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[0:00] Please be seated. And join me in going to 2 Corinthians 1. Encouraged.

[0:30] Encouraged. 10 Corinthians 1 verses 3 through 4. We read about the God of all comfort. It says. Paul writes to the Corinthians.

[0:41] 10 Corinthians 1 verses 3 to 4. Blessed be God. Even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. The Father of mercies. And the God of all comfort.

[0:56] Just take that in for a minute. And blessed be God. Blessed be God. The God of all comfort. It reads further.

[1:06] Who comforts with us in all. All our tribulation. That we may be able to comfort them. Which are in any trouble. By the comfort.

[1:16] Where we ourselves are comforted by God. When you need help friends. You have a comforter. You have a comforter. God is a comforter.

[1:28] It's one of his names. He is not just a comforter. He is the God of all comfort. And he encourages us. He cares. Now we know the underlying word for comfort here.

[1:42] In the Greek. Is a calling alongside. This is someone who stands by you. Stands with you. Stands for you. Stands up for you. Stands alongside.

[1:54] He comes to your side. He stands the burden. And he lifts the load that you carry. Don't you want someone alongside. When you're feeling weighed down.

[2:05] Don't you want someone to come by you. To stand with you. To support. Any of such a one. The greatest one. The greatest comforter. It says of him.

[2:16] As we earlier read. Surely. Isaiah 53. Surely he hath borne our griefs. And carried our sorrows. Friends.

[2:27] He carries our sorrows. If you're having times of weeping. He wants to carry you. He wants to carry you. He wants to carry your sorrows. He wants to bear your griefs.

[2:38] He wants to come into your pain. And friends. He carries our sorrows. Our wounds. When we're hurting. When we're lonely. When we worry. When we're fearful.

[2:50] When we're sorrowful. When we're hurt. He. Surely. He has borne our griefs. His carrying. Our sorrows. And of this one. We know.

[3:00] It reads. Hebrews 4. Another familiar one. Of our Lord. It says. For we have not a high priest. Which cannot be touched. With the feelings of our infirmities.

[3:10] But was in all points tempted. Like as we are yet. Without sin. Now this God. Of whom we speak. Is not some theoretical. Concept.

[3:22] Or some far removed. Outsider. He steps right in. And he cannot be moved. It's just not what he cannot be moved. It's what he is moved.

[3:34] It's what he. He cannot be touched. He can be touched. With the feelings of our infirmities. He knows. What you are going through. Whatever it be. Whenever it is.

[3:44] Whenever things are tough. And he is not unfeeling. This God is a God. Who feels. He feels for us. And he feels with us. And when he was in that garden. He felt pain.

[3:56] He felt. Sin. And it's burden. He felt. Estrangement from the Father.

[4:06] He knows what it feels. When things are hard. He cares. He cares about hurting people. About people who are hurting.

[4:17] He cares about people who are hurting. And his arm. Can support us. Amen. He carries our sorrows. Surely. He carries our sorrows. And all true comfort.

[4:30] Finds its source in him. Our God. Is the God of all comfort. So. Some thoughts about how. God comforts us. He comforts us. We read.

[4:42] By the Holy Spirit. It says in Acts 9.31. Of the churches. That they have rest. They were edified. They were built up. They were walking in the fear of God.

[4:53] And that says. They had the comfort. Of the Holy Ghost. They were walking in the comfort. Of the Holy Ghost. The Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is our counsellor.

[5:04] The Holy Spirit is our comforter. The Lord Jesus refers to. The Holy Spirit. Four times. Four times. As the comforter. Not merely as comfort.

[5:14] But the comforter. And he is a living person. The Holy Spirit. It's not some intangible. Impersonal force. He is. A living person.

[5:25] Again. He comes alongside to help. He takes our cares. And our doubts. The Lord Jesus says. In the context. Of the coming. Of the Spirit. Of God. He says.

