Comfort For Christians

Q: What does the Bible say about comfort for Christians?

The Bible teaches that comfort for Christians comes through understanding God's election and salvation. In 2 Thessalonians 2:13-17, the apostle Paul emphasizes that God's comfort stems from His choice of believers for salvation, their calling through the gospel, and the assurance of His everlasting love. This divine selection brings comfort as it assures believers of their position in Christ and offers hope amidst a world filled with sin and uncertainty. Paul encourages believers to hold fast to the teachings of God's Word, which serve as a source of strength and comfort.

Q: How do we know that God has chosen us for salvation?

We know God has chosen us for salvation as affirmed by Scripture, specifically in 2 Thessalonians 2:13. Paul expresses gratitude for the believers' election by God in 2 Thessalonians 2:13, stating that they are chosen for salvation. This doctrine of election plays a crucial role in Reformed theology as it underscores God's sovereign grace in choosing individuals for eternal life, independent of their works or merit. This choice denotes God's love and mercy, giving believers assurance that they are not abandoned in darkness but are recipients of His grace and salvation through Christ.

Q: Why is understanding sin and wickedness important for Christians?

Understanding sin and wickedness helps Christians recognize the grace and mercy of God in their lives. Paul addresses the prevalence of sin and wickedness in the world within the context of comfort for Christians. Acknowledging the existence of evil, as Paul mentions in 2 Thessalonians, serves to highlight the grace of God that has saved believers from such a condition. This understanding fosters a deeper appreciation for God's mercy and encourages believers to stand firm in their faith amidst adversity, knowing that God restrains evil for their sake. Furthermore, recognizing sin prompts a call to holiness and reliance on God's guidance and comfort.

Q: How can Christians find comfort in a world filled with evil?

Christians find comfort through the promises of God in His Word and the assurance of salvation. In light of the overwhelming evil present in the world, Christians are reminded in 2 Thessalonians 2 that their comfort is rooted not in the circumstances around them, but in the unchanging truth of God's promises. Paul states that God comforts hearts and establishes believers through His Word (2 Thessalonians 2:17). By clinging to this Word, believers are empowered to persevere, remaining steadfast against the backdrop of sin and turmoil, assured of their eternal security in Christ.

