"Blessed are those who mourn,
For they shall be comforted."
Matthew 5:4
For they shall be comforted."
Matthew 5:4
My devotion yesterday created quite a mental workout for me........I can't stop thinking about it.
What do you think about when you read that verse? Do you think about mourning a loved one, friend, lost relationship? Do you think about Christ comforting you when you are sad?
Those words seem to bring comfort. But as I read my devotion, I realized that I had just jumped over a very significant part of that verse.
"God wants us to experience His joy. Yet we cannot experience His joy until we have mourned over our sin. If we do not grieve over the weight of our sin, we have no concept of sin's devastating power. If we treat our sin lightly, we demonstrate that we have no sense of the enormity of our offense against almighty God. Our sin caused the death of God's Son. It causes us to fall short of what God intends. It brings pain and sorrow to others, as well as to ourselves."
Did you read that?
"Our sin caused the death of God's Son."
Have you really ever thought about that? I have faced the gravity of my sin before, but I am not sure I have ever truly let myself comprehend or thoughtfully took in that MY sin caused someone's death............not just someone.............God's perfect Son.
let that sink in.
If a choice I made during the day caused the death of a person, I think it would be almost unbearable to me. I am not sure how I could live with that knowledge.
Yet, I live with it everyday......without thinking about it much, if at all.
MY sin caused the death of God's Son.
"The Bible says that those who grieve over their sin will draw near to God. Those who mourn and weep over their sin are in a position to repent. There cannot be repentance without the realization of the gravity of sin. Regret for sin's consequences is not the same as sorrow for sinning against holy God."
I have asked my children this many times "are you truly sorry for what you did, or are you just sorry you got caught?"
Do I just have regret for the consequences of my sin or do I feel deep sorrow for my sin? Do I take the amazing gift of salvation that Christ extended me for granted? I think most times, I do.
"Jesus said that those who are heartbroken over their sin will find comfort. They will experience new dimensions of God's love and forgiveness. His infinite grace is sufficient for the most terrible sin. Do not try and skip the grieving process of repentance in order to move on to experience joy. God will not leave you to weep over your sin but will forgive you, comfort you, and fill you with His joy."
7 comments:
Wow...beautiful.
Sometimes when I sin and I feel guilty about it, I have to ask myself, "Am I sad because I did something wrong or am I sad because someone will think less of me now?" I have a HUGE ego which I constantly struggle to keep in check. Great blog!! It really brings me into check. =)
Very cool thoughts, Sara. This morning, my devotional was based on "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kindgom of heaven." There was a strong message for me in that today...actually an answer to prayer.
Gotta love those beatitudes.
Thank you for sharing this. It's something I do think about but it's always good to be reminded.
You stepped on some toes today. Thanks.
Oh Sara!! You know I loved that you shared this...God is always on time. I have been mourning over my whining! It has reached sin proportions! Ridiculous I tell you. Thanks for sharing.
Chel
doggone it...i've been commenting on the past several posts and ditzo forgot to log in to my account...ANYWAYS, what i did say about this post is how awesome it was. i have come to learn a lot about grace later in my life...real grace. and for me there is such a tempation to be complacent about my sin because of grace. yet if i really grasp its meaning, i would truly be grieved. good post, great reminder!
Sara, this was HUGE. What a poignant reminder. Thank you for posting about this.
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