Comfort: From God and Others (Through Earth’s Hell) by Kelly Durant
II Cor. 1:4 Who comforteth us in all our tribulation that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God
2. The love of God within its multifaceted qualities surrounds anyone who seeks it with a comforting protection: a consoling or comfort in action that alleviates one’s pain. Today what makes the people of the world sick, paranoid, and psychotic is the knowledge that instead of other human beings being loving and looking out for them, there are people in this condemned world full of Satanic narcissistic despots that would kill you in an instant over your choice of religion, political views, or social economic status! The murderous demons out there have always been too numerous!
There was an old Roberto Carlos song that said, “I wish we were civilized like the animals”? Do you recall that song from the 70s? Our world is scientifically and technically advancing in intelligence yet still the vast majority of people are remaining barbaric in their human behavior and relations! Here is an animal story of a bird to illustrate a point on how humans should love and protect one another.
Maybe you have heard this story about the firemen that after putting the fire out on a house that burned down they noticed there was a dead bird that had built a nest in the attic. It was all black a charred and disfigured. Then as the firemen looked around the rubble they heard a little chirp. It turns out the bird was a mother and she had given her life covering her chicks from the fire and they came out from under her dead body alive running to fly away.
What a powerful illustration of love and comfort! As Jesus said, John 15:12 “This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you.13 Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.14 Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you.” Notice here that Jesus did not say family, he said friends. Those that love Jesus share a bond together that is a love and friendship bond more than what any of us could even have with a family member (unless they are your friend in Jesus as well)!
3. How many people have died and are dying today as martyrs protecting their Christian friends from being discovered and killed? It makes me sick every time I pray for those in other countries to be reminded that there is a modern day holocaust happening and that dozens of thousands of Christians are being killed every year! Why isn’t anyone is speaking up!? Let’s start a campaign, start a mantra, “Stop the killing of Christians!” Who is going to Africa and the Middle East to comfort the abandoned and broken survivors of these modern day holocausts? Who is freeing the child slaves? As Christians we all need a whole lot more solidarity and much louder voice of outcry to battle against the enemies of God who are murdering and enslaving good men, women, and children today!
When the police locally arrest a murderer there is consolation in the community that this person cannot kill another innocent one, right? But today around the globe hundreds die by the hour! When will governments ever see the wisdom of practicing God’s law which is a life for a life? Murderers can only be stopped by their execution or by being in chains until they die. If not stopped, demon possessed murderers murder out of control until dead! If someone would have had the chance to kill Hitler before he attained power, I think no one today would argue that it would not have been morally ethical to take his life in order to prevent the murder of millions of others!
Recently there was a 70 year memorial observance for the Jews that died in the Auschwitz gas chambers. How little news attention it got! How it sickens me that for days on end the news channels will talk about a deflated football yet when it comes to exposing that dozens of millions were murdered just 70 years ago in a World War few highlight its importance! Millions of Christians and priests died as well! If the youth today do not learn from our recent horrible history, then God forbid that it should be repeated again soon by another Satanically inspired murderous dictator! The world offers us hell and more hell, while Jesus offers us love, peace, and the comfort of the healing of our wounds from these atrocities and all suffering! On His return He will stop those who are evil and divide the sheep from the goats! Here is consolation, 1 John 3:15 Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him.
4. So, what is comfort? The people in the world without Jesus cannot give it nor do they understand that it is needed! I think most of us have at some time or another received comfort or consolation from someone close to us. They listened to us and helped us, but the sad reality is the people of this world offer us no, that is zero, comfort in our pain! Here is an example of this.
One time my wife when she was going to go on a flight, trusted in another flight attendant and told her how our son had been taken to jail and that life was really hard for us at the moment. She just wanted a sympathetic ear. The flight attendant saw her tears and probably said, oh, sorry for you. A few weeks later she was on the same plane again with the same flight attendant and preparing the plane she overheard her while preparing the trays telling another one on the crew, stay away from Regina, when she talks to you she will start crying!
In other words her cold hearted attitude towards another was, I do not care for your tears, I do not care for your pain, I only care that you make me feel uncomfortable! How selfish people in this cruel world are! How true the statement is, “If you cry you, will cry alone, but if you laugh, the world will laugh with you”!
5. Back to the scripture of today… What is the response God expects of us when we encounter a person in pain? We are to comfort them! How do we do that? First of all we must love them as we love ourselves! For example, if someone says I am sad because my son is suffering, then what you and I should do is imagine our own son or daughter suffering in order to empathize and lend a sincere listening ear and practice compassion. You have to accept the fact that your planned activities and priorities just got reshuffled when you are needed.
