WEBVTT 00:00:00.840 --> 00:00:07.799 Well, good morning, church. Before we dive into our sermon this morning, I want to welcome 00:00:07.799 --> 00:00:11.939 Pastor Matt and Beck and his family back from their sabbatical. 00:00:18.400 --> 00:00:23.179 It's great to see you all this morning. I trust you're well-rested. It's good to have you back. 00:00:24.719 --> 00:00:28.120 So would you turn with me again to Matthew chapter 5? 00:00:30.000 --> 00:00:39.299 Last week we began our study of the Sermon on the Mount, in particular the opening verses of the Sermon on the Mount that we call the Beatitudes. 00:00:40.120 --> 00:00:44.799 We're taking one Beatitude each week for eight weeks this summer. 00:00:45.579 --> 00:00:49.939 Now why are we spending so much time on this one passage of Scripture? 00:00:50.700 --> 00:00:59.760 Well, because as we said last week, this is Jesus' answer to the most ancient and perhaps most pressing of human questions. 00:00:59.759 --> 00:01:06.259 What does it look like to live a genuinely flourishing life? 00:01:06.900 --> 00:01:10.480 How do I live a life worth living? 00:01:12.159 --> 00:01:17.120 So let's look again at Matthew chapter 5, verses 1 through 10. 00:01:17.700 --> 00:01:22.000 We'll be looking at the second Beatitude today, blessed are those who mourn. 00:01:22.519 --> 00:01:24.099 But let me read the entire passage. 00:01:24.560 --> 00:01:26.900 Matthew 5, verses 1 through 10. 00:01:26.900 --> 00:01:28.620 Let me read. 00:01:28.620 --> 00:01:35.160 Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him. 00:01:36.080 --> 00:01:38.820 And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying, 00:01:38.819 --> 00:01:43.979 Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 00:01:45.319 --> 00:01:49.119 Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. 00:01:50.119 --> 00:01:52.719 Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. 00:01:53.959 --> 00:01:57.479 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. 00:01:58.979 --> 00:02:01.759 Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. 00:02:03.079 --> 00:02:05.799 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. 00:02:05.799 --> 00:02:10.259 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. 00:02:11.520 --> 00:02:17.800 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 00:02:18.859 --> 00:02:19.979 All right, let's pray. 00:02:19.979 --> 00:02:32.299 Father, we confess that we need your Holy Spirit to be able to read, mark, and learn what you are saying to us this morning. 00:02:32.300 --> 00:02:42.480 So, in your kindness, would your Spirit be at work, helping us to know the grace of Christ, that he has won through his life and death and resurrection. 00:02:44.100 --> 00:02:50.980 And as your Spirit uses your word in our hearts this morning, would we become more like our Lord Jesus, to the glory of your name. 00:02:52.240 --> 00:02:53.900 In the name of Jesus we pray, amen. 00:02:53.900 --> 00:02:53.980 Amen. 00:02:55.760 --> 00:03:04.939 Well, an article in the Free Press this week documented the rise and fall of the social media app Be Real. 00:03:06.400 --> 00:03:14.819 The idea behind Be Real was that at a random time of the day, you'd get a notification and then you'd simply take a picture of whatever you happened to be doing. 00:03:15.259 --> 00:03:19.060 Working at your computer, shopping at the grocery store, eating dinner, whatever. 00:03:19.060 --> 00:03:33.580 The idea was that this app would help its users cut through the kind of posturing and posing of typical social media apps and, as the name puts it, help them to be real. 00:03:33.580 --> 00:03:47.420 But, the app started to backfire when users started waiting to post their daily picture until they were doing something more interesting. 00:03:48.420 --> 00:03:53.080 Not just eating dinner, but eating at a hip new restaurant with friends. 00:03:53.220 --> 00:03:57.060 Not just shopping at the grocery store, but shopping for a trendy new outfit. 00:03:58.340 --> 00:04:03.439 Besides, who wants to see a bunch of pictures of a friend working at their computer or walking to class? 00:04:03.580 --> 00:04:03.800 Right? 00:04:05.960 --> 00:04:09.700 So, the app eventually kind of plateaued and it will probably die. 00:04:11.240 --> 00:04:17.220 And the writer of this article, a Columbia student named Jonas Due, he writes near the end of his article, he says, 00:04:17.620 --> 00:04:25.879 It's always fashionable for young people like me to complain about platforms that promote phoniness and unattainable lifestyles. 