Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. Matthew 5:4 Learning At Home

Jesus continued with His sermon on the mount by saying, “blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.”

What does it mean to mourn? It means to be very sad. Even sad enough to cry.

Jesus told the people this to let them know that He understands that there are lots of sad things in the world because of sin. Many of God’s prophets understood this as well; they were sent by God to help people understand how bad sin is. Some people listened to the prophets and were sad about their own sin, but others did not.

God sent Jeremiah to minister to the people of Israel during the time of the last five kings of Judah. Why did the line of kings end? BECAUSE the PEOPLE SINNED

Jeremiah was called by God to warn the people of Jerusalem's coming destruction that would occur by invaders from the north. This was because though God had been faithful to His promises, Israel had been rebellious and unfaithful to God. Instead of worshiping God, they turned their backs on Him to worship FALSE Gods.

When Jeremiah told the people it was wrong to turn their backs on God, they didn’t like his message, and so they were very mean to him. They were so mean to Jeremiah that he tried to stop telling people about God's message. However, the word becomes like fire in his heart and he was unable to hold it in. But no matter how much Jeremiah warned the people, they refused to turn from their sinful ways.

So, because of the sin, God sent an army from the North to defeat Israel. It was a terrible battle. The Babylonians, led by king Nebuchadnezzar, completely destroyed Jerusalem. They EVEN destroyed the temple! This was not just ANY temple. It was the same temple that Solomon had built hundreds of years earlier. And it was the ONLY temple on earth where God had chosen to come and dwell!

But even though God chose to come LIVE AMONG the Israelites, they rebelled against Him because of the sin in their hearts. (it is the same sin that is in EVERYONE’s heart who doesn’t put their faith in Jesus).

And Jeremiah watched it happen. That is why he is called the weeping prophet. Weeping means crying. Jeremiah CRIED and MOURNED because sin of the people had caused God to turn His back on them.

BUT even when things were as bad as they could be, God gave Jeremiah a message of hope (comfort). Here is another prophesy God gave Jeremiah:

Because of the Lord’s great love we are NOT completely destroyed, for his compassions (comfort) never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, “The Lord is ALL I NEED; therefore I will wait for him.”

And God also told Jeremiah, that although the physical temple was gone, there would come a day when God wouldn’t dwell in a temple made of stone, but in the hearts of people who put their faith in Him (Jeremiah 31:31).

That’s what Jesus meant when he said that those who mourn WILL BE COMFORTED. They will be given new life in Jesus that will be a comfort forever!