All right, I will invite you, I'd like for you to open your Bibles tonight. I trust that you brought, did you bring your Bibles? I trust you brought your Bibles. If you didn't bring your Bibles, there's one there in the pew for you. But I would like for you to open your Bibles tonight. We're gonna go to 2 Corinthians and chapter number one. 2 Corinthians chapter number one will be our source text. I want to share with you a message tonight that kind of follows in a very real and very practical way, I believe anyway. It follows these last few messages that God led me to preach over the last couple of weeks here. Last week's message is on being a hero in your own faith. What does that mean? Well, that means you have to live out your faith no matter what comes. Whether it's good times or bad, you have to live your faith. And then the week before that was responding to God's help was the message. And so in a very real way tonight, I believe the message is a great follow-on. I've titled tonight's message, Dealing with Distress. Dealing with Distress. I've titled it that way because, as God would have it, recent events have really brought me face-to-face with the very essence of those themes and principles from the Word of God. You know, I find it interesting that when you stand on a principle of God, there is always an enemy that is just waiting to bring that right up in your face and find out are you going to stand where you profess to stand. So these real events here recently have indeed brought me to that place where I'm facing those very principles. I will testify that it is the grace of God that has made provision that these things, these things that we face, are by no means akin to the severity of what the Apostles may have faced. The Apostle Paul or maybe Peter or so many other believers even in our day today. So many people face so many difficulties and they are absolute difficulties. Most certainly recent events that I mentioned are not on par with the trials of Job. Oh boy, if you're on the reading schedule and right on track, you've just been reading through Job and you've seen some of the trials and all his so-called friends that came to counsel him and had done nothing but accuse him. I don't need friends like that, but nonetheless, yet what was Job's response when he heard these messengers' reports? You remember at the beginning of Job, one day A messenger came along and said, hey, Job, I've got some bad news for you. The Sabinians have come and taken away the ox and the cattle that killed the serpents. Well, not just one messenger came. Not two messengers came. Not even three came right after each other. But friends, do you realize that there was four messengers that came with some catastrophically bad news for Job. But what was Job's response when he heard all of these things, the last one being that your children have all been killed? Job said, the Lord gave and the Lord hath taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord. Then, when God allowed Job's personal health and his well-being to be so adversely affected, Job's wife came in and she said, dost thou still retain that integrity? Curse God and die! his own wife. What did Job respond? He said, what? Shall we receive good at the hand of God and shall we not receive evil? Now friends listen, be careful how we think about that question that Job just asked. Job is not saying that God is striking him down because God has something against Job. or that it is punishment for anything, Job's response is telling us, it's reminding us of two very important truths. One, God is ultimately in control and nothing good or bad will happen without God exercising his very specific purposes for everything that he does and everything that he allows to happen. God has very specific purposes for everything. Secondly, being a believer, being a faithful child of God does not mean that we will never have to deal with bad things happening in or around our life. Now that doesn't mean that God cannot be trusted or thanked even in the midst of those bad things. It means, as the Apostle Paul found out, and as was shown in that fiery furnace, you remember that account? What it means is that those are the times that we need to draw closer, trust more, and be extra thankful for God's promise when he said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. I, you know, sometimes I'm amazed at how we, Christians in general, will sometimes feel like, you know, first bad thing comes along, God, where are you? All of a sudden we feel like God has just abandoned us and left us out hanging out to dry. Friends, God said, I will never leave you nor forsake you. Well, with that, let's read our text here tonight because I want us to see some instruction, I think, that Paul is giving us, that God has inspired him. Our text is 2 Corinthians, chapter number 1, and we're going to read the first seven verses. The Bible here tells us, Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, unto the church of God which is at Corinth, with all the saints which are in Achaia. Grace be to you, and peace from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ. Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort, who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble. by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God. For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also aboundeth by Christ. And whether we be afflicted, it is for your consolation and salvation, which is effectual in the enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer. Or whether we be comforted, it is for your consolation and salvation. And our hope of you is steadfast, knowing that as ye are partakers of the sufferings, so shall ye be also of the consolation. Now having read our text, I'm sure that you have heard the age-old question, why do bad things happen to good people? Or maybe you've heard this one, how could a loving God let this happen? Oh boy. There are a whole bunch of issues in the assumptions made behind those questions. And most of the issues, friends, they stem from a lack of understanding of who God is, how God works, and what love is. Now, I will promise you that we're not going to answer all of those issues in tonight's message. We'd be here for six weeks or more. We will dive in briefly here to see the Apostle Paul's insight into at least part of the overall question concerning the distressing things that may happen in a believer's life. Let's pray. Our Father in heaven as we look to your word tonight Lord, there's no telling really what each and every one of us here tonight or what anyone that might be listening online tonight is facing. There's no telling the severity of an issue that they might be looking at. And yet Lord, we know the strength and the perfection that you are. And Lord God, as your children, as believers tonight, Help us to understand the instruction that you have in your word for us in how to deal with the distresses that come along in life. Father God, won't your spirit meet with us? Open our hearts. Bless us tonight. Help us to understand how we can have a greater testimony of your love through even the worst of times that we might face. May your will be done here tonight. We do ask in Jesus' name. Amen. Now I will tell you that the message here tonight, I believe, is really targeted toward, as Paul mentioned, to the Church of God and all the saints. Now that's those of us who have accepted Christ. That's those of us who believe that Jesus is the Son of God, that He died, was buried, and He rose again to forgive us our sins that we might have eternal life in heaven. That's who this message is targeting tonight. if there's any that are not part of that target group, if you want to say it that way, tonight's the night you could. Tonight's the night that we can get all that resolved and you can be a part of that and see how God will help you through whatever it is you might be facing. You don't have to try to face things on your own and struggle against it. Well, the first point tonight I think I do have three points, but the first point tonight, I believe the Apostle Paul is giving us an insight that the first thing we need to do to deal with distress is to remember. Remember. Now, where do I get that? Well, I believe that that insight given to Paul begins with a clear reminder for us as God's loved, redeemed, adopted, and spiritually growing children. It is a reminder that we must always and we must first remember to whom we belong. And who is in charge of all things concerning you and me? And us being conformed into the image of our Savior. Who's in charge of that? God. To whom do we belong? God he's our father he loves you and he loves me and if we didn't realize that he sent his only begotten son on our behalf. If God is in charge and he is if God has very specific purposes for all the things that he does and he does or all the things that he allows, then our first thought, when something unexpected and very distressful happens, should not be, oh great, I didn't need this in my life right now. That kind of a statement, friend, and can I just say that I hope that our responses are not anything more inappropriate or vulgar as believers. Oh great, now what? But I believe that kind of a statement is only a reflection and a clear indication that our mind is not always centered on God like it should be. Paul writes by inspiration of God that our first and always thought should be blessed be God even the father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the father of mercies. and the God of all comfort who comforted us in all our tribulation. That's what our text tells us in verses 3 and the very first part of verse 4. That's our first thought when something distressful comes along. It ought not to be great. Now what? No, our first thought ought to be bless God. He knew all about it all along and He's going to take care of me. Now let's be honest with ourselves. How many of us, I don't want to see a show of hands. Be honest with yourself because the Lord knows your thoughts and the intents of your heart anyway. So let's be honest with ourselves. How many of us respond like this, oh great, when something unexpected and really bad happens? Now I think we as Christians, we want to think But we can deal with our distresses calmly and very, do I dare say, piously. We want to, well God's got this under control. But you know what, down here in the heart sometimes we are just boiling. Sometimes when something really bad comes along it's like, I could just explode right now. But listen, believers, to whom do we belong? The God of heaven who created all of this and is in charge of everything. Does God love you? Does God love me? And is he going to take care of us? Yes, he is. So I think as Christians, we wanna think that we can deal with distress so calmly, but our real reactions are often more like, oh, come on, you've gotta be kidding me. Or even, what? Nobody's ever said any of that, have you? Never mind. And then we respond like