1064. The God of All Comfort

Welcome to The Daily Platform from Bob Jones University in Greenville, South Carolina.

The school was founded in 1927 by the evangelist Dr. Bob Jones, Sr. His intent was to make a school where Christ would be the center of everything so he established daily chapel services. Today, that tradition continues with fervent biblical preaching from the University Chapel platform. Today on The Daily Platform, we'll hear a sermon preached at the Bob Jones University Bible Conference.

This is a time when classes are dismissed and students concentrate on hearing the word preached from several visiting pastors and evangelists during the week. Today's sermon is from the 2020 Bible Conference preached by Dr. Steve Pettit. He'll be preaching part one of a sermon titled, The God of All Comfort. Take your Bibles and turn tonight to 2 Corinthians chapter one.

Our theme this week is the God of all comfort. And so I feel like it's my responsibility to the best that I can lay out for you the theme itself from a very clear scriptural passage. And then as our other speakers come and other things happen this week, they speak out of their own life's message, their life's experience, their understanding of the word. And so my goal tonight is really to take this theme that we find here in the word of God and really do the expounding work, not just the exposing of scripture. And I would encourage you over the course of this week to go back to what we're looking at tonight as a time of prayer, as a time of meditation, especially the entire book of 2 Corinthians because it deals so much with this theme that we will come away with a greater understanding of the God of all comfort.

So tonight we are reading in 2 Corinthians chapter one and we're beginning in verse three and we will read down tonight to verse seven. Just to make note that the word comfort and the word consolation are the exact same words. The words affliction, the word trouble, the word tribulation, they're also the exact same word. Let's hear God's word tonight. Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort, who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God. For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also abounded by Christ. And whether we be afflicted, it is for your consolation and salvation, which is effectual in the enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer. Or whether we be comforted, it is for your consolation and salvation. And our hope of you is steadfast, knowing that as you are partakers of the sufferings, so shall you be also of the consolation. There's no question that this passage that we just read frames the greatest text in the entire Bible on the theme of comfort. In verses three through seven, the Apostle Paul in various forms uses the word comfort ten times.

That is one third of all the occurrences of this word in the entire New Testament. So for the sake of our own souls, all of us would be wise to give careful attention to what has been written here tonight. So as we approach our study of these verses, I'd like to begin by asking two very important foundational why questions. Why question number one is this, why did Paul write 2 Corinthians? Why question number two, why did he begin with the subject, why did he start with the theme of comfort? Let's first of all try to answer the question, first of all, why did Paul write 2 Corinthians?

What's, what's the purpose? And the answer is really simple, he is answering those who had criticized him. He was answering his critics. So what is it that Paul was being criticized for? Well, his, his antagonist, and these would be typically called those who are Judaizers, who are preaching a law message as Paul was preaching a grace message. But these antagonists believed and propagated the idea that the apostle Paul could not have been an apostle because he experienced in his life so much suffering.

Or if I could just say it real simple, if Paul was the real deal, he would not have this much trouble in his life. By the way, do you know any character in the Old Testament who suffered immensely and was criticized for it? What was his name? His name was what?

It was Job. Job, you cannot be right with God because look at what's happening in your life. That was the idea about the apostle Paul. So what was Paul's response to his critics?

Well first of all, he actually makes it clear that their observation of him was actually correct. Throughout 2 Corinthians, as you read it, the apostle Paul is completely honest and transparent and he lists all the different ways in which he was afflicted and how he suffered. But second, the apostle Paul made it quite clear that his critics evaluation of him was absolutely wrong. He was a genuine apostle and they had misjudged Paul's identity because they were ignorant of the way in which God works. And young person, I would like to say to every one of you, it is crucial that it becomes clear in your mind how is it that God works through His people. So, what did Paul say in his answer? How did he answer them? And essentially he said this, God has chosen to demonstrate who He is and the way in which He works opposite of the way in which we naturally think.

Now we know that. The Bible says, God says, my ways are not your ways. My thoughts are not your thoughts. Whatever the way you're thinking, that's not the way God thinks. And what he is saying is this, God has chosen to demonstrate His power, His wisdom, and His glory through the weaknesses, through the troubles, and through the sufferings of the people of God. God demonstrates His power through weakness, for when I am weak, that is when He is strong. And how do we know this?

What is it that validates that statement? And the answer is really quite simple because that is exactly what Jesus Christ, the Son of God, experienced in this life. And that is God demonstrated His wisdom, His power, and His glory when Jesus Christ was crucified on a cross.

And He resurrected from the dead. And the, and the, the illustration of Jesus is actually the testimony of our own lives. Because you and I as His followers are connected to Him.

