Matthew 5:1-12

Amen. I wonder who it is that you most envy in the world. If you were to press the reset button on your life and start again, what sort of a person would you create for yourself? How would you do it? Well, at the beginning of probably what is the most famous sermon ever preached, it's called the Sermon on the Mount. It's this section in Matthew's Gospel from chapter 5 to the end of chapter 7.

Then Jesus deals out the definitive answer, the definitive reality on who it is that we should envy in the world. They are the blessed people, he says. They are the people who've got life right. You look at them and you think, how I envy them.

It is a hard word to translate in the English, the word blessed. I quite like the Welsh paraphrase, forgive me on the pronunciation on this. Gwynny big I think it is. I'm sorry about that. But that means white is their world.

White is their world. Everything is in its right place. Everything is where it should be. Happy, blessed, enviable. White is their world. That is the kind of feel of this passage.

So we imagine, don't we, perhaps the kind of people who end up on the front of magazines. They work hard, they play hard, they retire early, they've got money in the bank, they've got holiday homes, maybe in a couple of other places around the world.

They've got great family life, they've got great social standing, maybe they give to charity. And you look at them and you think, they have done it. They have made it in life. Look at him, look at her. How I envy them. How white is their world.

So who do you envy? So who do you envy? I don't know what it is for you. Maybe you envy someone at the end of the summer who gets straight A's. Maybe you look at somebody with a freehold of a detached London property. How I envy them. How I would like to be them. They have made it in life.

That's the kind of feel to what Jesus is saying here. The blessed people. The people that we envy.

And you'll notice the audience that Jesus speaks to here. If you look at verse 1, seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain and as he sat down his disciples came to him. That's interesting, isn't it?

You've got a gathering of the disciples with Jesus, but then the crowds are there as well, aren't they? This is a double-barrelled sermon that Jesus preaches here. One barrel is for the Christians, isn't it? For the disciples, those who belong to Jesus.

These eight or nine blessed statements at the beginning of the sermon are meant for them, for the disciples.

And the whole content of this scintillating sermon, with all of its captivating ethical teaching, is meant for the disciples.

So don't mistake Jesus. This isn't a sermon on rules, on how to get into the kingdom of God.

No, it's the behaviour that the citizens of Jesus' kingdom, the disciples, who've already trusted in him, are to live by.

But then, if you flick to the end of this great sermon in chapter 7, verse 28, we read,

When Jesus finished these sayings, the crowds were astonished at his teaching.

You see, there is the second barrel of the sermon. It is for those who are listening in, isn't it?

For those who are outsiders. It's as if he's saying to the world outside,

If you want to know who is truly blessed, who is truly happy, who you should envy in the world,

Just look at my disciples. Just listen to what I tell them, and how they are going to live.

Now maybe you're here this morning, and that describes you a little bit.

You're here, you're surrounded with Jesus' disciples in church,

But actually, if you're honest, you're not one of those disciples, and you're looking in from the outside.

You're one of the people in the crowds. You're eavesdropping on what Jesus is saying to his disciples.

I want to say to you, that that is exactly what church is for, for you.

It is for the crowds to come in and eavesdrop on Jesus' teaching to his church.

Eavesdropping is allowed in church.

This is not a private members' club, or a private members' meeting.

It is for the crowds of the world to come in and hear Jesus teaching to his disciples.

And this is absolutely golden here, isn't it?

Because I don't know about you, but the search for happiness and blessing is so elusive.

Isn't it?

One person said, the search for happiness is one of the chief sources of unhappiness.

So true, isn't it?

Happiness and blessing is such a slippery thing, but here Jesus claims to be able to end that search.

It's absolute gold dust.

So what we've got at the beginning of this great sermon on the map is in these blessed statements.

It's a kind of prologue, really.

It's the essence of the sermon up front, before he gets into the real content.

This is the pocket guide to what it is to be blessed.

Who do I envy?

Who do I crave to be?

Well, Jesus says you've got to be careful who you envy in this world.

And actually when we come to Jesus, it is as if he steps into the shop window at night,

and he switches around all of the price tags, and all of the labels, and all of the items.

All of our categories of happiness and good fortune are switched around, aren't they?

And he presents a completely radical view on what it is to be blessed.

Blessed are the poor in spirit.

Blessed are the meek, verse 5.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness.

If you flick over to verse 10, blessed are the persecuted.

Are you when you're persecuted?

It's just ludicrous, this, isn't it?

It's just completely upside down to the teaching of our world.

On a couple more Sunday mornings, I want to look at some of these blessed statements a bit more closely.

And perhaps one of the most striking is in verse 4, if you look there.

Blessed are those who mourn.

For they shall be comforted.