[5:36] I will not leave you comfortless. I will not leave you without comfort. I will not leave you as orphans. I will not leave you alone. I will not leave you without comfort. He says. I will come to you.

[5:48] He tells you. I won't leave you on your own. I won't abandon you. I will protect. I will fight for you. And I will come to you. Friends. Don't ever feel. When life is hard.

[5:58] When situations are tough. That God has left you. Because he says. I will never. Leave you. Doesn't he? That's what he says. He's always present.

[6:10] I will come to you. And our comfort of friends today. The Lord Jesus. By his Spirit. He will relieve us. In time of distress and sorrow. Of grief and pain.

[6:22] And he will ease those things. He will support us. And encourage us. He will see you through. So the sense of the word comforter. As someone else has described it. Is one who lays you down.

[6:33] On a warm bed of safety. That's the kind of picture someone's painted. Of this comfort that we get. Now he likes to have a nice warm bed. Especially at the moment. When these cold nights.

[6:45] He lays you down it says. As this commentator has said. He lays you down. On a warm bed. Of safety. You know. I like to think of those. Nice cushy cushions.

[6:56] You know. Those. Those. Nice soft. Fairing. Blankets. And you know. Julie and I have got hoodies now. So. You know. When it gets really cold. We both put our hoodies on.

[7:06] You know. These kind of. You know. Warm. Sick skin. Kind of feel. Kind of blanket things. And we get nice and rubbed up. And that's the kind of. I like to think. In a way. That's kind of the comfort.

[7:17] That God gives us. A bit like. You know. How the. How the cat curls up. In a nice. Nice little. Warm bundle. But. The Lord is our comfort.

[7:27] He wants us to feel his comfort. His arms wrapped around us. Like a. A big warm hug. And a. A wonderful. Blessing. To know his comfort. His tenderness. And when you face a cold.

[7:38] Dark night. Think of his tender hand. He will lay you down. On a soft bed. Of comfort. And bring rest to you. Rest to you. You know. When you have those. Difficult nights.

[7:49] I've had some. Nights of. Poor sleep. But he. Is still. There. Helping you. Giving you rest. Giving you that comfort. And.

[7:59] Someone has described the comfort. Of our Lord. In this poem. No one. Understands. Like Jesus. He's a friend. Beyond compare. There. Meet him. At the throne of mercy.

[8:11] He is waiting. For you there. No one. Understands. Like Jesus. When the days are dark. And drear. No one is so near. So dear. As Jesus. Cast your every care.

[8:23] On him. No one. Understands. Like Jesus. Every woe. He sees. And feels. Tenderly. He whispers. Comfort. And the broken heart.

[8:34] He heals. No one. Understands. Like Jesus. When you falter. On your way. Though you fail him. Sadly. Fail him. He will pardon. You today. Friends.

[8:45] He's a comforter. And he is the comforter. No one beats his comfort. He is the comforter. Beyond compare. And here is a story. That illustrates. The comfort. Of our great God.

[8:56] Of the safety. Of God's children. In God's tender care. It was November 30th. In 1630. And there was a 30 years war. Across Europe. Thousands were slain.

[9:08] For their new found fate. And a Spanish army swept in. Through Saxony. Burning and pillaging. The countryside. And as the soldiers approached. There was one little mountain village.

[9:20] All but two. Of the villagers fled. And there was an old mother there. And she was determined to remain. And she lighted her lamp. And got out her prayer book. And was positive God would take care of her.

[9:32] And nothing her son could say. Would change her faith. Night came. And prayer was followed by hymns. And one she sang. One of the songs that she sang was this. A wall oh Lord around us build.

[9:46] Her son heard her singing. And he thought what a joke. How foolish. You know he knew that the lamp. That she was shining. Would be an open invitation. And the singing. Surely the Spaniards would have heard her singing.

[9:58] And he shouted at his mum. And he said. How can the Lord build a wall around us? A time of miracles has passed. The calm answer was this.