We are united to Him. And this is the way God works in our lives. 2 Corinthians 4, 10, always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body. We bear His death so that we could bear His life. For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our comfort also abounds in Christ. So Paul answers his critics in this way. Here's what he's saying, bottom line. That effective ministry for those who serve God, effective ministry always comes through suffering.

Always. So that leads to the second question. Why then did Paul begin with the theme of comfort? What's his intent? What does he want us to learn? And essentially it is this, it is to give you and I understanding and hope as the people of God to really grasp how God is going to work in our lives.

And that is through our troubles. All right, let's have a testimony tonight. How many of you can testify, I have troubles?

Raise your hand. Come on. All right. How many of you have afflictions and I'm not talking about your roommate.

How many of you have afflictions? All right. All right, good. So is it like this is against the ways of God? This is really not the way God works?

No. It is through our troubles that God empowers us and He enables us. And how does He do it?

He does it with His comfort. And the end result of that is He makes us effective in the ministry. So now that is in our mind, now let's look at the passage of Scripture.

And there are three things I'd like us to see tonight. Number one, in verse three, Paul starts out with a celebration of praise. Look at what he says, blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort. Paul shapes our mindset around the idea of praise. He starts out with the reality that we are to be praising people in the midst of trouble. And actually verse three is an incredible theological statement.

And let me explain. All devoted Jews, and by the way, Paul was a devoted Jew, pray three times a day. When they pray, they actually recite 19 memorized prayers.

They did it in the day of Jesus and they do it today. They call those prayers the Amada, which literally means to stand because that's what they do when they pray. Now obviously, Paul would have known all of those 19 prayers by heart. And the first of those 19 prayers begins this way. Listen very carefully.

Blessed art thou, O Lord our God and God of our fathers, God of Abraham, God of Isaac and God of Jacob. So what does Paul do? Well, you could say he upgrades the prayer. First of all, he new testamatizes the subject. You say, I've never heard of that word.

I know I just made it up. He new testamatizes the subject. Instead of praying blessed be the God of our fathers, God of Abraham, God of Isaac and God of Jacob, Paul changes it to blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Why did he do that? Because God had fulfilled His promise that He made to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. What was that promise? The Messiah would come into the world. So Paul takes the prayer and he Christianizes the language of this Jewish blessing and he says blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Then secondly, Paul expands the meaning of the Father of mercies.

Let me explain. On the Day of Atonement in the Old Testament, that is the day that God removed the sins of the children of Israel against the Lord. That Day of Atonement is called Yom Kippur.

Perhaps you've heard of it. Ten days leading up to Yom Kippur were called the Days of Awe. And what the Jewish people were to do in those ten days is they were to confess all of their sins.

Not only were they to confess their sins but they were to go to each other and ask forgiveness. So here's Moshe and Moshe goes sees Shlomo. Hey Shlomo. Yeah Moshe. You remember what I did to you six months ago? Yeah. Would you forgive me?

Sure. Why did they do that? Because they wanted to be rightly related to God for the Day of Atonement. They wanted their sins forgiven. So there was added during those ten days of all, a phrase in the first of those nineteen prayers I mentioned.

And what was the phrase? They prayed to God as the Father of mercies. They wanted God's mercy. But there was a problem with the Day of Atonement and that is it had to be repeated annually.

Why? Because forgiveness for the Jew was never permanent. They had to repeat the sacrifices. Now God was merciful. That He never changed but there was no way for His people to be comforted because they never really knew that their sins were permanently forgiven.

So why does Paul change the prayer to the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort? Well we find the answer in two books. One in the Old Testament and one in the New. The Old Testament book is the book of Isaiah. The book of Isaiah, the theme of it is the salvation of God, God's salvation from sin.

And the book is divided in two parts, chapters one through thirty-nine, chapters forty through sixty-six. One through thirty-nine speaks of God's judgment, His condemnation. Chapters forty through sixty-six speak of God's salvation or you could say God's comfort. So how does chapter forty verse one begin? Listen, it says, comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God, speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem. And then we go to Isaiah fifty-one and verse twelve and it says, God says, I, even I am He that comforts you. And then we come to the last chapter in Isaiah chapter sixty-six and verse thirteen and listen to God's description of comfort. As one whom His mother comforteth, so will I comfort you and you shall be comforted in Jerusalem. So what's the theme of Isaiah? It is this comfort.

So what precisely is this comfort? And according to Isaiah, it is salvation from sin through a suffering servant. One who would come and become our day of atonement.

Who would completely deal with our sin. So what do we read in Isaiah fifty-three? You've heard these verses. He was wounded for our transgressions.

He was bruised for our iniquities. The chastisement of our peace was upon Him and with His stripes, we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray. We have turned everyone to His own way and the Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all. What is Isaiah saying?

There is coming a Savior who will ultimately comfort us from our sins. So we go to the New Testament. We go to the book of Luke.

