3 Questions to Start the DaySample

Question 2: Will I Mourn over Sin Today?

Attitude: Sensitivity to Sin

Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted (Matthew 5:4 NIV).

The word translated mourn is one of the strongest Greek words for grief that Jesus could have chosen. It is the word for wailing, like the sort of passionate lament you hear at a Tangi (a Māori funeral in New Zealand).

A person who mourns in this way, is in deep soul anguish and contrition. Paul captured something of the desperation of a true mourner when he said, What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? (Romans 7:24 BSB).

To mourn over sin means to be sensitive to sin, and to feel the pain. Jesus’ words include sensitivity to the pain of my sin, as well as the ability to feel the pain of the sin around us. Notice though that Jesus calls these mourners blessed, Sounds strange? Yet it is one of the upside-down values in his kingdom. This sorrow is sacred. It is sorrow over our sin and the sin all around us. When we get a glimpse of the way sin wounds us, damages others, and grieves the Holy Spirit, we experience holy sorrow. And our hearts soften. In King David’s words, it is crying out to God, “My sin is always before me. Against you and you only have I sinned" - Psalm 51:3-4 NIV.

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus didn’t say, “Blessed are the moaners,” nor “To be congratulated are the complainers.” He was saying that the people who meet with God’s approval come to terms with their own sinfulness, and the sinfulness of people around them.

To mourn is to acknowledge how sinful we are at the core of our being. It’s avoiding any attempts to rationalize our wrongdoing. Those who mourn over their sin, Jesus promises, are truly blessed.

This second question, “Will I mourn over sin today?” highlights a growth area for me. The culture of our day conspires against any sort of sensitivity toward sin. Once, in a family discussion, we reflected on how we can become desensitized to sin. Coarse language, that once made us recoil, was now tolerated without a flicker. Violence, that once offended us to the core of our being, had become imperceptibly acceptable. Sexual impropriety, that once shocked us, had become the new norm.

One of my hobbies is to collect significant questions. I have added four recently: 1. Are you growing? 2. Do you want to change? 3. Is your desire for holiness greater? 4. Has your hatred for sin increased? Questions 3 and 4 capture the spirit of the second Beatitude.

If the attitude behind the first Beatitude is that of humility, the attitude of the virtuous in this second Beatitude is contrition or sensitivity to sin. In the first question to open the day, Will I be depending on God today?” the focus is on the greatness and glory of God. As we look at him, the only right response is poverty of spirit.

When we ask ourselves the second question at the start of the day, “Will I mourn over my sin today?” we look at ourselves and the world around us with God’s great holiness in mind.

… for they shall be comforted.

As we grieve over our sin and the spiritually broken world around us, God pours out his comfort. He refashions our hearts to reflect his purity. Our tears turn into prayers. Having received God’s comfort, we become more compassionate and more attune to the needs in the broken world around us.

Reflection:

- Why is it so easy to gloss over our sins, instead of practicing this second Beatitude?

Practice:

- Start the day with question one and two, and fold them into midday and evening.

- Instead of just skimming over news of violence and other forms of evil, pause and grieve.

Prayer:

Father of all comfort, please burn such an awareness of your holiness into my mind that I will be quick to confess the deceitfulness of my heart and mourn over my sin. Make me more sensitive to the injustice and pain around me. And as I am, pour your comfort into my needy soul. Amen.