Brokenness

Brokenness – God’s Purpose
The priceless perfume falls to the floor, scattered in brokenness. In disbelief we face two choices: wasted or restored. When facing our personal brokenness, any hope of restoration often eludes us. It seems safer to accept the loss -- unaware of God’s hand in brokenness.

God calls us each of us according to His purpose, assuring us that in all things, His goodness endures.

• Freed from Shame – “...I broke the bars of your yoke and enabled you to walk with heads held high” (Leviticus 26:13). As we walk closely with God, our burden of guilt is broken.
  
• Delivered from Schemes – “We escaped like a bird from a hunter’s trap. The trap is broken, and we are free!” (Psalm 124:7). Praise God for the countless times He has delivered us from our enemies.
  
• Rescued in Humility – “The Lord is close to the brokenhearted; he rescues those who are crushed in spirit” (Psalm 34:18). By surrendering our stubbornness and arrogance, He accepts our brokenness and hears the prayers of the righteous.
  
• Healed from Within – “But he was wounded and crushed for our sins...and we were healed!” (Isaiah 53:5). Those who trust in the Lord receive inner peace, as His brokenness satisfies God’s price for our sin.
  
• Restored Eternally – “...He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed” (Luke 4:18). Jesus, the long-waited Messiah, fulfills the Isaiah 61:1-2 prophesy of renewal.

Brokenness – God’s Wrath
Brokenness represents God’s authority over all other kingdoms. The mighty hunter Nimrod, tried to build a monument of human achievement above God (Genesis 11:1-4). As a result, Babel’s (Babylon) people were scattered (broken apart). Centuries later, the Babylonian kings, Nebuchadnezzar and Belshazzar, felt the crushing judgment of God’s wrath (Daniel 4:28-33; 5:22-30). Both kings experienced “The Most High God” (Daniel 4:17, 24, 25, 32, 34; 5:18, 21). Even today, Babylon still represents an economic/political system that compromises God’s will and His Word. We must guard our attitudes and actions, otherwise we also risk the consequences.

• Covetness – “‘Now at last -- look! Here come the chariots and warriors!’ Then the watchmen said, ‘Babylon is fallen! All the idols of Babylon lie broken on the ground!’” (Isaiah 21:9)
  
• Disceit – “This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: ‘I will break the yoke of the king of Babylon . . . (Jeremiah 28:2, 4)
  
• Pride – “This is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘The wide walls of Babylon will be leveled to the ground...’” (Jeremiah 51:58).

Brokenness – God’s Love Through brokenness, we understand sacrificial love. Mary, the sister of Martha and Lazarus, offered the broken vial of expensive perfume to express her devotion to Jesus (John 12:1-3). Jesus, the Bread of Life, broke and multiplied the loaves illustrating none would go hungry (Matthew 14:19-20; John 6:35).

• Love that Breaks – “Jesus took a loaf of bread and asked God’s blessing on it. Then he broke it in pieces and gave it to the disciples, saying, ‘Take it and eat it, for this is my body’” (Matthew 26:26).
  
• Love that Endures – “These things happened in fulfillment of the Scriptures that say, ‘Not one of his bones will be broken’...” (John 19:36)
  
• Love that Remembers – “...The Lord Jesus took a loaf of bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, ‘This is my body, which is given [broken] for you. Do this in remembrance of me’” (1 Corinthians 11:23-24).

Find Hope!