Ecclesiastes 4:1. “So I returned, and considered all the oppressions that are done under the sun: and behold the tears of such as were oppressed, and they had no comforter; and on the side of their oppressors there was power; but they had no comforter.”
OPPRESSION. Millions are dead under the heat of the southern sun, and there is little done to alleviate the suffering living ones. Water, food – all necessities of life are missing for those who wander and wonder at the disaster. Covetous men take the food from the children. Help given is sold for arms. People come to assist and are placed under scrutiny and pressure and restrictions. Nation after nation comes under the gun of Islam’s bloody hand. Saint after saint falls because to “depart and be with Christ is far better.” Yet the love for souls is still there. Millions are being deceived into a lustful false faith without a foundation or a standard of conduct. The sun as it shines on Africa, exposes the darkness of religious oppression – and as yet – “They have no comforter.”
The desert sands reflect the flash of guns being fired and marching armies. It has been that way for centuries. Across the desert are the remains of tanks and armies and men who died trying to eliminate God’s chosen nation. They came from the south and the north. They moved from the east to try to dislodge a small group of people God put in the place of His choosing. They are still there – oppressed by many oppressors; despised by most of the world; the object of dark, implacable hatred. But they are still there – with no comforter. As the sun shines on the Middle East underneath its burning rays – oppression remains – they will not be satisfied until every Jew is in the Mediterranean Sea. Woe to such nations! They have power. They can produce from every home, tears. Where is the comforter?
The northern sun shines its long hours across the top of the world. A few believers gather here and there to remember the Lord and tell the good news of the Gospel. And then – down the street – clothed in religious garb – a man tells another man in a uniform, “Stop them! Do not let them talk about Jesus to others!” And the young man in the garment of an oppressor has to, even though he may not want to, stop a simple conversation of life and joy. It happens right around the circle on the top of the world and on both sides of it, the pressure is laid on, by the oppressor, to stop, with the hand of power, the Gospel of the blessed God – “And they had no comforter.”
Around the bands of earth, as the sun shines down to bless the sons of men: in the name of atheism, Hinduism, Confucianism, Shintoism, naturalism, materialism, capitalism, existentialism, Islam, and communism - the oppressors work their power on those who long for the peace of heart that only God can give. In the South American countries, in Central and North America, the pressure is on to keep it quiet for the greater good. “Stop speaking in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth. Make your messages suitable to what everyone wants to hear. We are all part of the global family, there is one God for us all and your God and my god are the same only with different names.”
Wherever the sun shines its bright rays of life and light, the tears are flowing from the oppressed. Some are oppressed by their own family. Some are oppressed by those they are working beside. Some are oppressed by their government. Some are oppressed by their religious leaders. Is there no comforter? “And I will pray the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter, that He may abide with you forever.” Jn.14:16 “But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send to you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, He shall testify of Me:” Jn.15:26 “If I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send Him unto you.” Jn.16:7 Yes! There is a Comforter! He has come! He is here! His power is felt in every place where there is a true believer in Christ! We do have a Comforter in every situation, all the time, and He still is working through His people!
“O Heavenly Father: what a blessing it is to have the Holy Spirit in me and in the world in these days of departure and darkness. Thank You, O Holy Spirit, for the divine power You give to the suffer saints of earth, and the comfort You give to those who are so in need of comfort. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, Amen.”