Peace for the Broken, Part One

What does broken look like?

It isn’t just damaged, and it isn’t just tainted.  It’s more than wounded, and bigger than troubled.  Broken is, well, broken.  It’s unable to be fixed or pieced back together.  Broken means permanently shattered.  It means that it’s time to start over with a new one.  Have you lived a perfect life?  If not, then you are broken before God whether you want to admit it or not.  Not just damaged, tainted or wounded.  Broken.  Helpless.  Desperate.

This is a difficult pill to swallow.  But accepting this reality gives Christmas its depth.  Jesus Christ catapulted himself down from heaven to earth for one reason only: to give peace for broken sinners.  He’s the only one who qualified for the job.  He finished his mission all by himself.  He rules the believer’s heart with a perfect mix of strength, majesty and peace.  Here’s one description of how that looks:  “He will stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the LORD, in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God.  And they will live securely, for then his greatness will reach to the ends of the earth.  And he will be their peace (Micah 5:4-5a).”

Did you catch that last sentence?  And he will be their peace.  The perfect, completed work of Christ isn’t just the start of discovering a peaceful path.  It isthe peaceful path.  All other options leave you still broken.

“Peace for the broken” is our theme this Christmas.  We’ll enjoy some email devotions with this in mind over this next week as we get ready for Christmas together.  What a wonderful Savior we have!  He’s the only one who can offer peace for the broken.

Prayer:  Gracious Savior, thank you for coming at Christmas to offer me peace that passes understanding.  Assure me that you are powerfully in control of all things, and that your passion is to convey your peaceful promises to as many as possible.  Help me to marvel anew at how uniquely qualified you were to bring peace for a broken sinner like me this Christmas.  And help me rest in your finished, completed work.  That’s the only peaceful place around.  Amen.