“Let’s get comfortable.” Isn’t that great thing? Oversized Tee shirt, loose shorts, perfect temperature, favorite show, and something to eat! That is comfortable. Being with people you know in a familiar place, no pressure, that’s comfortable.
How about this, a soft bed, a warm comforter, a full attack of the sandman and no schedule, let the sleeping begin. Sign me up! Oh hallelujah that Jesus said He will “give you another Comforter, that He may abide with you forever!” Wow! God wants us to be warm and cozy and comfortable! He has even dispatched the third person of the Trinity to make us comfortable! As a buddy of mine used to say, “Prob-lee!”
There is as much difference between Comforter and Comfortable as there is between Portuguese and Porky-Jesus! Jesus did not promise the Holy Spirit aka Comforter in the KJV to make us comfortable! He sent the Comforter, parakletos in the Greek language which means called along side; to come to our aid as we struggle and suffer through life. The fact is that if we are not out of our comfort zone and struggling and even suffering for Jesus, we do not need the “Comforter.” If we do not need the Holy Spirit, He will not be evident in our life.
A sail boat does not need the wind to sit moored in the harbor. It needs the wind when its sails are unfurled and its anchor is stowed and the rudder is set upon a course. We do not need the Holy Spirit or the Comforter unless we have willfully placed ourselves amid the fight and the fury of obedience in this sin-bent world.
Its seems that so many in the church believe that God has called and promised us, that if we will follow Jesus, we will be comfortable. Read the promises of many books and sermons and you would think that Jesus is the ramp to easy street. And yet nothing could be farther from the truth. Follow Jesus and you will need a Comforter, you will need someone called alongside to help. Because you will struggle and strain and feel like giving up. You will hurt and feel alone and be unsure. You could find yourself in prison or beaten or dying. You can find yourself abandoned, betrayed, and used.
What about the slap on the other cheek was going to feel better than the first one? What part of that second mile was going to be easier than the first? Just exactly how much fun was it suppose to be to keep loving those who spitefully use you? Jesus never said nor even hinted that the path of obedience was going to be comfortable. He taught us that it was going to be so challenging and so demanding that the only way we would ever make it is if we had someone to come alongside and help us press on.
However, if your Christian experience is quiet and comfortable and as easy as sitting on a padded pew or a personal Sunday School chair…you might want to double check something. If the path you are on is broad and crowded and relatively unchallenged…you might want to take a moment.
But if you feel like a piñata at Albert Pujols’ birthday party…or if following Jesus is making you pray harder and longer than you ever have before. If obedience is giving you a serious need for some comforting…congratulations! You must be following Jesus. After all He promised a Comforter for the conflict…not to make you comfortable.
