Comfort One Another
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INTRODUCTION
Image – Summer
In the early 1900’s a high school student named Philp Taylor Farnsworth began to design a system that could capture moving images in a form that could be coded onto radio wavevs and then transformed back into a picture on a screen – On September 7, 1927 his idea became a reality in San Francisco as the first electronic television was successfully demonstrated – a year later John Baird beamed a television image from England to the United States prompting GE to introduce the first actual television set with a 3 inch by 4 inch screen. Wow! Look how far we’ve come! I checked Amazon at right now you can get an 85 inch HD Led flatscreen t.v. for just over $5,000 bucks!
In 2017 a study conducted by Nielsen reported that 96% of homes in the US have at least one T.V. We have more channels on cable than ever and more options to stream live entertainment – sports, sit coms, 24 hour news, movies, and more. Over the years there have been many programs on television that revolve around families.
· Andy Griffith show
· Leave it to Beaver
· The Waltons
· The Brady Bunch
· Family Ties
· Full House
· Family Matters
· The Fresh Prince of Bel Aire
· Home Improvement
· Everybody Loves Raymond
· Modern Family
What would happen if our life as a church family became a television show? Would it be a drama? Sitcom? Reality T.V.? What would the name of our family show be? What would the cameras capture? What would the storyline of each episode be about? Certainly a T.V. show about us would capture our births & deaths, our good times and hard times, and the laughter & tears as we navigate life as family. Hopefully anyone who would watch the show about our family would see us loving one another, forgiving one another, and serving one another.
Hopefully the show would capture us being a family committed to our mission – a church committed to developing dedicated followers of Jesus Christ who worship, grow, love, and share all for the glory of God! Hopefully the show would capture this family being transformed by God’s love and grace.
We are a real family. God has called us to be a family – we are brothers and sisters who live life together in community – and we live life together doing ministry. Therefore we’re spending the summer talking a look at how God calls us to live as a family. Today is week four of our ONE ANOTHER summer series – each week we are opening up God’s Word to discover how He has called us to treat “one another” in this family. We’ve considered God’s call to “love one another,” forgive one another, and serve one another. Today we consider the call to Comfort One Another.”
Need
Life is filled with too much pain and suffering. When we hurt, there is nothing like the comfort of a family. We see it every time a toddler trips on the sidewalk, scrapes his knee, and runs home to find comfort in the arms of mom. We see it every time a jr. high “crush” crushes the heart of pre-teen and runs home to the hug of sister. We see it every time the ball is dropped during the championship game which ends the game, when a letter comes in the mail with news you didn’t get the job, and when you get a call the grandma has passed away - in those moments a caring family offers comfort. All of us desperately need the comfort of a loving family. Today we must consider the need for us to be a loving family who is willing to comfort one another.
I) THE CALL TO COMFORT ONE ANOTHER
We begin with the “The Call to Comfort One Another.” The Call to Comfort One Another. We need to do a brief word study (technical but practical) to grasp the call to comfort one another. The NT reveals a very close connection between “comfort” and “encouragement.” There are two primary Greek words used in the NT for “comfort” and “encouragement.”
1) παρακαλέω/παράκλησις (parakaleo-parakalesis) – to come alongside someone to urge, exhort, or help someone verbally or non-verbally; an appeal. “Parakleo” is the most commonly used word for encouragement but it can be translated as comfort as well. Jesus informed the disciples that He would ask the Father to give them another “Parakletos,” promising the arrival of another “Counselor,” “Helper,” or “Comforter” (the Holy Spirit).
2) Παραμυθέομαι (paramutheomai) – speaks of coming alongside someone to console them; to soothe and provide solace, to lessen grief or sorrow. This word can be translated as comfort or encouragement.
Therefore depending what English translation of the Bible you’re reading, you’ll see “encouragement” or “comfort” used for the same verse. Let me give you a few examples.
· (parakaleo) – “comfort one another” (ESV) or “be encouraged” (NET) while the NIV translates this phrase as “listen to my appeal” (exhortation in the form of encouragement or comfort).
