In one of his books, Robert Schuller notes that everyone has been wounded at some time or another. He points out even Jesus had wounds: He was wounded in his ankles where the nail went through; in the palms of His hands which were also pierced by nails; in the forehead that was scared by the crown of thorns; in His side which was slashed by a spear; and on the back which bore the pain of a brutal whipping.
But the greatest wound came from within. Jesus experienced the pain of losing a good friend when His own disciple kissed Him with the betrayers kiss. But in an infinitely greater way, His heart was burdened and then broken as the sin of the world was placed upon Him turning Him into the greatest sinner and having His own Father reject and forsake Him as He paid for our sin.
Jesus experienced and knows all about the broken heart and knows the pain, sorrow, weariness, loneliness, and emptiness that can fill our hearts. The old song puts it this way: “Nobody Knows the Trouble I’ve Seen. Nobody knows but Jesus” It’s true, Jesus knows!!
“For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.” (Hebrews 4:15–16)
So we come to the ‘throne of grace’ with our prayers in the confidence that He knows the trouble I’ve seen and has the ‘grace to help us in our time of need.’ I am drawn to a promise of help God has made to us in Isaiah. It’s a promised to keep us from breaking under the pain and struggle of life. The prophet Isaiah in chapter 40 writes,
“A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out.” (Isaiah 42:3)
When we come to a breaking point of being hurt and truly ‘bruised’ in the course of life, it’s Jesus who knows how bruised and broken we are. And knowing our breaking point, keeps us from breaking. The verses even shares that if our heart is not shining the light of Jesus as we should but struggling as a ‘smoldering wick’, when we turn to Him in hope and trust and wait on Him, the Lord will renew us and restore our strength.
“But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength.” (Isaiah 40:31)
The pain and loss in the death of a loved one, the struggle we may have with family and relationships, or the march of age and the brokenness that comes to our bodies will come. Pain and sorrow is a universal experience. We may ask, “Why? God if you love us why do so many suffer?” Sometimes it may get to the point when we are tempted to feel that we are selected for suffering above others, but it is not so. The curse of sin is on us all and with it’s curse comes suffering. Sin makes it that way.
There is an old story of a distraught woman in an village who insisted that the Chief to restore her child who had died. The wise Chief sent her out into the village to get a pepper from each family that had no such grief. He promised to help her when she returned. When evening came, she returned with her basket empty but with a heart filled with understanding. She had met people who suffered the same loss, the same hurt, the same wounds and understood how her pain was shared by all.
The effects of sin in our world is among us all and part of fighting the good fight and keeping the faith (2 Timothy 4:7). It is in our struggles that our Lord calls us to wait on Him and renew our strength in our times of sorrow and hurt and grieving. Our Lord’s daily charge is to keep Him before us always:
I lift up my eyes to the hills— where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth. He will not let your foot slip— he who watches over you will not slumber; indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord watches over you— the Lord is your shade at your right hand; the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord will keep you from all harm— he will watch over your life; the Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore.” (Psalm 121)
I read somewhere how fine violins are made. I learned that the sound of this most beautiful instrument is determined by the type of wood from which it is constructed. Experts have spent many years in research trying to duplicate the sound of the famous “Antonius,” made by Antonio Stradivari. It has been determined that the best wood available for these magnificent violins is found in the timberline of the highest mountain ranges. In the United States, craftsmen will seek wood growing on the peaks of the Rocky Mountains 12,000 feet above sea level. Up on these mountain peaks the winds blow so fiercely and steadily that the bark exposed to the wind has no chance to grow, the branches all point one way, and a tree to live must literally stay on its knees all through its life. This is where the best and most resonant wood for violins grows. I thought — is this not an illustration of what God is doing in our lives? Struggle, pain, loss, disease as hard and difficult as it may be is like living on top of a mountain where the never-ceasing winds blow and blow. The winds come crashing down upon us, bending us to the point of breaking … bringing us to our knees. But with the Lord as my strength the winds can only blow and not break us (“A bruised reed he will not break.”) In fact, in bringing us through the storms, He is able to make us into a magnificent creation, able to play the most beautiful songs.
Jesus promised us, “I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”” (Matthew 28:20) We take this promise knowing He is present with us in our joys and sorrows. There is not a time when our Lord leaves us alone. He is an inexhaustible energy and almighty power. He is all that we need, so that Jesus can offer us this comforting charge in all that life may bring,
“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” (John 14:27)
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