MISSION WOODS CHURCH
Sunday, March 1, 2026
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  • Humble Thyself in the Sight of the Lord
  • You Are My All In All
  • It Is Well With My Soul
  • Grace Like Rain
  • Let’s all take a deep breath.
    Life is hard. We open the local news and we see murders, muggings, conflict seems to be everywhere.
    We open the national news and find that our country has attacked Iran, a country with whom only days ago we were supposedly negotiating. As a result the Ayotolla Khemeni has been killed. In retaliation Iran has lashed out against Israel, and US installations in the region. In Bahrain, United Arab Emirates, an Qatar, many of civilian targets have been hit.
    Many of us have observed the US tensions with this regime since 1979. We remember the hostage crisis. The fatigue and fear is real. What’s next? How will this end? Are we facing another never ending war?
    I’d love to stand before you and say I have the answers. I’d love to, but I don’t. What can I offer? For this pastor at times it feels small.
    Breathe.
    Breathe in the breath of God. Remember God breathed life into the Creation. The word for breath in Hebrew is Ruach, which is also the word for spirit in Hebrew.
    Breathe deep, and remember whom we put our trust in. Breathe deep, and spend some time in prayer. Breathe deep, and lift up our leadership, the Iranian people, pray for peace. Breathe deep, and recognize the how you are feeling in this moment. Breathe deep, and recognize how you mourn in this moment.
    We’re working through the Beatitudes as we journey through the season of Lent. The beatitudes are a beautiful group of verses launching Jesus most concentrated teaching in the book of Matthew known as the Sermon on the Mount.
    Perhaps it is serendipitous that we come to the second beatitude on this particular Sunday. Let’s turn to God’s Word and see what God has for us.
    Matthew 5:4 ESV
    “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.
    Last week we discussed the meaning of blessed, that is has been translated by some as “Happy,” and other have said, “Congratulations!” and “How good is the life”.
    So we read, blessed are those who mourn.
    First of all, it is to be noted that the Greek word used here for mourn is the strongest word for mourning in the Greek language. It is used for mourning the dead, with the passion that would be reserved for a loved one. In the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Old Testament, it is the same word used to describe Jacob’s grief when he believed his beloved son Joseph was dead. It is the kind of grief that takes hold of you in such a way that it cannot be hidden.
    I have found William Barclay helpful in breaking down this beatitude, where he describes three ways in which this beatitude can be taken.
    Literally: Blessed are those who have endured the bitterest sorrow life can bring.
    Mourning can do two things for us. It can show us as nothing else, the kindness of others; and it can show us as nothing else can the comfort and compassion of God.
    Walking with people through their grief I have seen incredible compassion demonstrated by friends in the midst of it all. It is also during such times that many rediscover their faith, often faith that had gone dormant and they hadn’t paid much attention to before. Sometimes this is what brings people back to the church.
    When things are going well, it is easy to be very superficial in our faith. There’s nothing there to test it, life is good; life is calm.
    At a Christian gathering someone was heard saying in response to “how are you?” - “Great, that’s what worries me.” There’s a difficult truth there - it’s when life is hard that our faith gets tested and grows. When grief comes, we are driven deeper in our life and faith.
    Barclay included this poem by Robert Browning Hamilton called, “Along the Road”:
    The Gospel of Matthew, Volume 1 The Bliss of the Broken Heart (Matthew 5:4)

    I walked a mile with Pleasure,

    She chattered all the way,

    But left me none the wiser

    For all she had to say.

    I walked a mile with Sorrow,

    And ne’er a word said she,

    But, oh, the things I learned from her

    When Sorrow walked with me!

