I.     Introduction

A.          A church was in need of a pastor.  A candidate came who preached on hell.  The next Sunday another candidate came whose sermon was also on hell, and his fundamental teaching was the same as that of the first one.  When the members of the church were called upon to vote, they voted for the second candidate.  When they were asked why, the answer was, "The first one spoke as if he were glad that people were going to hell, while the second seemed sorry for it."

B.          As we observe people around us, it is is to fall prey to the temptation the some people deserve to spend eternity separated from God.  For so many the hurts and wounds are very deep and the Lord wants us to observe and act upon the words in Isaiah 40

1.                  Isaiah 40:1-2     "Comfort, yes, comfort My people!" Says your God. 2 "Speak comfort to Jerusalem, and cry out to her, That her warfare is ended, That her iniquity is pardoned; For she has received from the Lord's hand Double for all her sins." (NKJV)

C.  Our objective is to learn what Godly comfort is and how we may be used by God to minister His comfort to others.

II.   Comfort with all comfort

A.          II Corinthians 1:3-7     3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort,  4 who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.  5 For just as the sufferings of Christ flow over into our lives, so also through Christ our comfort overflows.  6 If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer.  7 And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort. (NIV)

B.          Sin causes grief and the Corinthian Church seemingly had more than it's share of sin.  It  looks like the church in the world today, doesn't it. Do you remember how Paul had to take strong disciplinary action against sexual immorality in the Corinthian Church.   He told them that they were actually condoning a form of immorality that did not even occur among the pagans.  In addition to this Paul spent much of the rest of that letter attempting to correct errors in many of their spiritual practices.  The Corinthians were an impulsive people who, it would appear always seemed ready to jump on a new band-wagon following the leader of the moment.  One could justify stating that these people were always either very up or very down.  Stability was not one of their strong points.  They acted immaturely, in fact Paul stated in I Corinthians 3 that he could not address them as spiritual but rather as babes.  There is strong indications that the Corinthians were now pouting and they had misinterpreted Paul discipline as an absence of love and affection for them.  Paul sensed that they needed comfort and encouragement and so this is they way he opened this letter.

C.          True comfort is not the same as sympathy or indulgence

1.                  Comfort in a biblical sense is not the same as sympathy.  More correctly it expresses the idea of someone coming along side to provide support.  The word is similar to the one used in John 16:7 to describe the Holy Spirit, our Comforter.  Since the comforter abides within a twofold process is implied;  strength for the inner man and encouragement for the outer man.

2.                  It can be counter-productive to interfere with God's plan and his dealing with someone.

3.                  There is a purpose in Godly discipline.  As you remember the Word tells us "that tribulation produces patience."

D.  "There is no real comfort, in the Bible sense, apart from faith.  Time may mitigate or harden,  the world may make us forget, life may distract,  work may fill up the gap,  friends may cheer and support, but only God can comfort."  Edward Hastings - The Speakers Bible

E.          If we then accept the assertion that only God can provide true comfort is it possible for God  to be a channel of comfort through us.  This scripture indicates this very plainly… “who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.” (v.4)

F.           We have the opportunity to share with others the comfort and encouragement that we have received from God.

III. Obstacles to offering comfort

A.  Before looking at 3 keys to ministering comfort to others let us look at some of the obstacles that stand in our way.

B.  People won’t let go of the pain.

1.   In theory, we may have no problem accepting this idea.  In practice, we may encounter resistance that we may not always fully understand. Not everyone wants to be comforted.  Some may, in a perverse way, actually derive pleasure from their grief.  They feel as though they have earned the right to their sorrow and nobody is going to take it away from them.  Still others see their grief as being so deep that no one else could possibly understand what they feel or that there is no comfort to be obtained for them.  They become hardened in their grief and despair and reject attempts to minister comfort to them.

2.                  How can one relate to the prophesy concerning Bethlehem.
Jeremiah 31:15     Thus says the LORD: "A voice was heard in Ramah, Lamentation and bitter weeping, Rachel weeping for her children, Refusing to be comforted for her children, Because they are no more." (NKJV)

3.                  Or of Jacob when he thought Joseph was dead?
Genesis 37:34-35 Then Jacob tore his clothes, put sackcloth on his waist, and mourned for his son many days. 35 And all his sons and all his daughters arose to comfort him; but he refused to be comforted, and he said, "For I shall go down into the grave to my son in mourning." Thus his father wept for him. (NKJV)

4.    Or of the many multitudes throughout the world, who have down through the ages suffered many unspeakable things.

5.                  Sometimes the pain can hurt so much, the suffering run so deep that you believe that there is no comfort available for you.  They go deeper and deeper into a shell which they have created in an effort to isolate themselves from the intense agony.  The pain and suffering causes a cynicism and hardness,  they won't allow anyone to get close to them for fear of being hurt even deeper.

