Fathers of God’s Comfort
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.”
2 Corinthians 1:3-4
Fathers, God’s mercy towards us is not merely given for our own comfort in affliction, but so that we might also display His mercy as we comfort others.
I am not a very compassionate person by nature. My first reaction is typically truth before grace. While I am thankful for the ways God has allowed me to speak truth for His glory, I am called to give a lot more than just truth. If I am going to display the character of God in its fullest expression, I also need to extend mercy and give comfort to those around me. Real mercy that brings comfort to those who receive, only comes when we are extending to others the same mercy and comfort that we have received from God.
As believers who know the hope of the gospel—what Jesus endured for our sake in order to save us—we can and should display His mercy to those around us. As we walk through the trials and difficulties of life, God allows us to experience His comfort in deeper ways, so that we are more equipped to extend His comfort to others.
I am the father of five children here on earth, and two with their eternal Father. I would never wish miscarriage or infant loss on anyone. It has been one of the hardest seasons of my life. But because of this great loss, I am a better husband, father, son, brother, pastor, and friend. Why? Because I have experienced God’s mercy and comfort more fully, which has allowed me to comfort others in a much deeper way.
Fathers, we need to understand something. We share a name with God. The creator of the universe has given us the honor of sharing a title with Him. When we try to understand our role as a father, we need to look to God the Father as our role model. Thankfully we are not left on our own to figure this out. Paul teaches us in 2 Corinthians that our God is the Father of all mercies and God of all comfort.
There are several things we, as earthly fathers, can learn from this profound truth.
We have received the promise of God’s mercy and comfort.
We have been given mercy and comfort in abundance. As fathers who have experienced the loss of a child, we can lean into this promise of comfort. Our heavenly Father looks on us in compassion and is ready to extend the mercy and comfort we need in the midst of our pain and sorrow. We need only look at the cross to be reminded of just how far God will go in order to offer His mercy to us.
God is the source of all comfort.
Not just some or most, but all. There may be times when you are comforted by your wife, kids, friends, or family, but those are gifts from God for our comfort. We must understand that our comfort comes from the hand of God alone. When we search for comfort in anything else, it won’t satisfy. When we expect our comfort to come from others, we are asking them to fill a role that only God can fill in our lives. In the end, our search for comfort apart from God will only end in destruction and disappointment.
God comforts us in all our affliction.
There is not a moment when God is not willing or able to comfort us. I remember when my wife and I found out that we had miscarried for the second time. We were sitting on our couch at a complete loss. I had no idea how to comfort my own soul, let alone my wife’s. All I knew how to do was to cry out to God and ask Him to provide what I could not. As the days, weeks, and months went on, I continued to lean into God for the mercy and comfort only He could give, and God began to fill my heart, giving me a deeper experience and understanding of comfort. We can be confident that as we lean into God, He will comfort us in all of our afflictions.
We have been given the responsibility to extend comfort to others.
God gives us mercy and comfort in affliction so that we can comfort other people in a deeper way. God comforts us with a purpose beyond ourselves, which gives our afflictions a greater purpose. We are called to give to others that which we have received from God ourselves. What a great honor this is—extending the comfort of God to those around us!
Fathers, we need to direct our wives and families to the promise of God’s comfort, and as we extend mercy and comfort to those around us, we need to point them back to the source of that comfort. We need to understand what it means to give of ourselves to comfort others, even when it hurts. As we more fully grasp that we share a name and role with God, our heavenly Father, it gives us the motivation and strength to do what He has called us to do.
As God brings you through affliction, let Him be the mercy and comfort you need, and let Him grow your capacity to care for other people. Look for opportunities to be bestow comfort on others.
Men, our role as fathers is to represent our heavenly Father. When others see us, they really ought to be seeing God. God will give you all the mercy and comfort you need for every affliction you endure, but don’t let that comfort end with you. Don’t simply hold on to the care you have received. Let it grow you and make you better at caring for those God has given you opportunity to care for.
This Father’s Day choose to be a conduit of God’s mercy and comfort to those around you.
- Jesse
Hope Dad to Simeon and Odelle
Jesse Schmidt is the Church Planter and Lead Pastor of Vertical Church in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Jesse and his wife Ashlee, have five children on earth, and two little ones in Heaven. Jesse is passionate about seeing lives transformed by the gospel and encouraging believers to grow in their love for God and His people.
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