"Has the LORD redeemed you? Then speak out! Tell others he has redeemed you from your enemies" (Psalm 107:2).
Congratulations on finishing the Depression course! It has been my prayer in these lessons that you would find help and comfort in the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to pass this hope on to others, "God our Savior and of Christ Jesus our hope!" (1 Timothy 1:1).
For today’s lesson, let’s begin by considering 2 Corinthians 1:3-5:
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, [4] 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. [5] For as we share abundantly in Christ's sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too. 2 Corinthians 1:3-5 (ESV)
Question 1. According to 2 Corinthians 1:3-5, how is God the Father described?
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Paul speaks to the Corinthians in praise to God “the Father of mercies”, and “the God of all comfort”, who comforts us. The stated reason as to why God comforts us is “so that we may be able to comfort others with the comfort we’ve received in Jesus.”
Did you notice how we share in Christ’s sufferings and how that through Christ we share in His comfort? Essentially, we find comfort in the gospel and then share with others.
How can we not be comforted by the gospel? Let’s take a few minutes now to look to the cross of our Savior and see the comforts we find there which are so powerful for the consolation of our hearts. We can find a clear description in Isaiah 53. Look first at Isaiah 53:3-4 (ESV), “He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. [4] Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted.”
Question 2. According to Isaiah 53:3-4, what did Christ suffer on our behalf? How does that comfort you just now?
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Tori writes, "He carried our griefs and sorrows. He was despised and rejected. This truly is one of the biggest fears of all humanity (rejection, to be despised, to not belong). It comforts me because Jesus came down and he felt the deepest of human pain and rejection for me, so I can be healed of this, so I don’t have to feel the fear, so I can trust that my savoir experienced it for me so I could be free. And he conquered it, thank you Jesus for your sacrifice. Thank you that you experienced all this so you can not only sympathize with me but also show me how to not be overcome by it. Thank you Jesus!"
Bryan writes, "He carried our burdens. He was despised and rejected; a man of sorrows and grief; he was despised my man. Thinking about these words and what Jesus felt allows me to find a comfort in my heart. As I have mentioned before knowing he came down and he felt the deepest human pain, pains I have experienced and still do to this day I know that Jesus can not only sympathize with me but also show me how to not be overcome by it. He went ahead of me through his love, sacrificed his life on earth so that I could have a place to come and find freedom."
Ntlibi writes, "He was despised and rejected. He was a man of sorrows and was acquainted with grief. He bore our griefs and carried our sorrows. The result of all his suffering is that he knows intimately what I am going through. Not only that, he has made a way for my healing. I know that I am healed because of his sacrifice on the cross; He purchased my freedom from depression with his blood."