The Comforter who can sympathizes with our weaknesses

 The Comforter who can sympathizes 

with our weaknesses

“For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin” (Hebrews 4:15).

          Some of us are sick and unable to say we are sick. There are many people around us who cannot say ‘I am going to very hard time.’ Many people live with fear, pain and suffering. But the problem is that they cannot share their fear, pain and suffering with anyone. Perhaps that's because they don’t have anybody whom they can share their hearts with. Why can’t they share their hearts? Maybe it's because they think that even we open our hearts and share our fear, pain and suffering, the other person will not be able to understand or sympathize with them. So they are mainly covering that fear, pain and suffering deep in their hearts. And they live this way today.

          As I meditated on Jesus during the suffering week under the title ‘the One who is familiar with suffering’ (Isa. 53:3), I was once again reminded that Jesus was the high priest who can be sympathize with our weakness. So I prayed to God that the Lord build me up as His instrument of comforting others who can sympathize with other’s weakness like Jesus. After praying, I thought about how I could become a comforter who can sympathize with others.

      First, I must acknowledge my weakness before the Lord, who sympathizes with my weakness, in order to sympathize with other’s weakness.

          Our instinct likes the city and not the wilderness. The reason is because the wilderness is lonely. Because there is nothing in the wilderness, we like to migrate to a city where there is many things to see and enjoy. But we need to go into the lonely wilderness. And in the wilderness there is nothing, we must go to the Lord the High Priest who is sympathizes with our weaknesses. In particular, we must humbly acknowledge our weakness in the wilderness and go to Him. We must humbly acknowledge to the Lord that we are vulnerable to the temptations of Satan. The reason is that if we don’t acknowledge our weaknesses, we will never be able to experience the Lord who sympathizes with our weaknesses. Why do we go into the lonely wilderness? Aren’t we going into the wilderness to experience the Lord who sympathizes with our weaknesses? We must go into the wilderness to make a lonely wilderness to the garden of solitude. And in the wilderness we must humbly acknowledge our weakness to the Lord.

     Second, we must experience the comfort of the indwelling Holy Spirit in order to sympathize with other’s weakness.

          Our instinct likes to live in the city and to receive comfort from the people around us instead of comforting others. The reason is that when we live with people in the city, we become more and more selfish as we fall into the Satan's temptations. And the reason we become selfish is because we live in front of people rather than before God. This is a work of Satan. When Satan tempts us to live in front of people, we focus on people rather than focusing on God. Just as David, who looked at God in the wilderness but looked at Bathsheba in the palace and sinned against God, we also sinned against God living in the city because we focused more on the people around us than God. What sin do we commit to God? We live in a selfish way in front of people and commit sins that cause hurting, pain, and suffering to many people. When we do that, we also get hurt, pain and suffering. The reason is that we cannot love each other with the God’s love. And the reason why we cannot love one another with God’s love is because we are not experiencing God’s love. That’s why we must go into the wilderness. We must go into the wilderness in order to live in the presence of God and love our neighbor with God's love. And we must confess and repent our sin of selfishness to the Lord in the wilderness when our holy God exposes them. Then the Lord will forgive our sins. And the indwelling Spirit of God will comfort our hearts. And when we experience the comfort of the Holy Spirit, we will be able to live an altruistic life, a life that loves one another.

       Third, we must bear the ministry of comfort through the heart of Heavenly Father in order to sympathize with other’s weakness.

          Our instinct is to live our own way, never to live according to the will of our Heavenly Father. In other words, our instinct is not to feel what Heavenly Father feels, not listening to what Heavenly Father listens to, not seeing what Heavenly Father sees, but to live as we see, hear, and feel. However, those who see people in the city who are hunger for love, who are suffering and are weak go into the wilderness because they want to love them. And those who go into the wilderness themselves and make the lonely wilderness into the garden of solitude experience the presence of God. They realize the eyes of God, the ears of God, and the heart of God little by little. That is why we have to go into the wilderness. We must learn the heart of Heavenly Father in the wilderness. And we must see whom God see and hear what God hear and love them with God’s heart. And we must go to the suffering souls to whom God sends us. We must be able to approach them with the compassion of our Heavenly Father and hear even their groaning with His ears. And we should be able to see the pain of their hearts. The indwelling Holy Spirit will help us to see and to hear. And the Holy Spirit will use us as His instruments to comfort them. Therefore, we must be raised to be used as instruments of the Holy Spirit to comfort those who need God’s comfort. We must faithfully bear the ministry of comfort with the heart of Heavenly Father.

          It is my hope and prayers that the Lord to raise me as His instrument of comforting those who are suffering. I want to be able to sympathize with other’s weakness. So I want to go into the wilderness and look at myself through the Word of God and admit my weaknesses to my Heavenly Father as I pray to Him. In doing so, the Lord who sympathizes with my weakness comforts me with the heart of Heavenly Father. When I feel the heart of Heavenly Father, I will be able to follow the guidance of the Holy Spirit, obey Him and endure the ministry of comfort. Although my instinct is to disappoint others, the indwelling Holy Spirit wants to use me to comfort them. Therefore I pray to Heavenly Father: ‘O Lord, please raise me to be a comforter to be able to sympathize with other’s weakness!"