This morning, we are in week 6 of a sermon series that I have entitled Revival. My hope in this series is to lead us into a deeper experience of God, that God would give us greater spiritual life and vitality both individually and collectively, that we would experience more of His love and power, and that through us, He would bring His salvation and redemption to our world.
Earlier in this series, I mentioned what Richard Lovelace calls the two precursors of revival: an increased awareness of the holiness of God, and an increased awareness of the depth of our sin. By sin I mean our rebellion against God, our inability to measure up to His holy standard, our brokenness. You want to see revival in your life and in the church? Pray for those two things.
Last week I began to dive deeper into the second aspect, and we looked at Jesus’ opening words in his Sermon on the Mount, the section known as the Beatitudes, where he said “blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” The word “blessed” means that God’s favor and approval are upon you. Blessed are those who recognize that they are spiritually bankrupt, that they are completely dependent upon God for everything good. It is the promise that it is those who come to God empty who will be filled with His Holy Spirit, with the life of Jesus. That is where revival happens.
Today, I want to look at the second line of the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 5:4: “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.” At first glance, it sounds like Jesus is referring to those who are grieving the death of a loved one or some other earthly tragedy. But there is more going on here, and it is absolutely connected to an increased awareness of the depth of our sin and therefore to revival. Let me explain.
