God's Word of Comfort

All right. Well, in 1831, there was a French sociologist. His name was Alexis de Tocqueville, and he visited the US to observe the judicial system and he actually ended up writing a book entitled Democracy in America. And the, the book is basically his observations of American politics and life.

But what's interesting about the book is that he has this chapter. Titled Of the Taste for Material Well-being in America. And in this chapter, Tocqueville, speaking of material comfort and well-being, says this, quote, in America, the concern to satisfy the slightest needs of the body and to provide for the smallest conveniences of life preoccupies minds universally, end quote. And that's an incredible statement when you stop to think about it.

This was in 1831, and providing for the smallest conveniences of life was the preoccupation of every mind. This was before central air, before hot and cold running water, and yes, before indoor plumbing. Obviously this is long before sweatpants, snuggies, and Sunday morning football. But I, I, I am grateful for many of the comforts that we do enjoy.

I'm thankful that I could drive here this morning. I'm thankful that I'm able to throw my clothes in a washing machine, and I'm thankful, as I'm sure you are, for the Lord's providence and grace that have brought us the technological advances that we have today. all of these comforts are meant to be enjoyed as a common grace from God, and And they should be, right? Enjoyed as a gift from our gracious heavenly Father, but none of these things are designed, nor are they able.

To provide comfort in the midst of life's deepest trials. The, the first question of the Heidelberg catechism asks this, what is your only comfort in life and death? That's an amazing question. What is your only comfort?

What is it that gives you the strength to persevere through every trial and every difficulty? What comforts your soul when it seems that all around gives way? What is your only comfort? When faced with the reality of your own sinfulness.

When our passage this morning, the Lord speaks comfort to Judah and he speaks comfort to you and to me. And he reorients our thinking and he defines what true comfort really is. And before we get into the passage, I think it's helpful to look at the context. So you'll remember that after the reign of Solomon, Israel was split into two kingdoms, the northern 10 tribes and southern two tribes, and Isaiah was prophesying in the period just before and just after.

The destruction and exile of the northern kingdom by Assyria. Assyria then turned their sights on Judah, but God delivered them. And despite this miraculous deliverance, Judah continued to be a wicked nation. They were prone to pride and idolatry, and in fact the 1st 39 chapters of Isaiah are largely aimed at pronouncing judgment on the southern kingdom.

Isaiah's own commission shows the nature of his message. In Isaiah 6:10, God tells Isaiah what his message will be. He tells Isaiah, go and tell these people, keep on listening, but do not perceive. Keep on looking but do not understand render the hearts of this people insensitive.

The ears dull and their eyes dim. Otherwise they might see with their ears, eyes hear with their ears and understand with their hearts and return and be healed. And Isaiah, he, he gets the message and obviously this is a tough sermon for him to deliver. And so he asked the Lord, how long do I need to preach this message?

The Lord replies in verses 11 and 12, and he said, until cities are devastated and without inhabitants, until the land is utterly desolate. Until the Lord has removed men far away. In other words, until the land is completely destroyed, Isaiah. And so the 1st 39 chapters speak.

To this theme and, and the Lord is gracious though intermixed in there, there's messages of grace, but the overall theme is the coming judgment. And it's really driven home at the end of chapter 39. Chapters 36 through 39 is a narrative portion of Isaiah, when the Lord delivers Judah from Assyria, heals Hezekiah, and gives him another 15 years to live. And at that point some envoys come from Babylon to congratulate Hezekiah on his recovery, and you might think that Hezekiah would respond in humility.

Praising God for what he's done, but in pride, Hezekiah shows off the wealth of his kingdom, basically bragging about how great he is. So Isaiah tells him, the days are coming when this same nation will take away everything that you've stored up, and they're even gonna take away some of your children. How does Hezekiah respond? In verse 8, you can probably look back and see at the last verse of chapter 39, Hezekiah says this, The Lord, the word of the Lord which you have spoken.

is good, for he thought, for there will be peace and truth in my days. What betrayal You would expect chapter 40 to intensify the declarations of judgment, but that's not what we see at all. Instead of speaking judgment, when we hear the Lord speak, we hear words of comfort and deliverance. In Isaiah 40, God speaks to the future generations of Judah, and He gives them exactly.

