What’s Broken
Reflect on What’s Not Working in Life
“Why are things so messed up?”
PART 1 — THE KICKOFF
Sitting in your doctor’s office, you might explain how much your back hurts when you wake up in the morning — an increasingly common complaint as we get older. You’d expect them to ask more questions, maybe feel around, or even do some scans. The last thing you’d want them to say might be, “Well, why don’t you wake up in the afternoon instead?” Really?! It’s almost as bad as telling them how much it hurts when you touch your arm and hearing, “Then don’t touch it” as their remedy. Dad jokes are great, but when you’re trying to get to the root of your aches, pains, and more serious ailments, it’s best to seek more professional guidance.
When you notice an ailment, do you tend to run to the internet for self-diagnosis, schedule an appointment, or ignore it and hope it goes away?
ICE BREAKER QUESTION
PART 2 — LET’S GET INTO IT
Let’s get into it and reflect on what’s not working in life. Maybe you face issues with money, relationships, health? Concerns about your marriage or kids? Bitterness about your past? Paralyzing fears about your future? Addiction, depression, heartbreak, and the list goes on. And looking beyond ourselves, what are the world’s most significant problems? What’s going wrong here? We see poverty, disease, hatred and bigotry, political unrest, and war; real issues, but not the root.
We have a long history of misdiagnosing our condition and treating only the symptoms. We don’t even see our situation — a chronic disease plaguing us almost from the beginning of human existence.
In Matthew 9:12, Jesus said, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick.” In the next verse, he says that’s why he came, to treat a kind of sickness. He didn’t come to tell us how wrong we are, he came to heal us.
Humanity has slipped into some terribly unhealthy patterns — and if we’re honest, we can see that brokenness in ourselves.
THE BIG IDEA
When you think about your life, is there an area where you’ve struggled or seen a real need for change?
REACH OUT QUESTION
PART 3 — INTO THE BOOK
Centuries before Jesus’ birth, Isaiah wrote in Isaiah 59:1-13 about people breaking their relationship with God, one another, and even their own peace. Like the first readers of this passage, we might find ourselves needing help from God and wondering why he seems so distant. It’s a pretty morbid poem, imagining people trying to feed and clothe themselves with snake eggs and spiderwebs. Thankfully, it’s not all bad news, as Isaiah looks forward to God stepping in later in the chapter. Read Isaiah 59:1-13 together to better understand the sickness Jesus came to heal.
After reading, take some time to discuss it.
What strikes you about the picture Isaiah 59:1-13 paints?
TALK ABOUT THE READING
PART 4 — GOING DEEPER
Ready to go deeper? Doctors often use clinical, technical words that seem impersonal until they become YOUR disease. Like medical terms, some religious words don’t seem to relate to real life — like “church words” we wouldn’t use any other time. But the matter isn’t distant, invented, or theoretical. Until you’re cured, it’s your disease, the source of problems you’re painfully aware of — and those you don’t even realize.
So, that passage in Isaiah (Isa. 59:1-13) repeatedly used three words to describe the problem and help us understand our need for healing.
Iniquity — our crooked heart disease. Iniquity envisions a twisted lifestyle and worldview. In the Bible’s first pages (Gen. 1-11), humanity receives every good gift and then perverts them all. Like a poorly hammered nail, we’re all bent out of alignment.
Transgression — our shattered lives. In our transgression, we break apart what was once whole — in ourselves and our relationships. More importantly, we wreck our connection to God, smashing it into a million pieces like a brick through a window.
Sin — our chronic failure. Sin describes bad aim, like an archer who can’t seem to hit the mark. It points to moral failure, since “all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God” (Rom. 3:23). God gave us such potential and purpose, it’s heartbreaking to think how off-target we’ve gone.
So these words name the dysfunction that defines so much of the human condition. Sin lays a heavy burden of guilt on us (Isa. 5:18), and more bad choices seem to lurk around every corner (Gen. 4:7). Sometimes it feels like our worst impulses, desires, and habits have more power over us than we do (Rom. 7:15)! It almost seems like too much to hope for — that God would save us from all of this!
Do you see your need for Jesus to heal you from the afflictions you face (Matt. 9:12)?
THE BIG QUESTION
PART 5 — WRAPUP
THE CHALLENGE
With all this focus on our biggest problem, let’s watch this week for both healthy and unhealthy things in the world. As you start the next conversation, take a moment to talk about what you noticed.
NEXT TIME
It’s hard to appreciate the good news without recognizing the bad news first. Our biggest problem — sin — is terminal, so we need salvation from sin and death. But as we’ll start to see next time, God wants to heal us from the problems we discussed today and lead us into an abundant life with him.
CLOSING BLESSING
May the Lord help us look at our lives honestly and bless us as we come to Jesus for healing!