If you'd like to follow along,
I'm gonna be in 2 Corinthians chapter one. Excuse me. 2 Corinthians chapter one. Beginning
in verse one. Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ
by the will of God, and Timothy, our brother, under the church
of God which is at Corinth, with all the saints which are in all
Achaia. Grace be to you and peace from
God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ. Blessed be God,
even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies
and the God of all comfort. who comforted us in all our tribulation
that we may be able to comfort them which are in trouble. By
the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God. And I'm gonna stop right there. Before I get started, I'm gonna
read you something. Well, I added to it and took
away from it changed some of the wording, but I'm gonna read
it to you anyway. It was good, but I wanted something
in particular. This is from something Joe Terrell
wrote. Part of it is. We have absolutely nothing to
do with the work the Lord Jesus Christ has done for us. And, We cannot improve upon the
work God has done in us. I like that, I did. Now, we are
told to put off the old man, which is corrupt, and put on
the new man, which is after God. Which after God, excuse me, is
created in righteousness and true holiness. Notice, though,
we are told to put off the old man, which is corrupt. Not was corrupt, is corrupt. Because the old man is still
corrupt, right now, right now. Even believing Christ, your old
man is still corrupt. In my flesh still dwells no good
thing. We are told to mortify your members
which are on the earth. And you know what? That's in
the present tense. We're told to put off the old
man. That's in the present tense.
And we're told to put on the new man. And that's in the present
tense. What's that mean? Continue. Continue. Continue. This is our ongoing daily struggle. What do we do? We are to love
Christ and love the brethren. And that's our ongoing daily
goal. Our life is hid with Christ in
God, but we have this life here to live now. And we are to put
on the new man. I like that, I did. All right,
but here in 1 Corinthians, Paul, I'm gonna do verse three. Blessed is God the Father of
our Lord Jesus Christ. What? The Father of mercies. The Father of mercies. What's that mean? It means the
Father is the source of all mercy. All mercy, real mercy, comes
from God. Now, what do we know about mercy,
about loving kindness? Well, we know from the Old Testament
and the New, he, the father of all mercies, shall be merciful
to whom he will be merciful. He will show mercy to whom he
will show mercy. God, the father of mercies, has
absolute control of mercy. He's sovereign. He'll be mercy,
he'll have mercy on whom he'll have mercy, and then there's
the next phrase there in one place. And whom he will, he'll
harden. But he is the father of mercy,
he has absolute control of all mercy. And he is the father of
our Lord Jesus Christ, who is the source of our mercy. I like
that, I do, it's good stuff. And then he says this statement,
and this is my title, Paul, the God of all comfort. The God of
all comfort. You understand? Mercy has to
come first before comfort's gonna show up. Mercy has to be, God
has to show you mercy before he'll give you comfort. Again though, here it is. He's
the God of all comfort. What's that mean? He is the source
of all comfort. True comfort comes from him alone
and there is no comfort without him. because all comfort comes
from him. He's the God of all comfort.
And Paul tells us this. He does comfort his people. He does. That's why it starts
in verse four. Who comforteth us in all our
tribulation that we may be able to comfort them which are in,
what, any trouble. By the comfort wherewith we ourselves
are comforted of God. There's a lot of comfort in that
verse. There's a lot of comfort in that verse. But you understand,
that's good. Because we need a lot of comfort. We need a lot of comfort. What
did it say? Who comforted us, who comforts
us in all our tribulation. What did Christ say about that?
In this world, you shall have tribulation. That's what this
world's good for, tribulation. Matter of fact, it might be what
this world is best at, tribulation. But we believers have tribulation. In this world, and that's when
he comforts us. That's when he comforts us. In
all our tribulation, in all our trials, in all our problems,
in our worries, in our cares, he is the source of all comfort. You understand, I mean, it pretty
much goes without saying, so I'm gonna say it anyway. You
don't need a lot of comfort when everything's going fine. When
everything's going good, you don't need a lot of comfort.