that initially, and then we let anxiety, we let anger, we let frustration and all sorts of emotions take hold and get us so frazzled that we tend to make rash and illogical decisions about what to do next. Well, friends. Our text tonight, and we heard it this morning in the message, that was a great message this morning. We heard it this morning. Our text tonight is instruction in righteousness. And so this instruction here shows us that a right preparation for each day, a right preparation for each appointment, a right preparation for each Are you home? A right preparation for each phone call that we're about to have or a right preparation for each time we're about to start a conversation. The right preparation is to remember three things from verse number three. First, God loves you and me so much that he gave his only son Jesus to take the full penalty for your sin and mine. God loves us that much. He's not going to leave us in dire straits without an ability to help. or to have help from Him. Secondly in verse number three, so we saw verse number three said, Blessed be God even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. See that's where the first one comes in. He gave us His Son. It goes on to say the Father of mercies. So secondly tonight, because Jesus completed the full will of the Father, God is able to withhold those things that we deserve because of our actions. Because those things have been paid for in the blood of our Savior Jesus Christ. The Father of all mercies. God is merciful. Thirdly, we should remember tonight from verse number three, which finishes up and it says, and the God of all comfort. Thirdly, tonight, God is always with us through the good and through the bad. Walking along with us through all of our experiences. So when that something, something bad comes along and we say, what? God says, I'm, I'm, I'm still here. He walks along with us through all of our experiences so that he can help and so that he can comfort us when we need it. He's the God of all comfort, no matter what it is. It could be something, I don't know, you got a bad test grade and you thought you did great. I mean, or, you know, who knows, it could be you're driving to Pontiac, Michigan, and I don't know, woo, you're driving a little fast there, sir. That didn't happen. not trying to tell them fibs or anything, but no matter what it is, through all of our experiences, friends, God is right here. God is right here. Our text says that God is the God of all comfort. That means that there is no chance that something happens that God didn't already know about. Or, maybe I should say nor, that God doesn't know how to help us through and to be stronger in our faith on the other side of it. You know, sometimes we make these, call them foxhole confessions. God, if you help me out of this, I will, right? I mean, we sometimes get into really bad streets and we're saying, oh God, if you could just get me out of this, I'll never do whatever it is again. Well, don't be foolish. But do you ever consider that those things that we face, those things that we go through, that God will help us through, just might prepare us for something down the road? that either us, our children, our friends, our neighbors, something else is going to happen down the road and someone's going to need to know how to handle it. So it's by the grace of God, dear believer, that we face some things sometimes that God allows us to go through and goes through them with us. We need to remember, that's the first thing. Something really ugly and really distasteful, really distressful comes along. Remember, to whom do I belong? The God of all comfort. The Father of my Lord Jesus Christ. Secondly tonight, we need to reflect. First we need to remember, and secondly we need to reflect. Look with me at verse number four. Our text says, at the end of verse number three, in the God of all comfort, who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God. The Apostle Paul here is saying, listen, you've been through some things already in your life. Has not God brought you through those? Reflect on the things that God has helped you to navigate. Reflect on the things that God has brought you to and brought you through. I can't presume to say that if you are even I can't presume to say tonight that if you are in any sort of physical pain, then it is because you are not claiming the promise of this verse. I can't say that tonight because pain and physical pain are very real and I can't presume to say that you're not claiming this verse or that you're not praying hard enough or long enough. That's not for me to say. Because sometimes the pain that we have to feel and go through is by God's design. Why? I don't know necessarily. But God has a purpose for allowing everything that he allows. I can and I will say that God as he is holy, he is righteous, and God cannot lie. I will say that God's word is truth and that means that this verse number four is also truth. Even if there are some that cannot seem to find any comfort from the pain they have to endure. Well how can that be so? How can it be true? God comfort us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble. By the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God, I would ask each of us to consider all of the things we have faced in our lives up until and including right now. Then, as a child of God, can you say that God has not helped or comforted in those things? I say, yes, God has helped. Yes, God has comforted. You say, but