[10:10] The Lord can. If he will. And when faith had taken hold. She put the lamp out. And sleep came. And the long night passed. And the invaders passed through.

[10:21] And the next morning. Snow had covered all the windows of the cottage. Silence hung over everything. And finally when she opened the door. It was discovered that a blizzard. Had barricaded the door.

[10:33] In fact. She was now almost entirely covered. But the house was covered in this massive snow drift. And it camouflaged. Its existence. Every other home.

[10:45] In the village had been burned. A wall. Oh Lord. Around us build. He's a comforter. He watches over us. Friends. The Holy Spirit.

[10:58] Is our comforter. Another comfort God gives to us. Is through the Holy Scriptures. It says in Romans 15.4. It tells how. We can have comfort. Of the Scriptures.

[11:09] Since there's a comfort. Of the Scriptures. These things were written. A fourth time. For our learning. That we through patience. And comfort. Of the Scriptures. Might have hope. God is a comforter.

[11:23] And his word is a comfort. God is a comforter. He speaks these soothing words in our ear. He brings us hope. He shows us his tenderness. He gives us and strengthens our faith.

[11:35] Friends. The Bible is filled with words that will lift you up. And encourage you. And build you up. Do we ever stop and think of the promises of our God. That he has given to us.

[11:47] Of them it says. Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises. That by these you might be partakers. Of the divine nature. Having escaped the corruption that is in the world.

[12:00] Through lust. It says. We give it unto us exceeding great. Precious promises. When we turn these pages. We can get a faith lift.

[12:11] We can find purpose and gain strength. Friends. Think of the comfort of the Scriptures today. I just picked out a few. Kind of at random. In no particular order. Just Scriptures that jump out at me.

[12:23] Now like on a Wednesday night. When we're going through the Gospel of John at the moment. Of underlining certain verses that kind of jump out. As yeah that's something I can hang on to. That's something I want to hide in my heart.

[12:35] That's something I want to memorize. And commit to my memory. And friends. We could think of things. You might want to write these references down. Because we're just going to go through. Just a number of promises.

[12:46] And friends. This is the comfort of the Scriptures. The comfort of the Scriptures. For example. Matthew 11. 28. Our Lord says. Come unto me all you that labour.

[12:59] And are heavy laden. And I will give you rest. Isn't that a promise? Can you believe it? Can you put that into your action.

[13:09] In your faith. In your life. That when we are weak. When we are labouring. When we are heavy laden. He says I will give you rest. Here's another promise.

[13:20] Another encouragement. Another comfort of the Scriptures. Psalm 27 verse 1. The Lord is my light. And my salvation. Whom shall I fear?

[13:32] The Lord is the strength of my life. Of whom shall I be afraid. Now isn't that something you can write on your fridge. Isn't it? You know when you go and get your munchies.

[13:45] You can get a spiritual bit of. A spiritual morsel as well. It would probably do you better than what you eat from the fridge. A lot of the time. Wouldn't it? You get your soul fed.

[13:56] Wouldn't it? Wouldn't it be good to write that down? You know I say. I know some people. They've got scripture texts in their home. I know Julie loves to cross stitch. Bible verses. And hang them up.

[14:07] And have them. Have them around your home. It's a witness to visitors. It's an encouragement to you and your children. To hide the word of God in your heart. Display it. I know some of you are displaying it in your work site.

[14:20] God bless you for that. God will bless you for that. Making a stand. You're standing on the word of God. You're saying. I'm confessing the promises of God. I believe God's word. Enough to put it in my heart.

[14:31] Enough to put it on my wall. And enough to tell everybody I can. About the promises of God. The encouragement. The comfort of the scriptures.

[14:43] Here's another one. John 16. 33. Our Lord says these things I've spoken unto you. That in me you might have peace. In the world you shall have tribulation. But be of good cheer.

[14:54] I have overcome the world. Friends don't let any preacher tell you. You're not going to have some tribulation. There is going to be some tribulation for us in this world. There's going to be some trouble in this world.