Always you will need to listen, and you may need to hug them, and you may need to read them some encouraging scriptures and promises of God and pray for them. Your comfort should include acts of service so you may need to serve them somehow taking them somewhere, or cooking them something, and you may need to be there for them a few dozen times! Comfort has many ways of being expressed but the fact remains comforting consolation is a product of love and is an action that does something positive to alleviate the pain!
6. So what are the tribulations as mentioned in II Cor 1:4? The tribulations back in the time of the Corinthians for sure included being persecuted by harassment and being made fun of for preaching Jesus Christ. Tribulations take on many forms, but the obvious is that whatever form it takes on that it produces in the one affected a spiritual, physical, and mental anguish. Paul the apostle went to jail, was beaten many times, and suffered greatly for Jesus. He still came out strong!
Sufferings in this life are inevitable! I have never met a person yet that has had a perfect life! Everyone has to deal with pain but often we forget that is that way for everyone. Sometimes people are so jealous of others who have fame and money, but if they had to live in their shoes they would not really want their lives. Many people of wealth and position often deal with a child with autism or a problem. They may also be dealing with the embarrassment of a father, mother, or brother who is bankrupting the family due to selfishness or addictions. So if all the envious dreamers could be exposed to the real world of pain and suffering of others that is always masked and hidden from the public, then they would for sure change their mind immediately about the so called good life of fame and fortune!
The truth is many people never receive comfort in their pain because they are too proud to expose their weaknesses and hurts to someone in order to allow that person to comfort them. As Christians we must build up trust with others so that when a person gets up the courage to express how much they hurt or how sad they feel, then they must have full confidence in you that you will listen and understand and console them with God’s love! The front mercy seat here (prayer area) is where comfort is found when anyone wants it.
7. Never minimize another person’s pain! A person grieving over their cousin with cancer may be in as in as much pain as a person who is actually getting an amputation! I hate pain, but God has allowed it to work in our lives, so we just have to accept that reality of life: that pain changes us and it accomplishes what God desires in our growth if we will let it. It is tragic though when people fail the tests of tribulations of life. We feel it differently in different intensities but must not let our pain become a selfish obsession. Those without faith usually do not know how to deal with the pain of life and that is where you and I should step in. We listen, we serve, and we share God’s promises on consolation from the Bible.
I recall seeing a documentary on suicide, and it exposed how some people got affected so terribly over something that they took their own lives. There was a case of a strip tease lady that was in a car wreck and in the crash her face got cut on the broken windshield glass but it was stitched back together. She was going to be fine but she was going to have a noticeably big scar on her face. Then a worse tragedy happened, after she saw herself in the mirror she went out and took her own life! She told a friend that she had to end her life because she would never be able to have a way to make a living ever again! How sad a lesson and how wrong her assessment! Her overwhelming emotions were too much and sadly no Christian friend was close that could talk to her first. We must be ready to comfort ANYONE!
Try to be sensitive to notice when another, even a person you may not like, is going through a serious crisis, an accident, or a suffering of some kind, because a life just might be saved if you or someone will just reach out and talk to the person comforting them in their pain! It is sad how many people in this cruel world are helpless and abandoned when they are suffering! We need to step up to the plate!
8. Don’t think you need all the answers, just be there for your friend in need! Here is an example from the Book of Job of what his friends did when they saw him in extreme pain. We all know Job lost everything, his family, wealth, and health. Empathy or love is all you need: you may not even be able to have words!
Job 2: 11 Now when Job's three friends heard of all this evil that was come upon him, they came every one from his own place; Eliphaz the Temanite, and Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite: for they had made an appointment together to come to mourn with him and to comfort him.12 And when they lifted up their eyes afar off, and knew him not, they lifted up their voice, and wept; and they rent every one his mantle, and sprinkled dust upon their heads toward heaven.13 So they sat down with him upon the ground seven days and seven nights, and none spake a word unto him: for they saw that his grief was very great.
Always ask for the Holy Spirit to be present in all situations. Jesus said he would not leave us comfortless. John 15:26 “But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me:” God covers us with truth from His realm!
The world knows enough hell, let’s show the people in it more heaven! Come now and pray if you are in pain. Know that the Holy Spirit will be with you! Come now and pray for comfort, for the power of God to be present to comfort, and may God use you to comfort another person you may know that is in pain. We are comforted so we can comfort others! Be moved with compassion on suffering humanity today! Your neighbor or your friend needs you!
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