HEALING FOR WOUNDED HEART
( Psalm 6:2-3; 147:3; Matthew 18:21-35 )
Healing is part of the blessings of obedience to the Law
Exodus 15:26 “And He said, ‘If you will give earnest heed to the voice of the LORD your God, and do what is right in His sight, and give ear to His commandments, and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have put on the Egyptians; for I, the LORD, am your healer’."
Jehovah Rapha : “Rapha” is used some sixty times in the Old Testament and means, “to restore, to heal, or to cure” physically, emotionally and spiritually.
Healing: Psalm 6:2-3:
Emotional: “Be merciful to me, LORD, for I am faint…”
Physical: “O LORD, heal me, for my bones are in agony…”
Spiritual: “My soul is in anguish. How long, O LORD, how long?”
“What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.” - Ralph Waldo Emerson
"He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds."—Psalm 147:3.
The word “broken” means “to burst, to break into pieces, to crush and to smash.”
Some of you feel that way right now. Your emotional pain is overwhelming.
I. SOURCES OF HURT: THE PLOT TO CONQUER YOUR HEART
"The words of a talebearer are as wounds, and they go down into the innermost parts of the belly" - Proverbs 26:22.
"For I am poor and needy, and my heart is wounded within me.“ - Psalm 109:22
People say and do things to hurt us (Proverbs 18:8)
A wounded heart occurs when someone or something brings hurt to your emotions.
Hearts are broken through sorrow. Hearts are broken through disappointment. Hearts are broken through bereavement. Hearts are broken in ten thousand ways, for this is a heart-breaking world
SYMPTOMS OF A WOUNDED HEART
- Physical (Proverbs 17:22): Nerve disorders. Allergies. Stomach problems. Heart aches. Insomnia
- Mental (Proverbs 18:14): Depression. Fits of anger and rage. Confusion. Various fears.
- Spiritual (Matthew 18:34): Nightmares. Hearing voices. Seeing unusual things. Lack of control of self
Illus: Story of The Fall of Troy
A Trojan horse sits just outside the gate of your heart. Its name is anger, resentment, and bitterness. It is a monument to every attack you have endured from your fellowman. It is a gift left by the people who have wronged you. It is a monument to the pain, sorrow and devastation they have caused you. But to accept the gift is to invite ruin into your life. It is only a lure. The celebration is short-lived. Once inside the walls of your heart, it releases its agents of destruction. Its plot quietly unfolds from the inside out.
It is the Trojan horse of destruction. You must never bring it inside.
II. PROTECTING THE WOUNDS: SOME WAYS PEOPLE RESPOND TO A WOUNDED HEART
1. Standing Back - anger, bitterness, hate, fear.
2. Striking Back - anger and revenge
3. Sharing It - same story of hurt and anger
4. Stuffing It - Denial. Leads to depression, caused by suppressed anger.
“Even if we do have hidden hurts and secret sorrows, so what? Why stir things up? Why not leave them alone, let sleeping dogs lie?"
Our pain can still produce all kinds of destructive emotions and behaviors. Anger. Rage. Depression. Emotional numbness. Marital conflict. Alcoholism. And on and on.
WARNING
A wounded heart that doesn’t receive healing is an open door for evil spirits.
Ephesians 4:26-27, I Peter 5:8, Genesis 4:4-7, Matthew 18:21-35
III. THE HEALING PATH: OUR PART – WHAT WE OUGHT TO DO
FORGIVENESS: LETTING GO
Who’s the Enemy? Release the person Mat. 6:12-15 Eph. 4:31-32
Stop the Service / Prayer! Mat. 5:23-24
FORGIVENESS: MOVING ON
When is enough enough? Mat. 18:21
“70 x 7 Principle” Mat. 18:22
Parable of Forgiveness Mat. 18:22-35
“This is how my heavenly father will treat each one of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart.”
Paraphrased, “If you don’t forgive, God will come after you.”
III. JEHOVAH RAPHA: THE GOD WHO HEALS OUR INNER WOUNDS
"The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit."
– Psalm 34:18
In Psa. 147:1-3 we see the Lord doing some 3 different things.
1. Gathering Outcasts – Looking for Wounded People
2. Healing Broken Hearts
3. Binding Up Wounds
HEALING FOR THE WOUNDED HEART
He only can do it
He will do it
”He heals the broken in heart and binds up their wound”
