In this sermon, the preacher shares the story of a missionary family in Peru who faced a tragic incident. Despite being attacked by bullets, miraculously, none of them hit the missionary or his son. The preacher also mentions a heartbreaking situation where a young girl, who brought joy to a man's life, suddenly passes away. The preacher reflects on the power of God to transform our bodies and the sacrifice of Jesus for our salvation. He encourages the listeners to trust in God's promises and find comfort in difficult times.

We have a very short Bible reading this morning, and it's in the book of Job. Job, chapter 15 and verse 11. Job, chapter 15 and verse 11. It says, "...are the consolations of God too small for you, and the word spoken gently with you?" That's what I'd like to speak about this morning. "...are the consolations of God too small for you?" We live in a world of sorrow. Nobody will think with surprise when I say that this morning. We all know it. All you have to do is read the daily newspaper, and it's sorrow from one page to the other. Heartache, heartbreak, lives damaged beyond repair. People of the world know sorrow, and Christians know sorrow too. Christians are not exempt from sorrow in this life. There are followers of the one who is known as the Man of Sorrow, and is crated in grief. Just think of that one. God came down to this world to live and suffer and bleed, and God is known as the Man of Sorrow. Older people have sorrows. Young people have sorrows as well. And the question is, are the consolations, the comforts of God enough for us in the sorrows that we have to go through in life? I think I can honestly say that not a week goes by that my telephone doesn't ring with another case of sorrow. A week ago, I got a call from a young man in Berkeley. He just called me to tell me that his mother living in Chicago was nearing the end, and he was lucky, in fact, that he was hurt. Heartbroken. He's a Christian woman, but never mind. His heart was broken. Last night, just before I went to bed, my telephone rang, and it was the man who translated the New Testament commentary into Romanian. I don't think many of you know him. His name is Guru Moksha. He called to tell me that his daughter was lying in a hospital bed. She had been stricken. They really don't know the cause yet. She has graduated from college. She was on a life-support system. Her mother was constantly there at her bedside. The doctor told them that she was brain-dead, and that if they removed the resuscitator, she would take two breaths and be gone. The doctor, not a Christian, said, I think she's already seen him. Sorrow. Sorrow. This was a girl who was sometimes, in the life of that man, blinking into the moon as if a light went on. And now she's snatched away, as it were, actually going to be home with the Lord. And they have to face the difficult question of whether they should stop the resuscitator. Sorrow, as it were. I'm sure you all read the story of the missionary family down in Hulu. In case you haven't, I'd just like to tell it to you. Missionary family, Jim and Ronnie Bowers. They weren't able to have children at first. Ronnie said to a friend of hers, My arm aches to hold a baby in them. Well, God answered her prayers, and boy, they were able to adopt a boy. His name was Cory. And then, more recently, they adopted a little girl. Her name is Charity. Cory is seven years old, and Charity was seven months old. In order to get a visa for Charity, the little girl to stay in Peru, missionary in Peru, in order to get a visa, they had to fly over into Colombia to the Peruvian consulate in Colombia to get the visa. So, there was a missionary plane there with pontoons on it that landed in the water, in the river, and the pilot was a man named Kevin Donaldson. They flew there to Colombia and got the visa, and then started back to their home base since they were living in a houseboat there in Chiquita. On the way back home, they became conscious of the fact that a Peruvian private plane was following them. It followed them for about 15 minutes. This plane was one of many in Peru that was trying to stop the drug traffic there, and it was being aided by a United States plane not far away, a jet not far away with CIA agents in it. And the CIA plane radioed to the fighter to make sure, before they fired, that this plane was a drug plane. Colombia, of course, was a missionary. But the message came too late, and that Peruvian fighter opened fire on the missionary. One bullet went through the back of Ronnie, the mother, and into the baby that was sitting on her lap. They were both killed instantly. Another bullet went into the right foot of the pilot, Kevin Donaldson. Naturally, shattered his right foot. To the goodness of God, that Kevin, the pilot, was able to land the plane, I shouldn't say land, but he brought it down into the water of the Amazon River. And they were still firing at them. They were firing at them after they got in the water. A fire broke out in the cabin of the plane, and Jim Bowers was able to explain that there was a fire at 10 o'clock. They had to get out of the plane The plane, by that time, was in blazing. They had to get out, and he was able to get the bodies of his wife and little girl out and drag them along in the water. And Kevin Donaldson, the pilot, took little Cory on his back, and they started paddling around in the water. And finally, a motorized canoe came with some Peruvians and was able to take them to the town where they were able to radio for a plane to come and get them. I thought, what do you say to people like that? Are the consolations of God enough for us in circumstances of life like this? Now, I'm sure some of you heard Jim Bowers being interviewed on TV and in radio. And he bore a magnificent testimony to the Lord Jesus Christ. I'm going to share some of it with you at this time. He said, Our attitude