The Holy Spirit Comes Alongside the Brokenhearted

“Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.”

God’s comfort is much more than a consoling pat on the back. It is His coming alongside the helpless to strengthen them with His own power.

Think of a great oil tanker in distress at sea, Its engines have failed. It is powerless, wallowing helplessly in the towering waves crashing on its deck. It sends out frantic SOS calls. A powerful tugboat responds, comes alongside, and takes it in tow. The vessel is no longer helpless; it is now under the power of another.

 The Greek word “comfort” is parakaleō: the verb “to call” (kaleō) married to the preposition “alongside” (para) to help. 

Comfort has come to mean consoling, soothing, a pat on the back. The original meaning of the English word captures the Greek image, it too joins the verb  “come” to the noun “fort” – we are fortified by God taking us in tow.  God does not merely console and bring solace to the brokenhearted. He comes alongside to fortify them.

If your spiritual life feels lackluster, if it has lost its sparkle, and you find yourself crying out, “O wretched man that I am!” then take heart. That is where God steps in. In fact it is the only door into ultimate bliss. 

Our End Is God’s Beginning

We instinctively try to offer God something in exchange for His acceptance: our Bible reading, our prayers, our worship, our good works, and yes, even our repentance. We roll up our sleeves and replace the Ten Commandments with ten steps for spiritual growth.

That changes the relationship from friendship into a business deal, one where we can never fulfill the contract however hard we try. So in true business mode we attempt to bargain with Him.

That does not work and we discover we are helpless at sea, unable to rescue ourselves. Our desperate SOS brings the One who comes alongside.

God provided everything as a free gift and expects nothing from us, because He provided everything for us in Christ. Faith cuts you loose from self and joins you to the living Christ.

Stepping Into the Light

Acknowledge your bankruptcy freely. Do not be afraid to expose the complete depths of your unexplored heart to the light. Ask Him to help, as Psalm 139 instructs, “Search me, O God, and know(discover to me)  my heart;  test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life.”

Ask yourself not merely, “What have I done?” but rather, “What am I capable of?” The same wolves howling in the cellar of the worst criminal are also present in your attic.

Mourn over that reality. Mourn the sorrow it causes God. Mourn the alienation it brings to human and Divine relationships. Then realize that God raises you up and sets you free to serve Him in love.

There is no fear in this, only joy. Sin is no longer a legal summons to hide from. It is not something to dread and cover up, it is simply dealing with the grief of saddening your Dearest Friend.

Do not seek shortcuts here. Any shortcut is a cut in your own enjoyment and a metric of alienation. Like a laser show in a dark setting, God’s love is displayed most brilliantly against a dark background. Think of an arena filled with the thick gloom of cordite smoke, suddenly pierced by vivid laser light. Do not skip the mourning, or you rob yourself of the profound joy of being restored.

Jesus fulfills the promise to the mourner, to bathe you, crown you, anoint you with the oil of gladness, and reclothe you in the garment of praise. (Isaiah 61 and Luke 4)

The Comforter

The Greek word for the Holy Spirit is Paraclete. It belongs to the same family of words as parakaleō. 

In ancient civic and legal culture, if a person faced a court trial, a heavy dispute, or a crisis, he would summon a trusted friend, legal representative, or advocate. That helper became the Paraclete, the advocate called to stand alongside him.

The Holy Spirit, the Paraclete.

When your strength is gone, He does not shout instructions through a bullhorn from the shore, He does not throw you a lifeline, He plunges in. When you have reached the end of yourself, He takes you in tow. He does not merely soothe your feelings. He fortifies your faith. He joins you to the living Christ and carries you under His power.

Heed the advice of a sage who once wrote, “For every single look at self, take ten long looks at Jesus”. He came for sinners, and your SOS brings Him alongside. Practice sending SOS’s!.

Practice the SOS routine until it is embedded in your spiritual software, operating at all times as a default.