00:04:25.879 --> 00:04:33.920 The mission of the various alternative apps meant to showcase that real life is seductive. 00:04:34.920 --> 00:04:36.620 And then he says this, he says, 00:04:37.659 --> 00:04:41.459 But we can't stand being our true selves for long. 00:04:41.459 --> 00:04:46.759 We can't stand being our true selves for long. 00:04:48.039 --> 00:04:51.819 And if we're honest, that's not just true if you're a college student, right? 00:04:52.959 --> 00:04:56.939 That's often true at many, if not most, seasons of our life. 00:04:56.939 --> 00:05:04.680 How radical then is this second beatitude? 00:05:05.800 --> 00:05:08.519 Blessed are those who mourn. 00:05:09.560 --> 00:05:13.740 It seems to go against every fiber of our being. 00:05:13.740 --> 00:05:24.439 Because if we want to avoid the mundane as much as possible, well, mourning, sadness, we want to avoid that at all costs. 00:05:26.019 --> 00:05:32.519 Surely the good life is a life with as little sadness, as little mourning as possible, right? 00:05:35.340 --> 00:05:37.240 Wrong, Jesus says. 00:05:38.579 --> 00:05:41.220 Blessed are those who mourn. 00:05:41.220 --> 00:05:45.980 And remember what we said last week about that word, blessed. 00:05:47.300 --> 00:05:56.360 When Jesus says blessed, he's not saying, here's the way to earn God's favor, as if God will bless us if we mourn better. 00:05:57.380 --> 00:05:59.420 That's not what the word blessed means here. 00:05:59.520 --> 00:06:08.520 Rather, when Jesus says, blessed are, he's saying, do you want to see someone who's really learned how to flourish? 00:06:08.519 --> 00:06:11.519 Do you want to know what the good life is? 00:06:11.959 --> 00:06:13.699 It's this sort of person. 00:06:14.519 --> 00:06:15.979 Blessed are those. 00:06:17.599 --> 00:06:19.159 Blessed are those who mourn. 00:06:21.319 --> 00:06:28.919 So how is it that mourning could be part of the genuinely flourishing life? 00:06:28.920 --> 00:06:32.780 Why are those who mourn blessed? 00:06:35.180 --> 00:06:40.360 Now, to consider that, I want to consider Jesus' beatitude here from three angles. 00:06:40.560 --> 00:06:44.620 First, I want us to think about the wisdom of mourning. 00:06:45.400 --> 00:06:48.480 And then we're going to look at the depth of true mourning. 00:06:49.139 --> 00:06:52.540 And then finally, we'll consider the promise of mourning in this passage. 00:06:52.540 --> 00:06:57.360 So the wisdom, the depth, and the promise of mourning, of grieving. 00:06:57.620 --> 00:06:59.480 So consider with me the wisdom of mourning. 00:06:59.680 --> 00:07:03.260 Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. 00:07:03.280 --> 00:07:09.140 I wonder if you've ever met someone who refuses to mourn. 00:07:10.759 --> 00:07:17.680 Whenever anything challenging or sad or even tragic happens, they simply put on a happy face and just charge ahead. 00:07:17.680 --> 00:07:23.120 Now, there is something to be said for resilience, right, in the face of hardship and loss. 00:07:23.759 --> 00:07:26.980 But too often, I think, we're not actually being resilient. 00:07:28.800 --> 00:07:31.259 We're more like the tea kettle on the stove. 00:07:31.960 --> 00:07:34.139 The fire kind of lights up beneath us. 00:07:34.699 --> 00:07:36.879 And the water starts heating up inside. 00:07:37.560 --> 00:07:39.000 But we don't do anything about it. 00:07:39.240 --> 00:07:42.139 We simply put on a happy face and we just keep on keeping on. 00:07:42.420 --> 00:07:43.840 And what eventually happens? 00:07:43.839 --> 00:07:47.919 At some point, the water hits a boiling point. 00:07:48.659 --> 00:07:51.319 The kettle erupts in a high-pitched scream. 00:07:52.199 --> 00:07:53.079 Enough's enough. 00:07:57.339 --> 00:08:01.819 You see, friends, you and I live in a fallen world. 00:08:03.379 --> 00:08:05.279 There is brokenness in our world. 00:08:05.599 --> 00:08:07.479 There's loss and disappointment. 00:08:09.139 --> 00:08:11.059 There's finitude. 00:08:11.359 --> 00:08:12.000 There's death. 00:08:12.000 --> 00:08:16.000 We live in a world where dreams don't always come true. 00:08:16.860 --> 00:08:19.060 Where relationships can bring pain. 00:08:20.100 --> 00:08:22.560 Where loved ones die before their time. 00:08:23.959 --> 00:08:27.879 From small disappointments to major losses, 00:08:28.759 --> 00:08:33.500 the world we live in is not happy and joyful all the time. 00:08:34.779 --> 00:08:38.679 But too often, we're like the kettle on the stove. 00:08:38.679 --> 00:08:42.539 The fire's lit beneath us and we just hold it in. 00:08:43.939 --> 00:08:45.639 We put on a happy face. 00:08:45.779 --> 00:08:48.579 We quote a Bible verse about joy in the Lord, maybe. 