The God of All Comfort

1. Read: 2 Corinthians 1:3

2. About the Text:

1) The word “comfort” comes from the Greek word “paraklesis.”

2) It means to call someone alongside oneself to encourage or comfort.

3) In this verse it is closely associated with the “mercies” of God.

a. This word is “feelings of mercy” toward others.

b. It implies that a person is in a circumstance where mercy is warranted.

4) In this context, Paul is speaking of tribulations/afflictions that result from being a Christian.

a. This could come from friends or family that oppose Christianity.

b. It could come from government opposition.

c. It could also come from the Devil/Satan.

5) What is our attitude when we find ourselves afflicted?

a. Do we want comfort?

b. Do we love being miserable?

6) How do we receive comfort from God?

3. Ref. to S, T, P, O, and A.

1. We must listen to God and His word.

1) Romans 10:17

2) Read Matthew 7:24-27

2. We must listen to one another.

1) James 1:19 – “Be swift to hear….”

2) “Where there is no counsel, the people fall; But in the multitude of counselors there is safety” (Proverbs 11:14).

3. We must listen to our own lives.

1) “Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you are disqualified” (2 Corinthians 13:5).

2) “Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling” (Philippians 2:12).

4. We gain comfort when we listen!

1. Prayer takes care of anxiety.

1) “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God” (Phil.4:6).

2) “Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you” (1 Peter 5:6-7).

2. Prayer takes care of spiritual needs.

1) “Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much” (James 5:16).

2) “Then He said to them, ‘The harvest truly is great, but the laborers are few; therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest’” (Luke 10:2).

3. Prayer takes care of relationships.

1) “Finally, brethren, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may run swiftly and be glorified, just as it is with you, and that we may be delivered from unreasonable and wicked men; for not all have faith” (2 Thessalonians 3:1-2).

2) “Peter was therefore kept in prison, but constant prayer was offered to God for him by the church” (Acts 12:5).

4. We gain comfort when we pray!

1. Work comforts our families.

1) “Let him who stole steal no longer, but rather let him labor, working with his hands what is good, that he may have something to give him who has need” (Ephesians 4:28).

2) “But if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever” (1 Timothy 5:8).

2. Work comforts God’s people.

1) “We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers, remembering without ceasing your work of faith, labor of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ in the sight of our God and Father” (1 Thessalonians 1:2-3).

2) “Epaphras, who is one of you, a bondservant of Christ, greets you, always laboring fervently for you in prayers, that you may stand perfect and complete in all the will of God” (Colossians 4:12).

3. Work comforts us when it is done for the Lord.

1) “And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ” (Colossians 3:23-24).

4. We gain comfort when we work!

1. Loving God gives us comfort.

1) “Let all those who seek You rejoice and be glad in You; And let those who love Your salvation say continually, ‘Let God be magnified!’” (Psalm 70:4).

2) “But as it is written: ‘Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, Nor have entered into the heart of man The things which God has prepared for those who love Him’” (1 Corinthians 2:9).

2. Loving our neighbor gives us comfort.

1) “Owe no one anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law” (Romans 13:8).

2) “If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” you do well” (James 2:8).

3. Loving our brothers and sisters in Christ gives us comfort.

1) “He who loves his brother abides in the light, and there is no cause for stumbling in him” (1 John 2:10).

2) “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God” (1 John 4:7).

4. We gain comfort when we love!

1. God is the God of all comfort when we …

1) Listen

2) Pray

3) Work

4) Love

2. Invitation