Exactly what they need to endure that chastisement, that discipline. You see, even when God's hand of discipline is on his people, he still gives them the comfort they will desperately need in those dark moments. And in our passage this morning, we're going to look at 4 declarations of comfort for God's people to give hope in times of trial. 4 declarations of comfort for God's people.

And the first declaration is that salvation has come. The first declaration meant to give comfort to God's people is that salvation has come. Look at verses 1 and 2. We read, Comfort, oh comfort my people, says your God.

Speak kindly to Jerusalem and call out to her that her warfare has ended, that her iniquity has been removed. That she has received of the Lord's hand double for all her sins. Comfort Comfort. this is, this is gospel whiplash.

There's no transition, no preparation. God just goes straight from the pride and betrayal of Hezekiah into words of comfort for his people. And, and the repetition of these words is It gives it an emotional intensity. This is not a pat on the back from God.

This is the warm embrace of their covenant Lord. Which is exactly what verse one means when it says, my people and your God. Back in Exodus 6, when the people were suffering under Egyptian slavery, God promises to free them. And in verse 7 we read, then I will take you for my people.

And I will be your God. What a comfort this must have been to hear because back in Isaiah chapter 6, they were called these people. And now they're God's people. and this would have been comfort enough just hearing that the Lord had not forgotten his covenant people, but, but God doesn't stop there.

Look at verse two. He says, speak kindly to Jerusalem and call out to her that her warfare has ended, that her iniquity has been removed, that she has received of the Lord's hand double for all her sins. God's God commands kind words to be spoken to his people. More literally, he says, speak to their heart.

Speak words of affection and encouragement aimed at their heart. Words meant. To persuade people to trust. Yahweh Words meant to cause people to respond to God's love.

And my wife, she has a box full of old notes that I wrote her back in high school. Yeah. And in these notes, I, I tried. I tried to speak to her heart.

I was trying to persuade her to respond to my love and. Every once in a while, she'll pull these out. And we've read them together and I, I've got to tell you, after reading these things. I have no idea why she was ever persuaded.

I, they're, these are the sappiest, lamest love notes probably ever written. But But these words These are words that come from God's heart. And they're spoken to the heart of his people. And their beautiful words.

And he tells them 3 things here. He says, Your warfare has ended. Their iniquity has been removed and she has received double from the hand of the Lord for her sins. But had Judah's warfare ended?

No, definitely not. In about 100 years, Babylon would come and completely devastate the land. Had her iniquity been removed No, you can just read the rest of her history to find that out. In the last part of verse two, we read that she's received of the Lord's hand double for all her sins.

In other words, there's nothing left for punishment. The turning point from wrath to love has come. Yes, there's still discipline for the sins they've committed, but this won't last forever. Their discipline will come to an end.

Their salvation is as good as accomplished. We have to ask how is this possible? How could their warfare end and their iniquity be forgiven? How can God's judgment against them be satisfied?

And that's what's so amazing about our God. He's telling the sinful and rebellious people that yes, they will be punished. For their sins, but even in their punishment, he's there. He provides the comfort they need to endure.

And the assurance that one day they'll be delivered. And guys, this is all being written over 100 years before Judah is even taken into captivity. Long before the Lord's hand of discipline ever falls on the people, God tells them that he will see them through. And after 70 years of captivity, God brings His people back to their land, but this isn't the ultimate deliverance.

The people of Judah, just like all of God's people. Throughout history and in this room today. Experience deliverance only to turn and and rebel again. And we're left longing for the day when our iniquities will be removed.

And when our warfare will end. Well, our God has already given us this comfort as well. The theme of iniquity will come up again in a few chapters. Isaiah 53 tells us that the iniquity of God's people will ultimately fall on a substitute.