I'd like for you to open your
Bibles with me to the book of II Thessalonians. II Thessalonians
chapter 2. In a few moments, I'm going to
speak to you from verse 13 through 18. Now, here's my title. Here's
my subject. I think you'll be interested
in this. I'm sure many of you will who love Christ and love
the gospel, who know something about His saving mercies. the
sure mercies of David. My subject today is comfort. Comfort. That's it. Just comfort for Christians. Now, as I travel about the country
and preach, and as I hear from many of you, you write letters,
and I hear from you, there are two things which especially disturb
the people of God in our day. Two things. disturbed the people
of God, caused them great concern. And the first one is this. There's
so little true preaching of the Word of God in this day. That's
right. There's much religion. You know
that. I do, too. There's a great deal of entertainment
and socializing in the name of God, in the name of religion.
There's a lot of zeal. There's a lot of church activities. There's a lot of programs. But
you know and I know that in this day there's very little teaching,
true preaching and teaching of the Word of God. People just
don't know anything about the Bible. Oh, they can quote two
or three favorite passages or well-known passages, but as far
as knowing something of the mystery of God and the mystery of godliness,
Justification, sanctification, redemption, righteousness, how
God can be just and justified. How can He be clean that's born
of a woman? Imputed righteousness, imparted
righteousness, these things. People know so little about the
Word of God, but that's a fulfillment of Amos' prophecy. Amos prophesied
in chapter 8 of his book. He said, God said, Behold, the
days come. Thus saith the Lord, Behold,
the days come when I will send a famine, a famine in the land. Now, not a famine of bread, not
a famine or thirst for water, but a famine of hearing the words
of the Lord. And people shall wander from
sea to sea and from north to the east, and they shall run
to and fro and seek to hear the word of God. and shall not find
it." There's very little preaching, serious preaching and teaching
of the Word of God. Men and women today have very
little knowledge of God's Word. Now, you know that, and I know
that, and that deeply, greatly concerns you and me. You take a program. People often
comment about this program. It's really 28 minutes and 30
seconds long. And that entire time is not spent
making announcements and begging for money and singing songs and
entertaining people and announcing projects. It's spent teaching
the Word of God. That's what I'm trying to do.
I've got a subject this morning, comfort, comfort for Christians. And I want you to be comforted
and that's what I'm going to deal with. But there's very little
teaching of the Word of God. And the second thing that concerns
people is this, and that is that sin and wickedness literally
abound today all over this nation and all over the world. People
ask me, Preacher, have you ever heard of a day like our day when
evil prevails from the top to the bottom of society? And fear
grips the hearts of people, young and old. The streets are unsafe.
Communities are unsafe. Children can't go out in the
yard and play alone. You can't walk down the street.
There's greed from top to bottom. There's drugs and drunkenness,
murder, child abuse, divorce. Oh, the streets are dangerous.
This is a concern of the people of God. so little true preaching
and so much wickedness. And I understand your concern
and I understand your fears, but I tell you this, this is
no new thing, really. It's no new thing. If you'll
turn to my text, II Thessalonians chapter 2, the apostle Paul wrote
to the church of Thessalonica 2,000 years ago, over 1,900 years
ago, and he talks about this very thing, this very thing. the poverty and famine concerning
the preaching of the truth and the wickedness that abounds.
Now, here in chapter 2 of II Thessalonians, back here in verse
2 and 3, Paul talks to them about the coming of the Lord Jesus
Christ. You know, our Lord, before He ascended to the Father, He
said, now, I go to prepare a place for you, and if I go and prepare
a place for you, I'll come again. I'll come again and receive you
unto myself that where I am there you may be also." And then when
he ascended to heaven, the angels appeared to the disciples as
they were gazing up into heaven as Christ was taken up from them
into heaven. And they were gazing up there
and the angels said, you men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing
up into heaven, this same Jesus? which is taken up from you will
so come in like manner as you've seen him go." He's coming back.
And these people said, well, maybe because of the wickedness
and evil of our day, maybe Christ is coming now. This was 1,900
years ago. You see, we've been in what they
call the last days since Paul preached. The creation of the
world, the existence of our world seems to be divided into three.
almost equal parts from the creation of Adam to Moses is about 2,000
years. And from Moses to Christ is about
2,000 years. And from Christ to this present
day is about 2,000 years. And it's called the last days,
the last days. It's called the last days all
the way through the New Testament. But Paul says here in verse 6
and 7 of II Thessalonians 2, he said the return of Christ
Christ will not come except there come a falling away first, and