Could you have two words in the same sentence that are more opposite than that?

Blessed.

Mourn.

Who do I envy?

Jesus says, envy those who mourn.

For they will be comforted, he says.

He says that the mourning people are blessed.

Because somehow the comfort they receive will be far better.

It will outweigh their grief.

There is something worth it.

In the kingdom of Jesus, it is not the grief that is the blessing in and of itself.

Is it?

He's saying, no, they are blessed because of the comfort they will feel.

They will feel Jesus' comfort.

They will feel his welcome.

And his special help.

So I want us to see a few things about this particular verse.

Number one.

These blessed people are spiritually mourning.

Not generally mourning.

These blessed people are spiritually mourning.

Not generally mourning.

You know, as we look at the world today, it is a cliche, isn't it?

But every time you turn the radio on, every time you click the TV on or you look at the front pages,

there is a new reason to mourn.

Have you heard about Munich?

Have you heard about Nice?

Have you heard about Kabul?

Have you heard about this person that we love?

Who is going through this?

This is a world that mourns daily.

And the word Jesus uses here is the same word that is described of the disciples when they are bereaved of Jesus later in the Gospels.

It is a deep grief.

It is a hollow, empty, dark hole of emotion and of grief and of pain.

And so this is the kind of promise that you might hear at a funeral.

It is maybe a good verse to memorise and share with folk who are grieving, isn't it?

But I want to say that actually this promise does not cover all grief as a blanket rule.

Now of course, God does comfort people, doesn't he?

God wants to comfort people in various trials of course, but there is no promise in the Bible of blessing every time suffering strikes.

There is no universal human right of comfort whenever death strikes.

There is no automatic blessing whenever anyone anywhere mourns about anything.

And that just makes sense, doesn't it?

Death. Death is not a blessing.

Death is a curse.

It is a curse on life.

This is not just about any situation, however awful it may be, regardless of the person's relationship to God.

No, this is spiritual mourning.

Let me read a few other verses from the Bible to help us on this.

Paul, in his letter to the Corinthians, he says,

Godly sorrow leads to salvation and no regret.

He's talking about sin there.

In the famous psalm, Psalm 51, where David, he confesses his sins, doesn't he?

After adultery and murder, he says,

The broken and contrite heart, O God, you won't despise.

God says to the people of God through Joel,

Joel chapter 2,

Joel 2 · chapter mention

Tear your heart and not your garments.

It's like a Jewish phrase.

It means, be broken hearted about your sin.

Don't just put on a show.

Be broken hearted about your behaviour.

He says, for he is gracious and compassionate.

It's a theme that runs throughout the whole Bible.

Jesus is speaking about the mourning of a person who grieves.

Not about their situation necessarily, but about their sin.

Their sin.

The way that they've offended God.

They've turned their backs on him.

That is what upsets them.

That's what frustrates them in life.

That's what disturbs them.

It is knowing how awful sin is.

It's a spiritual mourning, not a natural, general mourning.

This comfort promise is not going to come to anyone

who suffers with anything for any reason.

Please, please, don't use this verse for friends who are grieving

and yet they couldn't care less about their relationship with God.

If sin is a light thing to them.

Jesus is not saying here, anyone who's unhappy, you want to envy him.

It's not it, is it?

I wonder, Christians, we can often be like that, can't we?

We can think, you know, the more miserable we are,

the more God blesses us, kind of thing.

The more miserable I am about life, the more God loves me.

That's not what he's saying here.

This is a grief over our spiritual state.

Without Jesus' help.

This is a grief over sin.

As the Puritan Thomas Watson said,

sin must have tears.

Maybe you know the story of the woman in Luke chapter 7,

Luke 7 · chapter mention

one of the other Gospels.

She's a sinful woman, we're told.

Everyone knows it.

She goes to a house party at the Pharisees.

The Pharisees knows.

She's called the woman of the street.

I'll leave you to fill in the gaps.

The Pharisees know it.

Jesus knows it.

She certainly knows it.

And she comes into this party weeping.

She's distraught.

She's so shamed.

Her sin is right in front of her face.

And she feels it.

She comes to Jesus and washes his feet with ointment.

Jesus says to them,

she loved much because she was forgiven much.

She turns around and says to her,

you are forgiven.

Your sins are forgiven.

And that is the kind of brokenness and hopelessness and grief at your own wayful inability to please God by yourself.

It is knowing how much God will have to forgive you.

When he does.

And the feeling you get when he looks at you like he did with a woman and he says,

your sins are forgiven.

It is all gone.

It is all clean.

Your guilt is wiped away.

All of your regrets, they are gone.

That is what it is to be blessed.

Jesus says.

And Psalm 34 says,

the Lord is close to those who are humble,

who are broken hearted and crushed in spirits.