· (parakaleo) – “Encourage one another with these words” (ESV, NET, & NIV) but it’s also translated “Comfort one another with these words” (NASB).
· (paramutheomai) – “encourage (by consoling) the fainthearted/timid” (ESV/NIV) or “comfort the discouraged” (NET).
The variety in our English translations highlight that “comfort” and “encouragement” are certainly related, almost interchangeable, and yet distinct. We can think of comfort as a form of encouragement. We’ll come back to the Scriptures to consider the call to “encourage one another” later in this series. Today we want to zero in on “The Call to Comfort One Another.” God desires that we “comfort one another” as members of His family. We must be a church family where “comfort” is freely offered and received as a form of encouragement. We must continue to be a church who “comforts” (consoles) one another in a time of need. Let’s consider how we might fulfill the NT call to comfort one another by turning our focus to what God’s Word says about THE NECESSITY OF COMFORT and THE MINISTRY OF COMFORT.
II) THE NECESSITY OF COMFORT
· Story – needing comfort
Life is filled with unexpected tragedy and suffering. Let’s consider “The Necessity of Comfort” in our lives. All of us have or will be faced with painful circumstances and the desperate need for comfort. Some of you are here this morning with a heavy heart, dealing with a difficult situation, or enduring a painful situation. We live in a world filled with trials, suffering, pain, distress, tribulation, sickness, peril, and death. Why? says “Therefore just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned.” We live in a fallen. Adam and Eve’s disobedience in the Garden was tragic. Suffering. Sickness. Death. None of us can escape it.
· Chuck Swindoll Quote – 169
Everyone is born into a fallen world as sinners by nature and by choice, and since sin has cursed God’s creation and causing us to experience suffering & death. We hear/read about it in the news and we live it in our lives every day. Some of the pain and suffering is the result of our own choices. And yet we still long for comfort to help us deal with and overcome the pain that comes from our own choices. Let’s take a quick “tour” through the Bible to discover the “need” for comfort in this broken world.
A) Comfort is needed when we are in distress (Job)
First, “Comfort is needed in times of distress.” It’s likely all of us have or will experience some degree of distress in our lives—choices and circumstances that will cause you to experience and endure “inner turmoil” and “anguish of soul.” In the OT we read about a man who experienced and endured (in my opinion) unparalleled distress—his name was Job. Job was a faithful worshipper of Yahweh—a man of integrity—and God allowed Satan to severely test this man in the most painful of ways. Job was a man felt the depths of distress during this trying season of his life. (, )
· Livestock – stolen or killed; sheep, oxen, camel, donkeys (1:13-17)
· Servants: killed (1:15)
· Children: Sevens sons and three daughters killed by winds that collapses house on top of them (1:2,18-19)
Look at the depths of Job’s distress. (Read ). Job is mourning, his heart torn apart, and yet he did not sin or curse God. God allowed Satan to test him again.
· Health: sores (ulcers or boils) from head to toe; he would scrape himself; he sat by the ash heap—sitting outside the city where the rubbish was collected and burnt (2:7-8). Job’s wife told him to curse God and die but he did not sin in his response.
Job is in deep distress—“inner turmoil and anguish”—he was experiencing “great mental and physical pain”—and in that moment Job’s friends came from far off lands “to sympathize with him and comfort him (2:11). Job’s friends came to offer him compassion and consolation in his time of distress. Once they saw their friend, they couldn’t recognize him, and the wept loudly, they mourned, and they sat with him in silence (2:12-13). Sometimes “comfort” is just showing up. Eventually his friends offered up counsel that was far from comforting – they declared that all that had happened was the result of sin and he should repent – all the while Job maintained his innocence and integrity.
The story of Job illustrates that “God allows suffering into our lives for His sovereign purposes.” Job was a man in deep distress. God allowed Job to experience deep emotional suffering through the loss of his ten children, finances & livelihood, as well as physical pain when he was struck with an illness that caused his entire body to be covered with festering, oozing, and itching boils from head to toe! The bulk of the book records Job’s friends attempts to comfort him in his time of distress, most of the time they added insult to his injuries. Job grieved, questioned, complained, and groaned but he maintained his integrity.