This is true comfort. That God's people belong to a faithful Savior who with His precious blood removed all of our iniquities. The warfare of trying to be good enough, the battle of earning our standing before God is over. Every ounce of God's wrath towards sin was poured out on Christ, and now instead of experiencing eternal judgment, God's people experience His unrelenting grace.

And there's one more thing worth noticing. in this verse before we move on. Can I ask you a question. Who, who is the speaker in this verse?

God is calling someone to speak and at first, You might be prone to think like I did that it's addressed to Isaiah, that he's the speaker. But that's not the case. There's 3 commands in these two verses comfort, speak, and call. And every one of those commands is plural.

And it doesn't make for a good English translation. unless you live in Texas, but you could say y'all comfort my people. Y'all speak kindly. You are call out.

You see, the command is for all the people of God to speak these comforts to one another. If you're part of God's family, then you have the task of comforting God's people. We have the incredible privilege. Of giving out gospel comfort to one another.

Wherever believers struggle with sin or doubt or despair, other believers are commanded to come alongside of them. And proclaim the good news that God has brought salvation. When it seems we're losing the battle with our sin. And we can't see past our own failures.

We need the comfort that Christ has paid the price. What he accomplished on the cross is our hope. And we need to hear that from one another. And I think if this was the only comfort we heard, that would be pretty amazing.

But our God is always doing far more than we can ever think or imagine. And he has more comfort for his people, which leads to the 2nd declaration of comfort for God's people, and that is that God's glory will be revealed. The second declaration meant to give comfort to God's people is that God's glory will be revealed. Observe verses 3 through 5.

It says a voice is calling, clear the way for the Lord in the wilderness, make smooth in the desert a highway for our God. Let every valley be lifted up and every mountain and hill be made low, and let the rough ground become a plain in the rugged terrain a broad valley. Then the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all flesh will see it together, for the mouth of the Lord has spoken. In verse 3 We hear an unidentified speaker.

And when he opens his mouth, we hear a hill leveling valley filling wave straightening voice. there is some serious excavation going on in these verses. And it's possible that when Judah heard these words, their thoughts would have been drawn to a time when a path was cleared and a highway was made in the desert. A time when the Lord made a way through the Red Sea.

Through the deserts Across the Jordan River and into the promised land for his people. This thought would have brought comfort to these people, but there is so much more here than just a return from exile. Look again at verse 3. Who, who is this highway for?

It's for the Lord The voice in verse 3 is a herald announcing the coming of the king. And this coming isn't about the people returning to their land. This is about God coming to his people's aid in their time of deepest distress. There's no one to save them.

They are utterly incapable of saving themselves, so God must come and. What's incredible is that when God comes, he, he doesn't wait at the edge of their hurts. He comes all the way into their wilderness. wilderness conjures this image of a vast dry desert land, right?

This is where Israel wandered for 40 years, where Christ went for 40 days and was tempted. In the Hebrew mind, wilderness is always associated with death, suffering, and Godforsakenness. But this is how God operates, isn't it? He brings hope out of despair, he turns sorrow into joy, and he pulls life out of death.

Wilderness was the reality that the people of Judah languished in, and I think if we're being honest. It's the reality that all of us languish in from time to time. There are seasons for all of us when pain and suffering, sin and sorrow seem to be all we ever know. It seems as though you're living in a never ending wilderness.

And you might even wonder if God even hears your cries as you wander through the desert. And that's what's so beautiful about this verse, you see, your king. He loves to show up in the wilderness. When you've lost all hope of being your own savior and all your other gods have failed you.

God is pleased to enter your wilderness and make a way. And even though the Lord meets us in the wilderness, we're still called to be ready. These verses may sound familiar to many of you. Some or most of them are quoted in all four Gospels, and the voice is that of John the Baptist.

And he not only told the people that he was clearing a path for the Lord, but he was preparing them by preaching a gospel of repentance. See, Luke 3:3 tells us that John was preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins as it is written in Isaiah, and then he quotes this section, this verse, these verses in full. In other words, part of what's going on is a call for God's people to prepare for the Lord's coming by turning from their sin. And that's why those comforts in verses 1 and 2 are so important, because the only power that can cause us to repent and turn from our sin is the good news of our salvation.