Oh, but when things go bad, and they so often do, they go bad
physically, they go bad mentally, they go bad with your health,
they go bad with your children, they go bad with your parents,
they go bad with your siblings, they go bad with your spouse,
they go bad with yourself. But he is the source of all comfort.
He is the God of all comfort. And he does comfort us in our
tribulations. But here's the thing, he'll show you how much you need
him, the God of all comfort. He'll show you how much you need
him. You understand, I've been there, I've done it, going along
just as happy as a lark, and all of a sudden it feels like
the world dropped on your head. You can lose your job, you can
lose a parent, you can lose a child, and it just weighs on you. Oh
my. But it says also, who comforts
us in all our tribulations that we may be able to comfort them
which are in any trouble. How? The same way he comforts
you. The same way he comforts you.
He comforts his people so his people can be a comfort to others. Be a comfort to others in any
trouble. And here's the thing, what I'm
saying, and this is what Paul, I believe, is saying here, and
it goes on. There's another chapter we're gonna get to just looking
at some stuff about comfort. He will use you to be a comfort
to others. and he will use others to be
a comfort to you. This is not by accident. He's the God of all comfort.
But this is the way he works. Now, I am not, I understand that Jesus Christ sent the comforter,
the Holy Spirit. But Paul doesn't refer to it
here in 2 Corinthians. And I'm not going to actually
designate, spend a lot of time on it. Because the Holy Spirit
is the comforter. And he says, if I don't go away,
the comforter shall not come. And if I go away, I'm gonna send
the comforter. And the comforter has come. But
here's the thing. He shall not speak of himself.
He's gonna take of mine and show it to you. So there are people
out there who seem to have a whole denomination, a whole religion,
based upon the fact of they speak about the Holy Ghost, they speak
about the Holy Spirit doing this, the Holy Spirit doing that, and
the Holy Ghost, and yes, the Holy Spirit does quite a bit.
He gives life, he gives faith, he indwells every single believer. But he doesn't speak of himself,
he speaks of Christ. He speaks of the God of all comfort.
So I'm not gonna spend a lot of time on here because that's
not what Paul's main point is. That's not the context of this.
But I do wanna point out this. The word of the Lord comforts
his people. You don't have to turn there,
I'm just gonna read this. Psalms 119 and verse 49 and 50. This
is the Psalm of David, it says. I believe it was David, anyhow.
No, this is the big Psalm 119. Remember the word unto thy servant,
upon which thou hast caused me to hope. This is my comfort in
my affliction, in my affliction. For thy word hath quickened me. Remember the word unto thy servant,
Upon that which thou has caused me to hope, this is my comfort
and affliction. Here. Never doubt the Lord Jesus
Christ remembers his word to his people. Never doubt it. He gives me hope. He gives me
hope. This is my comfort in my affliction,
the Lord's word, what, to me. The Lord's word to you should
give you comfort. Because his word gives hope and
comfort. He is the God of all comfort. Now, there are so many, but I
picked out, well, just a couple of places. I'm not gonna keep
you long, but these are some scriptures that comfort me when
I'm troubled. when I'm bothered, when I'm in
tribulation. These are things I love to call to mind. I want
to remember, I'd like to remember them every day. So Romans nine,
verse 25 and 26. Wait a minute, I'm going the
wrong way. Romans nine, verse 25. Now, I want you very carefully
to realize these scriptures here come right after he talks about
the potter having power over the clay. To make one vessel
under honor and one vessel under dishonor out of the same lump. This comes right after that.
Verse 25, as he saith also in Osea, which is Hosea, I will
call them my people. which were not my people. And her beloved, which was not
beloved. And it shall come to pass that
in the place where it was said unto them, ye are not my people,
there, there shall they be called, what? The children of the living
God. That comforts me, because I know
at one time I didn't know God. I didn't know God. As a matter
of fact, let's make one thing perfectly
clear here, okay? When the Lord calls you my people,
you are my people. You are his people, and it doesn't
matter what you think. And it doesn't matter how you
feel. And here's the thing. It doesn't
matter what tribulation you're under or what burden you're under.