[15:06] There's going to be some heartache. There's going to be some sadness. There's going to be some tests and trials and torment. But Jesus says be of good cheer. He says be of good comfort.

[15:16] He says be encouraged. I have overcome the world. And that's the comfort of the scriptures. Isaiah 43. Of course we know these in context.

[15:27] He's saying to Jacob. Nevertheless I feel these scriptures we can apply. Even though some are worded to individuals or nations or circumstances. I believe that these are given for our learning.

[15:39] And they're given through for our comfort. And I believe we can say as Israel could say. Fear not for I have redeemed thee. I have called thee by name. Thou art mine. When thou passest through the waters.

[15:51] I will be with thee. And through the rivers. They shall not overflow thee. When thou walkest through the fire. Thou shalt not be burned. Neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.

[16:01] Friends he says fear not. Fear not. For I have redeemed thee. That's the comfort isn't it? Can you believe the comfort this morning? Can you get a hold of that comfort?

[16:12] Take it home with you? I'd like to think that some of you are going to have a little kit bag. And you're going to take it. You're going to pack this up in your Bible bag. Or in your suitcase or your purse.

[16:24] And you're going to take this promise home with you. And you're going to make it live in your life. In the 24 by 7 of the next 365. Whatever it is.

[16:34] However much span of life you've got led. You're going to put these promises into your life. And you're going to believe the promises of God. I have redeemed thee.

[16:46] I can lay the point more on all of these things. But these are just touching the surface. Friends Psalm 9 verse 9. Here's another comfort. Write this one on your fridge.

[16:57] Psalm 9 verse 9 and 10. The Lord also will be a refuge for the oppressed. A refuge in time of trouble. And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee.

[17:08] For thou, Lord, hast not forsaken them that seek thee. Now some people write them on the door of their little room in their house. Put it where you can sit and ponder on these words of truth.

[17:22] The Lord is a refuge. He is a refuge. That's a comfort, isn't it? The comfort of the scriptures. Psalm 62 verse 1 through 2. Truly my soul waits at the pond.

[17:34] God. From him cometh my salvation. He only is my rock and my salvation. He is my defense. I shall not be greatly moved. You can confess these things.

[17:46] You can confess it and claim it and believe it and put it into your life. It's a promise of God. It's his comfort of the scriptures. Psalm 145 verses 18 through 19.

[17:58] The Lord is nigh unto all them that call upon him. To all that call upon him in truth. He will fulfill the desire of them that fear him.

[18:13] He also will hear their cry. And will save them. Here's a promise. Here's a comfort. He will hear your cry.

[18:24] Amen. He will hear your cry. Cry. Cry to him. He'll hear your cry. If he's not hearing you, maybe you're not crying.

[18:35] Cry. Cry out. Joshua 1. Here's another comfort. Verse 9. Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage.

[18:46] Be not dismayed. Neither be thou dismayed. For the Lord thy God is with thee. Whithersoever thou goest. He's with you wherever you're going. Whether you're going to school, young people.

[18:57] Whether you're going to work. Whether you're going to the shop. Whether you're going to neighbours or friends. He is with you wherever you go. Wherever you go. That's a promise.

[19:08] That's a comfort. But Psalm 34. 4. I sought the Lord. And he heard me. And he delivered me. From all my fears. If you've got fears, God can deliver you from all your fears.

[19:19] It says A-double-L. All your fears. You don't have to be afraid of anything. Because the Lord can deliver you, sister. The Lord can deliver you, brother.

[19:30] From all your fears. It's a promise of God. What time am I afraid? I will trust in thee. Psalm 56 verse 3. When you have times of being afraid.

[19:42] Young people. Older people. What time am I afraid? I will trust in thee. Nahum 1 verse 7. It says the Lord is good. A stronghold.

[19:53] In the day of trouble. You know, you're going through a day of trouble, sister. You're going through a day of trouble, brother. It says the Lord is good. He's a stronghold. He's a stronghold in your day of trouble.