the Antichrist is revealed. Now, that day's here. That day's
here. It's not just one man. This Antichrist
is not just one man. This Antichrist is a spirit of
Antichrist. The Scripture said there'd be
many Antichrists. Christ said, He that's not with
me is against me. He's Antichrist. But the coming
of the Lord will not take place until there come a falling away,
a desperate falling away, a falling away in spiritual matters and
a falling away in carnal things, a falling away and the spirit
of Antichrist prevail. And he says this, Paul said in
verse 7, and this spirit of iniquity is already at work even in his
day. Already at work, evil men and
evil spirits or at work, he said, in my day. And in the next verse,
he said, they are restrained by the Spirit of God. Only he
that letteth, only he that hindereth will hinder till he be taken
out of the way. You see, God restrains this wrath. God restrains this enmity. God restrains this wickedness. He holds it in check like He
holds the oceans and says, hitherto shall you come and no farther.
God restrains it. That's the reason the people
of God, Children of God need not fear. Fear not. Christ said, I'm with you. He
had said, I'll never leave you. I'll never forsake you. So you
can boldly say, the Lord is my helper. He'll restrain the evil.
A thousand will fall at your side. Ten thousand at your left
side. It won't come near you because
the Lord is your helper. And he that keepeth Israel, spiritual
Israel, shall neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord is thy shade
upon thy right hand. He'll keep you. He gives His
angels charge over you to keep you in all your ways. And so
He restrains. In Psalm 76, verse 10, listen.
Listen to this, Psalm 76, 10. And that's what Paul is saying
to this church at Thessalonica. He says, This is no new thing. Evil men
and seducers wax worse and worse. People are lovers of themselves
more than lovers of God. And evil is on every hand. And
only he that letteth will let till he be taken out of the way.
God restrains evil. He hinders and restrains and
keeps it in check. But listen, when God shall be
pleased to remove his hand and remove his spirit, My wickedness will prevail as
never before and all of it after the power and Pattern of Satan
you say he's the supreme Antichrist He's the great Antichrist. He
is the he is the one who works in all the other Antichrist He
is the one who's the opposer of the Son of God and all these
others are spirits of Antichrist. There are many of them And he
says in verse 10, and many people are going to be deceived. Deceived. They'll receive not the love
of the truth. These antichrists and false prophets and preachers
go about deceiving many, deceiving many. And they receive not the
love of the truth. You know, I thought about this.
People are not deceived by the Word of God. The Word of God
doesn't deceive anybody. People are deceived by men who
use the Word of God to their advantage. That's who deceives
men. It's not the Word of God. The
Word of God doesn't deceive anybody. The Word of God is the truth.
The Word of God reveals Christ. The Word of God comforts and
brings faith and blesses the heart. But men are deceived by
other men who use the Word of God to their profit and to their
advantage, not to the glory of God. You see, religious people
are the product of what they've heard. That's right. If they've heard nothing, there'll
be nothing. If they hear error, they'll follow error. If they hear the Scriptures twisted,
then they'll be twisted in their thinking concerning the Scriptures.
That's right. The Scriptures do not deceive.
It's men using the Word of God to their own advantage. And those
who hear the truth will love the truth. They're walking the
truth. What is truth? Christ is the truth. He said,
I am the truth. These two things, now you listen
to me very carefully. These two things always go together. A disrespect for the Word of
God and evil. Where you find no reverence for
God's Word, you'll find evil practices. Where you find people
who do not reverence the Word and love the Word and study the
Word and listen to the Word of God and bow to the Word of God,
you'll find unrestrained blasphemy, darkness, evil, corruption. Error and evil go together. And
also, where you find truth, you'll find obedience. Where you find
faith, you'll find godliness. Where you find a love for the
Word of God, you'll find people who obey the Word of God. That's
right. But my message today is primarily
to you who do love the Word of God, who do rejoice in the grace
of God, who do delight in the law of God. Here in the next
verses, Paul writes, after he writes of the evil of that day
and the wickedness of that day and a departure from the love
of the truth, He says in verse 13, but, and that's what I'm
coming to, but, but, I am bound to give thanks for you. I'm bound
to give thanks for you, beloved of the Lord, because God hath
not left you in your sins. He hath not passed you by. but
He's chosen you to salvation. He's not left you to your own
thoughts. He has not left you to the leadership
of evil men. But I am bound to give thanks
for you, beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning
chosen you to salvation. Now, lest you be discouraged
and depressed, and often we are, aren't we? Lest you should be
fearful and afraid of these forces and powers of evil, Lest you
