Photo by Elyas Pasban on Unsplash
By Mike Chaffin
Be merciful to me, Lord, for I am in distress; my eyes grow weak with sorrow, my soul and body with grief. Psalm 31:9
Grief is a many faceted emotion. Some Psychiatrists say there are five stages to grief while others list seven: shock, denial, anger, bargaining, depression, testing, and acceptance. It doesn’t have to be a negative emotion. Grief can be very healing if we go through it properly. Being in grief is often recommended by scripture.
Pastor and theologian Tim Challies said about grief, “What is this Christian form of grieving? Christians experience grief but without despair, sorrow but without defeat, sadness but without hopelessness. It’s true sorrow and earnest hope. These things don’t cancel out one another. We feel the great weight of sorrow and the great thrill of hope.”
One major problem of grief is the physical toll it can take on us. We can get stuck to the point of not functioning. We become ill, don’t sleep, or eat. Job, in the depth of his trials said it best,
My eyes have grown dim with grief; my whole frame is but a shadow. Job 17:7
Grief is natural. It is something we all will go through from time to time. Jesus told His disciples they would grieve for Jesus when the world crucified Him. But grief should always be short lived, our trust in God and prayers, helping us to recover.
However, when we are the cause of someone else’s grief we are said to be grieving them. This is a sin.
Furthermore, when we are the source of someone else’s grief we cause chaos and more sin. Through foolish decisions we can grieve our loved ones. Worse yet is when we grieve God. Asaph in a psalm of teaching said about the Israelites in the wilderness on their journey to the promised land,
How often they rebelled against him in the wilderness and grieved him in the wasteland! Psalm 78:40
Paul warned against grieving the Holy Spirit. If we are God’s children, we grieve God when we behave badly and act foolishly. Rebellion leads to judgment. Isaiah warned the Israelites centuries earlier about this issue.
Yet they rebelled and grieved his Holy Spirit. So he turned and became their enemy and he himself fought against them. Isaiah 63:10
If we are God’s children and bring grief to our heavenly Father, who is indwelling us by his Holy Spirit, we can expect to be disciplined. We have a loving Father who would rather see us in grief over the discipline He brings than lost in our sins.
Isaiah shows us the consequences of grieving the Holy Spirit. Paul tells us not to.
And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Ephesians 4:30
When we grieve God, we are at risk of losing the peace that comes from the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. It can move us further away instead of closer to Him. If you feel separated from God, it could be you have grieved Him. The great news is He is a patient and loving Father who will run to you when you come to Him for forgiveness.
Prayer: Dear Lord, I am sorry I have grieved you repeatedly in my sins and behavior. Forgive my sins. Help me to live for you in a righteous relationship. Help me through any grief I have in my life, leaning on you for healing and comfort. In Jesus’ name, amen.
