"Are we Mournful over our Sin?"

How many of us today have heard the word “LENT” talked about or even explained? Maybe, you have heard some discussion about it this week. No, I am not talking about this, (your dryer lent, that you get from the clothes) I am talking about the season of lent. This past Wednesday many people took part in Ash Wednesday which is the beginning Season of Easter. Ash Wednesday is the preparation period that begins the 40 days of Lent. The early church fathers paralleled this to Christ’s 40 day desert fast before his passion.

In AD 339, Saint Athanasius wrote that the Lenten fast was a forty-day fast that "the entire world" observed. Saint Augustine of Hippo (AD 354–AD 430) wrote that: "Our fast at any other time is voluntary; but during Lent, we sin if we do not fast." The early church Fathers took this very seriously. Now no where in Scripture is this event talked about or even mentioned, but we do see the mention of giving up things by that of prayer and fasting many times.

Psalm 35:13 ESV

But I, when they were sick— I wore sackcloth; I afflicted myself with fasting; I prayed with head bowed on my chest.

Nehemiah 9:1 ESV

Now on the twenty-fourth day of this month the people of Israel were assembled with fasting and in sackcloth, and with earth on their heads.

Daniel 6:18 ESV

Then the king went to his palace and spent the night fasting; no diversions were brought to him, and sleep fled from him.

Acts 14:23 ESV

And when they had appointed elders for them in every church, with prayer and fasting they committed them to the Lord in whom they had believed.

But, what exactly is this season of Lent all about??? As we approach the Holy Week of what Christ did on the Cross and Remember the Resurrection we take time before to remember our sin that was the cause for Christ’s sacrifice, we confess our ongoing battle with sin. We take time too fast, not just from food, but willingly and joyfully fast and let go of the things in this world that have too much of a hold on us. We give ourselves to prayer and cry out for the help that we desperately need from Christ. We remember the sacrifice, the suffering and the resurrection. These are all things throughout this season that I want us as a church to take time to remember as we journey to the Cross and prepare for Easter. Think about this with me today, the cross that Christ died on confronts us with the reality of who we really are (sinners) and what we truly need (the rescue of Jesus and His forgiving grace). The whole purpose for us as a church to take the next six Sundays and journey to the Cross is so that our mourning will increase in order for our joy to grow even more for who the Lord is and what He has done for us.

Today, I want to take some time and address the main reason of why Christ had to die and why it is important for us to see that we should mourn or be grieved about our sin.

Whether we realize it or not something is wrong with us. We don’t have to look very long or very far to see that every where around us from our jobs to where we live, to government, politics, education, entertainment, and the internet. We live in a world that has been deceived by sin. In Romans chapter 8, Paul points us to this really sad condition of where the world is at, and he shares some phrases with us about our world that should break our hearts. Turn with me to Romans chapter 8.

Romans 8:18–22 ESV

For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now.

The first thing that Paul shares with us here is that our world is subjected to futility. (vs. 20) Futility is the inability to achieve a goal or a purpose. Because of our sin, God cursed this universe. No part of creation entirely fulfills God’s original purpose.

The second area here that Paul addresses is the fact that the earth is in bondage to corruption. (vs. 21) In other words, the entire creation suffered from the effects of the fall. Everything in this world has come under the bondage of corruption.

Finally, in verse 22 we see that Paul uses this language, “in the pains of childbirth.” All around us is pain. It seems these days that people cause a lot of pain.

Now, it is so important for me to say this today church. Of course, we should be filled with joy at times. In fact, we are to be a rejoicing people, because we have been redeemed by the blood of Jesus and we know as believers that our final home is an eternity with Christ, however there are times where we need to mourn.

Here is a great definition in case you are wondering what in the world are you talking about Matt? Mourning means that we have been knocked over by the weight of our sin and what it has done to us and those around us and ultimately to God. Mourning means that we understand right now that there is one big spiritual war going on, and that the enemy wants to really harm us. Mourning means that every morning when we wake up we will be dealing with many temptations as we go about our day. Mourning means that we understand there are still places where our hearts have a tendency to wonder away from God and His word.