[20:04] And it says he knoweth them that trust in him. Romans 15 verse 13. Now the God of hope, filling with all joy and peace in believing. That ye may abound in hope through the power of the Holy Ghost.

[20:18] There's a comfort. He's the God of all hope. He's the God of all comfort. And he's the God of hope as well. Praise him. Psalm 31 verse 24.

[20:29] It says be of good courage and he shall strengthen your heart. All ye that hope in the Lord. Now I don't mean to overburden you with scriptures here.

[20:41] But I know someone said they were glad about this church. That there's not a Bible here. You go to some churches and there's not a Bible there. It's all about experiential or emotional. Or telling stories or dreams or visions.

[20:55] Or this, that and the other. But we need the Bible. We need the comfort of the scriptures, people. You need the comfort of the scriptures in your home. You need the comfort of the scriptures in your heart.

[21:05] Lay these words down in your heart. And it could be said, some people know a lot of Bible up here. But it's not down here. It's getting it here. That's what matters.

[21:16] People. People of God. People of God. I urge you. Another comfort of the scriptures. Psalm 30 verse 5 in part.

[21:27] It says in his favor is life. Weeping may endure for a night. But joy cometh in the morning. Friends, there's weeping in this life. In this lifetime. There's weeping. There's sadness.

[21:38] There's tragedy. There's heartache. But joy comes. Joy comes from him. Joy comes from our God. Joy comes from him.

[21:49] Just wait till the morning. Psalm 116. 1 through 2. I love the Lord. He's heard my voice. My supplications. Because he's inclined his ear unto me.

[21:59] Therefore will I call upon him. As long as I live. Don't neglect to pray. Don't neglect to pray. I will call upon him. As long as I live. There's that lifeline.

[22:11] That lifeline to the God of all comfort. He wants you to pray. He wants you to call upon him. Hebrews 13. 5 through 6. It says in part. For he hath said. I will never leave thee.

[22:21] Nor forsake thee. So that we may boldly say. The Lord is my helper. And I will not fear. What man shall do unto me. That's a comfort.

[22:32] Isn't it? Is that a comfort you can claim? Isn't it? Do you believe the word of God? God is our refuge and strength.

[22:43] A very present help. In trouble. You know. We've talked about that lately. Isn't it? True. It's still true today. As it ever was. And ever will be. God is.

[22:54] Present. It's. Today. Right now. You can say my refuge. My strength. My help. He helps us.

[23:04] He's close. And he's always near us. Friends. He's a loving and faithful comforter. There's no one else. Who can comfort. Like him. He's a loving.

[23:15] Faithful comforter. We can trust him. To take care of us. Now I don't know about you. But I need his comfort. We all need his comfort. Don't we? We all need his comfort.

[23:26] Friends. It's still true today. What was true. In Job 14 verse 1. Says man that is born of a woman. Is a few days. And full of trouble. Now.

[23:38] This verse. Excludes. Excludes. Every man. That is not born of a woman. Get that? But it includes. Every man.

[23:49] Every woman. Everyone. That is born of a woman. That's all of us. Isn't it? It says. Our life is a few days. And it's full. Of trouble. Now. All of us can expect troubles.

[24:00] And problems to come. It's a lot. In life. It's a human. It's a humanity. That's what life is. And it's full. Of trouble. But.

[24:13] Nevertheless. God. That comforts. Those. That are cast down. Comforts. Of us. By the coming of Titus. It's saying. God comforts. Those that are cast down.

[24:24] So. If you're ever cast down. Look. There's some of you going through. Some situations. We know. We've got John in the hospital. At the moment. Shirley's John. You know. There's serious things going on. There's tough things people are going through right now.

[24:37] You know. I could give you a whole list. Of people going through some situations. Friends. Our life is full of trouble. But it says. God comforts us. God comforts.