00:08:49.259 --> 00:08:54.679 We might minimize or even deny that we've experienced anything sad or broken or disappointing or hurtful. 00:08:54.679 --> 00:08:56.679 But the water keeps heating up. 00:08:56.679 --> 00:08:59.459 But the water keeps heating up and eventually we hit a boiling point. 00:09:00.739 --> 00:09:05.479 A boiling point where we hit deep bitterness. 00:09:06.779 --> 00:09:10.259 A boiling point of anger and rage. 00:09:11.099 --> 00:09:14.319 A boiling point of even lost faith. 00:09:14.320 --> 00:09:16.940 It all just leaks out. 00:09:18.940 --> 00:09:20.300 What's the answer? 00:09:23.020 --> 00:09:26.680 Jesus says, blessed are those who mourn. 00:09:26.679 --> 00:09:34.399 You and I need to learn the lost art of lament. 00:09:35.459 --> 00:09:38.919 Of grieving the brokenness in the world. 00:09:39.559 --> 00:09:44.620 Of expressing appropriate sadness when life breaks down. 00:09:44.819 --> 00:09:46.000 When dreams die. 00:09:46.099 --> 00:09:47.359 When relationships end. 00:09:47.839 --> 00:09:49.439 When wars rage on. 00:09:49.539 --> 00:09:50.859 When leaders fail us. 00:09:50.860 --> 00:09:55.680 Jesus doesn't say, blessed are those who pretend everything is okay. 00:09:57.620 --> 00:09:59.279 He says, blessed are those who mourn. 00:10:02.139 --> 00:10:07.460 Do you realize that in the book of Psalms, that great prayer book of the Old Testament that God gave us. 00:10:08.519 --> 00:10:13.320 That something like one third to one half of the Psalms are actually laments. 00:10:13.800 --> 00:10:15.340 That they're expressions of grief. 00:10:17.300 --> 00:10:19.659 And what do we see in the ministry of Jesus himself? 00:10:19.659 --> 00:10:22.799 Jesus' friend, Lazarus, dies? 00:10:23.379 --> 00:10:24.360 And what does he do? 00:10:25.439 --> 00:10:30.419 Does Jesus say, well, you know, I'm going to raise him from the grave in about 15 to 20 minutes. 00:10:30.740 --> 00:10:31.759 So, no big deal. 00:10:31.980 --> 00:10:32.459 We're good. 00:10:33.459 --> 00:10:33.799 No. 00:10:34.219 --> 00:10:35.159 What does Jesus do? 00:10:36.299 --> 00:10:36.879 He weeps. 00:10:39.860 --> 00:10:44.439 And we see in the life of Jesus that he doesn't just lament the personal loss of a friend. 00:10:44.440 --> 00:10:49.980 Later, we'll see that he laments the structural fallenness of an entire city. 00:10:50.780 --> 00:10:58.980 One day when looking out over Jerusalem, Jesus weeps because the city is lost and leaderless and has rejected God. 00:11:02.720 --> 00:11:05.200 Do you remember Psalm 30 that we read earlier in our service? 00:11:06.160 --> 00:11:09.300 Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes in the morning. 00:11:09.360 --> 00:11:10.340 What a great verse. 00:11:10.340 --> 00:11:14.120 And we like to jump straight to the end of that verse. 00:11:14.259 --> 00:11:15.440 Joy comes in the morning. 00:11:17.980 --> 00:11:20.080 But have we learned how to weep in the night? 00:11:22.800 --> 00:11:24.600 This is the wisdom of mourning. 00:11:25.820 --> 00:11:32.280 There really cannot be comfort unless we learn to mourn, to lament, to grieve. 00:11:32.279 --> 00:11:35.100 But how do we do it? 00:11:35.139 --> 00:11:36.019 How do we do that? 00:11:36.240 --> 00:11:41.179 For many of us, grieving or lamenting or mourning, it's like a foreign language. 00:11:41.399 --> 00:11:43.839 It's like a foreign tongue that we don't know how to speak. 00:11:44.459 --> 00:11:46.379 So, how do we expand our vocabulary? 00:11:46.659 --> 00:11:48.659 How do we learn this new language? 00:11:50.959 --> 00:11:53.980 Well, one way is through the book of Psalms. 00:11:53.980 --> 00:12:01.220 Here, God gives us words so that we might learn this new language. 00:12:02.100 --> 00:12:07.620 So that we might give voice to the pain and the loss and the fear that we often feel. 00:12:09.300 --> 00:12:13.180 Often, we don't even feel like we have permission to mourn. 00:12:13.360 --> 00:12:16.620 We feel like we're failing if we admit sadness. 00:12:16.620 --> 00:12:20.919 But in the Psalms, God gives us not just permission. 00:12:22.379 --> 00:12:26.379 The words themselves express grief and loss and disappointment. 00:12:28.940 --> 00:12:31.940 Of many examples we could pick, think of Psalm 6. 00:12:32.600 --> 00:12:33.200 The psalmist says, 00:12:33.200 --> 00:12:34.820 I'm weary with my moaning. 00:12:35.799 --> 00:12:37.980 Every night I flood my bed with tears. 00:12:39.039 --> 00:12:40.960 I drench my couch with weeping. 00:12:41.600 --> 00:12:43.759 My eye wastes away because of grief. 