what about the incredible excruciating pain that I'm in every single day? I'm so tired of the pain. I would add to that by virtue of you and me having endured to this point and are still here is evidence that God does help and comfort us. He strengthens us through all of it so that we can endure. I'm not gonna make light of very excruciating pain. Every day is a gift from God. Every breath is a gift from God. The pain that we might be in physically Are we so focused on the pain and not being able to get a comfort from the pain? And that focusing on that just makes it so much the worse. Or are we focused on the fact that God is right here with me and even though I'm in pain, I can still remember to whom do I belong? Who is it that's going to take me home and one day, oh boy, all this pain is going to be gone and I can endure because I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me. Where we fail, where we begin to feel like we cannot go on, is when we, like Peter, walking on the water in the midst of a terrible storm, takes his focus off of the Savior, even for the shortest glimpse of the turmoil and suffering surrounding us. And when Peter did that, He immediately was in danger of drowning. Friends, if our remembering doesn't bring us back to the place where we know that God is with us, if we look more and focus more at the pain and the suffering that we might be having to endure, our focus is not on God. And friends, we're in danger of drowning. Paul, here in our text, says, look at what God has already brought you through. and he is still working with us. He's still working on us. Then he goes on to remind us that God has done all this for us so that, and here's part of God's purpose, so that he can use us to help others who need God just as we need God. See, can I remind you? Acts chapter 1 verse 8 tells us this, but ye shall receive power after that the Holy Ghost has come upon you, and ye shall be witnesses unto me. That's the key to that entire verse. You shall receive power after the Holy Ghost has come upon you, and you shall be witnesses. That is our mission, folks. You don't have to go to nowhere, somewhere around the world that nobody's ever heard of to be a missionary. This is our mission. We're going to be missions. We're going to be mission-minded. We're going to be witnesses unto God. And in that verse, he said, there's a Jerusalem that's at home in Judea. That's in our neighborhood. That's in our city. That's in our state and in all some area and the outermost parts of the world. Our mission starts right here. Our mission might start right here in this room because friends, I don't know, maybe you're facing something right now that somebody else in here might be facing. I don't know. Through conversations, the way God leads, sometimes those conversations can come up between us. And the encouragement that we might have to offer need not be tucked away. And I'm just gonna hang on to this because, you know, I'm still going through it and, you know, well, yeah, and God's going through it with you. So Acts chapter 1 in verse 8 says, we shall receive power and we shall be witnesses unto God. The Holy Ghost, friends. Did you know that the other name, another name for the Holy Ghost is the Great Comforter? Oh, come on now. You tied that right back into the whole comfort thing. Yes, I did. Because God did. The Holy Ghost is the Great Comforter. And as Jesus told his disciples, he said, I will pray to the Father and he will give you another comforter. You see, our mission, as we reflect on why God would offer so great a gift as our salvation, our mission is to be witnesses unto him. Now look again here at verse number four, it says, who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble. By the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God. Now so it goes, if we are to comfort others by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God, then we must be in line to face some things which are going to require that we be comforted of God. Oh. Oh, that means I am gonna have to face some things. And I am gonna have to endure them. And I am gonna have to allow God to help me. Only God knows what these things might be, but rest assured, rest assured, friends, believers, just as God has brought us through all the past, he will go with us through all that is ahead, all that we're facing. So first, we must remember. Second, we must reflect. Thirdly tonight, we must rejoice. Wait, what? Hold on. Rejoice because of distress? Yes, as a matter of fact. Where did I get that? 2 Corinthians chapter 1 verses 5 through 7. Now look at what Paul says. He says, For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also abounded by Christ. Whether we be afflicted It is for your consolation and salvation, which is effectual in the enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer. Or whether we be comforted, it is for your consolation and salvation. Our hope of you is steadfast, knowing that as you are partakers of the suffering, so shall you be also of the consolation. God's exhortation to us through Paul here has a few parts to it. What is he saying? First, We can rejoice because our Savior suffered everything that we do and he conquered it all. Therefore, our Savior knows just how to help us through it. Isn't that good? When you face something, you don't know how to get through it. There is one that knows. Do we go to him? Or do we say, well, I'm just gonna figure it out as I go. Well, that's kind of foolish. When the help is right