BIBLE BULLETS – 26

2 Corinthians 1:3-4

There is a seemingly endless supply of Bible passages that I should memorize and meditate upon, but there is a limited amount of space between my ears! I can’t memorize everything! What should I do?

I’ll make a list of these important passages and review it periodically. I may never memorize the passages in a word-for-word fashion, but I’ll make an effort to remember the central truth and its reference. For example, I remember that the “Father of mercies and the God of all comfort” is found at the beginning of Paul’s second letter to Corinth.

Here’s the whole passage: “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort. He comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any kind of affliction, through the comfort we ourselves receive from God” (2 Corinthians 1:3-4).

First, marvel at His name. He is “God,” the All-Powerful Creator of Heaven and Earth! Additionally, He is the “Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” It is He who gave His “Only Begotten Son” (John 3:16) to suffer and die at Calvary to rescue us from sin and death. The Apostle Paul also calls God “the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort.”

God is holy and just. Therefore, God will pour out His wrath on His enemies. But, thankfully, God is “the Father of mercies.” It has been said, and I think correctly, that because of God’s grace mankind may receive what we don’t deserve. And, because of His mercy, we will not receive what we do deserve. He is “the Father of mercies.”

He is also “the God of all comfort” who graciously “comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any kind of affliction, through the comfort we ourselves receive from God.”

There is a great purpose in God’s comfort. He comforts us so that we’ll know to comfort others. His grace, mercy, and love flow into us, not so that our reservoir will be filled. Like a rippling stream, His grace, mercy, and love are meant to flow through us. He comforts us so that we will comfort others. He loves us so that we will love others. He gives us mercy so that we will be merciful.

He’s “the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort.” That’s a truth worth remembering.

“… think on these things” (Philippians 4:8, KJV).