Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.
I have always been encouraged by this passage. In this passage, Paul is praising and reminding us of the compassionate mercies and comfort found only in God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. He is telling us that this comfort is so bountiful, so filling, so amazing that we will be able to help comfort others...we can share this comfort.
In our culture where things are pretty...well, comfortable we can tend to overlook the deep and true meaning of this amazing promise. Over time certain words can become watered down or somehow taken for granted. As such, I do love to dig and find the richness of some words. So guess what; I began to think what is this word comfort and how is it being used here?
In Greek the word comfort is paraklēsis and while it does mean physical ease and freedom from pain, consolation for grief or anxiety, it also has this deeper meaning of encouragement and refreshment. It is so much more than a mere physical cushioning.
J. I. Packer describes this passage as follows:
“This is a far stronger statement than might appear, because the English word comfort, both as a noun and as a verb, has lost so much of its meaning. When, back in the sixteenth century, it was chosen for the translation of these verses, it meant what the Greek verb means, namely, renewal of strength through encouragement. Today, when comfort suggests only some form of cushioning, making comfortable, and reducing pain, it is easy to miss the true thrust of what Paul is saying. Paul is praising God for his endless supply of strength to keep us going and rising to every occasion, and Paul is assuring the Corinthians hereby that though they may think of him as down, he is no out yet.”
Father, thank you that you are the God of all comfort, that you and you alone are the source for refreshment, our comfort and renewal and strength and encouragement! Help this comfort; this renewal of strength through encouragement, overflow from our lives to others in need; all for your Glory!
Grace and Peace!
1 comment:
Hello SC. So good to know you through your profile on the blogger. I am also glas to stop by your blog "Katartizo" and the post on it "Comfort-more than Cushioning". I am glad to know that you are a christian which is a connecting thing for us. I am in the Pastoral ministry for last 34yrs in the great city of MUMBAI a city with great contrast where richest of rich and the poorest of poor live. We reach out to the poorest of poor with the love of Christ to bring healing to the broken hearted. We also encourage young people as well as adults form the West to come to Mumbai on a short term missions trip to work with us. We would love to have you come with your friends to work with us during your summer vacation. My email id is:dhwankhede(at)gmail(dot)com and my name is Diwakar Wankhede. Looking forward to hear from you very soon.
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