The good news of our forgiveness slays the root of sin in our life. It frees us from its guilt. It opens our eyes. To see sin for what it is, and it holds the amazing love of God before us.

And when we keep this amazing love of God at the center of our gaze, our hearts are fueled. To turn from sin and act in obedience to the will of God. And it also gives us a longing for the glories that will be revealed. Which is the climax as we look at verse 5, says in the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all flesh will see it together, for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.

God's glory is the magnificence, the worth, the loveliness of his many perfections and, and this breathtaking beauty. Of these perfections will be manifest most plainly in the return of Christ. And when God comes to deliver his people who've been wandering in the wilderness of sin and death, all flesh will see His glory. And Christ's coming is a source of comfort, not only because he told us that he will return and receive us to Himself.

But because this heavenward hope is a purifying hope. The thoughts of future glories motivate us to repentance and purity today. And this comfort of what's coming also gives us a perspective on our trials. The magnitude of the glory of God and what's to come, it allows us to see the temporary nature of our trials more clearly.

This is the comfort that we need to be proclaiming to one another. This is the gospel proclamation we all need. And we can take refuge in this comfort because God's word is sure. The mouth of the Lord has spoken.

You can take it to the bank. Which leads to the 3rd declaration of comfort for God's people. And that is that God's word never fails. The 3rd declaration of comfort for God's people is that His word never fails.

Look at verses 6 through 8. Say a voice says call out. Then he answered, What shall I call out? All flesh is grass.

And all its loveliness is like the flower of the field. The grass withers. The flower fades when the breath of the Lord blows upon it. Surely the people are grass.

The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God stands forever. Verse 6 is shocking. The picture shifts from God to humanity, from eternity to temporality, from power to powerlessness. And what a better picture of the temporary nature and weakness.

Of humanity than grass. But were any of you thinking as you heard that or as you read it. like I was, how, how is this comforting? How is the fact that I'm being compared to withering grass and a fading flower supposed to bring me peace and comfort?

But I think these words are exactly what the readers needed and it's exactly what we need. See, the message in the previous 5 verses has been one of salvation, one of comfort. And it's possible and probably likely that those hearing or reading these words might be thinking, Isaiah, those are fine words, but I am still stuck in the wilderness. Especially as these people are suffering in Babylonian exile.

You see, part of what Isaiah's getting at here is that those nations. That have done so much damage to God's people. They're as fleeting as grass and as momentary as a fading flower. All those people who oppose God will fade away just like the spring flower.

In a sense, this voice is saying people of Zion, these nations, Babylon. Are no more to be feared than a blade of grass. And this is reassuring news for the people of God suffering in exile, but It's also reassuring for us as well. The enemies of God today.

are still nothing more. Than withering grass and fading flowers. And this is something that we need to remember, especially as the election season reaches its climax. Political rhetoric ramps up.

It's easy to be consumed in the fear of what might be, and watching the news, it, it only helps to stoke the flame of fear as we see values and beliefs antithetical to a biblical worldview taking over our nation. And it's hard to say how far it'll go. But that's why these verses can bring such comfort. In the end, guys, God will be victorious.

And all those who have embraced Christ will reign at his side. And this is the comfort that we preach to ourselves. And to one another on a regular basis. And then Isaiah continues this thought in verse 7.

But now he expands it to make sure it's clear that God is ultimately behind the withering and fading of mankind. Look at verse 7, he says, the grass withers, the flower fades. When the breath of the Lord blows upon it, surely the people are grass. So Isaiah repeats himself, but then he adds, it's the breath of the Lord that causes the grass to wither and the flower to fade, and he, he probably has the image of the Cosmin in mind.

Think of Santa Ana winds times 100 or 1000. It's a dry, hot, dusty, devastating wind that blows in late spring, and it can turn a green countryside into a brown wasteland in 48 hours or less. It is divine judgment. Nations may stand tall for a time, they may conquer, but when the breath of the Lord blows, all their plans come to nothing.

