The Comfort of the Church

“This is the one I esteem: he who is humble and contrite in spirit, and trembles at my word.”
Isaiah 66:2b

“As a mother comforts her child, so will I comfort you; and you will be comforted over Jerusalem.”
Isaiah 66:13

Last week we considered the mark of a true church. The true church is characterized by trembling at God’s word. That does not mean some physical tremor; it is an eagerness to hear, believe, and do God’s word. The faith and life of the true church is regulated by the authority of God’s infallible word given to us by the Holy Spirit.

We recently heard of the Episcopal Church voting at its triennial convention to approve as a bishop Gene Robinson, a man who was once married but is now a practicing homosexual. According to a report in The Wall Street Journal by Katherine Kersten (August 8, 2003), this church “tossed aside 2,000 years of bedrock Christian teaching about marriage, the family and sexuality.” During the conference the bishops “appeared to embrace a new gospel, heavily influenced by America’s secular, therapeutic culture” with its message of inclusion and affirmation.

According to this report, this church is saying that Jesus came to make us feel good about ourselves as we are, not “to save his people from their sins,” as the Bible declares. This church is saying Jesus accepts us exactly as we are, without any change required. This flies in the face of traditional Christianity, which teaches that Jesus came that we may repent and be transformed. What this church is saying is this: Do not feel guilty about sin; you should be happy, so sin more. According to this church, we should bless same-sex partnerships so everyone feels included because “God is love. He doesn’t care about the gender of the people we love.” God is love, but he is also holy.

According to this report, the doctrine of Scripture is crumbling in the face of the gospel of inclusion and affirmation of all deviancies as good. Thus, the newly approved bishop describes his relationship with his homosexual partner as “sacramental” because, he says, in his partner’s “unfailing and unquestioning love for me, I experience just a little bit of the kind of never-ending, never-failing love that God has for me.” This man is saying that as he practices sodomy, he is experiencing the love of God. This is blasphemy.

Ms. Kersten correctly states, “[T]he new gospel subordinates thinking to ‘feelings.'” In the debate on this issue, one of the church officers said that they do not believe in the Scripture, but in the Holy Spirit speaking through the community. In fact, this church claims that God is doing a new thing on earth through the Holy Spirit. What is that new thing? Introducing his people to sodomy. But the Holy Spirit is holy. He is the Spirit of holiness; he is the Spirit of truth, who authored the Scripture and never contradicts it. This vote demonstrates that majority of the bishops of this church do not tremble at the word of God.

What does the Holy Spirit really say about sodomy? We find the answer in the Scriptures, which say sodomy is abomination in the sight of God, and sodomites are excluded from the kingdom of God. In Revelation 22:15 we read, “Outside are the dogs. . . .” This refers to Deuteronomy 23:18, where sodomites are called dogs, and is related to 1 Corinthians 6:9-10, which says sodomites are excluded from the kingdom of God. They are under divine judgment (Romans 1:26-27).

This church is saying that no longer it accepts the Scripture as standard; instead, it is now listening to the Holy Spirit, whose will, it says, is to embrace homosexuality as a good, new thing God is doing, as a charismatic gift that select people receive for the good of the church. Churches that believe such lies of the devil and refuse to tremble at God’s word are synagogues of Satan. They are false churches, ripe for God’s judgment.

Who Are “My Servants”?

In this study we want to consider the blessing and comfort that comes to those who do tremble at the word of God. First, God calls them “my servants” in Isaiah 65:13-14 and “my chosen people” in Isaiah 65:9. We must not call ourselves God’s servant unless we tremble at the word of God and do eagerly what it tells us. Servants of Jesus Christ will hear and do what their master tells them to do all of their lives.

In any church where the word of God is preached, there are two groups of people, represented by two concentric circles. The inner circle represents people who truly tremble at the word of God-hearing it, believing it, and doing it, thereby pleasing God. The outer circle represents people who hear the word but they never do it. They are false believers, not God’s servants.

