Grace and Peace to you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

The text for today’s meditation is Isaiah 40:1-5

Comfort, comfort my people, says your God. ² Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her that her warfare is ended, that her iniquity is pardoned, that she has received from the LORD's hand double for all her sins. ³ A voice cries: "In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. ⁴ Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain. ⁵ And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken." (Isa　40:1　ESV)

Picture a baby just after it is born. They are so helpless. They are so precious. They would not survive without someone else’s help. When they are hungry they start crying. When they need anything they start crying. Now picture an elderly man in a hospice care unit. He is facing the end of life. He has questions. He too cannot survive without someone else’s help. He can no longer get up to get food or use the bathroom. He gets upset because he cannot do for himself anymore. Two people, one is coming into this world and the other is departing this world. What do these two people have in common? They both need comforting. Rudolf Bohren, one of the most important European sermon writers of the 20^th century once wrote "Beginning and end help us to sense that the need for comfort is simply part of being human." We all need comforting.

God tells Isaiah to comfort his people. He says it not once but twice, "comfort, comfort my people." He is calling the unfaithful, sinful, and rebellious Israelites His people and He wants them to be comforted. God remains their God, faithful and gracious, as He promised to be as it says in Exodus 34 verses 6 & 7, "The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, ⁷ keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin." God is commanding Isaiah to comfort His people. How is Isaiah supposed to comfort God’s people? We find it in the second verse; "Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her" He wants Isaiah to speak to Jerusalem. God will use human language to transfer His comfort to His people. Isaiah proclaims Israel’s military service, trials, or difficulties are over. He also proclaims their sins are paid for. And lastly, the "double for all her sins" is a proclamation that Israel, God’s people, has received abundant blessings from the Lord that far exceeds their expectations. The interesting thing about this passage is that Isaiah is proclaiming actions that are done even though they will happen in the future. "that her warfare is ended, that her iniquity is pardoned, that she has received from the LORD's hand double for all her sins." These statements all signify actions that are completed. They receive the benefits of the future actions of Jesus; He will come to pay for their sins. God is doing the comforting through the words of Isaiah. So, both God and Isaiah are doing the comforting.

Isaiah goes on to proclaim the coming of Jesus to earth as the Messiah, "A voice cries: "In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD." "And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together." The people are comforted by the hope of a Messiah. They are comforted by God’s promise that their times of trial are over; their sins are forgiven; and they have been abundantly blessed by God.

Many generations are comforted. Isaiah comforts the people with hope of a Messiah. John the Baptist comforts the people also with the hope of a Messiah.

Christ comforts the people with His presence and His life saving death and resurrection. God uses the prophets and their words to comfort His people but God comes to earth in the form of Jesus to physically comfort His people. Jesus comforted people by feeding them healing them, driving daemons from them, forgiving them, raising them from the dead. He takes the sins of the Israelites of Isaiah’s time. He takes the sins of the Jews of Jesus’ time. And because the Jews reject Jesus He takes the sins of all people with Him to the cross to pay for all sin, to pardon all iniquity. Another translation says your sins have been paid for. Who is doing the comforting? Jesus comforts with words and actions. The comforting is also being done by the prophets, including Isaiah, and John the Baptist with the words given to them by God, and God himself through Jesus Christ

Isaiah used the hope of a coming Messiah to comfort the Israelites. John traveled all over proclaiming the coming of the Messiah giving comfort through hope to many. Jesus came to earth fulfilling Isaiah’s prophesy and comforting many physically and spiritually. His love was in His words and actions. So, who is doing the comforting? God does it himself and he uses us, His people to comfort. He commands us to speak, speak tenderly. Can you tell the difference between someone using "how you are doing?" as a form of hello versus them using it to really find out how you are doing, "how ARE YOU doing?" If you can tell the difference so can everyone else. Do you really care about the stranger at the checkout? Say it like you mean it. Comfort that person by caring. Even though we are commanded to speak tenderly, our words can be empty. It is very easy to tell someone that is hurting that you will pray for them or add them to your prayer list, which is good. But it is a little harder and much better if you ask them if you could pray for them right then and there. Try it sometime if you want a spiritual rush. I met a down and out looking person riding an elevator at the hospital on one of my visits. I asked him how he was doing and I got a terrible life story. I could tell he needed to tell someone. When the elevator got to the ground floor we stepped out and continued the conversation. When he was done I asked if I could pray for him and he said yes as he broke out in tears. We prayed and by the time we were done I was in tears. The power of prayer can comfort God’s people physically. While I was at the seminary I visited one of the members of my field work church while he was in the hospital. On the way to his room an elderly lady came out of a room and asked me if I would pray for her husband. I agreed and walked into the room where an elderly man was lying in the bed with many tubes in him. He had several monitors hooked up to him and every one had the alarm going off. I introduced myself, held his hand, and began to pray. Half way through the prayer all the alarms stopped sounding. I finished the prayer and spoke to him and the people in the room for a few minutes and as I was leaving the room one alarm started. Prayer can physically comfort. You comfort when you share the burden. Better yet, if you can lighten their burden by filling their need you comfort as Christ did. We have the benefit of the fact of Christ coming to end the hard service, forgive sins, and receive blessing abundantly, that prophesy is already fulfilled. Your hope is not in a prophesy but a fact. You have been comforted by God through His blessings. Therefore you are to comfort His people, all His people. How do you do that? How do you take the gifts that God has freely given to you and share them with others? You are to comfort His people in word and action just as Christ has done for you. You have forgiveness of sins and the hope of the resurrection because Christ died and rose from the dead. You are to comfort His people with this gospel and in turn be the gospel to them in your actions. Who is doing the comforting? God is! He is comforting His people through YOU and me His people.

Amen.