Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
Matthew 5:4
So, as I study through this portion of the sermon on the mount, the Beatitudes, I see that Luke 6:20-23 is referenced for most of it. And what does Luke have to write that confirms what Matthew is saying? He also speaks of the poor, the weeping, the persecutions, and rejoicing. Jesus is speaking to the crowd about the state of the believer. It is a hard and difficult life but the reward is worth it all.
They that mourn. It is not just the grieving heart that will be comforted in due time, it is the repentant, broken heart that is referred to, as well. The word "mourn" is from the Hebrew word 'Pentheo' which means: to lament, I grieve, feel guilt; manifested grief so severe it takes possession of a person and cannot be hid.
How does such grief find relief? In Jesus. The word 'blessed' all by itself goes beyond mere emotional status and into the spiritual well-being and 'distinctive spiritual joy of they who share in the salvation of the kingdom of God. Are you blessed in such a way? Come to Jesus.
This past Wednesday Karl taught on Psalm 51 which shows the mournfulness of King David after his sin against God with Bathsheba. Here was grief manifested. And what did David do? He ran to God and repented of his sins. And what did God do? God forgave him. A reminder that when we sin, we should turn to God and seek His forgiveness. And God will forgive the truly repentant soul; the soul of a person will be comforted in the knowing of such forgiveness.
God is merciful and will show mercy to whomsoever He chooses. King David lusted after a woman who. in my opinion as a woman, shamelessly bathed on the rooftop of her house, where all could see her. He had sex with her, she got pregnant. So he manipulated the death of her husband and married her. Through it all he remained unrepentant and God judged him. Afterwards, David repented, received forgiveness and came into the joy of his salvation through God. Knowing God can forgive David for all his wickedness, we should run to God whenever sin gets into our hearts that God might forgive us, too.
When we know the difference between what is right and what is wrong, we become accountable to God for how we choose. In this day and age of accessible technologies, there is no excuse for not being informed of the right way to live according to God. Bibles and Scripture passages can be accessed right on a person's cell phone.
(I have downloaded Bible Hub on mine. There is also Bible Gateway, which is a great resource for study. I use Bible Hub on b my PC daily because my Strong's Exhaustive Concordance has such tiny font that I need to use a magnifying glass to read it. Though I will still use it occasionally, but it is so doggone heavy. I am paying the price for growing older.)
Anyway, let's come back to our verse today. How do we seek God's forgiveness? It's easier than you think. On our knees, face downward acknowledging God's holiness and righteousness. Jesus gives us an example of how to pray, which is commonly referred to as The Lord's Prayer, but is merely an example of How To Pray.
We can come to God as our Father. A good, good Father who resides in heaven, whose Name is HOLY.
We pray for His kingdom to come to us, the gospel of salvation through Jesus Christ, His only begotten Son. We pray that God's will be done to us here, that we repent of our wicked ways, turn from them to God and walk out this life in His glory: that all may see that God is just in His love and merciful. We pray that God's will be done here just as His will is done in heaven where He reigns.
We pray for our daily Bread, for a daily walk with Jesus in this life we now live for God. Daily we will read His Word and seek His face.
We pray for God to forgive us, as we have forgiven others. Whoa! That right there is a loaded prayer. How have we forgiven others, how have we treated the people who do us wrong? If we have not forgiven anyone who has mistreated us, then God cannot forgive us. We must forgive all those who sin against us, that God will forgive all the sins we have committed against Him. Only an honest heart will repent of all uncleanness, all unrighteous acts and thoughts that have kept us from the presence of God: for God is HOLY and sin cannot be where God is.
We pray that God keeps us from temptation, knowing that He will make a way for us to escape said temptations in our life. How do we know this? Because He says so. For the kingdom is His, the power is His and the glory is His. Not ours, nor anyone else's, regardless of what other folks might think, believe or say.
Dear Heavenly Father, I repent of all my wicked ways, the words I have spoken and the thoughts which Your Spirit reveals to me. Forgive me of all my sins, bring me into Your kingdom and Your kingdom into me. Take me into Your heart, wash me clean and make me Yours. Teach me Your ways and Your will that I might live a holy and righteous life in Your sight. In Jesus' Name, Amen.