I love this part. In Luke's Gospel chapter two, Jesus is brought to the temple as a little baby boy. When He enters into the temple, there's an old man there.

What's his name? His name is Simeon. What's Simeon doing?

Listen to Luke two and verse twenty-five. And behold, there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon. And the same man was just and devout, waiting for the consolation or the one who comforts. Waiting for the consolation of Israel. What was he waiting for? He was waiting for God to do what He promised to do in the book of Isaiah. And what was his response when he saw the baby Jesus? He took Him in His arms and blessed God. He praised God and said, Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace according to your word for my eyes have seen your salvation. Isaiah prophesied of the coming comforter.

Luke proclaimed that the comforter has come. And now in second Corinthians chapter one, the apostle Paul praises that comforter. He praises Him as the Father of all, of mercies and the God of all comfort.

Literally, he praises Him as the Father who is the source of mercy and He is the source of all comfort. And that greatest comfort is in Jesus Christ who has come to save us from our sins. So let me ask tonight, have you been comforted in your heart over your own soul's salvation? Would it not be a wonderful thing if some of you who are struggling in your heart over your own salvation, your own assurance would somehow come this week to know Christ and to literally have a peace in your heart that you really are His child?

But Paul even takes it further. And that is if God's comfort is sufficient for the greatest need of life, salvation, then how much more will God's comfort be given to those who go through any trouble? And that's what Paul is praising God for. And in the midst of His afflictions, just like He has saved me from my sin, God will comfort me in my suffering. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort who comforts us in all our tribulations.

So what should we do? We should have a faith response to the truth. If He is the Father of mercies, if He's the God of all comfort, if the comforter has come, what should we do? Praise the Lord. Praise is the medicine for the sin-sick soul. Praise is the very thing that raises our loaves and fills in the depressed places of our life. God has called us to be praising people. Praise the Lord. Because He is the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort. That leads me to the second thing I want us to note here tonight. And that's found in verse four where we see not only a celebration but we see a description of God's comfort. Would you look at these seven words? He says, who comforts us in all our tribulations.

Now let's just stop there if you don't mind and let me be a slightly technical. Because in the technical, you have some rich meaning. First of all, the word comfort is what we call a participle.

What does that mean? Well, it's the combination of a verb, an action and an adjective, a description. So when He says that God comforts us, it's what God does and it describes what He's able to do. God Himself comforts us. So what does the word comfort mean? Well, it's probably not the way we naturally think. For example, when I think of comfort, I think of beds with really soft down pillows.

Big beds, not little ones, big ones. When I think of comfort, I think of what it says in the dining common when it has that section that says comfort food, which always includes pizza and the chocolate chip cookies at the dining common that are the best in the entire universe. So when we think of comfort, we think of how it makes us feel. And there's an element of that, but that's not really the meaning of comfort.

The literal meaning of comfort is someone who comes and they stand beside you. They come alongside of you like a good friend and they do something for you. Through their presence, through their words, they strengthen you. You become stronger. You become encouraged. Maybe you're a little low and they cheer you up. They support you.

They stand beside you as an advocate or maybe we could say they have your back. So let me illustrate the idea of comfort with a few statements. In the face of a miserable situation, the coal miners were given glimmers of hope and became optimistic that something good was going to happen. Encouraged by the success of their win, the volleyball team is beaming with confidence.

The government invested $10 million in a program to encourage new talent in the world of cyber security. Because the professors were supported, their motivation to be creative reached a new level. 10,000 people came out for the pro-life rally and the enthusiasm and the atmosphere was palpable. You could feel it. Enthusiasm, encouragement, comfort. I think probably one of the best examples of comfort is actually what's happening.

First of all, a bald-headed dude named Paul Isaacs comes and he speaks. All of a sudden, you got motivated to do something. You got encouraged and it wasn't like, you know, something that came and just sort of went away.

It wasn't a flash fire. So now you've been encouraging each other in this fundraising or to find your 50 and you've been working at it and you've been motivated. And most importantly, by the grace of God, we're going to buy a stork bus and the end result of that is we're going to encourage scores of women not to get abortions. That's the idea of the word comfort. God comforts us. And since God is the source of all comfort and this verb comfort is in the present tense, that means that God is able always to comfort because there is never a time that God himself is not comforted and encouraged. God's face is always shining. God's joy is always full. God's vision is always clear. God's knowledge is always complete. God's heart is never depressed. God's mind is never confused and God's desires never wane. There is never a time that his comfort is not available to us who comforts us in all our tribulations. Unfortunately that's all the time we have for today's sermon titled The God of All Comfort. Be sure to listen tomorrow as we'll hear the conclusion of this sermon from Dr. Steve Pettit preached from the Bob Jones University Chapel Platform.