Do You Mourn Over Sin, or the Consequences of Sin — Tim Conway

Genuine Sorrow Longs to Be Rid of Sin

He who truly sorrows and mourns for sin is going to long to be rid of sin. Show me that sorrow that's genuine. Show me somebody shedding a tear today over sin, who runs out and drinks it like water tomorrow.

And I'll show you somebody whose sorrow is sham. It's not real. It's a put-on. It's no good. I mean, this is where we can see the vast difference between those... Listen, you know this. The Bible speaks about a godly sorrow and a worldly sorrow.

Worldly Sorrow Returns to Sin

Do you know people can shed tears for sin who are not legit, who will run right out and go back after their sin tomorrow, and show that they have no hunger and thirst? People can mourn. People can have a worldly sorrow.

Regret Caused by Sin's Consequences

Listen, what can possibly make somebody regret sin when they really have no desire for righteousness? When it costs them something. You see, the guy's cheating on his wife, and he gets caught, and she leaves him and divorces him, and takes the house.

And now he kicks himself. Well, that happens all the time. People lose reputation. People lose health. Somebody can regret their heavy drinking their whole life when suddenly they're found to have liver cancer.

Suddenly they'll weep tears. But I'll tell you what, you restore their health, they'll be back in the bar. You see, it's no good. It's sham. It's fake. You can know the difference right at this point.

Godly Sorrow Hates Sin and Seeks Righteousness

He who sheds a tear today over his wicked deeds, but loves them just the same tomorrow. It's all no good. He only dislikes what the sins have cost him. It's a sham sorrow. The person who possesses a godly sorrow will long to be rid of that for which he sorrows.

If you're mourning over sin, you want to be rid of it. You see, those very... What we have to recognize is those early beatitudes, they naturally take us here. And you can't... If a person is going to weep over this thing, he has an earnest desire to get rid of this.

There's some kind of hatred for it. He can't go along without righteousness. It's important to him. It consumes him. That's what hunger is. His supreme ambition is spiritual. It's not physical. You know, we've got people all over this world who they want stuff.

They want stuff physical. They want possessions. They want money. They want to achieve success. They want things. They want a family. They want a wife. They want a husband. They want approval. They want...

Hunger and Thirst for Righteousness Above Blessing

People are longing for these things. This is a person who Christ says has a burden in their heart, in the depths of their being, to conform to that standard that is pleasing to the Lord. Listen, you have to recognize this.

This beatitude does not say, blessed are those that hunger and thirst after blessing, or after blessedness. Everybody wants blessing. There's a big difference between wanting blessing, wanting a smile upon you, and really wanting righteousness.

There's a huge difference. Listen, this is so important that we grasp this. Those who make blessing their goal, they don't end up arriving at blessing. You do recognize this. Hunger and thirst after righteousness, you end up blessed.

You see, blessing is not the kind of thing to be sought directly. It's sought another way. There's a hunger for something else that leads to the blessing.