00:12:43.759 --> 00:12:46.720 It grows weak because of all my foes. 00:12:49.059 --> 00:12:53.720 And you know, this isn't just a private prayer practice. 00:12:53.720 --> 00:12:54.539 Although it is that. 00:12:54.600 --> 00:12:55.600 But it's not just that. 00:12:56.360 --> 00:12:59.519 The language of grief must also be communal. 00:13:02.120 --> 00:13:06.919 Many times, this will be in finding a trusted friend. 00:13:07.539 --> 00:13:10.559 Who can simply listen as you express your losses. 00:13:10.559 --> 00:13:16.219 And when the time is right, being that friend for another. 00:13:18.319 --> 00:13:22.379 After all, the Christian life is not just rejoicing with those who rejoice. 00:13:23.339 --> 00:13:28.179 But it's also weeping with those who weep, as Paul says in Romans 12, 15. 00:13:28.179 --> 00:13:32.219 So this is the wisdom of mourning. 00:13:32.399 --> 00:13:38.079 It's acknowledging that in a fallen world, a failure to grieve is a failure to be human. 00:13:39.239 --> 00:13:44.219 A failure to mourn is simply storing up hurt and loss to our own detriment. 00:13:44.859 --> 00:13:47.099 So we have to learn to lament. 00:13:47.100 --> 00:13:52.540 But there's a deeper level here. 00:13:54.060 --> 00:14:03.040 If we simply stopped at learning to lament the brokenness in the world, we'd only be seeing half of what Jesus is teaching us here. 00:14:04.460 --> 00:14:08.960 Certainly, we must learn to lament the brokenness in the world, the losses in our lives. 00:14:08.960 --> 00:14:14.840 But at a deeper level, we must learn to mourn something in addition. 00:14:16.080 --> 00:14:17.820 Something even more painful. 00:14:19.300 --> 00:14:21.620 This brings us to our second point. 00:14:22.560 --> 00:14:23.519 The depth of mourning. 00:14:24.680 --> 00:14:25.759 And what is this depth? 00:14:26.500 --> 00:14:27.139 It's this. 00:14:28.120 --> 00:14:31.000 We mourn not just our circumstances. 00:14:32.120 --> 00:14:35.340 We mourn our sinfulness. 00:14:35.340 --> 00:14:48.139 What breaks our heart is not just our losses or our disappointments, but even more, what breaks our heart is our failure to love God as he deserves. 00:14:49.960 --> 00:14:51.780 And is this not the most grievous thing? 00:14:53.700 --> 00:14:57.720 Just think how readily God has made himself known to us. 00:14:59.040 --> 00:15:04.639 God has shown his divine power and majesty in all the things he has made. 00:15:04.639 --> 00:15:12.240 We look at the stars and the skies, the beauty of a universe seemingly fine-tuned to bring forth life. 00:15:12.759 --> 00:15:21.500 But instead of praising and thanking God, we end up turning our gaze down and worshiping created things. 00:15:22.759 --> 00:15:32.059 We let our hearts run after jobs or physique or human praise and ignore the infinite beauty that is God himself. 00:15:32.059 --> 00:15:38.719 It's like someone has handed us the keys to a brand new BMW i7. 00:15:38.799 --> 00:15:39.479 Have you seen these? 00:15:39.539 --> 00:15:42.739 They have like a 31-inch theater screen in the back seat. 00:15:43.219 --> 00:15:46.059 I don't even know how you watch a screen that big sitting that close to it. 00:15:46.079 --> 00:15:49.199 But apparently, BMW has figured out how to make one of those, right? 00:15:50.059 --> 00:15:54.899 Someone hands you the keys to this fabulously absurd car. 00:15:54.899 --> 00:16:02.740 And yet we'd rather obsess over our broken Hot Wheels, right? 00:16:05.679 --> 00:16:07.659 This is what all of us are like spiritually. 00:16:09.740 --> 00:16:10.620 How could we? 00:16:10.659 --> 00:16:12.699 How could we dishonor God so greatly? 00:16:13.819 --> 00:16:19.199 This God who made us and holds us in being in every second, who gives us every breath. 00:16:19.200 --> 00:16:20.200 How could we? 00:16:20.200 --> 00:16:20.560 How could we? 00:16:20.560 --> 00:16:27.560 Ought we not mourn the fact that we ignore him and reject him so quickly, so easily? 00:16:30.160 --> 00:16:34.720 But it's not just that God has made his divine power and majesty so clear to us. 00:16:35.759 --> 00:16:39.800 God has also made his mercy and grace abundantly clear to us. 00:16:39.799 --> 00:16:46.679 For how did our creator respond when we, his creatures, so readily ignored and rejected him? 00:16:47.240 --> 00:16:48.740 Did he give us what we deserve? 