toward those responsible is one of forgiveness. He said, Isn't that amazing? It's not amazing for Christians. I've been praying for them, and as the pilot of that fighter jet, I've talked to their supervisor about that. He's very interested in knowing about the Lord. I've called him from here, so everything's going well in that regard. No hard feelings. But keep in mind, that's living above the average. The consolations of Christ weren't too small for him. In spite of his shattering loss, he said, Both Cory and I, that's the boys, are experiencing inexplicable peace. Newsweek Magazine said, You have such single-minded faith. So we're all looking on. One man was interviewing Jim Bowers on the TV, and this man is not known as a friend of the Christian faith, but interviewing him. And Jim Bowers, in spite of his loss, spoke wonderfully about the fact that his wife was present with the Lord, at home with the Lord. This is the hope of the Christians, that our salvation looks like faith when he's present. At a memorial service for his wife and his little girl, he listed 14 miracles that he had seen in the whole incident. Now, that's one of them. Instead of engaging in blame against the Peruvians, instead of talking about million-dollar lawsuits, there was no mention of that. He listed 14 miracles that he had seen. In other words, through his tears he saw God. And I like to share those miracles with you. He said, Of the fusillade of bullets that penetrated the cabin, not one of them tripped him or the little boy, in spite of the fact that a bullet came from behind him and shattered the windshield in front of him. Wonderful, isn't it? I know his wife has told that God had a work for him to do, and hopefully for his boy to do, and a bullet came from behind him and shattered the windshield in front of him, but didn't tip either one. The second miracle, he said, when he used the extinguisher, the fire extinguisher, to extinguish the fire in the cabin, he said it worked, because that wasn't common in Peru, but the extinguishers do work. And that saved seven, Corey and himself, from a fiery death there in the cabin. He said, If the bullet that killed Ronnie and Charity had gone further, it would have killed the pilot, because they were sitting behind the pilot. And in that case, all the occupants of the plane would have been killed. He said, Neither he nor Corey, the boy, were terrified. There were no screams, no crying. They experienced the peace of Christ in their hearts. Isn't that wonderful? Some of you have experienced that peace. Some of you have been in a place of sorrow, and you felt yourself sustained, and you said, That's not me, that's the Lord that's doing that. It's supernatural. In spite of the pilot's terrible leg injury, he was still able to bring that plane down on the water of the Anaconda River. And you know, that means a leg, too, as well as their arms. Jim Bowers had enough strength. There's another miracle he saw. He had enough strength to get his wife's body and his little girl's body out of the plane, into the water, before the plane sank. God's planes have moved. God's planes, God's planes always run on time. A canoe came by, a motorized canoe came by. It came by just as Kevin's strength and Jim's strength were giving out, so they weren't going to hold on anymore. And the canoe came along for the right thing. The plane was shot down near a village, where Jim knew some of the people. He had come along there in their houseboat, and he had ministered the gospels that he preached, and some of them were there, and they knew Jim and recognized him. And they had witnessed what had happened, and they sent a radio call for help, and he said, this particular radio worked, which they don't always do in Peru. When Jim used the radio to call the pilot's wife, he was at home. And nearby was another pilot who was ready right away to come in another plane and take Kevin for medical assistance. Are the consolations of Christ too small for you? I would say no, they're not too small for us. And these here people experienced that in that terrible day on that plane. I'd like to go over some of the consolations of Christ. Maybe there's somebody here, and your heart is broken today. You've come all dressed in nice clothes and all the rest, but underneath you're wearing sackcloth and ashes. Well, let me share some of the consolations of Christ with you. I consider that the sufferings of this present world are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be in us. That's lovely, isn't it? Romans 8, 18. I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. In other words, all that we go through in this life by way of suffering and sorrow is a pinprick. I mean, right at the time, they're hard. The sorrow is great, but when you compare them with the glory which shall be revealed in us, when we go to be with the Lord, when we look upon his face, no comparison. No comparison. And a similar verse in 2 Corinthians 4, 17. For our life's afflictions, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal way of glory. Our life's afflictions. Paul, when you think of what the Apostle Paul meant here, in the way of afflictions, that he's in in the history of the Christian church, the gospel that he mentioned, he said, life's afflictions, but for a moment, far more exceeding and eternal way of glory. That's an interesting expression, way of glory. Glory, glory of grace. You think of the glory of the sunshine, you think of that, those rays of the sun that are coming down from the sun to us today. Do they have grace? Well, science will tell you that there's grace. They have grace. And Paul uses that fact here. What we're going to do now is nothing that can be compared with the coming glory, far more exceeding and eternal way of glory. Our sorrows are temporary, our glories are eternal. In 2 Corinthians 1, 3 and 4, Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercy