INTRODUCTION

It was November 22, 1873, in the dead of night. A terrible disaster unfolded in the middle of the Atlantic. A ship carrying more than 200 people collided with another, and rapidly sank.

That night, Horatio Spafford, a prominent Chicago lawyer, lost his four young daughters.
Not long after, to commemorate his loss, he wrote the famous hymn, known all over the world, with the words of the chorus saying, “It is well…. It is well… It is well with my soul.”

How could Horatio Spafford say that, given the enormity of his loss? Every one of us will face loss of some kind in our lives. Each one of us will have reason to mourn. Where will we find comfort when those times come?  Well, there is hope, and today we’re going to discover where to find it. 

I’m here, by the Sea of Galilee, where Jesus gave us the Beatitudes. The centre of Jesus’ teachings about the Kingdom of God is the Sermon on the Mount. And the very heart of the Sermon on the Mount are the Beatitudes.

So, if we want to really know what it means to be a follower of Jesus, and to live as a citizen of the Kingdom of God, then we must understand Christ’s teaching in the Beatitudes.

But the Beatitudes aren’t just spiritual principles for Christians. They are arguably the body of principles that has been most influential in shaping western civilisation as we know it today.

The word “Beatitude” is an old-fashioned, religious-sounding word that not many people will recognise today. It refers to being blissfully happy.

When Jesus calls people “blessed” in the Beatitudes, that’s literally what he means. He means that if you display these qualities you will be blissfully happy. This is a happiness that belongs only to God, and that can come only from God.

In other words, when, in your life, you display the qualities Jesus describes in the Beatitudes, you will share in the joy of heaven here on earth. It’s the only way to truly live. If you’re after hope, inner-peace and happiness, this is where you’ll find it.

So, Jesus sat on a hill here so the large crowd could hear him, and he taught the people the most radical and influential set of principles for living that this world has ever heard. Among the Beatitudes, he said this in Matthew 5:4:

“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.” (Matthew 5:4, NIV).

Like each of the Beatitudes, there is a great truth hidden in this radical contradiction. And this great truth can be seen played out in the life of Horatio Spafford. Although you may not have heard his name, Spafford was the writer of the famous hymn, “It is Well With my Soul.”

Most Christians will have heard this well known hymn. The words say,

When peace like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll
Whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to say
It is well, it is well, with my soul.

Those are impressive words of faith, but when you know the back-story, the real story behind these words, you’ll be even more impressed.

HORATIO SPAFFORD

Horatio Spafford was a prominent lawyer in the prosperous city of Chicago in the mid-nineteenth century. He was the senior partner of the law firm that he had established as a young man.

Spafford was a devout Christian who supported Christian ministries. He was, for example, a big supporter of the work of the evangelist Dwight L. Moody. Spafford had a Norwegian wife named Anna, and together they had five children, four girls and a boy.

Because of his success in business, Spafford had become very wealthy, and he had invested all his fortune in real estate throughout Chicago. As they say, “safe as houses.” What could possibly go wrong? Well, it did!

THE GREAT FIRE

And what went wrong was the Great Fire of Chicago in October 1871.  This fire was popularly believed to have been started by Mrs O’Leary’s cow in a barn in the city, which, while being milked by Irish immigrant Catherine O’Leary, supposedly kicked over a lantern and started the conflagration.

The fire leapt across the city from one district to another for three days, destroying much of central Chicago. Around 300 lives were lost.

The Spafford family didn’t lose anyone to the fire, but the real estate Horatio Spafford had invested in was gone, and he was wiped out financially.

But that wasn’t the sum total of his woes up until that point. Because not long before that terrible fire, Spafford and Anna’s young son had died of pneumonia. These setbacks would have defeated a lesser man, but not Spafford.

Spafford’s legal business soon recovered, and two years later, the Spaffords were planning a family trip to Great Britain, where their friend Dwight Moody was to hold an evangelistic crusade. Spafford wanted to go, both to help his friend Moody with the meetings, and to give his family a restful break from their recent misfortunes.

He had planned to go together with his family, but at the last moment, an unexpected business matter came up, and he had to stay in Chicago to resolve it. Spafford told his wife he would join her and the children in Europe a few days later, and he sent her and their daughters ahead on the French ocean liner, Ville du Havre.

THE SHIPWRECK

Four days later in the North Atlantic, at about 2am on November 22, 1873, their ship was sighted heading dangerously close across the bows of the Scottish clipper Loch Earn. The captain of Loch Earn ordered a sharp turn, but it was too late.