If God says you are his people, you are his people. Because here's
the thing. All it takes is God saying it,
and it's so. It's a fact. It's true. Our God, who cannot lie, has
said, you're my people. You're my people. You're my people. And our God, the Lord, who changes
not, once he says you're his people, you are always his people. No matter what you're going through,
no matter what your burden or tribulation you're under, you're
his people. He said it, and it's so. I like
that. And it said, what is it? and
it shall come to pass in the place where it was said unto
them, you're not my people, there shall they be called the children
of the living God. Romans 8, 15, just a little bit
before this, Paul spoke of, we've not received the bondage to fear
again, the spirit of bondage to fear again. What we've received?
The spirit of adoption, adoption. Those not known as my people
have been adopted in to the family of God in Christ Jesus, in Christ. Those not known as my people,
what shall be called? The children of the living God. Here's what adoption means, and
this is something that comforts me to no end, and I want to tell
you, just think about it, okay? What the adoption means, Here's
the thing, God has decided to be your father. Now is that not glorious? Is
that not grace? You understand, when you adopt
a baby, the baby doesn't have anything to say about it. No,
he says, I'm gonna be a father unto you. You know why? Because you're gonna be my children.
And he says, you are my children in Christ Jesus. In Christ Jesus,
I am a child of God. That's not boasting, that's fact. Because he said so. He said so. Heirs of God and joint heirs
with Jesus Christ. Would it say? Now, beloved, now
are ye the sons and daughters of God. That should comfort you
in any tribulation. These are comforting words. I
read it last week. Comfort ye, comfort ye, my people,
saith the Lord. And what's he talk about in that
chapter? I read it last week, pre-sought last week. All flesh
is grass, and behold your God. There's where the comfort is.
It's in behold your God. Then the next verse said, behold
the Lord God. Why? Because if your God is not
the Lord God, you're not gonna get any comfort. Because the
one I need to comfort me is the one that's in control. The one
that's in charge. The one that's sovereign. The
one that rules and that reigns. The God of all comfort is who
I need. Now are ye the sons of God. Then
in the next chapter, I'll give you this other one. This is chapter
10, Romans chapter 10 and verse 20. This is one of my favorite
verses. Romans chapter 10, well I didn't
turn the page. In verse 20, is that right? Went one too far, sorry about
that. There. But Esaias, Isaiah. is very bold, very bold, and
saith, I was found of them that sought me not. I was made manifest unto them
that ask not after me. My brothers and sisters, that
was me. I was not looking for God. and
he found me. He found me. I wasn't looking
for him. I was found of them that sought
me not. How is that possible? Other sheep
I have. They're not of this fold. Them
I must bring. And there's gonna be one fold
and one shepherd. Now you understand, you can look
all throughout the scriptures, you can look in the Old Testament,
you can look in the New Testament, You can look at every single
parable there ever was. You'll never find a parable,
an illustration, or a word in this scripture about anybody
changing a goat into a sheep. All you have is the shepherd
finding his sheep. You have the shepherds who are
to watch their flock. The sheep is a sheep. And other sheep, what do you
say? I have. A, they're sheep, and B, they're
his. And C, them I must bring. Oh, I like that. I was found
of them that sought me not. That's why we're compared to
lost sheep. Oh, I like that. That gives me
hope, that gives me joy, comforts me. I was not looking for Christ
Jesus, He came looking for me. I'm gonna tell you this. No one,
no one, no one looks for Christ until he finds them. He's gotta find you or you're
not gonna look. Oh, I like that, I do. What'd
he say? No man can come unto me except
it be given him of my father. No man can come unto me except
the Father which has sent me draw him. Ah, yes. Wasn't he gonna draw all men
unto him? Yes he is, all kinds. But this is one where he says,
the Father draws him, him I will raise up at the last day. Oh,
there's hope, there's comfort. The good shepherd found his sheep,
called his sheep by name, and then they follow him. I was made
manifest unto them that ask not after me. He makes himself manifest. He makes himself known unto his
sheep, unto his people. Then they do look to him. They
do follow him. They do call upon the name of
the Lord because they know who the Lord is. That's grace. And to me, that's
comfort. But here, what Paul is talking
about in second Corinthians, well I'm gonna read Let me just
read this. This is 2 Thessalonians 2 and
16. Now the Lord Jesus Christ himself and God, even our father,
which hath loved us and hath given us everlasting consolation
and good hope through grace, comfort your hearts. Comfort
your hearts. And establish you in every good
word and work. The Lord Jesus Christ is the
God of all comfort. And believers can say this. Our
Father. Our Father. Abba, Father. Wow, I like that too. Who have
loved us and has given us an everlasting consolation. And here's the thing. That song a couple, three, four
decades ago, whatever it was, you know, Endless Love drove
me crazy on the radio. I got so tired of that stupid
song wherever I was at. They kept playing it over and
over for months. No, that ain't no endless love.
