Far too many people wrongly assume that the Bible lacks relevance in addressing modern problems. However, the Bible declares that things written aforetime were written for comfort in present troubles. Though the Bible does not deal specifically with every modern trouble, the work of God in past believers’ lives offers the comfort necessary to face any trouble. This is one of many reasons why it is imperative that believers read the entire Bible and not limit it to the New Testament or certain epistles within it. God’s workings in the lives of Job, Abraham, and Jeremiah can offer just as much comfort as God’s workings in the lives of Paul or John. No matter the trouble faced, an open Bible with a receptive heart serves as man’s greatest opportunity for experiencing the ever allusive comfort.
The Bible never directly addresses the Lord Jesus as “the Comforter,” yet the Lord alluded to this title. The Lord told His followers that the coming of the Holy Ghost would be God’s means of sending them “another Comforter” (John 14:16). Evidently, the Lord Jesus served as the Comforter and the Holy Ghost would function as another Comforter. During His earthly ministry, the Lord Jesus worked in the lives of those who followed Him. He was their Comforter. When He went to the Father, the Father sent “another Comforter” and He is the Holy Ghost. Each person who is born again by the grace of God has the Holy Ghost dwelling within (Romans 8:9). When troubles come, and they will, the believer has within himself a person of the Godhead that specializes in comforting those afflicted.
Unfortunately, some Christians have become convinced that old age serves as a sufficient excuse for a lack of service to the Lord’s work. Granted, the field of one’s service may change, but there should always remain a willingness to serve. For instance, Moses received his initial call to deliver Israel at forty years old (Acts 7:23) but did not lead God’s people out of Egypt until he was eighty (Exodus 7:7). When he died at 120 years of age, he remarked that “his eye was not dim, nor his natural force abated” (Deuteronomy 34:7). At forty years of age, Caleb received a promise from Moses concerning the possession of land in Canaan (Joshua 14:7-9). Forty-five years later, Caleb took possession by driving out the mighty Anakims (Joshua 14:10-12). Caleb did something in his old age that many of the young men could not or would not attempt (Joshua 17:13).
The strength of any people will be determined by how they deal with two people groups: their young and their old. If at any point, either of these two groups becomes viewed as simply burdensome, both will cease to effectively attain God’s intended desire for society. The aged members of society are most often its wisest. They have had successes and failures and learned from both (Deuteronomy 32:7). They have witnessed the Lord’s provision through difficult times (Psalm 37:25). God purposed for the aged to instruct the young in practical and spiritual matters (Titus 2:1-11). While the young should feed off of the wisdom of the aged, the elderly members of society can be nourished by the joy, strength, and life of younger people (Ruth 4:15).