The Loch Earn rammed Ville du Havre amidships, nearly breaking it in two. The collision obviously woke the passengers, who quickly came up on deck to find out what had happened, but the ship was already sinking rapidly.

The passengers tried to push the lifeboats into the water, but the great majority of them were stuck fast to the deck.

Anna gathered her four daughters around her on the deck. There was 11-year-old Anna, named after her and known as Annie; Maggie, aged nine; Bessie, who was five; and two-year-old Tanetta. She knelt there on the deck with them and prayed that God would spare them if that was his will, or that he would make them willing to endure whatever awaited them. 

The Ville du Havre sank in less than 12 minutes. The Loch Earn was able to pick up 61 passengers and 26 crew, but 226 souls perished, including all four Spafford children.

THE SURVIVOR

Days later, a sailor, who was rowing a boat over the spot where the ship had gone down, spotted a woman floating on a piece of the wreckage. It was Anna, unconscious but still alive. He pulled her into the boat and they were picked up by another large vessel, which nine days later, landed them in Cardiff, Wales.

Another of the ship’s survivors, recalled Anna saying, “God gave me four daughters. Now they have been taken from me. Someday I will understand why.” From Cardiff, Anna wired her husband a message which began, “Saved alone, what shall I do?” 

Mr Spafford booked passage on the very next available ship and left to join his grieving wife in England and bring her home. When the ship he was on was about four days out, the captain called Spafford to his cabin and told him that they were over the place where his children had drowned.

Spafford wrote to a relative: “On Thursday last we passed over the spot where she went down, in mid-ocean, the waters there are three miles deep.”

THE HYMN

Later, to cope with his sorrow and commemorate his children, Spafford wrote the words to the famous hymn, ‘It Is Well With My Soul’. They go like this:

When peace like a river attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll,
Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say,

It is well, it is well with my soul.
It is well with my soul,
It is well, it is well with my soul.

Horatio and Anna actually went on to have three more children after this tragedy: two daughters and a son. However the Spaffords were to endure one more tragedy. Their youngest son, who was also named Horatio, later died of scarlet fever.

THE SPAFFORD LEGACY

The Spaffords were never defeated by their tragedies. Instead, they responded by committing to positively changing their world and to doing good. Eventually they moved to Jerusalem where they founded The American Colony, which engaged in charitable work without regard to religious preferences.  They simply wanted to help everyone in need regardless of their colour or creed.

They worked with hospitals, soup kitchens, and orphanages, and won great favour with the people in the region. Spafford died of malaria in 1888, just days before his 60th birthday, and he was buried in the Protestant Cemetery in Jerusalem.

UNDERSTANDING THE BEATITUDE

Now, after enduring so much tragedy and sorrow, Spafford understood and experienced the concept, the truth, contained in the beatitude, “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.”

This is perhaps one of the beatitudes that seems to be the most contradictory: “blessed are they that mourn.” How can you be supremely happy or blessed if you are mourning?

In the Greek language, the word that is used for mourning here doesn’t mean to be just a little bit sad. It is one of the strongest words for mourning in that language. It means to mourn for the dead, with the greatest possible sorrow and tears.

Like most of what Jesus Christ taught, there are layers of meaning to his teaching. And there are several ways to look at this beatitude.

It’s true, for example, that many of the greatest discoveries of life are found through the depths of sorrow. It is through sorrow, for example, that we can often see the meaning of true friendship or true love.

Willian Barclay tells the story of the great composer Edward Elgar, who once listened to a young lady sing. Her voice was beautiful and her technique was flawless. Yet there was something missing. The composer said, “She will be great, when something happens to break her heart.”

Many can testify that is true, that it is when you come to the bottom, that you find God. The beatitude is also true in the sense that in the kingdom of God, those who mourn today will rejoice tomorrow. Often, we have to go through suffering in order to win the victory.

THE JOURNEY OF LIFE

Too many people want to reach the destination without going on the journey. But, as the life of Jesus illustrates, the Cross comes before the crown, and that reality remains true for every follower of Jesus. You have to accept the Cross if you wish to be victorious in the end.

Barclay again says that,

“… from this life a man gets what he chooses. If he chooses to live as if nothing mattered beyond this world, then he gets all that this world has to offer. But,  if he chooses to live in the conviction that there is something far more important beyond this world, then in this world he may meet all kinds of trouble, and by this world’s standards he may be a failure, but there awaits him a joy that this world cannot give.”

At the most spiritual level, when Jesus said, “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted”, he is also referring to the deep sorrow that everyone who wishes to follow God will feel for their own sin.

