Most of us do not think about spiritual mourning when we consider our spiritual formation. When we think of our spiritual formation, the word “mourning” doesn’t seem to fit. But spiritual mourning is part of our spiritual growth. It begins with genuinely seeing our sins. We only mourn over sins we actually see, and by nature, we don't see our sins very well. We are like Adam and Eve hiding from God in the garden. We don’t want to see our sin. We don’t want to recognize that “we have fallen short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23) in which we were originally created. We attempt to fool ourselves, others, and God into believing that we are basically good people. We do not see ourselves as others see us, let alone as God sees us.
Reading the Bible is like putting on a pair of glasses. We begin to see things as God sees them. We begin to know what grieves and offends him. Reading the Bible will open our eyes to the sins that are present in our lives. These are thoughts and actions that God expects us to have or do that we omit from our lives. We are often not very conscious of these sins. However, Holy Spirit is there showing us - if we listen.
How does reading the Bible open your eyes to the sins we must recognize and avoid? Using 1 Corinthians 13 as an example…
“Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth.” — 1 Corinthians 13:4-6
These verses draw attention to at least seven sins that grieve the Spirit of God. Sins that we can easily justify or ignore.
Impatience – love is patient
Envy – love does not envy
Pride – love is not arrogant
Rudeness – love is not rude
Insisting on our own way – love is not self-seeking
Short-tempered – love isn't irritable; it's not easily provoked
Resentful – love doesn't cling to past hurts.
These are offensive to God. They grieve the Holy Spirit, ruin character, and contradict the way of Christ. Yet, we are so quick to justify them with excuses like…
I am jus that way.
I was tired.
They started it.
I am due
What about my desires
This passage is just an example. God’s Word is full of instructions on the way we are to act, say, and think. When we refuse to act or refrain from thinking or saying things that God desires, it is called sin.
As Christ’s followers, our formation depends on how we imitate Him because imitation is one way we are formed into His image. Let us have “the mind of Christ” — humbly walking through life, seeking God’s way of seeing and interacting with the world. Let us grieve over our sins of omission as we allow Holy Spirit to convince, convict, and shape us.