The Brokenhearted
Isaiah 61:1-3The Spirit of the Lord GOD [is] upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to [them that are] bound; To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified.
So why do we see some many who appear to be broken hearted
Hebrew (bind up) Chabash- to bind up, restrain
English dictionary Bind - bind v. bound (bound), bind·ing, binds
v.tr.
1. To tie or secure, as with a rope or cord.
2. To fasten or wrap by encircling, as with a belt or ribbon.
3. To bandage: bound up their wounds.
4. To hold or restrain with or as if with bonds.
5. To compel, obligate, or unite: bound by a deep sense of duty; bound by a common interest.
6. Law To place under legal obligation by contract or oath.
7. To make certain or irrevocable: bind the deal with a down payment.
8. To apprentice or indenture: was bound out as a servant.
9. To cause to cohere or stick together in a mass: Bind the dry ingredients with milk and eggs.
10. To enclose and fasten (a book or other printed material) between covers.
11. To furnish with an edge or border for protection, reinforcement, or ornamentation.
12. To constipate.
13. Chemistry To combine with, form a chemical bond with, or be taken up by, as an enzyme with its substrate.
v.intr.
1. To tie up or fasten something.
2. To stick or become stuck: applied a lubricant to keep the moving parts from binding.
3. To be uncomfortably tight or restricting, as clothes.
4. To become compact or solid; cohere.
5. To be compelling or unifying: the ties that bind.
6. Chemistry To combine chemically or form a chemical bond.
Hebrew (brokenhearted) Shabar - to break, break in pieces
a) (Qal)
1) break, break in or down, rend violently, wreck, crush, quench
2) to break, rupture (fig)
b) (Niphal)
1) to be broken, be maimed, be crippled, be wrecked
2) to be broken, be crushed (fig)
c) (Piel) to shatter, break
d) (Hiphil) to cause to break out, bring to the birth
e) (Hophal) to be broken, be shattered
I believe I do that scripture no harm by saying
“He hath sent me to hold and bandage up the ones who have been broken, wrecked, shattered, maimed, crippled or crushed.”
You see I began to question God and say “God if you were sent to bind up the brokenhearted then why so much brokeness in our lives not only today, but even in the Word.
Look at David who in Acts 13:22 is said to be a man after God’s own heart, but in I Sam 30 He comes home to find his city has been burned and his wives and the wives of his men taken away. vs. 4 Then David and the people that [were] with him lifted up their voice and wept, until they had no more power to weep. I think they were heart broken.
Job Ch 1 “that man was perfect and upright, and one that feared God, and eschewed evil. We see in just a few verses down lost all of his livestock, most of his servants, and his children in one day. vs. 20Job arose, and rent his mantle, and shaved his head, and fell down upon the ground, I think he was heart broken.
Joseph in Gen 37 was betrayed by the people who should have loved him the most, his own family. I think he may have been heart broken.
Abraham asked to sacrifice his own son in Genesis 22. Do you think his heart ached over the thought of it? While he was building the fire and his son is saying we have the wood and fire but where is the sacrifice?
Mary whom the bible in Luke Chapter 1 was told she was favored by God, who now watches her first born being tormented beyond recognition. Do you think she was heart broken?
I believe there are two reasons why we see such many broken hearts today.
#1 - God is willing to hurt your feelings to save your soul.
I’m sure there was apart of Abraham that didn’t understand why God would make him wait so long for a son and then ask him to sacrifice him. But I believe I understand. When God found a man willing to give his son for God, God was then bound to give his son for man. I’m sure there was a part of Mary crying out in disbelief of what she was seeing as they nailed her baby to the cross. However, God understood that by taking one son, he would save trillions of sons to come. The only level we can even come close to understanding this on is with the discipline of our own children. We are willing to warm their backsides when they run in to a street to keep them from the pain of being ran over by a vehicle. You see a broken heart can be mended, but an unsaved soul is bound for hell. You see no parent what’s to hurt their child, but we are willing to hurt them in a way we know will heal, then to have them hurt in a way that leads to death. I don’t however want you to get the impression that all the heart ache in the world is caused by God, it isn’t. The majority of it is caused by our own disobedience. Ex. I’m heartbroken over the fact I have to go to jail, but I stole the car all the same. I’m heart broken over the bad relationship I have with my spouse, but I refuse to apologize. I’m heartbroken over the fact that I feel like God never answers any of my prayers, but I don’t go to church, I don’t read the word and the only time I pray is when I need something. Do you understand what I’m saying? It was our separation from God in the garden that allowed heartache to enter in, however the cure for our heartache also began in another Garden , Gethsemane. God never promised their wouldn’t be broken hearts, however, he did say he would hold them and bandage them up. Jesus was sent to do what?