00:16:49.759 --> 00:16:54.199 Did he punish us for our sins when we forsook his name and treated him so poorly 00:16:54.199 --> 00:16:56.819 and made a mess of our lives and the world that he made? 00:16:57.819 --> 00:16:58.159 No. 00:17:00.000 --> 00:17:02.639 Instead of sending his just wrath, 00:17:04.039 --> 00:17:06.500 God the Father sends his own son. 00:17:06.500 --> 00:17:13.720 His son who emptied himself of glory and took the form of a servant 00:17:13.720 --> 00:17:18.619 and then became obedient to death, even death on a cross. 00:17:21.279 --> 00:17:25.920 Paul writes, while we were still weak, still in our sin at the right time, 00:17:26.779 --> 00:17:28.339 Christ died for the ungodly. 00:17:29.400 --> 00:17:32.339 Scarcely will someone die for a righteous person, 00:17:32.839 --> 00:17:35.960 though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die. 00:17:35.960 --> 00:17:40.500 But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, 00:17:41.460 --> 00:17:42.799 Christ died for us. 00:17:45.180 --> 00:17:48.799 How could we not mourn our many sins 00:17:48.799 --> 00:17:52.840 when we consider how greatly Christ has loved us? 00:17:54.319 --> 00:17:56.980 You see, God is not some aloof deity 00:17:56.980 --> 00:18:01.559 who lays down arbitrary laws to destroy our human joy. 00:18:01.559 --> 00:18:02.480 No. 00:18:03.019 --> 00:18:06.440 The God of the Bible is the burning heart of love, 00:18:07.119 --> 00:18:08.480 jealous over us, 00:18:09.079 --> 00:18:12.059 willing to give himself at infinite cost 00:18:12.059 --> 00:18:15.740 to win us, his beloved, to rescue us from sin and death. 00:18:18.740 --> 00:18:20.039 Our sins are not some, 00:18:21.000 --> 00:18:23.200 you know, our sins are not against 00:18:23.200 --> 00:18:27.240 some kind of cold first cause of the universe. 00:18:27.240 --> 00:18:30.039 Our sins are against the living God, 00:18:30.880 --> 00:18:33.539 whose steadfast love endures forever. 00:18:35.680 --> 00:18:37.279 A God whose love is so great, 00:18:37.359 --> 00:18:39.500 he was willing to cry out from the cross, 00:18:40.160 --> 00:18:41.259 my God, my God, 00:18:41.339 --> 00:18:43.660 why have you forsaken me? 00:18:46.200 --> 00:18:48.299 Do you see the love of Christ for you, friend? 00:18:48.299 --> 00:18:52.519 Jesus Christ was willing to put himself 00:18:52.519 --> 00:18:55.079 in the place of the mourners 00:18:55.079 --> 00:18:59.419 and to cry the cry of the derelict, 00:18:59.539 --> 00:19:00.419 of the forsaken, 00:19:01.039 --> 00:19:04.059 and to be cut off for you. 00:19:07.259 --> 00:19:10.720 So it's not just the fallen world that we mourn over. 00:19:10.720 --> 00:19:13.640 It's our own fallen natures. 00:19:15.200 --> 00:19:17.519 It's our own brokenness, 00:19:17.579 --> 00:19:18.339 our own sin. 00:19:20.860 --> 00:19:23.200 I wonder, have you ever known real sorrow 00:19:23.200 --> 00:19:25.019 over your sin? 00:19:26.559 --> 00:19:28.360 Have you ever mourned your offenses 00:19:28.360 --> 00:19:30.720 against this God who created you 00:19:30.720 --> 00:19:32.400 and loved you so much? 00:19:34.100 --> 00:19:37.759 Have you ever prayed the prayer of tears? 00:19:37.759 --> 00:19:42.740 The story goes that one day, 00:19:43.319 --> 00:19:47.200 a younger monk came to Abba Dioscorus, 00:19:48.119 --> 00:19:50.440 and Abba Dioscorus was weeping. 00:19:51.079 --> 00:19:52.579 This younger monk found him weeping. 00:19:54.119 --> 00:19:55.740 So the young monk asked him, 00:19:56.079 --> 00:19:56.759 why are you weeping? 00:19:58.379 --> 00:20:01.059 And this father in the faith, Dioscorus, 00:20:01.099 --> 00:20:03.160 he replies, I'm weeping for my sins. 00:20:04.599 --> 00:20:06.599 And the young monk knew that Dioscorus 00:20:06.599 --> 00:20:08.859 had led a valiant and holy life for many years, 00:20:08.939 --> 00:20:09.859 and he said, my father, 00:20:10.039 --> 00:20:12.039 you don't have any such sins. 00:20:13.819 --> 00:20:15.919 And Dioscorus told him, truly, my child, 00:20:16.379 --> 00:20:19.359 if I were allowed to see my sins, 00:20:20.039 --> 00:20:23.279 three or four men would not be enough 00:20:23.279 --> 00:20:24.699 to weep for them. 00:20:29.599 --> 00:20:32.240 If I were allowed to see my sins, 00:20:32.240 --> 00:20:35.000 you know, in his mercy, 00:20:35.099 --> 00:20:37.339 God doesn't show us all of our sins all at once. 00:20:38.099 --> 00:20:39.620 It would be too much for us. 00:20:41.240 --> 00:20:43.099 But the Holy Spirit will show us 00:20:43.099 --> 00:20:44.099 the tip of the iceberg. 00:20:45.940 --> 00:20:47.099 And when he does, 00:20:48.299 --> 00:20:49.900 we must not turn away. 00:20:51.660 --> 00:20:54.640 We must not minimize or deny, 00:20:55.640 --> 00:20:58.140 but we should humble ourselves before God. 00:20:58.140 --> 00:21:02.580 Perhaps we will shed literal tears. 