The beginning of eternal life has to be an utter dissatisfaction with this life.  Otherwise, why would anyone seek God? It is only when we fully realise our own flaws and our own sin that we will sorrow for our own sin, and this mourning will cause us to repent, which means to turn away from sin.

You see, those who mourn in this way will receive the blessing, which is to be comforted. They will find the comfort and peace and joy that is only found in the salvation that God provides. The apostle Paul tells us this in Romans 5:1,

“… since we have been justified through faith [which means to be forgiven], we[ have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ…”

We usually think of all mourning as being bad. But that isn’t the case at all. You see, there is a mourning and a sorrow that brings happiness. As the Apostle Paul also says, 
“Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death.” (2 Cor 7:10)

But this doesn’t mean that the follower of Jesus lives in perpetual sorrow. Not at all!
But the beatitude does not end there. It continues,

”.… for they shall be comforted.”

What Jesus is saying is that it is those who sorrow for sin,  are the ones who are supremely happy. Comfort soothes sorrow. Comfort allows joy to come. There is never a time or a situation in which we are not able to find comfort in God. As the apostle Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 1:3-4,

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles…” 

You see, what Jesus is really saying is that when a person goes to God in godly sorrow for their sin, they will receive the full welcome and comfort of God. But it gets even better than this! The Greek word that Jesus used for ‘being comforted’ is also used in the context of inviting someone to a banquet.

God treats those who sorrow as his honoured guests. And there’s no room for sorrow at a banquet, is there? This is an image of how God’s comfort turns our sorrow into happiness. He will fill our lives with good, while we will also be able to look forward to the great banquet that he is preparing in heaven.

REMEMBERING THE SPAFFORDS

Let’s go back to the real-life story of the Spaffords and their loss. It’s tempting to think of the Spaffords as people whose lives were marked by tragedy.  But that wouldn’t be how they would have wanted to be remembered. And it wouldn’t be an accurate reflection of their experience.
Horatio Spafford certainly was a man who knew what it was to go through loss and mourning. But he was a man who through it, was able to find comfort, and overcome. He went on to lead a positive and productive life of great achievement. And that’s how Horatio Spafford should be remembered.

The words of the hymn which he wrote, ‘It is Well With My Soul’ aren’t a denial of pain. The words recognise that we all go through mourning and loss. They say,

“When peace like a river attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll.
Whatever my lot you have taught me to say,
It is well with my soul.”

The peace that God can give, in any situation, is a supernatural one. That’s why the apostle Paul says this in Philippians 4:7,
“And the peace of God which surpasses all understanding, shall keep your hearts, your minds through Christ Jesus.”
I know that there are many who are experiencing the pain of loss and mourning right now. And if you aren’t, you can be sure that you will.  Many of us in our own lives, have experienced what Jesus meant when He said,

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

You see, in Jesus there’s life.  Fulfilled and happy life here and now, and more importantly, the assurance of eternal life.  Notice what it says in John 3:16,

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” 

Eternal life is a gift from God.  The grave is not the end.  Isn’t it comforting to know that?  Here’s what the Bible says in 1 Thessalonians chapter 4,

“For the Lord Himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air.  And we will be with the Lord forever.   Therefore comfort one another with these words.  (1 Thess 4:16-18)

Isn’t that comforting – to know that we will be reunited with our loved ones again?  When Paul wanted to comfort loved ones of those who had died in Christ, when he wanted to comfort those who mourned, he pointed them to the eternal life we have in Jesus that will become a reality at the resurrection when He returns.

This is the Bible hope, the blessed hope, God’s comfort to those who mourn.  We will be reunited with our loved ones again.  

And we, together with many other followers of Jesus, are looking forward to the day when Jesus will return, just as he promised. And then, in the words of Revelation, the last book of the Bible, there is this promise,

“God will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” (Rev 21:4).

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If you’ve enjoyed our journey to Galilee in Israel, and our reflections on the Beatitudes and on the promises of Jesus for those who mourn and are going through difficult times, then be sure to join us again next week, when we will share another of life’s journeys together. Until then, may you find and experience the comfort and peace that only God can provide. Let’s pray.

CLOSING PRAYER

Dear Heavenly Father, We thank you that the teachings of Jesus and the promise that when we mourn you will comfort us. We believe and trust that when Jesus comes again, he will reunite us with our loved ones, and restore joy and banish sorrow and mourning forever. Until that day, lead us to find comfort and happiness in you and teach us to able to say in every circumstance, “It is well with my soul.” In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.