Comfort the Enemy
“‘Therefore this is what the Sovereign LORD says: I will now restore the fortunes of Jacob and will have compassion on all the people of Israel, and I will be zealous for my holy name. They will forget their shame and all the unfaithfulness they showed toward me when they lived in safety in their land with no one to make them afraid.’”
Today’s Text: Ezekiel 39:21-29 (Living Life Daily Devotional)
I enjoy the comforts of this world as much as anybody. But let’s face it: Spiritually speaking, comfort is the enemy. Comfort draws us away from God. Comfort causes us to lack spiritual zeal. Comfort causes us to compromise our spiritual integrity.
Comfort leads us away from living out the purposes of God in our lives, and the primary purpose of God is to fill the earth with the glory of God in Jesus’s name through God-fearing, God-honoring, God-worshiping, God-loving communities and families—the church.
In fact—if we can be honest—when it comes to the pursuit of comfort, we will work hard, we will make the necessary sacrifices, and we will do so with passion and zeal. And we will rejoice in the pursuit of comfort. Can we say the same when it comes to building up the body of Christ?
So, it’s not that the pursuit of comfort is easy. With respect to time, resources, and energy, I would say that pursuing comfort is just as difficult as pursuing the purposes of God in our lives. It’s just that we don’t find the pursuit of God’s purposes that interesting or entertaining for us. Can we admit that?
And that’s why I believe that the greatest problem in the evangelical church (imho) has always been the prosperity gospel. The prosperity gospel is not merely a matter of praying for health, wealth, and prosperity. I pray for those things—for myself and for others. Ultimately, the prosperity gospel tells me that Jesus died on the cross so that I might be justified in prioritizing the pursuit of comfort in my life without any guilt or shame.
It’s been my experience that people who are “spiritually dry” are caught up in the pursuit of the prosperity gospel. In the zealous pursuit of comfort, they wonder why worshiping God, studying God’s word, praying, and church fellowship feel so “blah.”
They wonder where God is. But God won’t be found in the pursuit of comfort.
The good news is that the Sovereign LORD will always and ultimately restore the fortunes of Jacob. Jacob represents the remnant of the faithful who are in Christ Jesus.
But we must remember that the remnant always has to go through the fire of God’s testing first. God will display His glory to us through His discipline because He wants us to be zealous for His holy name, just as He is.
Father, You are my comfort. You are my prosperity. You are my health and wealth. Whatever struggles and trials I face in this world, I know it is because of sin—perhaps my own. If it is my sin, lead me to repentance. If it is someone else’s sin, lead me to forgiveness. If it is the sin of the world, give me understanding. No matter what, lead me to Your glory and make me zealous for Your holy name. In Jesus’s name. Amen.