and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our tribulations, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. I like that expression, the Father of mercy. Oftentimes when the word Father is used, we think it means the source of mercy. Our Father, our Heavenly Father, is the source of all mercy and is the God of all comfort. Did you know that's very true? Some of you have had the experience, I'm sure, that some sorrow has come into your life and friends crowd around and they seek to comfort you and they mean well. But you know, in the final analysis, it's only God who comforts you. And He usually does it through some verse of Scripture. He usually does it through some verse of Scripture. And that verse of Scripture comes home to your heart in power and lifts you out of the doldrums. Luke 12, verse 67, Are not five pharaohs sold for two copper coins? That's beautiful. I'm sorry, I don't think I have any copper. I don't have any copper coins. Did you know that people today, if they see a copper coin and they say, most people today won't bother to pick it up. Why? Because you can't use it for anything. You can't use it for anything. You can't even put it in a parking meter anymore. And I heard that. That most people won't stop and pick up a copper coin that is lying there in the sidewalk. Some of us do, but never mind. Unless you've got cottage blood in a second. It says here, Are not five pharaohs sold for two copper coins? And not one of them is forgotten before God. That's a beautiful thing. That's pharaoh. Mostly pharaohs. And not one of them is forgotten before God. Ironside says, But the very hairs of your head are numbered. Do not fear, therefore. You are of more value than many pharaohs. Ironside, and I quoted it before, Ironside used to say, God attends the funeral of every pharaoh. And one of them falls to the ground without your heavenly father. God attends the funeral of every pharaoh. What a great God he is, huh? Listen, if he attends the funeral of a pharaoh, what do you and I have to worry about? Are you of more value than many? Many pharaohs, not one. Many. I like Isaiah 63, verse 9. It says, In all their afflictions, he was afflicted, and the angel of his presence saved them in his love and in his pity. He redeemed them, and bore them and carried them all the days of old. That's beautiful. In all their afflictions. You hear about Israel there. In all their afflictions. He was afflicted. Look at me. It means that every pain that comes to my heart comes to the heart of Christ. And to me that's a tremendous source of comfort. I'm not in it alone. It's registering in the courts of heaven. And he shares my sorrow. You see that, of course, in the life of Saul of Tarshish, don't you? Saul saw why persecutors shall kneel. He was persecuting the Lord's people, but the Lord sheltered in heaven, too. The Lord sheltered in heaven, too. In persecuting his people, they were persecuting the Savior. Hebrews 13, sign. For he himself has said, the Lord, he himself has said, I will never leave you, nor persecute you. So, when I think of what that verse has meant to suffer and sorrow and tense down through the centuries, the promise of the abiding presence of the Lord Jesus. And that leads me to say that, you know, sometimes our friends are stricken with a disease and it seems obvious from the very beginning that he's not going to heal them. He could, but it seems very obvious that he's not going to. I would feel that way about the girl in the hospital back in Virginia today. How do you pray? Do you pray that the Lord will heal her? Well, he could. But it seems to me he's already said he's not going to heal her. I pray that the Lord will sustain the loved ones in a supernatural way so that they will know the presence and power of Jesus in a way they should have never known it otherwise. That's a good prayer. Pray that the Lord will sustain the people, the loved ones, in such a supernatural way that they will realize this is wonderful! I couldn't believe it, that I could do like this at a time like this. Isaiah 41, verse 10. Fear not, for I am with you. Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you. I will help you. I will uphold you with my righteous, righteous hand. The marvelous, loving fear of our God and Father. Fear not, for I am with you. I read one time the text, those words, fear not, are found 356 times in the Bible. Some say they like to read it, but fear not. 356 times in the Bible. I am with you. Hebrews chapter 4, verse 15. For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but with an all-point tempted as we are, he hath a love for us. Just think of it. There's one in the glory today, his name is Jesus, and he's able to sympathize. He knows what we're going through. We're not just a lonely, light ship out there in a sea of nothingness. We're here to his part, and he is there to help us to sympathize with our weaknesses and all-point tempted as we are, yet without fear. You say, well, brother, it's a tremendous burden on my heart that I'm going through it the first time. Well, thank God we have a burden bearer. Psalm 55, verse 22. Cast your burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain you. He shall never suffer the righteousness that he needs. Cast your burden upon the Lord. That's wonderful, isn't it? And he will sustain you. You'll never suffer the righteousness that he needs. That's real. So how do I do that? You do that by appropriating the word of God, by faith. You say, Lord, Jesus, this burden is too much for me. I'm just going to roll it off and leave it. And there's no use if he's carrying it anymore. If he's carrying it, that's adequate. If he's bearing the burden, that's enough. No use for me to take it back again, besides bearing it yourself. Deuteronomy 33, verse 27. Underneath are the everlasting hands. Previous verses have said, I will