[24:47] Those that are cast down. It's God who cheers us. It's God who encourages us. It's God who refreshes us. It says. God comforts. The downcast. The depressed. The dejected.

[24:58] The downhearted. We can all get times of discouragement. Believe me. Even pastors. Even pastors can get discouraged. Yeah. It's humanity. Isn't it? We're all subject to the troubles.

[25:12] Of painful experiences in life. None of us are immune to that. The loss of a loved one. You know. I had another funeral last week. Of someone.

[25:23] There's grief. There's sadness. There's passing. Intense pain. And when you see a grieving one. Broken up. It just means you. God is not untouched.

[25:35] God is not unfeeling. He sees those tears. He feels that pain. He knows your trials. Your suffering. Your heartache. Troubles have a purpose. Yeah.

[25:47] By our troubles we can learn. And we can learn to rely upon him. Our Lord. We can learn to develop character. All of us experience discouragements. Yet we can get through.

[26:00] We can get on the brighter side. We can pass the shadow. The cloud. And there'll be a brighter side. We all have troubles in life. We all. All. Need God's comfort.

[26:11] And it says. What does it say? God comforts those. Who are cast down. So if you're cast down. God's there. God's there. He's here. To comfort. We all.

[26:23] Need God's comfort. So find the God of. All comfort. The Holy Spirit. The Holy Scriptures. And. A final point. Is. We can.

[26:34] Be. A comfortor. That's good. Isn't it? Don't you want to be someone who comforts others? Someone who's an encourager. Back to that first text again.

[26:46] We're saying. As it talked about. The God of all comfort. It says. He comforts us. In all our tribulation. Why? That we may be able to comfort those. To comfort them.

[26:58] Which are in any trouble. By the comfort. Where we ourselves are comforted. Of God. So just notice this.

[27:09] This. Important point here. There is a special reason for God's comfort. And it involves you. God's comfort is not only for us.

[27:20] But it also happens through us. It's as you think about others. Insert yourself. Put yourself in someone else's shoes.

[27:34] Sometimes we don't stop to do that. God's comfort. Now God's comfort is not only for us. He wants his comfort to flow through us. To others. There's a purpose for us in comfort.

[27:47] That we receive. To pass it on. To others. Think of it. The Holy Spirit. The comforter. He lives within you. Inside of you. And you can be a channel.

[27:59] Of God's comfort. To others. Can we think of that? Can we. Realise that. To give his healing. Caring touch. To others.

[28:12] There's others that might be going through things we can't imagine. Not everyone's in the same space. Not everyone's in the same place as us. People might have hurts we don't even know about.

[28:25] People might have feelings we don't even register that they feel. God wants you to be a channel of his comfort. Friends. Those who can best comfort.

[28:37] Are those who face the hardest things of life. Because of their own experience. Paul says God comforts us in all our tribulation. In all our troubles.

[28:48] So that. We can. Comfort. Others. In trouble. By the comfort we've received ourselves from God. So.

[29:00] Let me. Leave you with this. Important point. You are comforted by God. So that you can comfort.

[29:12] Others. Do we stop and think. How can I show Christ's compassion to others? You might have once been where they are.

[29:24] How can I share their pain. In my heart. How can I encourage them? How can I assure people of God's presence. When it seems like they're lacking it. How can I comfort those.

[29:36] To know Christ. The saviour. How can I carry kind words. Even when I don't want to give them. How can I spread some sunshine.

[29:48] Sometimes it's without words. There was a little girl. Who lost a playmate. She was just a little youngster. A little girl. And her little friend.

[30:00] Passed away. and one day she went back to her own mum and she had gone to comfort the sorrowing mother of the little friend who'd passed away.

[30:12] And the mother said when she came in the door, what did you say to the mother? What did you say? And she said, nothing. I just climbed onto her lap and cried with her. Now sometimes that can be the best comfort, can't it?

[30:25] Just to take time to care. I know I need to do that more. I know I don't do that enough.

