Breaking Brokenness
“When they came together in Galilee, he said to them, ‘The Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men. They will kill him, and on the third day he will be raised to life.’ And the disciples were filled with grief.”
Today’s Text: Matthew 17:14-27 (Living Life Daily Devotional)
In human communications, there are “delivery systems” and “filtering systems.” “Delivery systems” govern how a communication is given. “Filtering systems” govern how a communication is received. As we grow in maturity, we learn how to better monitor our “delivery” and “filtering” systems for the sake of better communication.
There have been times in my life when I have completely missed or misunderstood something a person was communicating to me because of some malfunction in my “filtering system.” In my heart, I preemptively “heard” a message that I thought someone was going to deliver to me, and so that is exactly what I heard. The problem was, what I heard was not what was actually communicated.
I think that is what happened to the disciples here. They had completely missed or misunderstood the part where Jesus said, “and on the third day He will be raised to life.”
They missed that part because they lacked faith inside their “filtering system.” Jesus had just pointed out their lack of faith when they could not drive out a demon from a young boy. Jesus was angry with them because He had given them the authority to do so, but they lacked the faith to actually do it (verses 14-20). And so, because of a lack of faith, they were filled with grief.
Malfunctioning “delivery” and “filtering” systems are a stark remind that in a broken world, broken people perpetuate brokenness. In varying degrees, we all create a world inside of our hearts built on a foundation of brokenness.
And our broken tendency is to normalize that broken world. The broken world becomes “reality,” and we think that we need to learn to survive in it … because, you know, it’s “reality.”
And so, we start to develop a psychological and emotional emosystem in that broken world to satisfy our broken need for affirmation. We start to think that we need the pain. The pain is the medium of our affirmation. The pain is all we know, and dealing with the pain is the only purpose, the only comfort, we have in life.
That broken world becomes a prison that can feel impossible to escape out of: How can a fish live on dry land? How can “ME-MYSELF-AND-I” live in a world of humility, mercy, forgiveness, peace, and love? Impossible.
Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”
— Matthew 19:26
The Father sent His one and only Son to die on a cross. The Father put upon the Son the burden of all the world’s sins across all time, and then poured out upon His Son the fulness of His just wrath. On the third day, the Father raised His Son from the deepest depths of His wrath, and resurrected Him to eternal life and eternal joy and eternal glory, so that whoever receives the Son as Savior and Lord might also share in that eternal life, joy, and glory. Because of His love.
With faith, all things are possible.
Father, You are the Author of my salvation, the Forgiver of my sins, the Redeemer of my soul, the Giver of my life. You know my sins, and You have nailed every one to the cross of my Lord Jesus. Forgive me for taking Your grace lightly. Forgive my lack of faith. But empower me with knowledge of Your gospel and the gift of Your holy Spirt. All things are possible with You. Heal my life. Heal my family. Heal my community. And bring glory to Your name. In Jesus’s name. Amen.
