A CHANNEL OF COMFORT

Comfort: What is comfort to each of us? Let’s share the sources of comfort. No one wants to go through hardships, but sometimes life will rain on us. As we learned from Paul in 2 Corinthians chapter 12, God never abandons His children and we know the power of His presence in the challenges we face. When we are tested by a hard lesson of life, God’s comforting grace is always there and He will walk with us. We can channel God’s comfort to others due to His grace. We can encourage others with love, grace, and the comfort of Christ, who they will see in us. We need to ask God to open the eyes of our heart to discover our need for comfort and how to comfort others.

Read 2 Corinthians 1:2-3

Many think that when God comforts us, that our troubles should go away. But if that were always so, people would turn to God only out of a desire to be relieved of pain and not out of love for Him. We must understand that being “comforted” can also mean receiving strength, encouragement, and hope to deal with our troubles. The more we suffer, the more comfort God gives us. If we are feeling overwhelmed, allow God to comfort us. Remember that every trial we endure will help us comfort other people who are suffering similar troubles.

Paul introduced the associate who was with him when he wrote. Timothy was not an apostle, but he was a fellow believer and therefore a brother. He had been Paul’s messenger to Corinthians earlier (1 Corinthian 4:17). Then Paul introduces the readers and all the Christians in Achaia, the Roman province south of Macedonia. Paul reminded them that they were “saints”, meaning holy people, people set apart as God’s possession. The church is -first of all -God’s church.

In all his letters, Paul replaced the usual Greek word for “greeting” with a similar word meaning “grace”. It was a major theme for Paul and one of the great words of the New Testament. Referring to all that God does to save sinners, “grace” indicates unmerited favor. In spite of man’s sin, God gives His love. In spite of man’s unrighteousness, God makes him righteous. God gives this undeserved gift because of His love and His sovereign power. Man cannot bring it about by his effort. He can only receive it by faith.

“Peace” was a common Jewish greeting, In the New Testament it has a deeper meaning. Originally it meant freedom from conflict both internal and external. In this sense, it is the opposite of the feeling Paul expressed in 2 Corinthians 7:5: “Our bodies had no rest but we were afflicted at every turn- fighting without and fear within”. In the fuller sense, it describes all the blessings of salvation.

As Paul introduced his theme (the Ministry of Suffering), the very first paragraph shows the rich meaning and intense feeling that characterizes 2 Corinthians. The passage is a doxology that describes both comfort and suffering. The emphasis is on God. He is the “God…of our Lord Jesus Christ” (v.3). He is like Jesus, but He is more than Jesus. He is His “Father”. God is specifically known as the “the Father of mercies”, the Hebrew way of saying merciful Father, and as “the God of all comfort”, the one whose comfort meets every need.

Read 2 Corinthians 1:4-5

Paul and those who join him in Christian service, experienced many difficulties. But God provides strength in each case. This strength becomes a rich resource for ministering to others. Paul viewed his suffering not as misery but ministry. He came to this conviction through his own experience of suffering (12:7-10).

Much of the comfort Paul received came from knowing that his suffering was related to “Christ’s suffering”. The Jews expected the time of the Messiah to be protected by the suffering of His people. Jesus, however, suffered for His people. Those whom He called to follow Him also suffered in order to bless others. With this profound view of suffering Paul could encourage the Corinthians. He had great hope for them because he knew their sufferings would lead to their greater strength in the future. Of course, this does not mean that we should desire or seek to suffer- especially for some favor, but to realize that suffering for Christ is expected.

Suffering for Christ refers to those afflictions we experience as we serve Christ. At the same time, Christ suffers with His people, since they are united with Him. In Acts 9:4-5, Christ asked Paul why he was persecuting Him. This implies that Christ suffered with the early Christians when they were persecuted.

Read 2 Corinthians 1:6-7

Paul firmly believed that suffering is part of ministry. Paul had a radically different view of suffering. Suffering- especially trials and discomfort associated with the advancement of Christ’s kingdom- is God’s way of allowing Christians to become more like Jesus. This means to suffer for the gospel just as Jesus suffered for it (Philippians 1:29; 3:10). Peter agreed with Paul: Christians should rejoice when they suffer, for in their own suffering they will in some small way experience what it meant for Jesus to suffer for their sins (1 Peter 4:12-13),

In addition to drawing people closer to Christ, suffering can also help them grow in their faith. God uses suffering to improve His people and shape them into better Christians. In fact, suffering should be thought of as the necessary pain that accompanies spiritual growth. In Romans, Paul noted that suffering produces perseverance, which, in turn produces Christian character (Romans 5:3, James 1:3-4; 2 Peter 1:6; Revelation 2:2, 19). This passage highlights another benefit to suffering, it teaches the sufferer how to encourage others who are also suffering. This become a channel of comfort for others but also for ourselves, that is, when we bring comfort to others it should also comfort us.

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