[30:37] We could all maybe think, how could I do that more? How could I show God's comfort? How can I comfort others? I've got so much comfort God's given me.

[30:49] When we're facing trials and temptations and trouble, they are for a reason. There's a value there. Even in the bad things of life, you can be a comfort to others who are going through the same deep waters.

[31:02] You can come alongside. You can share and show understanding of their pain. You've been there. As we said, we don't all suffer the same things, but each suffers in some way.

[31:14] They can be a comfort to others. Here's how someone described it. They put somewhere in the body of Christ, somebody can say, I've had a miscarriage too. I've had a miscarriage too.

[31:24] Somewhere in the body of Christ, I've lost a child too. I've lost a mate too. I've had serious surgery too. I've had cancer too. I've had an accident too.

[31:36] I've lost my parents too. I've lost my job too. I've lost a major investment too. I've been abused and rejected too. We could cover the whole gamut, couldn't we, of suffering, in this vast world of suffering.

[31:51] Somewhere in the body of Christ, someone probably just knows what's happening for you. They've endured and survived maybe the same kind of thing, the same trial.

[32:03] And we're all assisting God's comfort. We're all imparting God's comfort to others who are bearing that load. And we're all children of the Father of mercies, the Father of compassion, and the God of all comfort.

[32:20] Think of it, friends, for yourself today, that you have His nature in your heart. The God of all comfort, the comforter lives inside of you, you that are saved.

[32:31] The comforter is very person, is residing in the temple of your own heart. And we have His nature in our heart. So as we look at life in the context of eternity, we can say with Paul, for I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.

[32:54] We look at things in the context of eternity, that maybe these passing moments, as hard as they be, they are passing. And one day we will know suffering will end, as it reads in Revelation 21, 3 through 4, as the revelator John says, I heard a voice from heaven, saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with man, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people.

[33:20] And God Himself shall wipe away, shall be their God, shall be with them, and be their God. And it says, And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes, and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain, for the former things have passed away.

[33:41] For the meantime, we're in this time, where trouble is our lot, from time to time, there will be some heartache, and loss, there will be some crying, this side of that river.

[33:54] But friends, one day there will be no more tears of sorrow, there will be no more tears to share, of that earthly sorrow. And we will be with the God, the God of all comfort.

[34:08] So friends, this morning, do not give in to discouragement. Know the God of all comfort today. And be a comfort to another. Step outside of your own shoes.

[34:21] Step outside of your own echo chamber. And think, who is here today, that might be going through some stuff, and maybe I can be a comfort, a channel of God's comfort to him or her.

[34:36] But be a comfort to another. Be a part of bringing God's comfort, and care to others. Let us pray. Our Lord God, you are the God of all comfort.

[34:47] And Lord, we know life's toils and troubles seem many, and burden us down, Lord, as hurting hearts. Lord, thank you that you are the healer.

[35:00] Of the broken hearted. Thank you, Lord, you are the one who can touch, you are touched. You are, not unfeeling, but you are very tender, hearted, towards us.

[35:14] Lord, we thank you for the God of all comfort that you are. That you are the great encouragement for our lives. Lord, that you are the one of whom it says that you are the comforter, the Holy Spirit.

[35:27] Lord, we thank you for the comfort of the Holy Scriptures. These promises that you've given us that often we leave on a dusting cover book on the shelf.

[35:38] Lord, help us to write them down, to confess them, to hide them in our heart. The promises you've given to us of all your great grace and love. Lord, for your salvation is the ultimate and absolute comfort because without being saved, there is no assured comfort.

[36:00] But yet, we that trust you, that know the blood of Jesus shared for us, that know you died in the cross, in our place, there is true comfort of soul, there's true rest, and there's true salvation in that trust.

[36:15] And Lord, we thank you for that. Let us walk in these truths. Help us, Lord, to be mindful. How can I, each one here, be a comfort to other people?

[36:26]  Lord, give us that heart, we pray. In Jesus' name, Amen.