6.                    "Pain insists upon being attended to.  God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, and shouts in our pain.  It is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world" C.S. Lewis

C.  Personal hurts

1.                 People who wander away from God often leave behind a trail of those who are hurting.  Broken marriages, resulting in feelings of betrayal among spouses, children, other family members and friends.

2.                 How often when someone gets ensnared in sin do we take it as a personal offense, the sinner has become an embarrassment to the church and to those that are the closest.

3.                 II Corinthians 2:5-7 But if any has caused sorrow, he has caused sorrow not to me, but in some degree—in order not to say too much—to all of you. 6 Sufficient for such a one is this punishment which was inflicted by the majority, 7 so that on the contrary you should rather forgive and comfort him, lest somehow such a one be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow.

D.                Prejudice

1.                 Sin is ugly, it can be repulsive.  If we do not exercise the greatest care our attitude can easily become proud or self righteous.

a)   Luke 18:11 "The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, 'God, I thank You that I am not like other men -- extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector. (NKJV)

2.                 People, even those who have once walked with the Lord can fall into gross and repulsive sin.  Combine prejudice with personal hurt and the it is possible for the attitude to develop in us that says, "I hope that they get what they deserve."

3.                 If we stop and think for a moment what we mean when that thought crosses our mind we should repent immediately and thank our loving God that He does not give to us what we deserve.

E.  Lack of concern

1.    How many people wander away or feel as though they have been driven away by those who show no concern or care for their spiritual condition.  How many in the Church today  feel that no one cares for them? Will they too soon be leaving?

2.    Do we treat new converts as trophies to be displayed as we move on to other conquests.  Do we take the faulty doctrinal position that once a soul prays the sinner's prayer the battle is over? 

F.   Loss of  focus and purpose

1.    Insert story of New England Clubs

G.  There are other causes to be sure, but of greatest importance today is to remember that Jesus cares very much for those who fall away.  What then will we do?

IV.Some Keys to Ministering Comfort

A.          Our Experiences

1.                  Have we experienced times or events in our lives that could be an encouragement or inspiration to others.  I would not suggest that we deliberately seek trials and difficulties for the purpose of being able to better minister to others because times of testing have undoubtedly already occurred in some measure for you.  But what I would suggest is that you be open to God's leading in this area of using your experiences to minister to others.

2.                  Lastly, you can not effective minister the comfort of God unless you have known God's comfort.

B.          Availability

1.    Isaiah said, “Here am I send me.”

2.                  The need to administer comfort does not always occur at convenient times.  Are we willing to be available?

C.          Vulnerability

1.                  Serving the Lord by ministering to others involves a measure of risk.  As we have already pointed out there are those who will not accept comfort. 

2.                  They may feel as though has  already taken advantage of them, they are hardened, cynical and they are closed.  They may reject attempts to show and demonstrate God's love to them.

3.                  Sometimes, we may see a contrived need. We do not want anyone to take advantage of us.

4.                  In the cartoon strip The Wizard of Id the usually inept knight, Sir Rodney, approaches a beggar.  Rodney pulls a bill out of his wallet and asks the beggar, do you have change for a hundred.  When the beggar says yes, Sir Rodney puts the money back in his wallet and replies, "That's what I thought"

5.                  On the other hand please understand, that from their perspective they view themselves as being vulnerable.   They may ask themselves is it worth the risk to allow an opening in the shell that I have created around  themselves.

V.  Conclusion

A.          I speak to you as believers to urge you to receive and enter into the comfort of the Lord.  He is waiting today to comfort and encourage you in your hour of tribulation. He is able  to meet your every need and in turn enable to effectively comfort and meet the needs of others.  Many who came to Jesus while He ministered here on earth were desperate and had no where to turn.  All other answers were ineffective.  Like the woman who had been to see many doctors, who took her money, but could offer no healing.

B.          Matthew 9:21-22 For she said to herself, "If only I may touch His garment, I shall be made well." 22 But Jesus turned around, and when He saw her He said, "Be of good cheer, daughter; your faith has made you well." And the woman was made well from that hour. (NKJV)

C.          The commission of our Lord's ministry, the passage from Isaiah that he read when he began his public says a lot concerning the ministry of comfort and encouragement

1.    Isaiah 61:2-3 "To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn;  To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified."

D.          And speaking  of the planting of the Lord, I close with this:

E.          The Sequoia Redwoods tower as much as 300 feet above the ground.  Strangely, these giants have unusually shallow root systems that reach out in all directions to capture the greatest amount of surface moisture.  Seldom will you see a redwood standing alone, because high winds would quickly uproot it.  That's why they grow in clusters.  Their intertwining roots provide support for one another against the storms.   Suffering comes to all of us, and no one can suffer for us.  Even so, just like those giant Sequoia trees, we can be supported in those difficult times by the prayers and understanding of loved ones and friends.  It's when we are too proud to admit our needs to others that we are in the greatest danger.