Sermon On The Mount: Part 2

Blessed and enviably happy [with a happiness produced by the experience of God’s favor and especially conditioned by the revelation of His matchless grace] are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted! Matthew 5:4

Jesus tells us that we are blessed if we mourn. He goes on to tell us that we have God’s favor if we mourn and that if we mourn then we are in an enviable position.

So for the sake of Christ, I am well pleased and take pleasure in infirmities, insults, hardships, persecutions, perplexities and distresses; for when I am weak [in human strength], then am I [truly] strong (able, powerful in divine strength). 2 Corinthians 12:10

Moreover [let us also be full of joy now!] let us exult and triumph in our troubles and rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that pressure and affliction and hardship produce patient and unswerving endurance. And endurance (fortitude) develops maturity of character (approved faith and tried integrity). And character [of this sort] produces [the habit of] joyful and confident hope of eternal salvation. Romans 5:3-4

Let’s also look at the story of Lazarus here to see the Truth of we are blessed if we mourn.

And at his gate there was [carelessly] dropped down and left a certain utterly destitute man named Lazarus, [reduced to begging alms and] covered with [ulcerated] sores. Luke 16:20

And it occurred that the man [reduced to] begging died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom. The rich man also died and was buried. Luke 16:22

Lazarus had a terrible life and only when he died was he comforted. You know what I always find great about Jesus’ parable? Jesus never said that Lazarus was a righteous man, or a good man, or a believing man, He only said that Lazarus was a destitute man. I honestly believe there is a very comfortable eternity for those who our Father uses to be destitute while they were on this earth. The parable of Lazarus gives me great hope when I see the world and all that is going on. We were never told that Lazarus was used to preach or serve, but we were told that he was eternally comforted as a reward for his suffering.

Paul was used by our Father and he also had what the world would call a hard life. Paul was beaten, falsely imprisoned, left for dead, sick, and hated, yet he wrote that he rejoiced in his sufferings. Paul rejoiced because the Holy Spirit empowered him to rejoice. Paul was blessed by experiencing our Father’s energy and power while suffering. Everywhere we look in the Bible we can see that the more our Father uses us, the more hard times that He will take us through. God doesn’t do this because He is mean; He does it because it allows us to stop trusting in ourselves and it allows us to live in His glory and His power.