Made Useful for the Comforting of Others

2 Corinthians 1:5

For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ.

As the Body of Christ, we identify with Christ's suffering on the Cross.  We are crucified with Him.  He endured the highest level of suffering for the remission of our sins.  We suffer with Him as we confess our culpability for putting Him on the Cross.  As result of His suffering and ours, we are given the abundant comfort of eternal life.

On a different level, Jesus Christ considers the sufferings of His corporate body to be His own personal suffering.  He identifies Himself completely and directly with His church.  So everything that we suffer in life, Jesus shares in.  This is especially true of those things that we suffer for His name's sake.  But as we suffer with Christ, we receive the abounding comfort of His love.

Whether we are dealing with the physical or emotional suffering, Jesus provides the strength and comfort that we need to overcome the suffering that we endure.  He supplies it abundantly so that we are never asked to suffer more than we can handle.  Through His grace we are provided hope and joy under the heaviest of sorrows and suffering.  

Let us humble ourselves at the Cross of our suffering King, Jesus Christ.  Let us exalt His name for what He suffered on our behalf.  Let us repent of all that we have done that put Him on the Cross.  Let us accept our personal suffering, knowing that through Him we will be strengthened and even made cheerful so that we may be made useful and comforting to others.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we thank You for providing Your Son, Jesus, to comfort us in all of our suffering.  We humbly ask forgiveness for putting Your Son on the Cross because of our inequity.  We ask that we may suffer crucifixion with Jesus as we die to our old selves and take on our new lives in Christ.  We pray that everything that we suffer in life be for the glory of Our Savior.  May we always be cognizant of His personal and physical suffering.  May both the suffering we go through and the abundant comfort that we receive result in eternal good for ourselves and for those around us.  We ask all these things in the name of the Worthy Lamb, Jesus Christ.