We could face the same kind of “distress” at any moment—loss of property, money, children, and health—the same tragedy could happen to us in the coming week. We have no guarantee that we will see our kids grow up healthy and happy, financial well-being, or that we will be healthy and live a long and happy life even when we eat lots of vegetables and exercise every day.
· Lindquist (Anika) & Pilgreen (Jackson)
We are not promised “good fortune” since we love the Lord, we aren’t promised exemption from suffering & calamity since we follow Jesus, and a day of “distress” might come your way. In the midst of our “distress” we desperately need comfort. All of us have or will face a season of distress in our lives. Christians are not exempt from suffering. We will face our own share of distress in this life. Some of you might be experiencing a season of distress right now. In our time of distress we desperately need comfort.
B) Comfort is needed during the despair of death ()
Secondly, Comfort is needed when we encounter death. “The Despairing” need comfort as well. Turn to the book of John. . . Jesus’ close friend Lazarus had become ill, he died, and he was placed in a tomb for burial. Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days when Jesus and His disciples arrived in Bethany. (Read )
Lazarus is dead – hearts are filled with grief – and many people in the region had come to “console” (παραμυθέομαι) Martha and Mary in their time of need. Jesus’ failure to show up in time to heal Lazarus prompted Martha and Mary to question His tardiness—“If you had been here my brother would not have died” (11:21 & 11:32)—and in the face of death Mary is weeping, the Jews were weeping, and eventually Jesus wept (11:31-25). There was great despair in the midst of death. And in the face of death there was the need for comfort. Eventually their tears of despair would turn to tears of joy when Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead proving He truly is “the resurrection and the life.”
We’ve all encountered the “despair” of death—grieving the loss of a loved one—and in those moments we desperately need comfort that comes from the hope of eternal life in Jesus. Anyone of us could lose a loved one in the coming week and we’ll need the comfort of our church family.
C) Comfort is needed after discipline ()
Third, Comfort is needed after disciple. Turn to Corinthians 5. Paul’s letters to the Corinthians reveal that he was writing to a troubled church. The church was divided, carnal/sinful, and questioning Paul’s authority as a apostle, and carnal. In Paul addressed a pressing issue in the church, a professing believer who was having sexual relations with his step mom, and all the while the believers were ignoring such blatant and unrepentant sin in the church. Therefore Paul challenged them to “discipline” the man in hopes of bringing him to repentance and restoration. (Read ) There are times when “church discipline” is required in the body of Christ. The practice of biblical church disciple is not about “excommunicating” members of the family we don’t like but rather promoting repentance and restoration in the family of God. The church is called to be “holy”—set apart from sin and to God—and we must help one another in the pursuit of holiness in our walk with Jesus. Therefore the Corinthians “disciplined” this man in hopes that he would repent and be restored to a walk worthy of the Lord.
Now turn to . (Read ) Eventually the discipline led to repentance and Paul encouraged the church to “comfort” (παρακαλέω) him. The disciplined man was not to be dismissed from the church forever, he needed to be comforted—consoled and the welcomed back into the family—so that he wouldn’t come to the point of utter despair (excessive sorrow or swallowed up by grief). There are times when we might need to be “disciplined” to promote repentance & restoration—the discipline could be formal or informal—and eventually comfort will be desperately need in our lives.
D) Comfort is needed when we are downcast ()
Finally, “Comfort is needed when we are downcast.” Turn to 2 Corinthian Chapter 7. (Read ). Ministry wasn’t easy for Paul and his ministry partners. Paul informed the Christians in Corinth about their ongoing suffering as they served the Lord—the work of the gospel had brought them to Macedonia and they were physically exhausted, afflicted, enduring struggles from the outside and battling fear from within—and in the midst of Paul’s ministry he expressed God’s provision of comfort (παρακαλέω) for “the downcast.” The term “downcast” denotes being discouraged and lacking hope. Yes, Paul and his fellow apostles were downcast – we can experience a deep discouragement and hopelessness as followers of Jesus – and yet in those moments God can provide “comfort” through fellow believers. Paul and his team were comforted by the arrival of Titus. Titus’s presence brought comfort to Paul, and the Corinthians were a comfort to Titus and Paul, for he rejoiced in the Corinthians concern for him in his work.