00:21:02.720 --> 00:21:03.500 Perhaps not. 00:21:03.680 --> 00:21:05.259 Those kinds of things aren't necessarily 00:21:05.259 --> 00:21:06.400 under our control. 00:21:07.540 --> 00:21:10.800 But we can be contrite before the Lord 00:21:10.800 --> 00:21:14.180 and be sorrowful over our sins. 00:21:15.720 --> 00:21:17.820 We can lay our hearts bare before God 00:21:17.820 --> 00:21:20.040 in genuine sadness over what we've done 00:21:20.040 --> 00:21:22.280 and what we've left undone, 00:21:22.640 --> 00:21:25.420 whether it be in thought or word or deed. 00:21:25.420 --> 00:21:29.900 And this act of mourning our sins before God 00:21:29.900 --> 00:21:32.440 or doing so corporately in gathered worship 00:21:32.440 --> 00:21:34.220 like we do every Sunday, 00:21:34.860 --> 00:21:36.580 confessing our sins to God. 00:21:37.800 --> 00:21:39.759 You know, this act that we do 00:21:39.759 --> 00:21:42.779 of mourning our sinfulness, 00:21:44.420 --> 00:21:46.720 you know, this act is actually, 00:21:46.900 --> 00:21:49.000 it's a safe one. 00:21:49.000 --> 00:21:52.940 It's safe because this God 00:21:52.940 --> 00:21:55.880 is a God who makes a promise 00:21:55.880 --> 00:21:57.619 to those who mourn. 00:21:59.960 --> 00:22:02.279 And this brings us to our third and final point, 00:22:02.819 --> 00:22:04.000 the promise of mourning. 00:22:04.859 --> 00:22:07.299 What is this promise that Jesus gives? 00:22:08.440 --> 00:22:08.759 He says, 00:22:09.160 --> 00:22:10.259 blessed are those who mourn, 00:22:10.980 --> 00:22:13.720 for they shall be comforted. 00:22:15.039 --> 00:22:15.519 Comforted. 00:22:15.519 --> 00:22:17.139 You know, on the surface, 00:22:17.299 --> 00:22:18.059 it seems like mourning 00:22:18.059 --> 00:22:19.879 will only increase our pain, right? 00:22:19.900 --> 00:22:21.079 Only prolong the hurt, 00:22:21.200 --> 00:22:23.279 only, you know, keep it going. 00:22:23.819 --> 00:22:25.119 But that's not true. 00:22:26.779 --> 00:22:29.039 At least not when we're in a relationship 00:22:29.039 --> 00:22:31.180 with the God of our Lord Jesus Christ. 00:22:31.460 --> 00:22:32.980 Because this God promises 00:22:32.980 --> 00:22:34.379 that those who mourn 00:22:34.379 --> 00:22:36.500 will be comforted. 00:22:38.059 --> 00:22:39.539 And what is this comfort? 00:22:40.779 --> 00:22:42.180 Well, first, it's the comfort 00:22:42.180 --> 00:22:44.099 of the forgiveness of our sins. 00:22:44.099 --> 00:22:46.819 The promise of the gospel 00:22:46.819 --> 00:22:48.059 is that those who confess 00:22:48.059 --> 00:22:49.439 their sins to God, 00:22:49.539 --> 00:22:51.159 who repent of their sins, 00:22:51.379 --> 00:22:53.039 find forgiveness 00:22:53.039 --> 00:22:56.299 because of the cross. 00:22:56.399 --> 00:22:58.459 Their record is wiped clean. 00:22:59.459 --> 00:23:00.939 And as we continue on 00:23:00.939 --> 00:23:01.799 in the Christian life, 00:23:01.899 --> 00:23:03.859 God will reveal more and more 00:23:03.859 --> 00:23:04.659 of our sinfulness. 00:23:06.179 --> 00:23:07.419 And as he does, 00:23:07.539 --> 00:23:09.859 we bring this to God 00:23:09.859 --> 00:23:12.199 in genuine sorrow and repentance. 00:23:12.200 --> 00:23:15.279 And as we mourn even those sins 00:23:15.279 --> 00:23:16.160 that he's shown us, 00:23:16.840 --> 00:23:18.220 he reminds us then 00:23:18.220 --> 00:23:20.580 that the cross has already 00:23:20.580 --> 00:23:22.200 forgiven those sins as well. 00:23:23.480 --> 00:23:25.620 You see, no matter how deep 00:23:25.620 --> 00:23:27.980 the cold ice goes 00:23:27.980 --> 00:23:31.200 in the iceberg of our hearts, 00:23:31.259 --> 00:23:32.700 no matter how deep 00:23:32.700 --> 00:23:34.960 our stony hearts are revealed, 00:23:35.960 --> 00:23:37.700 if we are in Christ, 00:23:37.700 --> 00:23:39.019 the grace of God 00:23:39.019 --> 00:23:41.180 is found to be there. 00:23:42.660 --> 00:23:44.319 No matter how deep we go, 00:23:44.400 --> 00:23:45.900 even before we've seen 00:23:45.900 --> 00:23:47.600 the icy depths of our sin, 00:23:48.019 --> 00:23:49.559 there too is the mercy 00:23:49.559 --> 00:23:50.299 of the cross. 00:23:52.759 --> 00:23:53.960 Here is the comfort 00:23:53.960 --> 00:23:55.120 for those who mourn, 00:23:55.799 --> 00:23:57.000 a comfort that we are 00:23:57.000 --> 00:23:58.640 reconciled to God 00:23:58.640 --> 00:23:59.480 by his grace. 00:23:59.960 --> 00:24:01.500 Though our sins are great, 00:24:01.799 --> 00:24:03.400 his grace is even greater. 