The bible speaks about comfort in many different ways. Primarily, the Holy Spirit is known as The Comforter.

Jesus, in John 14:16, tells His disciples that he will ask the Father to send “another Comforter” The Greek word for Comforter in this verse is Paráklētos, from which we get the little-used, transliterated English word paraclete. A paraclete is not a little bird, it is one who is called in to help. Literally, one who comes along side you in a time of distress to comfort and help you or to advocate on your behalf. Other translations substitute the word Counselor, Advocate or Helper for Paraclete.

Other interesting facts about this word for those interested

Take a look at this link: http://bible.cc/john/14-16.htm Notice that every instance of the word, no matter the translation, is capitalized. This is because it is a proper name for the Holy Spirit.

John is the only writer to use this word in the NT. Five times. (John 14:16, John 14:26; John 15:26; John 16:7; 1 John 2:1) Given his long life and imprisonment, he uniquely understood the meaning of comfort in Christ.

Look at the context of John chapter 14: The disciples are disconsolate at the thought of Jesus leaving them and are in need of a true comforter. This is not going to be one who makes them feel tranquil or (God forbid!) lethargic. Jesus uses the word another to communicate that the Comforter will do what Jesus himself did for the disciples; encourage them, push them and hearten them.

All this background brings us to this quotation:

Comfort is… that which encourages and nerves, not in the modern sense of that which tranquilizes and enervates. The quest for ‘comfort’ in the modern sense is self-indulgent, sentimental and unreal; and the modern ‘I-go-to church-for-comfort’ religion is not Christianity. – J.I. Packer, Knowing God, Chapter 22.

If the modern notion of comfort was what Jesus meant in John 14:16, then the disciples might have settled down far from Jerusalem, perhaps somewhere in the vicinity of Capernaum. They probably would have arranged for themselves to be elders in a couple of churches, and lived a comfortable lifestyle made possible by the generous believers who lived nearby.

And Christianity would have died out within two generations.

Jesus sent His disciples the Comforter, the Holy Spirit, who didn’t do anything that would look comfortable to our modern sensibilities. Observe:

• The Comforter spurred the apostles to travel far from home, to every known continent at the time. The modern notion of comfort is antithetical to travel; even more so in the Middle East in the first Century.

• The Comforter directed and enabled some of the apostles (notably Peter, Matthew and John) to write down all that they remembered of Christ Jesus and to further instruct His followers in His ways. Putting their names on what was considered subversive literature (to the Romans and to the Jews) brought them under constant persecution.

• The Comforter guided Peter and the other apostles to preach the Gospel in the temple courts in Jerusalem. The Sadduces had them jailed, brought before the council and flogged. They went away rejoicing. (Acts 5:17ff)

• The Comforter compelled Paul to write more and travel more (as far as we know) than any of the other apostles. He was imprisoned, beaten, stoned, shipwrecked and lost at sea. He lived through sleepless nights, severe hunger, thirst, cold and exposure. (2 Cor. 11:23ff) Through all this, he said he was content. (2 Cor. 12:10)

• The Comforter led Stephen to speak the truth of the Gospel to the powerful Sanhedrin (the High Priests and Scribes of Jerusalem). He didn’t withhold any hard facts and ended his sermon with an accusation of deceit, lawbreaking and murder against them and their fathers. They killed him for it (Acts 7:1ff), and as he was being stoned, Stephen prayed, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.”

These are just a few of the uncomfortable situations that The Comforter guided the apostles to and through in the first century.

At his death, the Spirit gave Stephen a heart for forgiveness. After being beaten severely, the Spirit gave the apostles a heart for rejoicing. Under constant persecution, the Spirit gave the New Testament writers the courage to continue spreading the Good News. Through all his hardships, the Spirit taught Paul to boast of his weaknesses and to be content in every situation.

What kind of comfort do you seek from the Holy Spirit?

Is it the warm, fuzzy emotion you have when you walk out of church on Sunday feeling happy because they sang your favorite songs? Or is it the resilience to keep a cheerful spirit as you care for a chronically ill relative.

Is it the peaceful feeling you get because you know the pastor skips difficult bible verses and never says anything that makes you feel uneasy? Or is it the conviction to stop a sinful behavior that you love, because you know it’s wrong.

Is it the confidence of knowing that through education and skill you can accomplish your goals? Or is it the brokenness of knowing that our days are numbered just like the hairs on our head and everything is in God’s hands.

Many Christians are too comfortable (self-indulgent and sentimental), and yet desperately in need of a comfort (invigoration and encouragement) that only the Holy Spirit can provide.

Please join me in praying that the Holy Spirit will give us the comfort we need, rather than the comfort we seek.

I have been driven many times upon my knees by the overwhelming conviction that I had nowhere else to go. My own wisdom, and that of all about me, seemed insufficient for the day. – Abraham Lincoln

Drive me to my knees, Lord Jesus. Drive me to my knees.

• You hear my Pharisaical prayers; thanking you that I am not like other sinners.
• You see me try to hide my selfishness; camouflaging it with pious works.
• You know the pride that wells up in my heart; like a spring of acrid water from the stony ground.

Drive me to my knees, Holy Spirit. Drive me to my knees.

• You hear my feeble pleas and groanings; and understand what’s in my heart.
• You see my sinful self as I really am; not as I present myself to the world.
• You know my confessions are incomplete; I’m not even aware of all the sins I should repent from.

Drive me to my knees, Dear Father. Drive me to my knees.

• You hear my hurtful words against Your image bearers.
• You see my shameful acts that reflect so poorly upon You.
• You know me better than I know myself.

Drive me to my knees, O God. Drive me to my knees.

Beware of no one more than of yourself; we carry our worst enemies within us. – C.H. Spurgeon

Drive me to my knees, O Lord; so I can know Your grace.
Listen to my pleas, Dear Lord; and let me seek Your face.
Take my sins away, O Lord; as east is from the west.
Drive me to my knees, Dear Lord; in You I find true rest.

James 4:10 – Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.

Not long ago, I was enjoying a shower-free Saturday and working a little harder than usual in the basement. Just before dinner, I was sitting at the computer and I noticed an odd aroma. At first, I didn’t know what it was, and then it dawned on me that it was me. I immediately shuffled off to the shower before I spoiled my family’s dinner.

Until you smell yourself, you don’t even suspect that you might need a shower. The problem is, other people can smell you long before you can smell yourself. For some reason, we’re somewhat immune to our own scent and we don’t even suspect that we might reek until we’ve been really stinky for a really, really long time.

It is no different with our sin. We are somewhat immune to noticing the stench of our own sins until we’ve allowed them to pollute our lives almost completely. Before I was saved, I was great at comparing myself to other stinking, sinning people and convincing myself that I didn’t smell as bad as they did. Some people, some nominal Christians, go through their entire lives this way. They’re kind of like the ‘deadheads’ of old, thinking a little patchouli oil (good works) will cover up the smell.

God knew that I was rotten to the core and His Holy Spirit convicted me of my sins and let me smell myself for the first time. He put it into my mind (and my nostrils) that I definitely needed a shower. He did that through a preacher who could smell me and was bold enough to tell me that I stank. God also made it clear that no water on earth could wash me as clean as I needed to be. Only the blood of Jesus, the Lamb of God could wash my soul spotlessly clean. Revelation 7:14

Though I still enjoy a shower-free Saturday once in a while and like to think I don’t smell *that* bad, I am much more attuned to the smell of my own sins. Praise God that He rescued me from the patchouli-tainted works of my “carnal Christian” life and led me to trust completely in His Amazing Grace.