I trust you can relate to at least one—distress, death, discipline, or downcast—perhaps it’s what you’re experiencing today. Certainly, we will face them in the future. We see “The Necessity of Comfort” in the midst of life—we desperately need comfort in our lives—which brings us to “The Ministry of Comfort.”
III) THE MINISTRY OF COMFORT
The Ministry of Comfort - Comforting one another is one of the most important ministries in this church. We minister to one another when we comfort one another. Let’s consider “The Ministry of Comfort” in this family. Turn to Corinthians 1 - .
2 Corinthians is a letter Paul sent to the Christians living in the city of Corinth. Paul had a bit of a rocky relationship with the church in Corinth. There was a group of people that opposed Paul by questioning his authority and ministry as an apostle. Paul first visited Corinth on his second missionary journey. During this time he proclaimed the gospel and churches were established in the city. Paul stayed in Corinth for almost a year and a half before eventually departing for Ephesus. Eventually Paul heard that the Church in Corinth was struggling with division, sexual immorality, and social snobbery. Paul received word from the Christians there who had a lot of questions about marriage, participation in pagan religions, corporate worship, and the resurrection of the dead which prompted him to pen 1 Corinthians to address those practical matters. Paul eventually visited Corinth again but was met with opposition. During his third missionary journey Paul met Titus in Macedonia who gave him an update from Corinth which prompted him to write what we have in our Bible as 2 Corinthians or the second letter to the Corinthians. The letter of 2 Corinthians is a defense of Paul’s apostolic ministry that was intended to strengthen the faithful majority and the purity of the church, to complete the collection for the saints in Judea, and to challenge the rebellious minority to repent.
In the opening section of this letter we discover “The Ministry of Comfort.” (Read ) The word comfort is used nine (9) times in five (5) verses (NIV) . The emphasis on comfort serves as a nice introduction to the overall letter which highlights God’s glory in the midst of suffering (Wallace). It’s here we see “The Ministry of Comfort” that must be lived out in this family. Let’s walk through the passage together.
A) The Source of Comfort ()
First, we see “The Source of Comfort” (1:3-4). Paul reveals that God is the ultimate source of comfort when we experience suffering—when we are distressed, despairing death, disciplined, or downcast we desperately need comfort—and God is the ultimate source of comfort in our lives.
That’s why Paul opened this letter in praise—“Blessed be the God and Father our our Lord Jesus Chrsit, the Father of all mercies (compassion) and the God of all comfort that’s a great truth to highlight or underline in your Bible! Paul praised God because He a “compassionate Father” and the “God of all comfort.” The term “comfort” (παράκλησις) denotes God coming alongside to “console” as a form of encouragement—He is always ready to console and His “consolation never fails us” (NEB). God provides us with never-failing comfort.
God’s comfort is personal—God is the God of all comfort but this is not abstract—God Himself is the One who “comforts us in all of our troubles.” Paul highlighted that he and his ministry partners have personally experienced God’s divine comfort in the midst of their troubles. The term “troubles” (θλῖψις) is defined as “suffering or persecution which causes great pain.” The word “trouble” used here literally means “to press”—it was a term used in the ancient Law of England when people refused to plea heavy weights were placed on their chests and were so pressed and crushed to death. Paul endured more than his fair share of trouble. 2 Corinthians contains ample evidence of Paul’s suffering as an apostle of Jesus Christ.
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If anyone knew anything about suffering it would have been Paul. Paul talks about suffering and comfort more than any other NT writer. And Paul testifies over and over again in the pages of Holy Scripture that he personally experienced God’s comfort in the midst of suffering.