God speaks of false believers in Isaiah 65:2: “All day long I have held out my hands to an obstinate people who walk in ways not good, pursuing their own imaginations.” Rather than pursuing the word of God, they pursue their corrupt, fallen reasoning. In verse 12 he says, “I will destine you for the sword and you will bend down for the slaughter for I called but you did not answer, I spoke, but you did not listen.” Though these people are in the church, they are unresponsive to God. Additionally, Isaiah says they are rebellious (66:24) and idolatrous (65:3). God says they are a people “who continually provoke me to my very face, offering sacrifices in gardens” in worship of their idols.

Such people do not tremble at the word of God. When the ministers speak to them, not only do they lack humility, repentance, and responsiveness, but they are filled with arrogance. False believers reject the word of God and practice what the Scripture forbids. God does not call such people “my servants.”

But true believers are called “my servants.” Such people hear the word of God and run to do it with pleasure. The reward for such obedience is found in Isaiah 64:5: “You come to the help of those who gladly do right.” God himself comes down to help, deliver, save, guide, and bless those who do his word gladly.

God Provides for His Servants

In Isaiah 65:13-14 we find this description of those who tremble at God’s word and those who do not:

Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: “My servants will eat, but you will go hungry; my servants will drink, but you will go thirsty; my servants will rejoice, but you will be put to shame; my servants will sing out of the joy of their hearts, but you will cry out from anguish of heart and wail in brokenness of spirit.”

God delights in meeting all the needs of his people, described here in terms of eating and drinking. They experience God’s salvation and are satisfied. That is why they rejoice. But those who are disobedient are excluded from this blessing. A person can be in the midst of the church but excluded from eating of the divinely provided banquet.

In Isaiah 25:6 we read, “On this mountain the Lord Almighty will prepare a feast of rich food for all peoples, a banquet of aged wine-the best of meats and the finest of wines.” This is speaking about the glory and fullness of God’s salvation for his people in Jesus Christ. Isaiah 53 speaks of the making of this great banquet by Christ’s substitutionary death on the cross, and in Isaiah 55:1-2 we find the invitation to the banquet: “Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come buy wine and milk without money and without cost.” The general call of God goes out, and all of a sudden certain people tremble, humble, and are brokenhearted. When such people come to the feast, they are saved and strengthened so they can rejoice and sing. Such people will be unafraid even of death, because God has given them eternal life.

But those who are not “my servants” will be excluded. In Luke 14:24 Jesus said, “I tell you, not one of those men who were invited will get a taste of my banquet” because they will not respond to the gracious call of God in Jesus Christ. In Matthew 8:11-12 he said, “I say to you that many will come from the east and the west and will take their places at the feast with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. But the subjects of the kingdom will be thrown outside into the darkness where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

God Gives Peace to His Servants

Second, those whom God calls “my servants” will experience peace. In Isaiah 66:12 we read, “For this is what the Lord says: I will extend peace to her like a river.” That is speaking about abundance of peace, not an intermittently flowing stream.

The great rivers of the world are so wide that one cannot see from shore to shore. That is the picture we have here: an abundance of never-ending peace flooding our souls. Even in the midst of tribulation and pain, a Christian will experience the peace of God that passes all human understanding guarding his heart and mind.

Isaiah 53:5 tells us this peace comes because of the death of the Messiah for our sins: “The punishment that brought us peace was upon him.” Having been secured for us by the death of Jesus Christ in our behalf, peace is now offered to those who tremble at his word.

Isaiah 53:11 tells us, “After the suffering of his soul, he will see the light of life and be satisfied; by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many.” So we read in Romans 5:1, “Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

In Isaiah 60:17 God tells us, “I will make peace your governor and righteousness your ruler.” There is a connection between this verse and what Paul wrote in Philippians 4:7: “And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” In the midst of all of life’s storms and troubles and persecutions and slander and hunger and thirst, the peace that transcends all human reasoning will govern the heart of a child of God. Everything may be going against him, as it was for Paul as he was taken out to be beheaded, and for Peter, who was crucified. Yet the peace of God was governing their hearts. The martyrs of the church experienced this peace, and it is for us also-for us who tremble at the word of God.

