Sunday December 23, 2018
Silent Night, Broken Night
We live in a broken world with broken people. Inside us, we all have areas of brokenness: broken dreams, broken spirits, broken hearts, broken relationships, even a broken sense of self-esteem. A broken heart can hold us back from taking part in an authentic and loving relationship, broken self-esteem can stop us from exemplifying a positive and productive personality, and a broken spirit finds it virtually impossible to experience real joy.
The question is, how are we going to deal with the brokenness in our lives? Will we put on our polished Sunday faces and pretend all is well with us, or will we deal with it? Realize that in dealing with the reality of brokenness, it requires truth. We must admit that we have messed-up-broken-down-heaps-of-lives.
Can beauty come out of brokenness? When you or a loved one is reeling from an illness, injury, or a personal loss, it feels difficult (or even offensive) to talk about finding beauty in the midst of pain. But many people and events in the Bible illustrate God’s startling ability to bring out moments of grace and beauty out of even the most wrenching despair.
Beauty in brokenness? Without glorifying suffering, there is an unexpected beauty that can shine through stories of struggle. Somehow, uniquely, God desires to use those difficult moments of our lives to bring forth something extraordinarily beautiful. Even the natural creation attests to this truth. In fall, we marvel at the gorgeous, lush colors of burnt amber, burnished orange, brilliant red, and bright yellow leaves, even as that beauty belies the slow and gradual death of those leaves. Winter buries those leaves under the cold, dark blanket of snow and frost. And yet, death brings forth life. Spring bursts forth year after year with jonquils, iris, lilies, and all the beautiful pastels of new life. (See WORD WISDOM for a deeper study of beauty)
You can see that in the words Jesus spoke over 2000 years ago. He said,
My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. (2 Cor.12:9)
He is “near to the broken hearted.” (Ps.34:18). Jesus Himself declares the reason He was sent:
The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the poor; 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; (Lk.4:18) (quoted from (Is.61:1-2)
Isaiah understood, better than most, what God could do out of brokenness. Hear Isaiah’s heart:
The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon Me, Because the Lord has anointed Me To preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives, And the opening of the prison to those who are bound; To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, And the day of vengeance of our God; To comfort all who mourn; To console those who mourn in Zion, To give them beauty for ashes, The oil of joy for mourning, The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; That they may be called trees of righteousness, The planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified.And they shall rebuild the old ruins, They shall raise up the former desolations, And they shall repair the ruined cities, The desolations of many generations. Strangers shall stand and feed your flocks, And the sons of the foreigner Shall be your plowmen and your vinedressers. But you shall be named the priests of the Lord, They shall call you the servants of our God. You shall eat the riches of the Gentiles, And in their glory you shall boast. Instead of your shame you shall have double honor, And instead of confusion they shall rejoice in their portion. Therefore in their land they shall possess double; Everlasting joy shall be theirs. “For I, the Lord, love justice; I hate robbery for burnt offering; I will direct their work in truth, And will make with them an everlasting covenant. Their descendants shall be known among the Gentiles, And their offspring among the people. All who see them shall acknowledge them, That they are the posterity whom the Lord has blessed.”I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, My soul shall be joyful in my God; For He has clothed me with the garments of salvation, He has covered me with the robe of righteousness, As a bridegroom decks himself with ornaments, And as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. (Is.61:1-10)
This is the real purpose of His coming…to restore the brokenness. That is what Christmas is all about.
The first few lines of the song Silent Night contain all the truth we need this Christmas:
Silent night – when we fall before the Lord in the midst of our brokenness, we have no words to speak. He sees the pieces of our heart.
Holy night – in His Holy presence, we gain a perspective on the brokenness that escapes our human understanding.
All is calm – Yes, there is where we find His peace. In His presence, there is a stillness and a calm.
All is bright – He is the Light that has come into this dark, broken world. It is His glory that illuminates and penetrates the brokenness.
For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.(2 Cor.4:6)
God uses our brokenness to reveal to us our need for Him and to prepare us for future service. Let Him perfect your brokenness. God’s ultimate goal is spiritual victory.
There is a song that says, “A baby changes everything.” Never has that been more powerful than right now. His birth, and ultimately, His death changed everything. And it can change us now.
Today, if you are experiencing hardship, difficulty or personal darkness, seek the Light and beauty of Christ, for He longs to be present to you, to give you a garland of beauty instead of ashes, to call you by name, and to bring forth treasures of darkness. He is there in the brokenness with you. After all, who knows brokenness more than the One who was broken for us. Merry Christmas.