Brokeness To Wholeness

2nd Corinthians 12: 9 And He said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness." Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 10 Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”

1st Corinthians 1:25, “Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.”

Romans 6:19, “I speak in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh. For just as you presented your members as slaves of uncleanness, and of lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves of righteousness for holiness.”

1st Corinthians 2:3, “I was with you in weakness, in fear, and in much trembling.”

1st Corinthians 12:9, “It is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power.”

Hebrews 11: 32 And what more shall I say? For the time would fail me to tell of Gideon and Barak and Samson and Jephthah, also of David and Samuel and the prophets: 33 who through faith subdued kingdoms, worked righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, 34 quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, became valiant in battle, turned to flight the armies of the aliens.”

Psalm 34: The Lord is near to those who have a broken heart, And saves such as have a contrite spirit.”

Psalm 51: 17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, A broken and a contrite heart-- These, O God, You will not despise.”

Isaiah 53, “1 Who has believed our report?

And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?

2 For He shall grow up before Him as a tender plant,

And as a root out of dry ground.

He has no form or comeliness;

And when we see Him,

There is no beauty that we should desire Him.

3 He is despised and rejected by men,

A Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.

And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him;

He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.

4 Surely He has borne our griefs

And carried our sorrows;

Yet we esteemed Him stricken,

Smitten by God, and afflicted.

5 But He was wounded for our transgressions,

He was bruised for our iniquities;

The chastisement for our peace was upon Him,

And by His stripes we are healed.

6 All we like sheep have gone astray;

We have turned, every one, to his own way;

And the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.

7 He was oppressed and He was afflicted,

Yet He opened not His mouth;

He was led as a lamb to the slaughter,

And as a sheep before its shearers is silent,

So He opened not His mouth.

8 He was taken from prison and from judgment,

And who will declare His generation?

For He was cut off from the land of the living;

For the transgressions of My people He was stricken.

9 And they[a] made His grave with the wicked—

But with the rich at His death,

Because He had done no violence,

Nor was any deceit in His mouth.

10 Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise Him;

He has put Him to grief.

When You make His soul an offering for sin,

He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days,

And the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in His hand.

11 He shall see the labor of His soul,[b]and be satisfied.

By His knowledge My righteous Servant shall justify many,

For He shall bear their iniquities.

12 Therefore I will divide Him a portion with the great,

And He shall divide the spoil with the strong,

Because He poured out His soul unto death,

And He was numbered with the transgressors,

And He bore the sin of many,

And made intercession for the transgressors.”

One of the key issues confronting the congregation today is the issue of brokenness. You may ask brokenness is a key issue? When we look back at those God has really used in history we see those who have been broken. Do you remember when King David was broken before Nathan? God had to break the back of his spiritual lust and expose it. What is in the dark will always come to the light in due time. Brokenness is where the Lord wants His people because it is there that He can minister to them. Do we remember the lady who touched His garment? Do we remember the lady at the well? What were the characteristics of these ladies? They were all broken, one touched the Lord’s garment, and the other was ministered too by the Lord. People are hungry and hurting, and it’s our job as believers, a royal priesthood to minister to those who are living in brokenness by meeting them with the Word of God, so that the Spirit of God can change, and minister to them for His glory.