God Comforts His Servants

Third, we read that God comforts his servants. In Isaiah 66:13 we are told, “As a mother comforts her child, so will I comfort you and you will be comforted in Jerusalem.” If you are a true servant of God , God will comfort you.

All Persons of the Godhead are involved in giving us comfort. In 2 Corinthians 1:3 we read, “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. . . .” Here we see that God the Father is committed to our comfort. In Isaiah 61:1-2 we are told about the ministry of the Son: “The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn. . . .” And Jesus Christ taught that the Holy Spirit, whom he would send in the name of the Father, is ourparaklêtos, or comforter. He is our defense attorney, called to our side to help us.

Not only does the triune God give comfort to his children, but also the church comforts them. In Isaiah 40:1 we read, “Comfort, comfort my people, says your God.” In Isaiah 52:7 we read, “How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, ‘Your God reigns!'” PGM This is speaking about ministers of the gospel bringing comfort to God’s people by proclaiming the redemption planned by the Father, accomplished by the Son, and applied to every elect by the Holy Spirit.

In 2 Corinthians 1:4 we read that God “comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.” We are to comfort others with the comfort we receive from God. Remember the feeding of the five thousand? Jesus told his disciples to feed the people, but they did not have the resources. But when Jesus gave them the food, they could feed the crowd. In the same way, as we receive the word of God, we can then declare it to others so they also may be comforted.

The Nature of God’s Comfort

In Isaiah 66:13 we read, “As a mother comforts her child, so will I comfort you and you will be comforted in Jerusalem.” In the NIV it says “over Jerusalem” but we can also read it as “in Jerusalem.” We want to point out three things in this verse.

First, it is God himself who comforts us. Those who declare the gospel are simply channels of comfort; God is the source. Salvation is of the Lord, but it comes through us to you. This comfort is found especially in the promises of God’s word. Thus, when a preacher declares the gospel without fear, under the anointing of the Holy Spirit, with precision and clarity, it will be full of comfort for God’s people. However, we must open the package of God’s word to experience God’s comfort. We do so by adding faith to the word of God and doing it.

Second, it says God will comfort us “as a mother.” How does a mother comfort a child? She fondly takes the child to her bosom and speaks words of love. She hugs, kisses, caresses, and feeds the child with appropriate food. She does so with great sympathy, not standing aloof and offering comfort from a distance. She feels every pain of her child. She gives this comfort tirelessly, assiduously, picking the child up and dandling him, first on one knee, then the other. She sings to him and prays for him, trying to comfort him in every possible way. She does so without complaint, being ever-ready to respond to the needs of her child. She does this in every season of life, even after the child grown and married and has children of his own. So when that child has trouble, he can go to his mother. If she is a believer, she will have something to say that will go into his very heart and steady him. She will not speak out of her own imagination, but will point the child to God who is faithful.

Such is the love of God for us, says Spurgeon: It has no bottom, no summit, no shore. He loves us as he loves his own Son. We are in his heart; we are the apple of his eye; we are graven upon the palm of his hand; we are his treasure. A human mother may fail, forget, and forsake her children. But our God never fails, never forgets, and never forsakes us.

The third point we notice is that this comfort is to be found “in Jerusalem.” Jerusalem stands for the church, so comfort is to be found in the church. In Psalm 73 we find Asaph troubled and depressed until he went into the temple of God, where he was greatly comforted. In Romans 15:4 we read, “For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.”

We find this idea in the Westminster Confession of Faith:

The visible church, which is also the catholic or universal under the gospel, consists of all those throughout the world that profess the true religion; and of their children: and is the kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ, the house and family of God, out of which there is no ordinary possibility of salvation.

Unto this catholic visible church Christ hath given the ministry, oracles, and ordinances of God, for the gathering and perfecting of the saints, in this life, to the end of the world: and doth, by his own presence and Spirit, according to his promise, make them effectual thereunto.

