There is a kind of brokenheartedness that is of the
prideful, childish, defiant, foot-stomping, variety, and another kind that is
of the poor in spirit who mourn what is wrong with them, who meekly accept they
cannot fix their bankruptcy of heart and soul, and so they hunger and thirst
for what they see in Jesus Christ.[1]
Let me explain.
There are times that people read the beautiful expressions
of God’s compassion for the brokenhearted and assume he is talking about them
just because someone has broken their heart, so to speak. With their minds
focused on their hurt feelings, they think these verses belong to them:
- “The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit”,[2]
- “a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise”,[3]
- “He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds”,[4]
- “he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted”,[5]
Reading these expressions in the context of contemporary
culture and meaning interprets them as though anyone who has a broken heart
over anything at all can experience God coming close to them no matter what
they really think of him.
However, the kind of brokenheartedness God is speaking about
here is not that of someone who is nursing hurt feelings, or has just been
abandoned by a loved one (although that may be involved in the process), or has
had their hopes dashed, or has the “achy-breaky heart” of country music fame.[6]
A broken and contrite heart, or a crushed spirit, in the
first part of God’s Book, is the same as the poor in spirit, those who mourn, the
meek, and those who hunger and thirst after righteousness described in the
second part of God’s Book.[7]
It is also the same as what Jesus was referring to when he
called out, “Come to me, all who labor
and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”[8] He
wasn’t talking so much about rest from sadness, or feeling heartbroken over
being dumped, or the heartache of loneliness. He was talking about souls that “labor” to be righteous through the law
(trying to be good enough for God), and realize that the impossibility of
keeping the law leaves them “heavy laden”
with the relentless burden.
Those who are brokenhearted means those who are
brokenhearted over their sin (which may be as a result of so many other “heartbreaking”
experiences). The contrite of heart are those who have come to the end of themselves
and know they are helpless without the salvation Jesus offers. The wounds that
need to be bound up are not primarily those caused by life’s disappointments,
but those caused by our sin. The reason we are crushed in spirit is because
everything we have ever tried to be good enough for God has failed, and now we
hunger and thirst for what Jesus meant by the righteousness that is by faith.
This becomes clear when we see how Jesus continued his
invitation. He said, “Take my yoke upon
you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find
rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”[9]
If you want to know if you are brokenhearted in the way God’s
Book means, or just have a broken heart over something someone has done to you,
just ask yourself if you are coming to Jesus on his terms or your own. Do you
want him to look only at the heartbreaking feelings you are struggling with and
make them all better? Or do you want to look in the mirror of divine revelation,
see yourself as you really are, and learn from Jesus how you can find rest for
your soul?
Those who only want a God who soothes their hurt feelings
will not take Jesus’ yoke upon themselves and learn from him. They want Jesus to
come to them and do what they think they need.
Those who want to know the God who heals the brokenhearted
and binds up their wounds, will take Jesus’ yoke upon themselves, and learn how
to keep in step with his Spirit. It is our sin and condemnation that burdens us
to the point of brokenheartedness. It is the obedience of faith that yokes us
to Jesus and leads us to rest for our souls.
© 2016 Monte Vigh ~ Box 517,
Merritt, BC, V1K 1B8 ~ in2freedom@gmail.com
Unless otherwise noted,
Scriptures are from the English Standard Version (The Holy Bible, English
Standard Version Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good
News Publishers.)
[1]
Based on the Beatitudes of Matthew 5:3-6
[2]
Psalm 34:18
[3]
Psalm 51:17
[4]
Psalm 147:3
[5]
Isaiah 61:1
[6]
Billy Ray Cyrus, 1992
[7]
Matthew 5:3-6
[8]
Matthew 11:28
[9]
Matthew 11:29-30
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