should doubt the sure mercies of a covenant God. Lest you should
be taken up with signs and seasons rather than with him and his
blessed word. I want you to know, Paul said,
I thank God for you and I want to comfort you and give you assurance
for the following reasons. Now here they are. First of all,
God's chosen you to salvation. He didn't pass us by. He didn't
leave us in the darkness of false religion. He chose us in Christ
to be saved. What a comfort. What a comfort. What a comfort to know that He
set His love upon us from all eternity and chose us in Christ. David one day, it says in the
book of Chronicles, David one day went in and sat before the
Lord. Just sat there in meditation,
contemplation of God's mercies upon him. and mercies upon his
house and mercies upon his people. And finally he spoke. And he
said these simple words, Who am I? Who am I? And what is my house that you
should show such mercy to me? Oh, my friends, grace first inscribed
my name in God's eternal book. It was grace that gave me to
the Lamb who all my sorrows took. "'Twas grace that taught my heart
to fear, and grace my fears relieved. "'How precious did that grace
appear that I first believed.'" Oh, God's been so merciful, hasn't
He? I was down in Louisiana preaching some time ago, and right on the
front row in the meeting every night was a lawyer and his wife. His name was Mr. Horn and his
wife Linda. They were in their fifties. They
loved the gospel. They'd been brought to saving
faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. And he invited me to have lunch
with him one day while I was there preaching. We went out
to lunch and we were sitting across the table from one another
and he's a Jew, full-blooded Jew. So is his wife. And I asked
him, I said, How'd you get the name Horn? Horn is not a Jewish
name. How'd you get the name Horn?
He said, well, he said, my family, my family name is Bernstein.
My grandfather was a German Jew. My grandfather lived in Germany
back in the early part of the 1900s, 1912, 13, 14, the war. World War I was going on and
my grandfather, Bernstein, was a teenager, late teens, and the
Germans were losing the war and they were being slaughtered on
the battlefields. They were being killed by the
thousands and the Germans were, the war was just about finished. The German cause was lost and
they kept sending young men up to to take the place of these
who were being killed. And he said, my grandfather,
who was then a teenage boy, got a notice to report to the army,
and he wouldn't go. He ran away. He fled. And the authorities were on his
trail. And he fled to the German border,
tired out, worn out, frightened, fleeing for his life. He came
to a farmhouse. And he knocked on the door, right
on the border, before he crossed the border. He had no papers.
He had no way of identifying himself. But this couple, there
was a man and his wife there, their name was Horn, Mr. and Miss Horn. And this German
Jew, Bernstein, 17, 18 years of age, told them his story.
He said, I don't want to be killed. I don't want to go to the front.
be slaughtered, I'm running away." And this couple loved him and
sympathized with him. And they said, come in. They
fed him and gave him rest. And then they said, our son just
died a few days ago in a farming accident. And he's buried out
here in the family cemetery. His name is on the grave, Horne. Now then, we're going to let
you take his place. They went out there and put the
name on the tomb, on the marker over the grave, wooden marker.
They put the name Bernstein. This boy's first name and Bernstein. They said, now you're dead and
buried. Here's our son's papers. Here's
our son's name. They gave him some money and
he left and he came to America. His name was Horn. Bernstein
was dead in the grave and Horn was a free man. And he came to
America and became a very prosperous man. And this lawyer sitting
across the table from me said, my father, my grandfather was
a horn because Bernstein was buried. My father was a horn
and I'm a horn. That's our family name. And my
friend, that's what Christ did for us. I thank God for you.
Paul said He didn't leave you in darkness. He didn't leave
you in bondage. He didn't leave you subject to
the broken law. He took your place. He chose
you to salvation and took your place. He came down here to this
earth and took your place and died. And your name's on the
grave. You died with Christ. You're
buried with Christ. The name's on the grave. And
He gave you His name, a new name. and papers. You have papers to
prove. We're sons of God. Now we're
sons of God. We're no longer sinners, rebels,
traitors. We're dead and crashed and buried.
We have a new name. A new name. Ah, thank God for
you. God, I thank God. Look at the
second in verse fourteen. That's verse thirteen. But, I
thank God for you. God has chosen you to salvation
through sanctification of the Spirit and believe the truth.
Now here's another word of comfort. And he called you by our gospel
to obtain the glory of Jesus Christ. I ask you, when our Lord
sat on the well, was it an accident that that woman came there? God
purposed that. He crossed her path. When Paul
went down by the river, was it an accident that Lydia was there?
He was never, he never passed that way again. God sent Paul
there and he sent Lydia there. Zacchaeus up the tree when Christ
walked, that's the only time Christ walked under that tree.
And there was Zacchaeus. Was that an accident? The eunuch