bear you, carry you. Let's say, underneath are the everlasting hands. Never a heartache that he's not there. I love the everlasting hands underneath. We're being sustained. We're being held up by those everlasting hands. Are the constellations of God too small for you? They're not too small for us. One of the great ones in my life is Psalm 30, verse 5. It says, Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning. And I think that's lovely. That idea, weeping may endure for a night, it comes like an overnight large burst. Weeping. When you think of the shortness of our lives, when you think of the time spent in weeping, well, it's a little more than that. It's kind of an overnight afterbite. But joy comes in the morning. And we can say that through our tears. Tough. What we're going through right now is tough, but joy is coming. And the joy comes, it's not for a morning. It's not for an evening. It's further. The joy is further. The weeping is temporary. The joy is eternal. I commend that verse to you. If you're sorrowing today, Psalm 30, verse 5. Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning. The joy of seeing his face. The joy of being made like him. The joy of the union with those we've known down here. Below, in the Lord. Peace. Shabbat shalom. Thank you. Here's an interesting verse in Psalm 56, in verse 8. It says, You number my wandering, put my tears in your bottle. Are they not in your bottle? You number my wandering, saying, am I all going through life? Everywhere I go in life. You know all about them. All your itineraries. All your trips. All your commuting. The Lord knows every one of them. Put my tears in your bottle. What does that mean? It says, Are they not in your bottle? God numbers your tears. And even if they're not real tears, even if your heart is bleeding, He numbers those tears. He knows all about it. Are the constellations of Christ too small for you? Are they not too small for you? I really got a thrill out of Revelation chapter 2. Verse 9. And other verses in Revelation 2 and 3. It says, I know your tribulations. The Lord Jesus, looking over the pictures of Asia. He says, I know. I know. I know. It reminds me of when John the Baptist was killed. What does it say the other disciples did? They went and told Jesus. They went and told Jesus. Did we not already know? We didn't know anything. Why did they go and tell Jesus? Well, I'll tell you why. They went and told Jesus. Because this is a limitless release for us. And some overpowering sorrow or tribulation has come into our lives. This is a limitless release for us. This is a limitless release for us. Sure he knows about it. I'll tell him something he doesn't know. Already told us that he knows there. A little of Revelation. It means there's something beautiful about that. The disciples going and telling Jesus. I understand what that verse means. Revelation 21.4. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes. There shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. And there shall be no more pain for the former things have passed away. Imagine that. Imagine a scene. There's no crying. No tears. No death. No pain. And no death. He shall wipe away every tear from their eyes for the former things have passed away. And then Revelation 22.5. The next verse it says, And there shall be no night there. They need no lamp, nor the light of the sun. For the Lord God gives them light. And they shall reign forever and ever. There shall be no night there. I don't know how you are, but I'm trying to be nice. I'm trying to say something. I'm trying to be nice. My mind is racing. I'm lying here on the bed, and I can't turn off the wheel. Some problem has come to me. Some sorrow has come to me. I'll tell you, I really want them to be gone. I really want them to be gone. Well, There shall be no night there. They need no lamp, nor the light of the sun. For the Lord God gives them light. And they shall reign forever and ever. Christian 3.11 Now he's talking of time. And it does not yet appear what we shall be. But we know that when we shall appear, God will help us. So we shall see Him. And we shall be saved. That is marvelous. Mind this. Of His dear faith, all sorrow will be saved. For praise will run the race. For Jesus Christ. Our citizenship is in heaven. For whence also we look to the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body, that it may be conformed to His glorious body, according to the work in which He is able, even to subdue all things in Christ. The Lord Jesus is able to subdue everything to Himself. He forms it. And that same power can be used to take our body and transform it into something like His wonderful body. When I think of that, I think, Lord, salvation should have been less than that for us than He would have had. You didn't have to go all that way to give us everlasting joy. But He wasn't satisfied until He did. 1 Thessalonians 4, verse 18, We do the marvel of the coming of Jesus Christ, therefore comfort one another, as He did. Are the constellations above too small for you? They're sufficient to take us through all the different kinds of night. We can see see the Lord's hand in all that's taking place. Just as Jim Bowers was able to trace 14 miracles with that sad, sad incident of the death of his wife and little girl. Shall we pray? 1 Thessalonians 4, verse 18, Blessed God, we thank you that you are indeed the God of all comfort. The Father of mercy, we thank you that you are sufficient that your promises are enough for us no matter what we're called upon to go through in life. Help us, Lord, to believe your word to appropriate these wonderful promises for our hearts. That even though our hearts might be broken, yet we can be a witness to you and testify to your greatness and your grace. Pray that in all the trials of life that others may see Jesus in us. We ask it in His early name, and for His sake, Amen.