Application
We face our own share of suffering living in this fallen world. We experience trouble in our lives as well—people, circumstances, and choices that cause us to suffer. When we are distressed, despairing, disciplined, or downcast we need comfort. Where do we run for comfort? There are a lot of things we run to as a source for comfort.
Food - One of the number one ways we try to find comfort is through food. Oh yea, we’re going there! Food is an emotional rescue for us—that’s why it’s called “Comfort Food”—and some of you are tempted to turn to it all the time. When we are faced with emotional upheaval in our lives from stress, anxiety, or hurt we turn to eating good food we love to give us emotional comfort. Man, I’m preaching to myself today. When I’m stressed or hurting I turn to candy & sweets for comfort—they give me consolation—there is a sense of “relief” and “rescue” from the pain and suffering of life. Top Five Comfort Foods from the DailyPress.com website:
Doritos (5) Ice Cream (4) Soup (3) Chocolate (2) Mac n Cheese (1)
Music - I remember back in the day when I got my heart broken by a girl I thought the world would end, and in my moment of hurt and rejection I would turn to music for comfort. Listening to depressing songs was a weird combination of wallowing in my sorrow and finding comfort. There is nothing quite like listening to some good old emotional loves songs from the 80s. I turned to music to find comfort. Am I the only one?
Relationships/People - Some people turn to relationships to find comfort. This is why we have the expression “On the Rebound”—a relationship ends and the guy/or gal is on the rebound—and they run to find comfort in the arms of another.
Alcohol & drugs - Many people try to find comfort in alcohol and drugs in an attempt to medicate/escape the pain of suffering. \
Where do you run for comfort? Your search for comfort can end today. God is the ultimate “Source of Comfort” when we are suffering from the weight of trouble that presses down on us in life. You must set aside temporary substitutes and turn the true source of comfort. Run to your heavenly Father who is the “God of all comfort – He comforts us in all of your troubles.”
The fact that God is the ultimate “Source of Comfort” in times of suffering is a life-changing truth for us today. Like Paul, go ahead and “praise God” because He is still the God of all comfort, God has not changed, so give Him glory, may your lips speak words of praise, for our God is the God of all comfort who comforts us in all of our troubles! Hallelujah. When we are distressed, despairing, downcast, or disciplined God is first and foremost the ultimate source of divine comfort. The Ministry of Comfort begins with personally experiencing God’s comfort in your own life. Run to Him as the source of all comfort!
B) The Sharing of Comfort ()
Now let’s consider a second aspect of “The Ministry of Comfort.” We run to God as “The Source of Comfort” but that’s not all – it leads to “the Sharing of Comfort.” Once we personally experience God’s comfort we can share His comfort with others!
Don’t miss the very important purpose statement. Look at . Personally receiving God’s comfort for yourself is not God’s ultimate goal. Paul declared that the Father is “the God of all comfort who comforts us in our troubles “so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.” Paul acknowledged that God was the source of his comfort—being personally encouraged and consoled by God in times of trouble was a tremendous blessing but that’s not God’s ultimate aim—for Paul and his fellow apostles were comforted by God so they could comfort others with the comfort they had received from God.
Knowing this gave Paul a great perspective. Whenever the suffering that came from following Christ flowed in their lives, comfort overflowed into their lives through Christ (1:5). The suffering would flow into their lives but the comfort would overflow into their lives. Whatever suffering he faced for Christ would be met with a greater measure of comfort through Christ. Abundant suffering was met with more abundant comfort! The abundance of God’s comfort was to be passed on to others!
Paul was able to see the ministry benefit of suffering—“if we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation” (1:6)—their own personal distress was worth it because it would lead to the “comfort and salvation” of others. If Paul and his fellow ministers experienced comfort from God, it would be for the comfort of others. So there was an eternal benefit that came from encountering suffering, experiencing God’s comfort, and in return passing it on to others!