here. Sometimes when it seems all hope is lost. When it seems there's no possible way we could be joyful. Friends, when it seems like that, remember all hope is not lost. Because Jesus is alive. And Jesus, the Bible tells us, is in heaven right now interceding on your behalf and mine. That means he's praying to the Father for us. Jesus himself is praying for you and for me. He's praying on our behalf to the Father and he's working with us through the Holy Spirit of God. That's why the Holy Spirit has come. Our great Comforter has been given to us. And if we will go to him and ask for that power to fill us to endure. Friends, God's going to grant the power to get through if we will focus on our Savior's second here tonight. Paul rejoices in that he and Timothy and the other disciples are counted worthy to be put through the afflictions because it only serves to make them better able to help others. He wrote later on in this letter The Lord said to me, my grace is sufficient for thee, for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Paul says, most gladly, therefore, I rather glory in my infirmities that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore, he says, I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong. And his point there is that when I am weak and when I know that I can't handle it, and I get on my knees before my Savior, my Savior strengthens me and then I am strong because God is working and taking me through this. Thirdly tonight, Paul says that we can rejoice knowing that we are not alone in what we face. Look, verse 7 says, and our hope of you is steadfast knowing that as ye are partakers of the sufferings. He said we, we're afflicted and we're comforted, and we know that you're also partaking of those sufferings. You're not alone in what you might be going through. Knowing, he says, that as ye are partakers, so shall you be also of the consolation. As Christians, dealing with distresses in this life ought never to surprise us or hinder us in our daily life and walk with the Lord. The first step is to remember who resides and abides within each of us. Turn with me over to chapter number four, 2 Corinthians, just chapter number four, just a couple of pages from where we are. Now I get it. When something suddenly comes along and it surprises us and it's an ugly and it's a nasty and it's a really distressing thing, our initial reaction might in fact be, are you kidding me? What in the world? But as the moment that we recognize ourselves doing that, we need to get back and remember, wait a minute, I belong to the King of Kings. I belong to the God of all comfort, and I belong to the one who will take care of me. Reflect on what God has given us, what God has done for us. Rejoice that we are still in his care. 2 Corinthians chapter 4, look with me at verse number 10. No, excuse me, verse number 6, I'm sorry. Let's start in verse number 6. for God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God and not of us. He says in verse number eight, we are troubled on every side, yet not, Paul says, distressed. We are perplexed but not in despair. We are persecuted in verse 9 but not forsaken, cast down but not destroyed in verse number 9. And he writes in verse 10, always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body. You see that verse number 10 says that we are going to face some things that are distressing, always bearing about the sufferings that Christ faced, so that we can also always bear the rejoicing that Christ is alive and working on our behalf. You see, friends, our responses in dealing with distress may not always be as we might hope initially. But if we will immediately remember, reflect, and rejoice in the living God who abides with us, then that light, the light that has shined in our hearts, will indeed shine through the darkness that we're facing to show others the way to deal with their distresses. But it takes a mature Christian and it takes us to remember. It takes reflecting and it takes rejoicing in our heart always. Now as I was reading through this, or studying this rather, as I was reading through this passage, a song came to my mind. And I might sing it, I don't know, but I want you to, you probably know the song. But I want to read the first couple of verses and maybe, just maybe, we'll all sing the last verse together, or at least the chorus, but listen to these words. I've had many tears and sorrows. I've had questions for tomorrow. There's been times I didn't know right from wrong. But in every situation, God gave me blessed consolation that my trials come to only make me strong. The second verse says, I've been to lots of places. I've seen lots of faces. There's been times I felt so all alone. But in my lonely hours, yes, those precious lonely hours, Jesus lets me know that I was his own. The third verse says, I thank God for the mountains, and I thank him for the valleys, and I thank him for the storms he's brought me through. For if I'd never had a problem, I wouldn't know that God could solve them. I'd never know what faith in God could do. Let's sing it together. Through it all, through it all. I've learned to trust in Jesus. I've learned to trust in God. Through it all, through it all, I've learned to depend upon his word. God wants to take care of us, friends. God allows for things to happen, distresses to happen in our life so that we can help others who also need the help of God. And we are the tools that God might use to help them. Pastor, would you close the service?