These great powers won't be able to prevent God from rescuing his people. But Isaiah also wants to know or wants to let the people know. That they are powerless as well. At the end of the verse, Isaiah says, surely the people.

Are like grass And when Isaiah uses that phrase, the people, he's referring to the people of God. Isaiah is saying that this weakness, this fleeting nature that applies to the enemies of God also applies to you. You can't take any pride in your own works. Salvation is coming, but from, but salvation is from God alone.

And then to drive the point home and to make sure we get it, Isaiah repeats himself a third time. In verse 8 he says the grass withers, the flower fades, but The word of our God stands forever. And this verse serves as both a warning and a comfort. It's a warning for those people that are opposed to God.

The time is coming when the breath of the Lord will blow. It will turn the beauty of flowering nations and prosperous people into a wasteland. That warning stands true today. God has promised to return and He will judge the living and the dead.

The wheat will be separated from the tares, the goats from the sheep. And your only hope is to be reconciled to God, but not through your own doing. Not by your own power. But to be reconciled to God through the blood of Christ.

And if you choose to reject this. You'll find yourself opposing God and facing the reality that all flesh is like grass. But there is comfort in the fact that God's word stands forever. Because God's word never fails, we can have confidence in the promises of God.

We have assurance that no matter what happens, we are secure in the loving embrace of our Almighty Father. Because God's words stand forever. We won't be abandoned because of our sin. Even in divine chastening, God is there to comfort and deliver his people.

Because the word of our God stands forever, our hope. Of living under the eternal care of our good shepherd is secure. Which leads to the 4th and final declaration. Of comfort for God's people, and that is that God will protect and tend his sheep.

The 4th and final declaration of comfort for the people of God. Is that God will protect and tend his sheep. Let's read verses 9 through 11. Get yourself up on a high mountain, O Zion, bearer of good news.

Lift up your voice mightily, O Jerusalem, bearer of good news. Lift it up. Do not fear. Say to the cities of Judah, Here is your God.

Behold, the Lord God will come with might with His arm, ruling for Him. Behold, His reward is with Him and His recompense before Him. Like a shepherd, he will tend his flock. In his arm he will gather the lambs and carry them.

In his bosom He will gently lead the nursing you. There's no doubt that the 1st 8 verses of this passage would have been a comfort for the desperate and distressed people of Jerusalem. People staring down the inevitability of exile or even reading this in the midst of exile. And these people are again called to proclaim the good news.

The people of Zion and Jerusalem are to get up on a high mountain. And fearlessly proclaim, your God is here. Zion and Jerusalem are to be bearers of good news. These heralds should be doing some gospel proclamation.

In fact, in the Greek translation of the Old Testament, when you read those words bearer of good news. The translators chose the verb form of the word gospel. In other words, these heralds are to be gospellizers of the people. And this gospel is that God doesn't watch over His people in some general distant way.

No, he's personally present in power, accomplishing his will among his people. And when God comes, it will be a sovereign display of power. Look again at verse 10. It says, behold, the Lord God will come with might, with his arm ruling for Him.

Behold, his reward is with him and his recompense before him. And the arm of the Lord makes its debut in Isaiah right here. And this will become a, a dominant image of redemption for Isaiah. In fact, he'll use this picture 13 times.

And what Isaiah is showing is that God will reign as Lord and Master over his people and over the whole earth. And when he comes, his arm will lead the way. And there's no nation that will be able to stand against him. during their history, Jerusalem would have 2 kings, most of whom were evil.

They had a very limited concept of what it meant to have a good and faithful king. even Hezekiah, their current king, a good king. sold the nation down the river because of his pride. And the comfort that God's people were commanded to declare to one another is that God will reign over them.

God will protect them. God will be their true and righteous King. when I was, as I was thinking about this verse, I couldn't help but think of our own time. Where we face political divisions that are unrivaled in previous years, not to mention.

The worldwide political unrest. Nations at war. People in power actively trying to eliminate the people of God. How important is this truth today?