And it is the best feeling in the world.

Let me tell you,

what a comfort God says to me in Jesus.

Your sins are forgiven.

And I belong to him.

You know, the word comfort that Jesus uses,

you could use it for an invitation to a party actually.

It is a statement of acceptance and of welcome.

Jesus says to us,

I will forgive you this once,

but I don't know if I can trust you in the future.

It isn't that.

He says, no, you're an honoured guest now.

We're allies.

We're friends.

You're forgiven.

And then in that moment,

when we hear that,

the whole world is white.

Isn't it?

Things are right between me and the God of the universe.

What more do I need?

What a burden lifted.

The world is white.

So these are the blessed people.

They are the people who've mourned about their relationship with God.

It's been catchy at best.

It's been non-existent,

actually,

most of the time.

They've ignored him.

They've quietly hated him

and treated him like some sort of spiritual butler.

It is people who mourn over that.

And they are blessed because

they will be comforted.

You are forgiven.

Jesus says,

you want to envy them

in this world.

So it's not just a general mourning,

but it's a spiritual mourning.

Secondly,

though,

it's not just tears,

but it's trust.

It's not just tears,

but it's trust.

There is a mourning for your situation,

your circumstances,

isn't there?

And there is a mourning for sin.

We've seen that difference.

But actually,

you can mourn

and you can grieve about

your sin and your guilt

in a godly way

or in a godless way,

can't you?

Sometimes when we're sorry for things,

actually,

it's because we've been caught,

if we're honest,

isn't it?

And it is possible

to mourn over things

that you've done wrong

and actually to be sorry,

to grieve about the consequences

or about the punishment

that is going to head you away.

That feeling of guilt and regret,

actually,

sometimes,

rather than mourning

about the personal aspect

of offending God,

it leaves us away from God,

doesn't it?

That kind of mourning,

it turns you away from him.

And into yourself.

So you kind of feel sorry

for yourself for a while.

I'm sure we all know

the story of Judas Iscariot.

He was one of the disciples,

wasn't he?

He was a missionary

with the disciples.

He evangelised.

And he joined Jesus.

But famously,

he betrayed Jesus

for some money.

Later in Matthew,

in chapter 27,

he realises what he's done

as Jesus is carried off

to be killed.

And he says,

I've sinned

by betraying innocent blood.

So he throws his payment,

his silver,

into the temple.

But then,

he leaves

and he hangs himself.

You see,

the problem for Judas was

his tears weren't enough,

were they,

to wash away his sin.

However much he mourned

about what he'd done,

his sorrow could not

take away his guilt.

One writer said,

his self-reproach

led to despair,

which left no room

for God's forgiving grace.

That just hit the nail

on the head,

hasn't it?

He could have swam

in a river of his own tears,

and it wouldn't have

washed the guilt

of what he'd done away.

It wouldn't have washed

the memory

of the things

that he'd done

to Jesus.

What he'd done was,

actually,

he'd stayed with his tears,

and trusted in his tears

to deal with his guilt,

when he should have gone

to Jesus' blood.

But it's not just tears,

it is trust

in God's grace

through Jesus' death.

Because there would have been

another one who hung

in his stead,

wouldn't there?

But his grief

led him from Jesus,

away from Jesus.

I don't know if you remember,

just after Jesus

rises from the dead,

and in Acts chapter 2,

Acts 2 · chapter mention

it's a glorious new age,

isn't it,

when the Holy Spirit

comes down.

And the people

that crucified Jesus

a few days earlier,

they are cut to the heart.

They are grieved

over what they've done.

They say,

what should we do?

And Peter says,

repent and be baptised

in the name of Jesus,

every one of you,

for the forgiveness

of your sins.

And you'll receive

the gift of the Holy Spirit.

And that's what they do,

isn't it?

You see,

that is godly grief.

It leads them back

to the Lord Jesus,

to trust in him.

So don't let tears

over your guilt

fill your eyes

so much that you can't

see Jesus on the cross

there for you instead.

It is there

that your guilt

is taken,

that all of the regrets

are nailed to the cross

and killed off

once and for all.

Don't trust your tears

to sort it out.

Go to Jesus' blood

to wash away your guilt.

You know,

the scary thing

about godless grief

is that actually

it leads to eternal grief.

Later on,

after the Sermon on the Mount,

Jesus is in a conversation

with a centurion

and some others

about faith.

He's amazed at the faith

of this Gentile centurion.

And he says,

listen,

the ones with no faith,

even if you look

really religious,

if you have no faith,

if you have no trust

in Jesus,

you will be thrown

into the outer darkness.

It's staggering,

isn't it?

He goes on,

in that place

there will be

weak and gnashing

of teeth.

