Earth has no sorrow
That heaven can't heal
The singer Bon Jove once sang "This ain't a song for the broken-hearted” Well, this message IS for the broken hearted.
I have been studying something for many years, it’s a truth that burns like a fire shut up in my bones and I can’t contain it anymore. Please, be gracious to me and let me try and explain.
The quest began from a place of wanting to understand; how "good” smart people can do despicable and stupid things? The knee-jerk theological answer to that question is "We all have a sin nature and there is none good except God”. That answer is true of course, but I’ve come to understand that there is so much more to understand. Why do we hurt the ones we love? Why do we hurt ourselves with addictions & bad choices? Why do we sabotage ourselves, our families, churches, and community? The bible gives us the answer.
It was a dark time in David’s life, but God has this amazing way of working things out for good, even from this dark episode…. He left us a trail to follow and he left a legacy for his son who told David’s grandchildren "Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding.”
King David had committed adultery and murder and, when God sent Nathan the prophet to confront him, things got real. Psalms 51 is David retelling of the experience in song and that song is the first piece of the puzzle that I spent years searching out. We will come back to Psalms 51 often, but I think verse 6 is a good starting place. David talking to God: "Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts: and in the hidden part thou shalt make me to know wisdom.”
The "inward parts”; we have "parts” (plural) that can operate independently of each other, they are capable of being deceived and capable of understanding truth. Among those parts, we have parts that are hidden. Some are hidden from the world and only you and God know about them. Some parts we have hidden from ourselves, some parts may be wounded and kept hidden, while other wounded parts may lash out in anger or run away into addictions or avoidance.
Sometimes, we can resolve to change, Sometimes it just takes some words from wise counsel and we can see the errors in our thinking. God gave us the ability to make choices, but with some parts, the wounds are too deep… it’s been too long and we are bound too tightly to free ourselves. With those kinds of wounds; it takes God to heal, it’s personal, between you and God and it cost God more that we can ever comprehend.
So, to say that humanity has "issues” would be an understatement. The examples that I gave are only a few facets, but the possibilities are endless. There is something broken, something is off. It’s like humanity has brain damage… there is something off and we all have our individual and collective methods that we use, to try and gain balance, to try and reset the trigger. I was talking with a young man the other day and he made an interesting observation, something to the effect "two brothers: one drinks and the other never touches a drop, both for the same reason; their dad drank.” That’s a good example of the problem; we should make our choices based on wisdom and truth, not our feelings about our fathers’ excesses.
For some, like me, we turn to "comfort food”. It’s as if, for a moment, everything is as it should be, that sensation of eating or sense of fullness somehow connects the body to the conscience mind and the hidden pieces. Others may cut themselves or starve themselves, some get drunk, some turn that imbalance into an overwhelming drive for perfection or control, some give up, some go numb, some just want to feel something and others try desperately to not feel anything… we all have it and we all do SOMETHING.
So what is "it”? I believe the bible gives it a name and I believe the bible tells of the cure. The bible calls it INIQUITY.
Iniquity made it’s first appearance, in the heart of Lucifer, when he said …”I will be like the most High” (Isaiah 14:14 , Ezekiel 28:15). That thought… that believing a lie, it’s skewed, it’s off, it’s out of balance and it was enough to set the world on it’s end.
Going back to David, the shepherd boy that killed the giant. David became king but he had a problem. King David had his own inner parts… there was something that pulled at him and he spoke of it in Psalms 18, Look at the incredible statement that David was able to say in Psalms 18: 20, The LORD rewarded me according to my righteousness; according to the cleanness of my hands hath he recompensed me.
21For I have kept the ways of the LORD, and have not wickedly departed from my God.
22For all his judgments were before me, and I did not put away his statutes from me.
23I was also upright before him, and I kept myself from mine iniquity.
24Therefore hath the LORD recompensed me according to my righteousness, according to the cleanness of my hands in his eyesight.