But, mourning also does something amazing in our lives as believers. Mourning helps us to cry out for God’s help. Do you know you need God’s help? Mourning also causes us to cry out for God’s rescue, forgiveness, and deliverance. Jesus tells us in Matthew chapter 5 verse 4 that those who mourn will be comforted. What Jesus is talking about here, is about the comfort and presence of our Redeemer.

So I want to take you to a passage of Scripture today where we see this exact thing. In Psalm 51 we see David who is crying out for God’s help. In fact, this is David’s Prayer.

Psalm 51 ESV

To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David, when Nathan the prophet went to him, after he had gone in to Bathsheba. Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin! For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you may be justified in your words and blameless in your judgment. Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me. Behold, you delight in truth in the inward being, and you teach me wisdom in the secret heart. Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones that you have broken rejoice. Hide your face from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities. Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit. Then I will teach transgressors your ways, and sinners will return to you. Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God, O God of my salvation, and my tongue will sing aloud of your righteousness. O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will declare your praise. For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it; you will not be pleased with a burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise. Do good to Zion in your good pleasure; build up the walls of Jerusalem; then will you delight in right sacrifices, in burnt offerings and whole burnt offerings; then bulls will be offered on your altar.

This Psalm is one of the most important prayers in the whole Bible. It is one that we can look to when we think about confession and what true confession is all about. King David comes to the Lord after the fact that he took another man’s wife and then murdered that man. What we see here is David’s true sincere heart. His heart is filled with mourning and confession to His God.

One of the first things David does here is that he realizes and acknowledges that his problem is not just the occasion of sin but something much deeper. David uses several words in his prayer to describe the different aspects of the nature of sin and I want us to look at them.

In verse one and three David uses this word transgression. King David realized that sin is much more than a moment of weakness that leads to doing something wrong in the eyes of God. Yes, this is of course sinful. A transgression is a willful stepping over of God’s boundaries. Transgression is seeing the NO Trespassing sign and climbing the fence anyway because there is something you want to get to on the other side. That could be our anger and rage, our lust, or cheating to get ahead. You see transgression is a spirit of rebellion, because we are rebelling against God and what His Word tells us. It is us wanting our own way more than submitting to God’s way. Transgression is a condition of the heart that turns us as sinners into a rebellious person in some way. What David does here through his prayer is that he shows us true and honest confession is where we need to head. Confession is pouring our heart out to God and not just confessing our weakness but also our rebellion that causes us to be weak in our struggle with sin.

Notice the second word that David uses here. The Word David uses here is Iniquity. We see this in verse 2,5 and 9. The word iniquity means a moral uncleanness. The only way that we could perfectly obey God is if our thoughts, motives, desires, and intentions of our heart were completely pure, but they are not. We already said that we have a rebellious nature. I wish that I could say that my heart and desires our perfectly pure. I wish that I could say that I never get angry or give into temptation, but I know that I still have sin residing in me and I am far from pure. So again, this is why we need to mourn over our sin and see it for what it is. We desperately need to confess it and acknowledge the moral impurity of our hearts.

The Last Word that David uses here is Sin. Now we finally come to our confession of a specific weakness and failure. The word sin helps us to see this image of falling short of God’s wise and righteous standard. As we talked about several weeks ago, it’s more than an archer pulling the bowstring back and missing the target. It is pulling the bowstring back over and over again and at each attempt falling short of the target. When we mournfully come to God and confess specific sin there is an admission of our weakness and need for Him. We are admitting that we can’t do anything good on our own. We are admitting that our best things still fall short. When we truly mourn over our sin what we are in fact doing is crying out for God’s help, to be forgiven by the one who is greater and more powerful than we will ever be. Has there come a time lately in your life where you confessed your sin to God? Have you admitted your weaknesses and failures to Him? God wants you to bring your mess to Him so that He can show you His wonderful grace.

Conclusion: So, as we take time to journey to the cross and have a season of personal reflection I hope that we will each take time to see our sin for what it really is and mourn over it but also confess it. As we think about these 3 words today that we looked at, Transgression, Iniquity, and sin I hope that is will guide us to confession. And here is the good news today, as we each take time to confess our sin, may you be comforted by God’s promise that He will never give up on you, He will never turn his back on you. God will never despise the one who comes to Him with a truly broken and contrite heart. Church today confession is God’s way of helping us come into a deeper experience of His majesty and grace.