But I also think that there's another aspect of God's rule that is that is comforting. God's rule also means that He will conquer sin. He will reign over the forces of evil. He will reign over sin that has devastated families and destroyed lives.

Beloved, there is no sin in our lives that will survive. No sin that will reign alongside God in our heart. No sin that will stage a coup. God will reign, and when he does, there will be no pride, no strife, no perversion, no selfishness.

No sin that God does not aim to overcome. God's reign reaches to the smallest and biggest enemy of His glory, and it will be defeated. Every rule Every authority. And every power.

That exalts itself against God will be destroyed, and that includes every sin that clings to your soul. And guys, we're called to be gospellizers of this. Comfort Declare it without fear to one another. Let the breadth and depth of God's rule wash over you and drive away every fear and anxiety.

You face And then use this truth in the lives of your brothers and sisters for God's glory. And then. And how will God accomplish this for His people? In the middle of verse 10, we read, behold, his reward is with Him and his recompense.

Before him and this word recompense can also mean work or labor, and the work and reward of the Lord is the salvation he's earned on behalf of his people. We see this idea in Isaiah chapter 62 verses 11 and 12. It says, Say to the daughter of Zion, Lo, your salvation comes. Behold, his reward is with him and his recompense, his work before him.

And they will call them the holy people, the redeemed of the Lord. So the context is the anointed one coming to the people and his work. is the salvation he brings. And there's something similar in Revelation 22:12 where Christ says, behold, I am coming quickly and my reward is with me to render to every man according to what he has done.

And the reward is clearly the salvation that allows his people to eat from the tree of life and enter in the city of God. Salvation is God's greatest work and his greatest gift. This is our comfort that he's done the work necessary to redeem and rescue his people, and he freely bestows that on every one of them. And this is all pictured as a compassionate shepherd.

Look at verse 11 It says like a shepherd he will tend his flock. In his arm he will gather the lambs and carry them in his bosom. He will gently lead. The nursing Use In verse 10, God's power is seen in the overthrow of any that stand in his way, and we might be left asking how will this power be used toward his people.

Well, God, the sovereign is now pictured as God, the shepherd. The arm that was raised in judgment and triumph is now lowered in compassion. And this is such an intimate picture of God with His people. He tends his flock, and their needs are met.

Like Psalm 23, God makes sure his sheep find green pastures and still waters. God also demonstrates his protection and care as that same strong arm that ruled in might now gathers his sheep to carry them. The arm that brings justice to those who rebel against him. Is the same arm that gathers and carries his sheep.

And where does he carry them? In his bosom And we're all familiar with this. At some point we've laid our head on someone's chest or someone's laid their head on ours. It's a sign of affection and compassion, and it brings a sense of security and comfort.

God embraces his sheep and he holds them close to his heart. We can hear his heartbeat. We can feel his love through his strong embrace. And God is, is also a gracious shepherd who leads with gentleness.

There are sheep who are not able to keep the pace of the flock. And rather than drive them He gently leads them. And the picture is that of of nursing uses. See, when a ewe gave birth, she could lay for 24 hours with her lambs.

And when she does finally move out with the rest of the flock, she has to stop and nurse her young, which is an exhausting process for the mom. As the lambs grow, the nursing takes every ounce of energy she has. Oftentimes, the ewe chooses not to move at all. But a good shepherd comes.

And he carries the lambs just far enough in front of the mother so she can see and smell and so she moves she follows. There are times that that you will struggle with doubts, with unbelief. With sin Or the fallout of some disaster in your life and you aren't able to keep the pace with the other sheep in the flock. Your trials will take every ounce of energy you have.

And in these times, the Lord's not casting you out. He's not sticking his finger in your chest, demanding that you pick up the pace. And he doesn't leave you behind on his way to greener pastures with whatever sheep can keep up. He waits for you.

He gently coaxes you along and and if needed, he gathers you close to his chest. And he carries you into his pasture. and, and Up to this point. Isaiah's message had been largely about judgment.

