The Benefit of Tears
Last time I talked about being poor in spirit. John MacArthur has said "if 'poor in spirit' is a recognition of the condition intellectually, then 'mourning' is the emotional result of this recognition." There are at least 6 words used in Scripture that are translated "mourn." Of them all, the one used in Matthew 5:4 is the most intense. It represents "an expression of intense sense of loss, helplessness and despair." Once again, Jesus turns culture upside down by letting us know that in order for us to experience the blessing of God (in this case, comfort), we must first experience an intense sense of loss that expresses itself in mourning. Wow. Let that sink in for a minute. I think that we sometimes believe that God brings into our life just to discipline us. While that may occasionally be true for very intentional reasons, the over-arching message of this beatitude is one of comfort. The reality is that we all face times of i