In the third verse of the great hymn, “O For a Thousand Tongues to Sing” by Charles Wesley there is a line that declares:
Jesus! the name that charms our fears,
that bids our sorrows cease.
If this was anyone else but Jesus it would be frustrating–the person who tells us “Don’t worry, everything is fine” when everything is not, in fact, fine. Or worse, it would be the person who denies our fears and sorrows and tells us to buck up and get over it. But this isn’t the case with Jesus.
Jesus doesn’t deny or dismiss our worries or pains, he comforts and heals them. He invites us to bring our burdens to him and he will give rest. (Matthew 11:28) Jesus gives us peace unlike anything the world offers. (John 14:27) He promised to send his Spirit–he very presence–to be with us as helper and comforter (John 16) so that we never lack the help we need in times of worry and sorrow and pain.
Jesus was “a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.” (Isaiah 53:3) He knows our weaknesses and struggles because he experienced them. (Hebrews 4:15) And the name of Jesus charms our fears and bids our sorrows cease because in him is the assurance of perfect peace and comfort–both now and for all eternity
I originally wrote this post for my church, Immanuel Nashville, in our Daily Pulse email. If you want encouragement from God’s word delivered Monday thru Friday to your inbox, I encourage you to subscribe.