    A second way this beatitude can be taken is:
    Blessed are those who are desperately sorry for the sorrow and the suffering in this world.
    This is the compassionate part of Christianity. We feel for others who are suffering, whether that be
    the homeless on the street,
    the migrants living in fear of deportation,
    those suffering in hospitals,
    those who suffer ostracism from cultural norms
    those who suffer in the midst of war torn countries
    and more.
    Christianity at its roots is caring. This beatitude definitely means those who care intensely for the sufferings, sorrows, and needs of others are blessed.
    The third way this beatitude can be taken (according to Barclay) is:
    Blessed are those who are desperately sorry for their own sin and their own unworthiness.
    Yes, the first suggestions are true, yet this is the main thought. We can endure great sorrow, and we can be concerned and compassionate for the suffering we see around us. Yet the central message within this list of beatitudes and one might even say the Sermon on the Mount is focused upon the disciple’s soul.
    Jesus first message in the Gospel of Matthew was, “Repent!” Whether we’re mourning the loss of a loved one, or the sorrow and suffering in this world, the biblical reality is that it is all a result of sin.
    In our culture we are far better at taking the grievousness of another’s sins seriously than taking sin in our own life seriously. Too often when confronted with our own sin we are quick to respond like a teenager, “Everyone else is doing it.”
    Yet Jesus’ call comes to you, “Repent.” 400 years of silence from the end of the Old Testament, until the beginning of the New Testament and Jesus opens with this message as He begins to preach: Matthew 4:17
    Matthew 4:17 ESV
    “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
    Barclay states it well when he says, “Christianity begins with a sense of sin. Blessed are those who are intensely sorry for their sin, those who are heartbroken for what their sin has done to God and to Jesus Christ, those who see the cross and who are appalled by the havoc wrought by sin.”
    He concludes this secion stating that the real meaning of the second beatitude is:
    “O the bliss of those whose hearts are broken for the world’s suffering and for their own sin, for our of their sorrow they will find the joy of God!”
    We do ourselves a disservice when we look at the state of our culture and fail to recognize our part in it. We often minimize how our actions impact the world around us. Even the smallest action can have significant impact.
    Have you ever been driving down the highway and suddenly everything slows down, perhaps even coming to a full stop and then picks up with seemingly no apparent cause? Traffic engineers say these mysterious phenomena are often caused by something seemingly innocuous. What is this simple action to which they refer?
    A simple tap on the brakes. According to traffic engineers what happens is when we tap on our brakes, the person immediately behind us does the same thing. Though they tend to remain on their brakes for a split second longer than you did as they wait for your brake lights to turn off. The person behind them does the same thing - adding another split second. This compounds over a period of minutes until people are coming to a full stop near the place where you originally hit your brakes. The slowdown will remain until the density of traffic disperses.
    We ignore the impact our sin can have in this world. Perhaps this is why Jesus constantly raised the bar for what we’re called to do.
    Thus far we haven’t talked about the promise in our verse.
    Matthew 5:4 ESV
    … they shall be comforted.
    Comforted by whom? From where? Clearly the implication throughout these teachings is it comes from God.
    In our darkest moments - God is there. In the deep sorrow of mourning the loss of a loved one God is there. David wrote:
    Psalm 23:4 ESV
    Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
    No matter how dark it is, God is there.
    The cross is a constant reminder:
    Sin can take the lovelies life in all the world and smash it on a cross. One of the great functions of the cross is to open the eyes of men and women to the horror of sin.
    William Barclay (New Testament Scholar)
    We began the journey of Lent on Ash Wednesday using the verse from Paul’s letter to the Galatians,
    Galatians 2:20 ESV
    I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
    My prayers are that this war with Iran will end quickly, that the people of Iran might be free again.
    My hope for each one of us is that we would mourn with those who mourn, we would mourn the grievous situations in our world, and more than that, we would take the sin in our own lives so seriously that we would be absolutely agrieved and change our lives making the world a better place one life at a time. Beginning with ours.
    Pault urged us, Ro 12:1
    Romans 12:1 NIV
    Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.
    Let us each take our sin seriously and seek to give it up not just for lent, but as a life walking with Christ. To God be the glory. AMEN.

      • Matthew 5:4ESV

      • Matthew 4:17ESV

      • Matthew 5:4ESV

      • Psalm 23:4ESV

      • Galatians 2:20ESV

      • Romans 12:1ESV

  • In Remembrance
  • All That I Need
  • Doxology
  • Make Me a Blessing
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MISSION WOODS CHURCH
info@missionwoodschurch.org
(253) 922-5555
http://www.missionwoodschurch.org
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