Christian Living
Ah comfort, is this not what every human being wants in this life here upon the earth. We seek comfort for and from many things. We seek the comfort of shelter when it is cold or raining. We seek comfort in the type of clothing we purchase and wear. We seek comfort in our minds from the stresses of work, family, and our jobs.
We human beings are on a continual pursuit of the phenomena of comfort. We never want to be far from comfort. Some of us find comfort in a good book or in a particular food, we enjoy. On the other hand, some people seek comfort in things, which will eventually lead to their destruction such as sex, drugs, and alcohol just to name a few.
Exactly what does the word comfort mean? The Hebrew word for comfort is nacham, which means, to pity or console. The English definition of the word comfort gives us many rich thoughts.
1) A state of being relaxed and feeling no pain.
2) A feeling of freedom from worry or disappointment.
3) The act of consoling; giving relief in affliction.
4) Satisfaction or physical well-being provided by a person or thing.
All of these definitions give us a picture of complete and continual well being. Now we can understand why every human soul craves this state or condition. Where can we find true, complete, and lasting comfort? In the Lord Jesus Christ, we can find true comfort.
Luke 20:18 “Everyone who falls on that Stone will be broken [in pieces]”
That stone that Dr. Luke is referring to hear is Christ. He has become the chief cornerstone. When a lost soul finally and completely turns his or her heart to Christ, they are broken. This simply means that they finally see themselves as a hell bound and doomed sinner in need of redemption.
A true humbling of the soul is the prerequisite for the occurrence of this transformation. The moment this happens that soul is completely, totally, and forever united with the Lord Jesus Christ. Instantly they are comforted. We all are so unworthy of His comfort and yet He comforts us anyway.
Romans 5:6 While we were yet in weakness [powerless to help ourselves], at the fitting time Christ died for (in behalf of) the ungodly. (Quick Amplified Bible)
When we receive the Lord Jesus Christ, we enter into a partnership with Him. It becomes first like the partnership in earthly marriage. A husband and wife after their union relinquish their individual possessions. They both now have a share in each other’s resources.
Likewise, when we come into union with Christ, we give up our entire selves to His ownership. He likewise makes us a partaker of His divine nature and everything He owns we become a sharer of what is His.
John 16:14 He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall declare it unto you. (NKJV)
The partnership we enter into with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is the solution to all of our problems in this life on earth. It is not us only talking about Christ as our Lord, but when we truly make Him Lord of our lives, and then we find a comfort that exceeds any problem, trial, or attack from the enemy.
Christ meshes our minds together with His mind. We now begin to think His thoughts. The Bible says, “As a man thinks so is he.” To think as Christ thinks can bring nothing but comfort to our soul. Anything we allow to enter our hearts that breaks the union or fellowship with Christ is wrong. It will cause us not to experience His comforting hand in our lives. We must never let anything break up the steadfastness of our partnership with Christ in our daily walk and in our duty, (whatever duty He has given to us).
1 Corinthians 15:58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be firm (steadfast), immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord [always being superior, excelling, doing more than enough in the service of the Lord], knowing and being continually aware that your labor in the Lord is not futile [it is never wasted or to no purpose]. (Quick Amplified Bible)
As we allow this verse of Scripture, so to grasp our hearts we will find that He will keep us comforted no matter what if we do what this word tells us we must. Christ provides comfort only to those who have realized their need for inner comfort. No longer, should we be seeking comfort in those earthly temporal things but now we should desire true comfort, which only comes from intimacy with Him.
Isaiah 40:2 Speak tenderly to the heart of Jerusalem, and cry to her that her time of service and her warfare are ended, that [her punishment is accepted and] her iniquity is pardoned, that she has received [punishment] from the Lord's hand double for all her sins. (Quick Amplified Bible)
The internal war of the soul has ceased and the eternal comfort from the Lord of Glory has entered to take up permanent residence. What a glorious and tremendous relief to the soul, which had longed for rest and repose.
We were running, fighting, scratching, and clawing our spiritual fingers to the nub with so many destructive, worthless, and useless things. Finally, satisfaction enters our soul, in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. Christ has entered. It is now our delight to speak constantly about Him. What He means to each of us individually becomes all-important.