The people had forsaken God. They had turned to idols. And the result was the looming destruction of their land and exile to Babylon. And that's, that's not a whole lot different than for you or for me.

We've failed to glorify God, and our minds have been warped by idols of our own making. We bow to the idol of success or financial gain. We worship We worship at the altar of self and offer sacrifices to our own pride. We deserve only judgment.

And it's in that moment. Just as with the people of Judah. That we hear declarations of comfort from God. He declares that salvation has come.

He declares that his glory will be revealed. He declares that his word will never fail. And he declares that he will protect and tend his sheep. And this word of comfort from God would have been a balm for the heart of Judah.

In the face of exile, God was at work and he promised that one day, They would be rescued. And they were in fact brought out of exile. But this passage points to something deeper. Something eternal.

Just over 2000 years ago, John the Baptist was the voice of one crying in the wilderness. And his job was to prepare the way of the Lord to make his path straight, and God's word of comfort had come once again. But this time it was different. This time, God's word of comfort took on flesh.

His word of comfort dwelt among us. See, Jesus is God's word of comfort for his people. Our iniquities have been removed because Christ was crushed by them. When God's word of comfort hung on the cross, our debt, our record of wrong was taken out of the way and nailed to the cross.

Christ did what we were unable to do in the weakness of our flesh. When God's word of comfort became flesh, the glory of the Lord was revealed. Through the cross, Christ triumphed over the rulers and authorities of this world. There is no nation or political system, nor principality nor power that will thwart God's plan or delay the reign of Christ.

And God's word of comfort is our good shepherd. As the good shepherd Christ goes ahead of us and leads us and through Him. We find pasture. As the good shepherd Christ not only protects his sheep.

But he laid down his life. For them And we are secure in the gentle and loving grip of the Father and the Son. These Our declarations. Of comfort that come from the heart of God.

And they're spoken directly to your heart. And I, I don't know everything that you're facing this morning. I know that in this moment, these may seem like empty words because You're still languishing in the wilderness. But that's the God we serve.

The God who shows such grace that, that even in discipline, even in the darkest moment of your life, he is. Here A God who's told you beforehand that even in the fallout of sin. Yours or someone else's, he won't leave you or forsake you. And that's why we have the command to proclaim this truth.

As people who are on a journey from brokenness to wholeness, we have the responsibility. Indeed, the command To declare these truths to one another. We commanded We're commanded to be gospellizers of one another. And guys, can I say that we need to take this command seriously.

We need to be about the business of proclaiming the comfort of God to one another. Coming alongside of one another and carrying each other's pain. and hurt and unbelief See, sin injects its poison into everyone who happens to be nearby. But the sweetness of God's forgiveness and presence is the antidote that we all need to hear and proclaim.

And I want to plead with any of you here this morning that have not embraced Christ. As God's word of comfort. Today Is the day of salvation. Don't put it off.

Because what? Your flesh is like grass. Grass will wither and the flower will fade, and there's no comfort in those words if you're outside of Christ. The uncomfortable fact is that God is coming.

And some will wither away like grass. But God offers his word of comfort. God offers his Son. God offers to take you as a lamb.

And holds you close to his heart. And carry you Into green pastures. Why would you not call out to him to save you? What's not to love about a savior like that?

Amen. Pray with me What god is this? Our sins. Our unbelief Our idols.

And yet, Lord, we hear words of grace and comfort, words we need in those moments. You are a good God. A good shepherd Lord, I lift up those here. That are suffering in the wilderness, Lord, and I pray.

That you would meet them even in this moment. Lord, confirm this truth in their heart. Help them to see that you're making a way. Lord, carry them as a lamb.

Let them hear your heart. Bring others alongside. Lord make us a church of gospelizers of this truth. But build this body through the comfort that we bring to one another through your word.

And Father, I pray for any Here that don't know you Lord convict them of their sin. Draw them to you. And show them the wonder of the forgiveness that only you can provide. I thank you for the truth of your word.

The grace brought by the blood of our Savior Jesus Christ in whose name we pray. Amen.