Blessed are they that mourn

[Deleted member 10797]

“Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.”
Matthew 5:4

This is a popular verse at many funeral services. When a loved one passes from this life to the next the family and friends mourn the death of the deceased. If you keep this verse in context by reading verses 3 and 4 together, you can see that the kind of mourning that Christ is talking about here is not mourning over the death of a loved one but mourning over sin. Jesus is saying that blessed is that man or woman whose sins are forgiven, who has much sorrow and grief over his personal sinfulness, for he shall be comforted. Happy is the one who comes to Christ for forgiveness, for they shall be forgiven. Blessed is the one who turns to God in repentance and faith.

The questions that should ponder in the heart of a true believer are, why do I sin? Why do I do that which is displeasing unto God? 1 John 1:8-10 reminds us that even as saved children of God we fall short and sin. The words of John at the start of the next chapter are a great solace to the child of God he declares if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous one the forgiver of sins. There is a time to mourn and a time to dance (Ecclesiastes 3:4). There must be a balance in the life of the Christian of mourning over our sins and joy over forgiveness.

Yes, our sin should cause us sorrow, but we should also have great joy and a sense of peace in the knowledge that our advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ is the righteous One who does pardon us before the throne of Heaven. Even now Christ is praying for you so your faith will not fail. Christ kept Peter and He will keep all His children from completely falling away from the truth.

In Revelation 21:4 those that mourn shall be comforted by God when he wipes away all tears from their eyes. There is a day coming when sadness shall be turned to joy when woe and heartache will cease in the soul of the believer. This promise of God is also found in Isaiah 61:2, “To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn.”

The reader will do well to bear in mind James 4:7-10 this is how the believer is comforted by God. The truly mourning and repenting sinner will submit to the Lord as he is drawn nigh to the throne of grace. Humble yourself today before God, do not harden your heart, and have your mourning turned to joy as your sins are confessed and God is glorified.

 

[Contra_Mundum]

Is it not true that Scripture speaks of a variety of causes of mourning besides personal sin? I would think that death's occasion, being above all a sign of the wage of sin and Adam's infliction upon all his offspring, is not beyond the Savior's meaning when he declares, "Blessed are they that mourn."

In addition, not only do we mourn over our own sin, and Original Sin, but we must endure much misery in this fallen world; of which a significant amount is the result of the sin of others. Believers are promised a degree of suffering in this life, which can come about through general negative effects of natural disaster or illness, or by the carelessness or malice of other men. Mourning is appropriate in the face of Satan's malice, and divine comfort is for those who reject his kingdom.

Surely those who belong to the kingdom Christ inaugurates around himself, which is not of this world and draws its members out of this world, when they choose suffering instead of the pleasures of sin for a season, when they weep for pain or loss in this life while accepting the will of God for them by such deprivation, these too are promised the comfort of Mt.5:4, are they not?

Jesus' words in the Beatitudes, taken all together, express the ideal character of a citizen of his kingdom--so ideal in fact that the description goes beyond anything one could hope to produce by himself. The Beatitudes are not a stair-step of progress to becoming a citizen, nor an image or impression of how "real" citizens or the "best" citizens comport themselves. They encapsulate what the true citizen is, in union with the Lord of the kingdom.

By all means, the true citizen definitely mourns over his personal sin, over all within himself that conflicts with his Lord. But we must not reduce our understanding of mourning in Mt.5:4 to one dimension; else we cut ourselves off from the comfort that extends to all the citizen's legitimate mourning.

 

[ReformedChristian]

Well Jesus himself mourned for the death of Lazarus, yet he comforted Martha and the others in speaking of the resurrection in John 11. Mourning applies to many things. Sin, death etc. There are many aspects to it.

 

[Scottish Presbyterian]

I agree with Nathan’s take here. He’s clearly not saying that mourning for the death of loved ones is not appropriate, but that it is not the referent of this beatitude. That’s obviously true, because if it was then the blessing promised would apply to all mankind, including unbelievers, whereas the Lord is clearly mentioning all these beatitudes as distinctive marks of grace. It is not a mark of grace to mourn for the dead (albeit that it is entirely appropriate), ergo that is not the type of mourning Christ is talking about in this verse.