00:24:03.400 --> 00:24:07.700 But this comfort 00:24:07.700 --> 00:24:08.720 is not just the comfort 00:24:08.720 --> 00:24:10.460 of present forgiveness, 00:24:10.660 --> 00:24:11.600 it's also the comfort 00:24:11.600 --> 00:24:13.740 of future restoration. 00:24:15.720 --> 00:24:16.660 You see, to understand 00:24:16.660 --> 00:24:17.360 the Beatitudes, 00:24:17.480 --> 00:24:18.280 we have to see something 00:24:18.280 --> 00:24:18.980 very important, 00:24:19.060 --> 00:24:19.580 and we didn't spend 00:24:19.580 --> 00:24:20.420 a lot of time on this 00:24:20.420 --> 00:24:20.980 last week. 00:24:22.100 --> 00:24:23.380 These statements of Jesus 00:24:23.380 --> 00:24:25.980 about how human life 00:24:25.980 --> 00:24:26.920 is meant to be lived, 00:24:26.980 --> 00:24:27.560 about how to live 00:24:27.560 --> 00:24:28.920 a genuinely flourishing 00:24:28.920 --> 00:24:29.540 human life, 00:24:29.680 --> 00:24:30.940 in order to really understand 00:24:30.940 --> 00:24:32.280 them, we have to see 00:24:32.279 --> 00:24:35.240 that they are radically 00:24:35.240 --> 00:24:36.579 God-centered, 00:24:37.359 --> 00:24:40.000 and they are future-oriented. 00:24:41.399 --> 00:24:41.960 In other words, 00:24:42.039 --> 00:24:43.420 the life worth living, 00:24:43.559 --> 00:24:44.420 according to Jesus, 00:24:44.700 --> 00:24:46.460 is a life with the reality 00:24:46.460 --> 00:24:47.700 of God in the center, 00:24:48.759 --> 00:24:50.539 and it's also a life 00:24:50.539 --> 00:24:51.819 with the story 00:24:51.819 --> 00:24:53.160 of God's redemption 00:24:53.160 --> 00:24:54.579 for its plot, 00:24:54.740 --> 00:24:55.899 for its arc, 00:24:56.019 --> 00:24:57.019 for its shape. 00:24:57.019 --> 00:25:01.440 Jesus came announcing 00:25:01.440 --> 00:25:02.639 God's kingdom, 00:25:02.879 --> 00:25:03.819 God's reign, 00:25:04.160 --> 00:25:05.059 that would put an end 00:25:05.059 --> 00:25:05.779 to sin, 00:25:06.160 --> 00:25:06.759 and evil, 00:25:06.859 --> 00:25:07.319 and suffering, 00:25:07.400 --> 00:25:07.920 and wrong, 00:25:08.200 --> 00:25:09.079 and one day, 00:25:09.160 --> 00:25:10.019 that kingdom will be 00:25:10.019 --> 00:25:11.099 all in all 00:25:11.099 --> 00:25:12.160 when Christ, 00:25:12.259 --> 00:25:12.559 the King, 00:25:12.660 --> 00:25:13.519 returns in glory 00:25:13.519 --> 00:25:14.619 to renew creation, 00:25:15.180 --> 00:25:15.940 and then, 00:25:16.019 --> 00:25:16.680 in the new heavens 00:25:16.680 --> 00:25:17.379 and new earth, 00:25:18.259 --> 00:25:19.220 there will be no more 00:25:19.220 --> 00:25:19.740 sickness, 00:25:20.220 --> 00:25:20.960 or crying, 00:25:21.099 --> 00:25:21.639 or pain. 00:25:21.640 --> 00:25:25.360 The book of Revelation 00:25:25.360 --> 00:25:26.460 tells us He will wipe 00:25:26.460 --> 00:25:28.259 every tear from our eyes. 00:25:30.240 --> 00:25:31.120 Those who mourn 00:25:31.120 --> 00:25:33.080 will be comforted. 00:25:34.700 --> 00:25:35.000 You see, 00:25:35.060 --> 00:25:36.140 those who try to ignore 00:25:36.140 --> 00:25:37.280 the pain of this world 00:25:37.280 --> 00:25:38.000 and try to ignore 00:25:38.000 --> 00:25:39.480 the sin in our own hearts, 00:25:40.600 --> 00:25:40.800 you know, 00:25:40.840 --> 00:25:41.660 that might look like 00:25:41.660 --> 00:25:42.520 a sort of strategy 00:25:42.520 --> 00:25:43.660 that leads to joy, 00:25:43.940 --> 00:25:44.940 that leads to happiness, 00:25:45.940 --> 00:25:47.400 but that way of living 00:25:47.400 --> 00:25:49.020 is very short-sighted 00:25:49.019 --> 00:25:51.139 because there's a kingdom 00:25:51.139 --> 00:25:51.839 coming 00:25:51.839 --> 00:25:54.059 where the mourners 00:25:54.059 --> 00:25:55.059 will be comforted, 00:25:55.400 --> 00:25:56.799 not the comfortable. 00:25:59.619 --> 00:26:00.740 And the truth is, 00:26:00.819 --> 00:26:01.859 if you know nothing 00:26:01.859 --> 00:26:03.740 of mourning now, 00:26:04.700 --> 00:26:06.480 then there will be 00:26:06.480 --> 00:26:07.660 no place for you 00:26:07.660 --> 00:26:09.539 in that kingdom then. 00:26:10.819 --> 00:26:11.920 On the other hand, 00:26:11.920 --> 00:26:12.799 if you are 00:26:12.799 --> 00:26:15.039 acquainted with mourning now, 00:26:16.079 --> 00:26:16.720 Jesus says, 00:26:16.819 --> 00:26:18.220 you will be comforted. 00:26:19.019 --> 00:26:20.139 When the king 00:26:20.139 --> 00:26:21.559 comes in his glory, 00:26:22.339 --> 00:26:24.099 because this king 00:26:24.099 --> 00:26:25.319 knows what it means 00:26:25.319 --> 00:26:26.440 to weep, 00:26:26.639 --> 00:26:27.519 to be sorrowful. 00:26:28.559 --> 00:26:29.779 Man of sorrows 00:26:29.779 --> 00:26:30.440 he was called. 