For he that hears the voice of the Savior speaks constantly of Him. He becomes our souls delight. We only seek to be gratified in Him. There is now a sure rest for the true children of God that the people of this world know nothing of and this rest is a state of Heaven even while we are still aliens down here in this sin cursed world.
The Lord Jesus comforts His own by washing them clean internally with the soothing bathing of His Word. The Word of God does to each soul what a shower or bath does to these tents or houses (our bodies) we live inside. We are refreshed and comforted when His Word washes away the invisible dirt of our sin as we confess our failures to Him and He washes our souls.
Finally, to bring your soul to rest in Him will bring continual comfort even despite the problems of life that will surely never cease. He is what every heart yearns for, craves, desires, and never realizes it. The restlessness of man's soul produces all types of addictions and habits as he is trying to stop a hurricane raging on the inside with a giant cardboard wall.
When once my spiritual eyes met those of my Lord, Master, and Saviors, I felt as if He had taken a one thousand pound weight off my back that I had been caring all my life and the weight of sin had me bent over helpless and paralyzed. The things of this world in which I had sought comfort in became useless to me from then until now. I found (in Him) what I never did find from the world.
John 16:33 I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have [perfect] peace and confidence. In the world you have tribulation and trials and distress and frustration; but be of good cheer [take courage; be confident, certain, undaunted]! For I have overcome the world. [I have deprived it of power to harm you and have conquered it for you.] (Quick Amplified Bible)
The grace of our Lord and Savior is the instrument by which He uses to comfort us. He is rich in grace. Christ knows each of our circumstances. He will supply the appropriate quantity of His grace to comfort each of us in every situation.
We must approach Him through prayer and supplication for that grace, but He will even prompt us to do that and the Holy Spirit will make groaning for us when we are not knowledgeable of what we should be saying to our Heavenly Father.
What a tremendous truth and how can we ever lose or be deficient? The answer is we cannot. We are to appropriate the Victory that our Lord Jesus accomplished on the cross. This proper appropriation will always equate to comfort.
Psalm 86:17 Show me a sign for good, that those who hate me may see it and be ashamed, because You, Lord, haved helped me and comforted me. (NKJV)
Matthew Henry had this to say of the Lord Jesus and His comfort, “That God would speak peace and comfort to him: “O turn unto me, as to one thou lovest and hast a kind and tender concern for. My enemies turn against me, my friends turn from me; Lord, do thou turn to me and have mercy upon me; it will be a comfort to me to know that thou pitiest me.”
That God would work deliverance for him, and set him in safety: “Give me thy strength; put strength into me, that I may help myself, and put forth thy strength for me, that I may be saved out of the hands of those that seek my ruin.” He pleads relation: “I am thy servant; I am so by birth, as the son of thy handmaid, born in thy house, and therefore thou art my rightful owner and proprietor, from whom I may expect protection. I am thine; save me.” The children of godly parents, who were betimes dedicated to the Lord, may plead it with him; if they come under the discipline of his family, they are entitled to the privileges of it.
That God would put a reputation on him: “Show me a token for good; make it to appear to others as well as to myself that thou art doing me good, and designing further good for me. Let me have some unquestionable illustrious instances of thy favour to me, that those who hate me may see it, and be ashamed of their enmity to me, as they will have reason to be when they perceive that thou, Lord, hast helped me and comforted me, and that therefore they have been striving against God, opposing one whom he owns, and that they have been striving in vain to ruin and vex one whom God himself has undertaken to help and comfort.” The joy of the saints shall be the shame of their persecutors.”
You Lord Jesus are the Rock of Ages and everyday I deliberately hide myself completely and fully in You. You never fail to comfort my heart every day no matter problems brought on by attacks from the enemy. What an inner joy that fills my heart to know (without any doubt) that Your peace resides in me despite all the utter chaos that goes on all around me in this evil world.
Dear Lord Jesus, when once I fell upon You, my heart broken and melted by Your love and grace forever. The thought of abandoning You and Your love and running back to this vile world is utter non-sense to me, foolishness. You continually draw me closer and closer in the inner circle of Your love by Your strong and mighty grace. Sin down here continues to increase, but Your grace increases much more than sin. Your comfort is the result...
Sincerely in Christ,
Clifford D. Tate, Sr.
Author, Silent Assassins of the Soul (not yet published; coming soon)
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