Any comfort they received was passed on to the Corinthians which empowered them to “patiently endure the same sufferings” (1:6). Paul’s experience of God’s comfort through Christ passed on to the Corinthians would produce endurance in them as well—they would be able to “bear up under the difficult circumstances” because of the divine comfort they experienced from Paul—a comfort that he had received from God and then passed on to them!
In we see that Paul and his fellow apostles possessed a steadfast hope (confident expectation and assurance) that when the Corinthians experienced suffering they would also experience comfort. Paul was extremely confident that when the Christians in Corinth experienced suffering then they would also enjoy God’s comfort. Paul revealed his assurance that the Corinthian Christians would experience comfort during their suffering.
Application
“The Ministry of Comfort” begins when we experience God’s comfort in our own lives. “The Ministry of Comfort” continues when we comfort others with the same comfort we have received from God. God’s comfort is purposely designed to be passed on to others. “The Ministry of Comfort” is comforting others with the comfort you have received from God.
“The Ministry of Comfort” is selfless and sacrificial – you pass on the divine comfort you have to others. You’re not supposed to keep it to yourselves, you are called to share it with those who are experiencing suffering as well. God has called us to a ministry of comfort—your suffering and the comfort you receive from God turns in to a ministry opportunity—for God comforts you so you can come alongside and comfort others.
“God does not comfort us to make us comfortable, but to make us comforters.” (John Henry Jowett)
We minister to each other by comforting one another. Each of us has our own share of unique suffering. We must open our eyes and ears to discover the needs in the family—to look and listen for members of the family who are in need of comfort—and then come alongside to comfort them in their time of need with the comfort that we have experienced from God in our own lives. The Ministry of comforting one another will require sacrifice, our time, our energy, and our vulnerability, but it’s worth every bit.
· Miscarriage
· Abortion – Janice Cummings
· Sickness or injury
· Financial distress
· Job loss
· Death of a child or spouse
The Various ways we Comfort One Another
The Ministry of Comfort is vitally needed in this family. Now, let’s talk about “how” to comfort one another as family members. Let’s go back to the life of Job. In the midst of Job’s distress his friends came alongside to comfort him in his time of need. Job’s friends started well—simply being there by his side and mourning with him—but in the long run they added insult to injury by offering unhelpful counsel to Job even though they had good intentions. Job’s friends kept telling him that his sin was the cause of his suffering, declaring that he must have sinned for God to have brought such calamity upon him, it was bad advice from well-intentioned comforters. Let me offer a few helpful tips for comforting one another.
Helpful Tips to Minister to the Hurting
· Presence
· Expression of sympathy
· A letter of condolence
· A timely text
· A hug
The way we comfort one another matters—what we say and do can help or hinder—so let’s be thoughtful and discerning as we practice “The Ministry of Comfort” in this family.
CONCLUSION
Refresh – The day Philo Taylor Farnsworth invented the T.V. he never knew what it would become – how societies would be changed – and how many shows about families would be crated and watched by millions of people. If our family was a T.V. show – what storylines and sagas will be told? Will our family story be one of God’s transforming grace, mission, and living out the ONE ANOTHERS that God has given to us.
Renew
In our sojourn through this life we face our own share of distress, death, discipline, and being downcast—all of us are confronted with “The Necessity of Comfort”—we all need comfort in this life.
Restate
In the midst of your suffering remember that God is “The Ultimate Source of Comfort”—run to Him for comfort—His comfort is greater than any limited source or temporary substitute. Comfort is “God’s proper work” (Strong). God’s comfort is mediated through many channels ()
· You will experience the comfort of His presence – The Holy Spirit (Comforter)
· You will encounter comfort in His Word
· You will enjoy the comfort through His people
· You can expect the comfort of final salvation ( & )
Secondly, share the comfort you receive from God with one another! God’s comfort given to you will become an incredible opportunity for ministry! Who do you know right now that is hurting that you can come alongside and comfort because you’ve been comforted by God? When someone who is hurting crosses your path this week, how will you respond? Be a channel of God’s comfort—God’s called you to be a minister of comfort—let’s comfort one another with the comfort we have received from God!
COMMUNION