00:26:32.400 --> 00:26:33.279 So brothers and sisters, 00:26:33.400 --> 00:26:34.619 if you weep now, 00:26:35.119 --> 00:26:36.799 then you belong to him 00:26:36.799 --> 00:26:39.700 and you will be comforted. 00:26:42.440 --> 00:26:43.279 And you know, 00:26:43.339 --> 00:26:44.039 if we know 00:26:44.039 --> 00:26:45.480 this twin comfort, 00:26:45.559 --> 00:26:46.779 if we begin to experience 00:26:46.779 --> 00:26:47.779 this twin comfort, 00:26:47.779 --> 00:26:49.460 the forgiveness of sins 00:26:49.460 --> 00:26:50.279 and the comfort 00:26:50.279 --> 00:26:51.839 of our future hope, 00:26:52.799 --> 00:26:54.480 it means that those 00:26:54.480 --> 00:26:55.579 who mourn now 00:26:55.579 --> 00:26:58.079 are actually 00:26:58.079 --> 00:26:59.420 the greatest agents 00:26:59.420 --> 00:27:01.259 of God's kingdom 00:27:01.259 --> 00:27:01.940 in the present. 00:27:05.519 --> 00:27:06.779 Nicholas Wolterstorff, 00:27:06.960 --> 00:27:07.980 one-time philosopher 00:27:07.980 --> 00:27:09.339 of religion here at Yale, 00:27:10.039 --> 00:27:10.759 he wrote this, 00:27:11.180 --> 00:27:12.359 reflecting on this beatitude. 00:27:12.480 --> 00:27:12.720 He said, 00:27:12.720 --> 00:27:14.140 who are 00:27:14.140 --> 00:27:15.559 the mourners? 00:27:17.940 --> 00:27:18.680 He says, 00:27:18.740 --> 00:27:19.740 the mourners are those 00:27:19.740 --> 00:27:20.519 who have caught 00:27:20.519 --> 00:27:21.240 a glimpse 00:27:21.240 --> 00:27:23.299 of God's new day, 00:27:24.240 --> 00:27:25.100 who ache 00:27:25.100 --> 00:27:26.200 with all their being 00:27:26.200 --> 00:27:28.140 for that day's coming, 00:27:29.220 --> 00:27:30.539 and who break out 00:27:30.539 --> 00:27:31.180 into tears 00:27:31.180 --> 00:27:32.000 when confronted 00:27:32.000 --> 00:27:33.839 with its absence. 00:27:35.299 --> 00:27:36.299 They are the ones 00:27:36.299 --> 00:27:36.920 who realize 00:27:36.920 --> 00:27:37.920 that in God's realm 00:27:37.920 --> 00:27:38.360 of peace, 00:27:38.440 --> 00:27:39.539 there's no one blind, 00:27:39.539 --> 00:27:41.379 and who ache 00:27:41.379 --> 00:27:42.920 whenever they see 00:27:42.920 --> 00:27:44.359 someone unseeing. 00:27:45.019 --> 00:27:45.859 They are the ones 00:27:45.859 --> 00:27:46.539 who realize 00:27:46.539 --> 00:27:47.539 that in God's realm 00:27:47.539 --> 00:27:48.859 there's no one hungry 00:27:48.859 --> 00:27:50.720 and who ache 00:27:50.720 --> 00:27:51.539 whenever they see 00:27:51.539 --> 00:27:52.339 someone starving. 00:27:53.619 --> 00:27:54.220 They are the ones 00:27:54.220 --> 00:27:54.779 who realize 00:27:54.779 --> 00:27:55.680 that in God's realm 00:27:55.680 --> 00:27:56.659 there's no one 00:27:56.659 --> 00:27:57.819 falsely accused 00:27:57.819 --> 00:27:59.700 and who ache 00:27:59.700 --> 00:28:00.500 whenever they see 00:28:00.500 --> 00:28:01.379 someone imprisoned 00:28:01.379 --> 00:28:01.539 unjustly. 00:28:01.539 --> 00:28:08.059 unjustly. They are the ones who realize that in God's realm, there's no one who fails to see God 00:28:08.059 --> 00:28:12.019 and who ache whenever they see someone unbelieving. 00:28:13.159 --> 00:28:17.599 They are the ones who realize that in God's realm, there's no one who suffers oppression 00:28:17.599 --> 00:28:20.659 and who ache whenever they see someone beat down. 00:28:22.279 --> 00:28:27.000 They're the ones who realize that in God's realm, there's no one without dignity 00:28:27.000 --> 00:28:35.140 and who ache whenever they see someone treated with indignity. They are the ones who realize 00:28:35.140 --> 00:28:42.759 that in God's realm of peace there's neither death nor tears and who ache whenever they see 00:28:42.759 --> 00:28:49.720 someone crying tears over death. Who are the mourners? 00:28:49.720 --> 00:28:57.779 Walter Storff puts it this way. He says, the mourners are the aching visionaries. 00:28:59.640 --> 00:29:08.400 The mourners are the aching visionaries. Friends, may God make us a church of aching visionaries 00:29:08.400 --> 00:29:15.339 who mourn for a world in need of God's reign and who bring comfort to a hurting world 00:29:15.339 --> 00:29:18.799 because we know the day of his comfort is coming soon. 00:29:19.720 --> 00:29:20.860 Let's pray together. 00:29:25.819 --> 00:29:33.180 Father, by your Holy Spirit, make us a church that truly mourns. Make us a church of aching 00:29:33.180 --> 00:29:41.079 visionaries. May we mourn our own sins first and foremost and be humble. May we learn to 00:29:41.079 --> 00:29:47.860 mourn with those who mourn and may we long for your kingdom to come. Come soon, Lord Jesus, 00:29:47.859 --> 00:29:51.599 in your name we pray. Amen.