Today’s Reading: Matthew 5:4 (HCSB)
Those who mourn are blessed, for they will be comforted.
Today’s Question: How big of a deal is sin?
Today’s Commentary:
Everyone sins, every day. Sin is glorified in our world, dismissed as a reality by some, and generally accepted by the masses as a part of life. Ask someone the question, “Do you sin?” and you will likely get a ho-hum response of “Sure. Who doesn’t?” But this is not the attitude of the disciple of Christ. Sin is serious. The disciple of Christ is broken over sin. Like a parent who mourns the tragic death of his or her only child, the disciple of Jesus weeps internally over the wretchedness of his or her sin.
Sin is rebellion against the One who gives us life and sustains us daily. Therefore, Jesus deals with it first in the Great Sermon (Matthew 5-7). Jesus is teaching His disciples the foundation of the Christian life. He starts with the attitude of a disciple. Disciples are mourners. True disciples are not like the professional “mourners” during Jesus’ time (for an example, see Mark 5:39ff, where there were actually people who were paid to cry at funerals to make the family feel better). There was an external appearance of sadness, but little to no internal grief on the part of the professional. For the disciple of Christ, the sorrow for sin was deep, all the way to core of one’s being.
A Gospel presentation without the call for repentance is no gospel at all. Brokenness leads to sorrow, and this sorrow runs deep into the soul. A true disciple never gets over the wretched reality of sin, because he cannot eradicate sin completely from his life. Nevertheless, his attitude of humility and gratefulness for the grace of God keeps him in a state of thankfulness toward his Lord. This kind of mourning always leads to joy.
“Follow One, Lead Others” Principle #3: True disciples lead others with an ever-increasing awareness of their own sin. They are able to help others because they are relying fully on the forgiveness of Christ and teach others to do the same.
Today’s Prayer Point: Spend some time praising and thanking God for His provision of grace. Ask God to reveal any areas of hidden sin (things against Him that you or others may not see).
Shepherding Well 