(Westminster Confession of Faith, Chapter 25, Articles 2-3)

The word of God is proclaimed in the assembly of God’s people. By faith we must call upon the Lord to be saved, but faith comes by hearing the word preached by God-sent preachers in the church.

When Jesus Christ came into this earth, he comforted people. The blind, the lepers, the demonized, the bent-over, the poor, the prisoners-they all came to him and received comfort. So we must come to him in the church to receive comfort. Jesus said, “Where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them” (Matthew 18:20).

In 1 Corinthians 14:3 Paul says the church comes together and prophesies for the comfort of God’s people. Hebrews 10:25 tells us, “Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another-and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” We must come together to spur one another on, to comfort one another, and to encourage one another.

Only in the church will we find the great feast that will satisfy the hunger and thirst of God’s people. Isaiah uses the analogy of a nursing infant: “You will nurse and be satisfied at her comforting breasts; you will drink deeply and delight in her overflowing abundance,” which, in the Hebrew, is “in the nipple of her glory” (66:11). What does that mean? It means the church has sufficiency for all our needs. From the breast of the church we can suck until we are satisfied. This overflowing abundance is provided by our triune God.

In Acts 2:42-47 we find the fulfillment of Isaiah 66:13:

They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.

The church which is faithful in preaching the gospel is like full, comforting breasts are to infants. But in many churches the breasts are dried up and the people are starving to death. People should get out of such churches and go where the mark of a true church is found. They must leave the synagogues of Satan and go practice the true faith elsewhere.

Comfort is not found in the prevailing culture of the world or in secular philosophy. True comfort is found in the gospel of Christ and in the church of Christ. True comfort comes from knowing that Christ died for our sins and was raised for our justification; that the punishment for our peace was upon him; and that by his stripes we are healed. As the gospel is faithfully proclaimed, the Holy Spirit will apply salvation to each elect. As such people listen to and believe the gospel, they will receive health for their souls.

If comfort is found in the church, we may draw the following conclusions:

1. If you do not come to a true church, you will have no comfort. You will be spiritually starved and will not grow in your Christian life.
2. If you come only once in a while, you also will starve. After all, you do not eat physical food only once in a while, do you?
3. If you come regularly to a good church but go to sleep or are otherwise distracted during the sermon, you will starve to death and not grow at all.
4. If you like to jump fences and not go to any one church, you will not only starve to death but you will commit intolerable sins.
5. Those who come to church and hear the word of God but do not believe or act upon it will not experience God’s comfort. We must combine the word with faith to enter into the comfort of divine rest. Jesus told us, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness; they will be filled.”

Are You Part of God’s True Church?

Jesus is the source of all blessing. “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him” (John 7:37-38). In the true church the triune God extends peace like a river for all who come-an abundance of never-ending peace, coming from the Prince of peace, who suffered and died in our place to make it a reality. Psalm 46 tells us there is a river that makes glad the city of God. The city of God is the people of God. Jerusalem is the city of God with a river, which is God himself.

There is a feast prepared by the triune God for his people, for those who are humble and of broken spirit and who tremble at his word. Such people will come hungering and thirsting for the spiritual feast. As newborn infants, they will crave for the sincere milk of the word.

In Isaiah 65 we read, “My servants will eat. . . my servants will drink. . . my servants will rejoice. . . . my servants will sing.” God’s servants will receive comfort from the breast of the church. What are these comforts? Effectual calling, regeneration, repentance, saving faith, justification, adoption, sanctification, and, finally, glorification. These are the comforting elements of God’s prepared feast. We have tasted it, and it is good. It gives us peace, joy, strength, vitality, power, encouragement, and hope. We do not need to run after the world, craving for sodomy, adultery, and greed.

What about you? If you are not God’s servant, you have come to the right place. Here peace like a river is offered to you through the word of God. If you repent and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, you will become his servants. Then you will eat and you will drink, you will rejoice, you will sing, and you will die in faith.

If you are a Christian, I hope you become like a little child and start sucking. When you hear the word of God, believe it, tremble at it, and eagerly do it. Then you will grow in grace and in the knowledge of Jesus Christ. Amen.