow". The Good News Translation (GNT) paraphrase of 2 Corinthians 7:11 explains it in a terrific way here "See what God did with this sadness of yours: how earnest it has made you, how eager to prove your innocence! Such indignation, such alarm, such feelings, such devotion, such readiness to punish wrongdoing! You have shown yourselves to be without fault in the whole matter".
What a mighty, loving compassionate God! He accepts us the way we are, when we do the simplest things, in all sincerity, to show we mourn, in sadness and grief over wrongs. THEN, because we have shown all these things described in 2 Corinthians 7:11, He comforts us.
This is an even greater mystery which shows itself where the word "comforted" in Matthew 5:4 originates! The root word is literally derived from the word "Paraklete" - the Holy Spirit! What the Lord offers "those who mourn" in Beatitude 2, is not just a little soothing "ointment" but He summons us up to the Throne Room, where we find hope, encouragement, exhortation all underline with the power and might of God. It is the kind of comfort which is direct from the Courts of the King and can stand the test of time.
The blessings of being comforted by the Holy Spirit, Who communicates directly to the Father, should be enough for us to live a simple, repentant and honest lifestyle. This is the teaching of the 2nd Beatitude. Take it to heart, because those whom the Spirit of the Lord blesses and comforts, stay constantly before Him, if we remain daily in His Will. Amen.
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