Clearly, David was living his best life. David spoke these words to the LORD on the day that the LORD delivered him from the hands of all his enemies. But look at verse 23, even during this outpouring of praise and thanksgiving, David said that he had kept himself from his iniquity.
I guess this is a good place to look at the word iniquity. It is a compound word that comes " from in- "not" + aequus "just, equal" So the simple definition for iniquity is= unequal, out of balance. It’s probably also helpful to consider the word "true”. Something that is true is in accordance with fact or reality. To a carpenter, something that is true is level, straight, square, and plumb and it will fit with the other true parts. To a wife, a husband that is true will not waver or go astray. Iniquity and truth oppose each other.
The iniquity that David spoke of in Psalms 18 eventually overcame him and he fell to adultery and murder. It’s in Psalms 51 where David comes clean, his confession speaks volumes about our human condition. David said "Wash me from mine iniquity, and cleans me from my sin” if you read the whole chapter, you will see two other places where David speaks of iniquity as being something different from sin, just as importantly, we can plainly see how context defines "iniquity” as the absence of truth, look where truth is missing from : Psalms 51: 6….”thow desirest, truth in the inward parts: and in the hidden part thou shalt make me to know wisdom.”. We will come back to Psalms 51 because it’s a gold mine of truth about our iniquity but first let me plainly say that, I believe, iniquity is that thing…. The voice that pulls us off balance. It’s the voice that tells us untruths about God, ourselves and others.
Maybe it had something to do with David’s childhood and the way his father and brothers treated him harshly and had little or no regard for David? Maybe it was something in the way that people sang his praises that got David started down the wrong path, or in the way that King Saul treated him unfairly? God once told Jeremiah the prophet "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?” (Jeramiah 17:9) the thing about deceitful hearts is that they deceive the one in whose chest it beats.
Maybe it just came from inside David’s own wickedly deceitful heart, but something got David to thinking that he was the exception… that he, like God, would determine truth. He would ascend above God and God’s law and he would find balance in the arms of Bathsheba.
Iniquity is the reason Jesus was bruised in Isaiah 53. Also in Isaiah 53, iniquity it what leads the sheep astray and it’s the wounds that his stripes heal us of. We are going to come back to that also.
So with the basic understanding that iniquity is the state of wrong thinking, lets look at how it came to humanity and we are going to look at a place in the bible where God himself did an intervention with Cain, BEFORE Cain killed Able!
Lucifer was cast down, his name changed to Satan, and then he spread iniquity to Eve "…ye shall be as gods” (Gen 3:5) He truly is the father of lies. SO, Eve’s thinking was effected by the iniquitous thought that she could be "like god”… notice the very telling change; Lucifer thought himself to be "like the most High” so he put it out there that Eve could be "as gods”. That seemed to satisfy Satan because he could keep the allusion that he was "most High” while Eve could be "as gods” (small g) she would "know good from evil”…. her mind was tainted by iniquity, and, to her, it was a small thing if she took more of an executive roll and determined what was true. Her husband had his own thoughts on that matter. Adam’s iniquity was that he valued his relationship with Eve more than his relationship with God. The decisions were made the deed was done and the consequence passed down to all of humanity.
When God gave the Ten Commandments to Moses, he said that he visits the "iniquity of the fathers upon the children” (Exodus 37) I believe, this is an example of what he was talking about; Satan handed Eve the cup and Adam and Eve drank in iniquity like water, they thought wrongly about God and themselves and they acted upon those false beliefs. Their son Cain drank from the same cup of iniquity. Cain decided that he was qualified to decide that an offering from the cursed ground was ample sacrifice for the LORD and, picking up at Genesis, 4: 4 And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering: 5 But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell. 6 And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? 7 If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.
I’m sure you know that Cain ended up killing Abel. The thing is Cain was visibly mad and God spoke directly with him. Not all anger is tainted by iniquity but Cain’s was and God showed us his will for when we are angry:
1. Be more inquisitive than reactive "Why art thou wroth?”
2. Look at the situation reasonably "If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted?”
3. Don’t let it rule over you, you are supposed to rule over it.
How do you rule over your emotions/ iniquity? God gave us some examples for how to rule; he gave the Sun and moon to rule over the day and night, so to rule something, you should be present and engaged, there’s no question which light rules day and which rules night. Then God gave Adam dominion over the animals and prompted him to name them. Every single animal was named because that’s what rulers do.