in the chariot where Philip joined him out there in the desert,
was that an accident? Oh, no. My friend, he called
you. This is comfort. But God, but
God, beloved of the Lord, God had chosen you to salvation and
he called you by our gospel to obtain that glory. to obtain
that grace, to obtain that new name. He called you. Christ said,
Other sheep I have, them I must bring, and they will hear my
voice, and they will be one foal, one shepherd. You may be a child
like Timothy, but from a child he knew the Holy Scriptures able
to make him wise to salvation. You may be a religious rebel
like Saul of Tarsus, but God will call you You may be a rebel
like Zacchaeus or a harlot like Rahab. You may be a businesswoman
like Lydia. You may be a government official
like the eunuch. You may be a jailer or a runaway
slave. But if you want to hear sheep,
He'll call you. He'll call you. He'll call you
by our gospel to the obtaining of the glory of Jesus Christ,
that salvation and deliverance and eternal life. He'll call
you. He'll call you. And we're not called to a position,
we're not called to a profession, we're not called to a place,
we're called to a person. He calls you to obtaining the
glory of Jesus Christ. I wonder, do you think it was
an accident that Bernstein came to that house that day? He could have crossed the border
at a thousand different places, but he came to that one house.
And there was people who had compassion on him and love for
him. And they said, we'll just bury you. And when the authorities
came that way, they, hunting this man Bernstein, they said,
here is his grave. He's dead. He's dead. He died
in a farming accident. He's dead. And the authorities
tore up the paper and turned, walked off. And I'll tell you,
God chose us to salvation, sent his son down here to redeem us.
And the law has no more claim on us. The law has no... Christ has delivered us from
the curse of the law being made a curse for us. He died and He's
buried and we're buried with Him and we're free. He called
us by His gospel. And listen in verse 15. And not
only that, but the Lord has taught you by His Word, taught you. Oh, he tells the church, don't
faint, don't quit, be strong, be strong, stand fast and hold
to the traditions and the truth which you've been taught by his
word. My friends, you'll be oppressed. I know that. You'll be opposed. You'll be persecuted. You'll
even be hated for what you believe. But I'm telling you this, the
Lord chose you to salvation. The Lord gave his son to redeem
you and the Lord's called you by his gospel. and the Lord's
taught you His Word. Now you hold fast to His Word.
You stand. And having done all, stand. May
your faith be strengthened by His Word. May you grow in grace
and the knowledge of Christ by His Word. May you be sanctified
by His Word. May you be comforted by His Word.
Now here's the last word, verse 16. He not only chose you and
redeemed you and called you and taught you, But He's given us
a good hope, a good hope through grace, a hope of forgiveness,
a hope of life, a hope of heavenly glory. That's what He said. Now,
our Lord Jesus Christ Himself and God, even our Father, who
has loved us and given us everlasting consolation and a good hope,
a good hope through His grace. What is that hope? I'll tell
you what it is. He shall appear, and we're going
to be like Him. And he that hath this hope purifieth
himself. So the very last verse, there
you see it, verse 17, he said, so comfort your hearts. God,
comfort your hearts and establish you. Comfort you. Don't be moved by all these things
that are going on. the famine and the thirst and
the hunger and the wickedness and the evil and the sins and
the confusion and the religion. Just comfort your heart and be
established in the Word, in every good word and in the work of
God. Comfort, comfort for Christians. It's found right here in the
Word. Now, if you want this message on tape, It's called Comfort
for Christians. I got two messages on this tape.
One I preached last week on God's Preacher. God's Preacher. And this one I'm preaching this
morning on Comfort for Christians. If you want this message, send
two dollars and we'll mail it to you. Here's the address now
on the screen. Until next week, at the same
time, may God bless you, everyone.

Comfort For Christians

What does the Bible say about comfort for Christians?

How do we know that God has chosen us for salvation?

Why is understanding sin and wickedness important for Christians?

How can Christians find comfort in a world filled with evil?

Sermon Transcript

About Henry Mahan

Comments

Joshua

Articles

Featured Authors

Podcast

Sermons

Featured Preachers

Books

Browse by Format

Music

Recent Comments

About

Legal

Subscribe

Account

Articles

Featured Authors

Podcast

Recent Comments

Sermons

Featured Preachers

Books

Browse by Format

Collections

Music

About

Legal

Subscribe

Comfort For Christians

What does the Bible say about comfort for Christians?

How do we know that God has chosen us for salvation?

Why is understanding sin and wickedness important for Christians?

How can Christians find comfort in a world filled with evil?

Sermon Transcript

About Henry Mahan

Comments

More from Henry Mahan

Related Sermons

Same Scripture

Articles by Henry Mahan

Books by Henry Mahan

Joshua

Where this book stands in the tradition

Plato

Augustine

The Western Christian Tradition

This Book