Today, I presided in a funeral for a precious lady of God. Only the presence of the Holy Spirit can be the Comforter in the passing of a loved one. Friends and extended family members alike gather around the family and do their very best to bring comfort to them. After everyone leaves and returns to their own homes, the exhausted family is left to grieve alone.
Without knowing the Comforter, many persons become locked in despair over the passing of their loved one. Too many families are left to cope with this grief by themselves. Even the Christian who has not acknowledged the Holy Spirit as his "ever present help in times of need," can seemingly be lost in grief.
Many are left wondering why and how such a things can happen to someone who loved God. Even the great Apostle Paul, who gave us the revelation we're learning from today, was perplexed by some things. Thus, he wrote in 1Corinthians 13:12-13 (Amplified), "For now we are looking into a mirror that gives only a dim (blurred) reflection (of reality as in a riddle or enigma) but then (when perfection comes) we shall see in reality and face to face! Now I know in part (imperfectly) but then I shall know and understand fully and clearly, even in the same manner as I have been fully and clearly known and understood (by God)." Verse 13 goes on, "And so faith, hope, and love abide; faith (conviction and belief respecting man's relation to God and divine things; hope, joyful and confident expectation of eternal salvation; love-true affection for God and man, growing out of God's love for and in us) These three; but the greatest of these is love."
Even Paul, who was given the revelation from Jesus Himself, was left in wonderment about the things we know and live. We do not always have the answers we would like to have and we must trust God in our love and our faith in Him. Many questions are left to us unanswered presently, but Paul said that "we would fully understand."
The Comforter is the One Who can hold things together and give us peace when there is none to be found. Only He can reach into the very depths of your heart and spirit, giving you comfort and peace where you need it most. Friends can and will do what they can to bring you comfort, but their attempts at comforting can only go so far. The fact they are there, brings some kind of comfort, but not the deep comfort that can only come from the Holy Spirit.
2Corinthians 5:4-5 (Amplified) tells us that our mortal body is the house our spirit resides in, saying, "For while we are still in this tent (house), we groan under the burden and sigh deeply (weighted down, depressed, oppressed) not that we want to put off the body (the clothing of the spirit) but rather, that we would be further clothed, so that what is mortal (our dying body) may be swallowed up by life (after the resurrection)." Verse 5 says, "Now He Who has fashioned us (preparing and making us fit) for this very things is God, Who also has given us the (Holy) Spirit as a guarantee (of the fulfillment of His promise)."
The Holy Spirit is at work in each of us, preparing us into the "fitness" of what God intended us to be from the very beginning. The Holy Spirit is our guarantee that we will receive what God has promised us from His Word (and His Word will never return to Him void). We will see and be with our loved ones again for eternity, in His house.
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