This is a place

where mourning,

where grief

never ends.

The Bible calls it

hell.

it's a place

where the rivers

of regret

flow freely

and there is no blood

to wash away

your guilt.

And blessedness,

though,

is given to those

who have tears

in their eyes,

yes,

about their sin,

but they go to Jesus'

blood

for cleansing

and forgiveness.

They go to Jesus.

You are forgiven,

he says

to them.

It's a godly grief.

It's not a natural grief,

this promise.

And it's not just

swimming in tears,

that would be the

hellish thing to do,

like Judas did.

But it's trust,

trusting in Jesus.

Thirdly and lastly,

though,

this is an ongoing

grief,

and not just a

one-off grief.

It's an ongoing

grief,

not just a one-off

grief.

And you may want

to know,

how often do I have

to do this mourning

thing?

How often do I

have to grieve

about my sin?

Maybe when I

become a Christian,

I do it then.

Maybe once a year

at Easter.

Maybe once a week

on a Sunday

as we do the

confession of sin.

That is right,

isn't it?

All of those things

are appropriate.

But if you look

at verse 4,

if I read that,

blessed are those

who mourn,

literally that reads,

blessed are the

mourning ones.

Blessed are the

grieving ones.

There is a sense

here of a sort of

continual state

of grief.

It's not just a

one-off conversion

experience.

It's a continual

state.

You wouldn't be

blamed here for

thinking, well,

Jesus, he's a bit

of a killjoy,

isn't he?

Is he advocating

a kind of life

of grief,

of sort of

hitting myself

with metals?

And eating

bread and water?

That sort of thing.

Is he saying

that Christians

should just be

perpetually sad

all of the time?

Well, I don't

think so.

If you look at

verse 12,

a few verses

later, he says,

rejoice and be

glad.

So he's not

saying you've

got to be sad

all the time.

That's not what

it is.

It's not about

being negative

or always looking

on the dark

side of life.

Always having

a sense of

loathing of

yourself.

But there is a

sense here that

the disciples of

Jesus are having

an ongoing state

of sadness

about their

sins.

Something specific.

One person said

it's as if their

hearts have been

tenderised.

It's really

helpful.

Whenever sin

rears its head,

they grieve,

they wince,

their hearts are

tenderised.

It's having a

conscience,

isn't it,

to how God

sees us,

how we behave.

The opposite

is to treat

guilt lightly,

to not really

care,

to remember

our guilt

and our sin

cheerfully.

This is to

have an ongoing

tenderness and

sensitivity to

our wrongdoing,

to grieve when

we grieve God.

There's always

having that sense

of, but for

the grace of

God go I.

If it wasn't

for the grace of

God, where

would I be?

As Martin

Luther says,

always a

justified man,

always a

sinner.

It seems so

odd in our

world that

though, doesn't

it?

Bertrand

Russell, the

famous atheist,

wrote in his

book,

Why I'm Not

a Christian,

when you

hear people

in church

debasing

themselves,

and saying

that they're

miserable

sinners,

it seems

contemptible,

unworthy of

self-respecting

human beings.

You know,

maybe he's

right.

There is no

blessing in

knowing you're

a sinner,

actually.

The devil

knows that.

Judas knew

that, didn't

he knew that

he had

offended God,

that he

turned his

back on God.

But it's

not just

about the

tears.

It's about

trust.

And Bertrand

Russell, he's

missed the

second half,

hasn't he?

Of this

great promise.

They are

blessed because

they will be

comforted.

Comforted,

it's how

Jesus describes

the Holy

Spirit, as

a comforter,

as somebody

who comes

alongside you,

somebody who

puts their

arm around

you.

It is to

have God

come to you

and say,

you are

forgiven,

to welcome

you, to

say, I am

with you.

And all of

that regret

is dealt

with.

It means

turning over a

new leaf,

doesn't it?

It means

getting a

new courage

and a new

stimulation for

life, a

new sense

of adventure

of what

could be.

The past

and the

present and

the future

are all

dealt with.

And it's

when no

matter what

your situation

is, the

world is

right, because

you are

comforted.

So who

is it that

you envy

in the

world?

I hope

you, in

the sense

of your

luck in

the end, I

hope you

envy us,

if I can

put it that

way, Jesus'

disciples, those

who have

grieved over

sin and who

are comforted.

As you saw

the baptism

earlier, I

hope you

envied Nina.

Some of

us mourn

about many

things, don't

we?

But all of

us actually

should mourn

for our

sin.

And we

should be

comforted.

If we

don't mourn

about our

sin, we

should mourn

about that.

And truly,

Jesus says,

you will be

blessed.

You are

forgiven.

Let's

pray.

Thank you.