Comfort in Mourning

By:  Dale Weckbacher

Matthew 5:4

Blessed are those who mourn,
for they will be comforted.

(CSB)

Anyone that has experienced the loss of someone they love would hardly consider mourning a blessing.  In fact, I do not recommended confronting someone in mourning by telling them how blessed they are.  Instead, it is best to let them know you are praying for them.  However, there is blessing in mourning when we find comfort in the Lord. 

When entering the synagogue leaders house in Luke 8:40-56 Jesus encountered those mourning the death of the synagogue leader’s daughter.  His words to them must have seemed cruel at the time but after seeing the girl raised from the dead, they found comfort.  The blessing therefore is not in the mourning but in the comfort that comes from the Lord.  However, when mourning we normally do not see the one whose death we mourn coming back to life leading to the question, how can we find comfort from the Lord when the one we love is gone?

1)      If they had accepted Christ we will see them again (2 Corinthians 5:6-8) – I lost my dad in 2001 and my mom three years later.  While I still miss them, especially during Christmas, I have comfort in knowing they were Godly parents and I will see them again when I meet the Lord.  However, what about comfort for those who have died not knowing the Lord?  While it is easy to blame ourselves during these times, believing we should have done more to bring them to Christ, we must remember coming to Christ is a personal decision and that the seed of the Gospel is not always accepted (Matthew 13:1-9).  Since it is the heart of God that none parish (2 Peter 3:9) without having the opportunity to receive Christ, we must find comfort in knowing they heard the gospel but rejected it.  While this still saddens our hearts and the heart of God, we must let this motivate us to move forward in serving Christ, so others have an opportunity to receive Christ knowing that some of that Gospel seed will fall on good soil and be accepted (Matthew 13:8).   

2)      Their death was part of God’s plan for their life and it is good (Jeremiah 29:11) – The harsh truth is that all men and women will face death (Hebrews 9:27).  This represents the common event in the lives of all humanity with the exception of those caught up in the rapture but even they must wait for all those that experienced death to go first (1 Corinthians 15:51-53).  However, while death is part of God’s plan for everyone’s life, we still have a choice on where we will spend eternity.  Once again this should serve to motivate us in the church to be a witness to those who do not know Christ, pointing them to Christ through our words and how we live our lives.  This should motivate us to serve in our church and provide financial support, so they can reach out to the lost in their communities.  It should also motivate us to give financial support to missionaries around the world or even serve as missionaries ourselves if we feel the calling from the Lord. 

3)      While in mourning we can reflect on the sin in our own lives (2 Corinthians 7:10) – When someone we love passes away and goes on to be with the Lord, our mourning can become a desire to see them again.  However, if we have never accepted Christ as our savior, we must come to grips with the sin in our lives and accept Christ, to experience reunification with our loved one after our death. 

If you are reading this and have never accepted Jesus as your savior, I invite you to do so now by praying with me,

Dear Lord Jesus, I know I have sinned (Romans 3:23) and know that the penalty for my sin is death (Romans 6:23).  I ask you to forgive me of my sin and cleanse me as you promise in your Word (1 John 1:9).  I believe you died, was buried, and resurrected from the dead and now declare you Lord of my life.

You now have complete forgiveness of your sins and you will once again meet all of your loved ones who knew Jesus as savior when they passed away.  I now urge you to tell someone about what has happened in your life, find a church teaching the Bible so you can learn more about your restored relationship with your creator, and support that church financially and with your time so others can experience a restored relationship with God and find comfort in their mourning.