This is endless love right here. The love of God for his people
in Christ Jesus gives us an everlasting consolation. What? Everlasting
consolation and good hope through grace, through grace. There's
no true comfort without him and he will comfort your heart. But in 2 Corinthians chapter
seven, there's a couple of verses I wanna read here. 2 Corinthians
seven and verse four. Great is my boldness of speech
towards you. Great is my glorying of you. I am filled with comfort. I am exceeding joyful, here we
go, in all our tribulation. That's the Apostle Paul writing
that. For when we were coming to Macedonia,
our flesh had no rest, but we were troubled on every side.
Without were fightings, and within were fears. Nevertheless, God,
that comforteth those that are cast down, comforted us, here
we go, comforted us by the coming of Titus. and not by his coming only but
by the consolation wherewith he was comforted in you when
he told us your earnest desire, your mourning, your fervent mind
toward me so that I rejoice the more. This is when Paul got the
results of his first letter to the Corinthians where he kind
of raked them over the coals a bit because they needed to
be. And there were some that were
talking bad about the apostle Paul while he was gone. Paul wrote him a letter, and
then he got the results back from Titus, and this comforted
him. Not that they were in tribulation, but that they were troubled by
this. You understand? If God rebukes you, you need
to be troubled by it. If I'm rebuked, I feel miserable
about it. But it is a good thing. You understand? Tribulation worketh patience,
not to be repented of. What was it somebody said with
Tim James? Don't ask for patience because
God'll send you tribulation. Because tribulation worketh patience.
He chastises every son that he has. Now no chastisement is pleasant,
but grievous, but afterwards, It yields forth the peaceable
fruit of righteousness. Chastisement's not fun. It's
being punished, but it's being punished by God for a purpose,
to teach you something. Paul said, I rejoiced. I do like
that. I am exceeding joyful in all
our tribulation, and he included himself in it. all our tribulation. Oh my. He, excuse me, the God of all comfort
gives comfort in the worst places, in the middle of tribulation,
in the middle of a problem. But here's the thing I wanted
to point out here. He does comfort it with his word. His word is our comfort. But
I do want to point this out. We believers can be a comfort
to others. Paul was comforted by the coming
of Titus. Paul was comforted by the news of what was going
on in Corinth, where they had repented of what they had been
doing. I mean, is that too fine a point?
