Blessed are those who mourn...

Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.Matt 5:4

As we take our next step of the journey through the beatitudes we come to a verse which-quite frankly a few years ago I would have told you to stuff it where the sun doesn't shine...to put it bluntly. As you will know from the blog, my bro went to be with the Lord 13 years ago and in those years following this death the reality of mourning was something I was struggling to cope with but what an amazing joy we can receive from this passage-that for those of us who know and love the Lord Jesus-He is our comforter HE is our strength and will see us through-we WILL be comforted.

However when you look through the beatitudes there is a much deeper spiritual element to all those who are 'blessed' so I'm not entirely sure that Jesus is simply talking about those who have someone die...that this kinda out context-when you read the passage as a whole. In Matthew 9:14-15 it says

Then John’s disciples came and asked him, “How is it that we and the Pharisees fast often, but your disciples do not fast?”
Jesus answered, “How can the guests of the bridegroom mourn while he is with them? The time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; then they will fast.

Jesus, the bridegroom at this point was still with them but when he had gone there was a space for mourning his departure, for mourning the lack of the presence of God in their lives as they had known Him before-right there with them. I believe this is the kind of spiritual mourning that Jesus is actually addressing here. We are not as close to Jesus as we could be...no matter how long we pray or spend time reading the Bible we are not going to be as close to Jesus as we will be one day in glory and there is (or should be) a deep, desperate longing in our hearts for that day so whilst we are given fullness of joy in His presence (psalm 116) I believe there is room for grief and mourning for the day when we will see Him and the fact we are not there yet! But what a promise...as we mourn for that separation we are promised we WILL be comforted.
It says in proverbs-hope deferred makes the heart sink but a longing fulfilled is a well spring of life. When we see Christ there will be a well spring of life that will come from within us because we will no longer be mourning because we shall see Christ face to face.
THAT'S why is it blessed are those who mourn...for the one who mourns the deepest here on earth will be the one who receives the greatest joy when he mourning is healed through seeing Jesus.

Blessed are those who mourn...