Isaiah 61:1-3The Spirit of the Lord GOD [is] upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to [them that are] bound; To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified.
He was sent to preach good news, bind up the broken hearted, so set the captives free, to proclaim the lord, comfort those who mourn.
Would you agree that Jesus did all of those things during his 33 years here on this earth? Yes of course.
#2 - We aren’t carrying on the ministry of Jesus to the extent God would have us to.
Mark 16:15-20
15 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.
16 He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.
17And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;
18 They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.
19 ¶ So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God.
20 And they went forth, and preached every where, the Lord working with [them], and confirming the word with signs following. Amen.
John 14:12 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater [works] than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.
We are to carry on the works that Jesus did. So lets look again at what he came to do:
New Testament
Luke 4:18-19The Spirit of the Lord [is] upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,
19To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.
What could motivate this man Jesus to endure all that he did in order to perform these works? What was his motivation in times of hardship? LOVE
So what could motivate us to carry on the ministry that Jesus began. The same thing that motivated him. LOVE
The Bible says God is Love.
Paul wrote this in the book of II Cor NLT
“How painful it was to write that letter! Heartbroken, I cried over it. I didn’t want to hurt you, but I wanted you to know how very much I love you.”
Paul didn’t want to hurt them, but he wanted them to understand I sent the letter because I love you. We have all heard of tough love. I know some people who believe in tough love and I also know some people who are tough to love. If we are going to carry on the ministry of Jesus of binding up the brokenhearted we must learn to love even the unlovable. I encourage you to begin to study the love of God. I’m reading a book right know called Love 101. Jesus loved the unlovable. He loved the prostitute, he loved the leper, he loved the tax collector, he loved the crippled, he loved the outcasts, he loved the demon posed. The only way for us to show the love of God is to have an encounter not just with God but with those God came to love. Jesus loved those who no one else wanted to love. We all have people we think the farther I can stay away from them the better, but that isn’t the ministry of Christ. He said give me the worst of the worst, those are who I came for. Who are we reaching out to? Middle class working married couple with a couple of kids. Most churches are. If we are going to carry on the ministry of Jesus we must take a look at what He came to do and who he came for? We have only looked at one part of his ministry and a small part of the people he came for. He came to bind up the broken hearted. Let’s ask God to open our hearts and minds to see the broken hearted. Let’s ask God for the compassion and love it takes to bind up their broken hearts. Dave said something that has really made me think about the church as a whole. Most television evangelist are saying can you help our ministry can you partner with us and send your money to help us. But what we should be saying to the world is your in need of help and we can help you! In order to help the world we must know what they need. What is this world in need of? What commodity in this society are we lacking most of today? LOVE Paul says that love never fails. To never fail under any kind of circumstance or situation or with any kind of relationship is making an awesome claim.
Let me give you a definition of Love is an action directed to another person that is motivated by our relationship to Jesus Christ and is given freely without a personal reward in mind. If the love that we are capable of giving is in direction proportion to strength of the relationship we have with Jesus Christ, how strong is your relationship with Christ? You can answer this question by examining your “Love Life”. Do I give love freely? Do I give love willingly? Do I give love unconditionally? This is what the world needs. Love given freely, love given willingly, and love given unconditionally, for this is the love of Christ. Please spend this week examining your “love life”. Are you capable and willing to “to hold and bandage up the ones who have been broken, wrecked, shattered, maimed, crippled or crushed? God’s love is a love that continues to give love even when it knows that that love will never be given in return. We must be less like the publicans and more like Jesus.
Jesus said
Matthew 5:46For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same?
47And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more [than others]? do not even the publicans so?
48Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.
I encourage you this week study God’s word on love in I Cor Ch 13 and look for opportunities to show God’s love.
We each have the capabilities to show God’s love in every situation, not because of our own strength.
Romans 5:5 And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.
The love of God is in my heart, but I must make a decision to allow that love to cultivate and grow. I must make a decision to allow that love to come out instead of my emotions. I must chose to love as Christ loved. I must carry on his ministry and part of that ministry is loving the brokenhearted. Holding them and bandaging their brokenness.
