The Presence of God in Your Pain
“The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit” Psalm 34:18.
We will all be brokenhearted at some time or other if we live long enough. We will lose loved ones, and/or they will hurt us, we will experience the loss of hopes and dreams and we’ll feel the pain of others.
Sin and Suffering
But sometimes we add to that burden with our own sin. And we end up broken hearted when we don’t have to. Sin and suffering are intricately connected.
In general, if you sin more, you will suffer more. To read this whole psalm for context, click here.
But there is an upside even then.
The apostle Paul tells us if we sow to the flesh, we will reap destruction. Not only in the hereafter, but in the here and now as well (Galatians 6: 8).
And Jesus said the foolish person’s house built in the sand is destroyed by the storm (Mathew 27: 24-27).
And yet this scripture seems to intimate that God in His mercy is closer to those who’ve sinned and are therefore brokenhearted than to those who’ve not sinned and are not brokenhearted.
We can certainly see this in the gospels that Jesus is the friend of tax collectors and sinners.
Insight into the ways and character of God comes to the brokenhearted as we lean into Him in our pain. This is because of the presence or nearness of God.
And how could the presence of God not transform you? We become wiser, stronger, more whole.
“For with you is the fountain of life; in your light we see light” Psalm 36:9.
God understands the underlying reasons for sin. And I believe that’s one reason He’s so merciful to the sinner who’s brokenhearted.
Hurt People Hurt People
He knows that those who’ve been sinned against are the ones who sin the most. Those who’ve been hurt are the most likely to hurt others.
Generally speaking, those who don’t sin in egregious ways, and hurt others, have not been sinned against or hurt by others in egregious ways either.
This verse conveys the idea that God remembers mercy in His anger. I believe the fact that the sinner is brokenhearted is an expression of His anger against their sin (Psalm 30:5).
But He also comforts the brokenhearted with His presence. He wounds, but His hands also heal (Job 5: 17, 18).
So, sinners are often brokenhearted because of their own foolishness and sin.
And yet, the mercy of God is such that those who’ve sinned and are in pain, experience His love and compassion in a way those who haven’t sinned and aren’t in pain don’t.
The Presence of God is What Sinners Need
So, we could add to the statement above by saying:
If you sin more you will suffer more
And if you suffer more you will experience God’s presence more
And if you experience God’s presence more you will be healed
This is exactly what you need if you are a sinner. Isn’t that beautiful?
And if because of the consequences of your sin, you are crushed in spirit, you get to experience God’s salvation from your plight in a way those not in a predicament because of sin don’t.
How true then that “. . . where sin increased, grace increased all the more” Romans 5:20.
I believe this is one reason Jesus said in the beatitudes “blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted” Mathew 5:4. They will be comforted with the presence of God as they seek Him in their pain.
To read another post similar to The Presence of God in Your Pain, see When Trusting God’s Plan Looks Impossible.
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