 

[Contra_Mundum]

I agree with Nathan’s take here. He’s clearly not saying that mourning for the death of loved ones is not appropriate, but that it is not the referent of this beatitude. That’s obviously true, because if it was then the blessing promised would apply to all mankind, including unbelievers, whereas the Lord is clearly mentioning all these beatitudes as distinctive marks of grace. It is not a mark of grace to mourn for the dead (albeit that it is entirely appropriate), ergo that is not the type of mourning Christ is talking about in this verse.

Mourning over one's personal sin is doubtless included in the mourning intended by the beatitude, but by no means does it exhaust the Teacher's expression. Even Christian mourning in death is distinct from the mourning of the world, 1Ths.4:13, though the subject is the same. Furthermore, death is antithetical to the kingdom, but at the present time even believers continue to face it as a menace.

Yes, if this or any beatitude is turned into a universalist assertion--the one that comes first to mind is Lk.6:20, comparable to Mt.5:3--the meaning is utterly lost. It would be pastoral malpractice to preach in a non-discriminatory manner to a mixed audience, offering assurance that the tears of unbelievers as well as believers summon divine blessing or validate one's lot in some fashion.

The beatitude is unto comfort, specifically for kingdom citizens living as aliens in a foreign land. Physical death is endemic to this place, but believers now recognize it as unnatural to them. But we still face it while we remain in the body. For those of us that mourn when a loved one departs, this beatitude speaks of the same comfort that brought reconciliation and forgiveness of sin through faith in Christ. Confronted by death, faith in Christ comforts us again.

"My only comfort in life and in death is that I am not my own, but belong--body and soul, in life and in death--to my faithful Savior Jesus Christ...."

The design of the OP seems to be to push "the true believer" into greater bouts of mourning, for a greater bestowal of joy after confession. In fact, a believer IS a mourner--over personal sin and a great many things that are sin's consequences but not necessarily a direct result of the believer's state or act. And being that sort of mourner, he will be comforted.

Jesus' design in discovering to us such "marks of grace" as the Beatitudes exposit is binary: either I am or I am not a mourner in all matters that should disturb a kingdom citizen. And if I am such a mourner, there is a promise for me to lay hold of that my tears will most certainly be wiped away, Rev.21:4.

 

[Scottish Presbyterian]

Mourning over one's personal sin is doubtless included in the mourning intended by the beatitude, but by no means does it exhaust the Teacher's expression. Even Christian mourning in death is distinct from the mourning of the world, 1Ths.4:13, though the subject is the same. Furthermore, death is antithetical to the kingdom, but at the present time even believers continue to face it as a menace.

Yes, if this or any beatitude is turned into a universalist assertion--the one that comes first to mind is Lk.6:20, comparable to Mt.5:3--the meaning is utterly lost. It would be pastoral malpractice to preach in a non-discriminatory manner to a mixed audience, offering assurance that the tears of unbelievers as well as believers summon divine blessing or validate one's lot in some fashion.

The beatitude is unto comfort, specifically for kingdom citizens living as aliens in a foreign land. Physical death is endemic to this place, but believers now recognize it as unnatural to them. But we still face it while we remain in the body. For those of us that mourn when a loved one departs, this beatitude speaks of the same comfort that brought reconciliation and forgiveness of sin through faith in Christ. Confronted by death, faith in Christ comforts us again.

"My only comfort in life and in death is that I am not my own, but belong--body and soul, in life and in death--to my faithful Savior Jesus Christ...."

The design of the OP seems to be to push "the true believer" into greater bouts of mourning, for a greater bestowal of joy after confession. In fact, a believer IS a mourner--over personal sin and a great many things that are sin's consequences but not necessarily a direct result of the believer's state or act. And being that sort of mourner, he will be comforted.

Jesus' design in discovering to us such "marks of grace" as the Beatitudes exposit is binary: either I am or I am not a mourner in all matters that should disturb a kingdom citizen. And if I am such a mourner, there is a promise for me to lay hold of that my tears will most certainly be wiped away, Rev.21:4.

Thanks for the clarification, I agree with all of that (aside from the first sentence of the penultimate paragraph). I misunderstood your original response on the thread, and the response immediately after it, as an essentially universalist understanding of the beatitude, hence why I felt the need to push back.