I'm not saying, you understand, he's the God of all comfort,
the comfort comes from him, but you can be a comfort for someone
else. Believers can, and here's the
thing, believers are too, we are too. Here, verse 13 of chapter
seven, still, 2 Corinthians chapter seven, verse 13, therefore we
were comforted in your comfort. Yea, and exceedingly more, joyed
we for the joy of Titus, because his spirit was refreshed by you
all. The God of all comfort gives
comfort to believers, and he gives believers to be a comfort
to each other. I hope I'm getting this across. There is a comfort in the comfort
of a brother or sister in Christ Jesus. You understand? It should make you feel good
that your brethren feel good or feel better or are comforted. You know why? because we are
to love the brethren. I like that. I got to thinking
about this. There is a comfort in the comfort
of the brethren. There is a joy in the joy of
the brethren. Other brethren. Ephesians 622, Paul wrote this,
whom I have sent unto you for the same purpose, that ye might
know our affairs, and that he might comfort your hearts. The God of all comfort comforts
his people sometimes by the actions of his people. Paul sent Tychicus. a faithful brother, a faithful
minister and brother in the Lord to the Ephesians to let them
know what was going on. Paul was in prison writing to
the Ephesians and sent them this letter. And he sent them this
letter, said, yes, I'm in prison, and yes, God is still caring
for me. Philippians 2.19, but I trust
in the Lord Jesus to send Timotheus shortly unto you that I also
may may be of good comfort when I know your state. Paul wanted
to know the state of the brethren at Philippi. In Colossians 4
and verse 11, and Jesus, which is called justice, who are of
the circumcision. These only are my fellow workers
unto the kingdom of God, which have been of comfort unto me. First Thessalonians 5 verse 11
says this. Wherefore, comfort yourselves
together, and edify one another, even as also ye do. Keep doing it. Keep doing it. Comfort each other.
I mean, are you seeing the trend here? This is what Paul's writing
about. The love of the brethren is a
comfort to me in Christ Jesus, in Christ Jesus, in the God of
all comfort. I believe the love of the brethren
is a comfort to you in Christ Jesus. Now, is the love of the brethren
for you or is this the love of the brethren that you have for
the brethren? That's one of them good questions.
The answer is yes, both, both. Understand, I am comforted in loving the brethren,
and I am comforted in the brethren loving me. And you should be
comforted in the brethren loving you, and you loving the brethren,
both ways. Because if it doesn't work both
ways, it doesn't work at all. This is what's called fellowship. This is a true part of the fellowship
of Christ Jesus and in Jesus Christ. Fellowship, true fellowship,
works both ways. Fellowship is from Christ and
it's toward Christ. And the fellowship of the brethren
is to the brethren and from the brethren, both ways. You understand,
we love him because he first loved us. And this means that
he loves us and we love him. But here's the thing, we love
the brethren because he first loved us. That's where it comes from. This
is the commandments. Love Christ and love the brethren. That's his commandments. This
is a comfort from God to us both ways. We are to be a comfort
to each other. Because Jesus Christ not only
gave us eternal life, not only gave us the Holy Spirit, Jesus
Christ gave us to each other. And we are to comfort ye, comfort
ye, my people, saith the Lord. Yes, all flesh is grass, but
behold your God, and behold your God. Yes, the Lord God shall. And if the Lord God shall, you
will. You will, and you will, and I
will. And he is a comfort to us, and
he'll even use us ourselves to comfort one another. But what
I'm saying is, be conscious of it. Be conscious of it. Don't be arrogant. I got to watch
that, seriously. I have to remember myself. I'm
not as smart as I think I am. I have to watch areas. I mean,
it boggles my mind when Henry Mahan will get up there. I've
got the tapes, and I listen to him, and he talks about his spirit
and how he has to be careful and not get angry. And I'm thinking,
Henry was the nicest person you ever wanted to meet in your life.
Where in the world does that put me? I have to watch my anger. It used to be worse. Thank God
it's not as bad as it used to be when I was young and brash
and half ignorant. But here's the thing. Be gentle
to one another in loving kindness. That's a comfort that you can
talk to each other and you can share. We all have like problems.
may not have exactly the same problems, but trust me, there's
nothing out there new. It's all the same old flesh,
whether it's yours or somebody else's. Comfort one another,
comfort one another, and use his words. His words are comfort. All things do work together for
good to them that love God. And all things do work together
for good to them that love God. They do. That's it. Our Heavenly Father,
thank you. Thank you, Lord, for what you've
given to us. Thank you most of all for who
you have given to us. Your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ,
Your spirit, the comforter, help us to live unto you and to help
one another. Let us be a comfort to each other
in true fellowship with Jesus Christ. Help Paul as he comes
to preach your gospel this morning. Let us all give you the praise and the honor
and the glory because it is yours now and forever. Amen.