Dear Christian friends:

Today our text speaks about comfort. We sign that word "(make sign)." Comfort. We talk about comfortable homes, comfortable clothes and comfortable cars and furniture. We also talk about comfortable weather, not too hot and not too cold. When we talk about these things we mean comfort for our body.

But our heart really needs comfort. Here in the world we see very much trouble and disappointment, sorrow and grief. Our hearts are sad and we are broken hearted, afraid and ready to give-up. Our heart and soul needs comfort much more than our body.

But often we spend too much time seeking and getting comfortable homes, clothes and cars and forget to seek and get comfort for our hearts and souls. Often we are very foolish. We get comfortable houses, clothes, and cars, but we are still sad and not happy. Why? Because we didn't seek comfort for our soul.

Our text tells about comfort for our hearts. It shows that:


"Comfort, comfort my people, says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem." (Verse 1&2) Here God says that his ministers should speak comfort to His people, to Jerusalem, the Church.

But we ask, "How can God's ministers speak comfort to us? Not true, we sin against Him very much? Is God not angry against us? True, we do sin against God much. True, God is angry against man's sin. Well, how can God's servants preach comfort to us?

God tells why here, Isaiah 40:2, "cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned: for she hath received of the Lord's hand double for all her sins."

But you say, "How can God forgive sinners, His enemies, liars, murders, thieves and marriage-breakers, gossips, greedy and jealous people like us? If He is just and a right judge, He must punish law-breakers and sinners." You are right.

How God did that is His glory. In Isaiah 40:5, our text speaks of His glory: "And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together." His chief glory we see in His plan to save sinners.

Instead of punishing us who deserved it, He sent His own Son to this world to suffer and pay for us. His only Son, His everlasting Son, "was conceived by the Holy Ghost and born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate was crucified, dead and buried, the third day he arose again from the dead and ascended into heaven and sitteth at the right hand of God the Father Almighty, from thence He shall come to judge the quick and the dead."

Christmas shows the glory of God in the Baby Jesus; Good Friday also. Easter morning and the Last Day when Jesus, the Son of Man will come to judge all people: "The of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it "together". All must gather before Him and see God's glory, His great love, wisdom and kindness shown to us in the face of Jesus Christ.

So God, because of His glory in Jesus Christ, can speak comfort to our hearts and really give it to us. But if we want that comfort we must repent of our sins.

Isaiah 40:3&4 show that: "The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain."

This is a prophecy about John the Baptizer. John preached in the desert by the Jordan river to prepare the people for the coming Savior, Jesus. He told the people (Matthew 3), "Repent, because the kingdom of heaven is here!" "Don't say you are children of Abraham, Jews, and think God likes you. God can make Jews from these rocks here. If you are not sorry and confess sins and give-up sins you will be lost!"

So you also, Don't think God likes you because you are deaf or because you are an American or Lutheran, or a member of Prince of Peace. That will not help you. If you are not sorry; If you do not confess your sins and give up your wicked ways, God's glory at Christmas will not give you any comfort.

Be sorry about your greed and hate and jealousy, confess your sins, your unkind words and gossip, your hidden anger and hate and fears. Your love for money and pleasure more than God. Confess, be sorry and look to Jesus. He will pardon you and comfort you and help you to change and improve.

Yes, God's coming at Christmas brings comfort for our hearts and, oh, we need that comfort more than anything else in the world. We have so much sadness and pain, broken hearts because we stubbornly and blindly continue in sin. Let us stop and think and confess our sins and receive His wonderful comfort.

Amen.