1.\t Anger, lust, fear, greed, shame, pride, whatever the emotion, however iniquity twists it…. Rule over it.
2.\tCuriosity is powerful and it’s akin to humility.
3.\tBeing reasonable is crucial but be sure not to reason with the emotion, reason with God, rule the emotion.
4.\tShow me and angry man and I will show you someone that is trying to PROTECT something.
This is possibly what it would have looked look like for Cain; Lord, I feel angry… Is this legitimate anger or am I using anger to protect myself from feeling shame or fear or is it something else?
In the case of Cain, he was wroth. He didn’t have a righteous reason to be angry, so we know that it was driven by iniquity. The bible says a lot about anger:
"Make no friendship with an angry man; and with a furious man thou shalt not go: Lest thou learn his ways, and get a snare to thy soul.” Proverbs 22:24-25
"He that is soon angry dealeth foolishly:….” Proverbs 14:17
"…let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath: For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God.” James 1:19-20
"Be not hasty in thy spirit to be angry: for anger resteth in the bosom of fools.” Ecclesiastes 7:9
I believe that those are examples of anger that is tainted by iniquity while we also see examples of a Zealous, righteous anger such as:
Jesus driving the money changers from the temple, John 2: 14 ”And found in the temple those that sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the changers of money sitting: 15And when he had made a scourge of small cords, he drove them all out of the temple, and the sheep, and the oxen; and poured out the changers' money, and overthrew the tables; 16And said unto them that sold doves, Take these things hence; make not my Father's house an house of merchandise.
17And his disciples remembered that it was written, The zeal of thine house hath eaten me up.
or this exchange in Mark 3:5
"And when he had looked round about on them with anger, being grieved for the hardness of their hearts, he saith unto the man, Stretch forth thine hand. And he stretched it out: and his hand was restored whole as the other”
We see statements like this, "God judgeth the righteous, and God is angry with the wicked every day.” Psalms 7:11
The bible uses much more precise wording like fiery indignation, wrath, Wroth, and so on but, I think they all would fit comfortably within the understood meaning of anger. The dividing line is, is anger reasonable and righteous or is it tainted by iniquity?
Is the anger in keeping with God’s true character and nature or is it an anger that’s sprung forth from the root of bitterness or is it a cover for shame or fear?
If you witness someone molesting a child, I pray that you can muster up some Godly anger and intervene. Abortion should make us angry, injustice and abuse of power should make us angry, however
"Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath:” Ephesians 4:26
How often have you witnessed someone taking out their anger on someone they should be loving and protecting or how often have you seen someone get caught being dishonest or in an intellectual inconsistency and, instead of responding in humility, they burst forty in an angry outburst? Yah… God commands better from us.
I want to bring out that we, like king David, like Cain, "all we like sheep” go astray. We may keep ourselves from our iniquity for a time but we all eventually sin and the wages of sin is death….. he was wounded for our transgressions, and he was bruised for our iniquities. I also want to bring out what the mystery of iniquity is, strong delusions from antichrist in the end times etc.
When I start back, I want to look at not one single feeling or emotion is, in and of itself, bad… fear can be a good or bad thing, depression in and of itself is supposed to make you reflect on your actions and choose a better path…. When iniquity effects depression, fear, lust, or any emotion, that’s when we have problems. ….. Cain didn’t rule over his iniquity and that’s what God was talking about sin was at the door and Cain should rule over it.
I would also like to look at iniquity v’s truth in fear, lust, anger etc. truth sets us free. It would be cool if I could bring out that my dad didn’t have an alcohol or anger problem, he had an iniquity problem and he thought alcohol and anger were the answer.
Abraham was going to do it quickly, with minimal pain and no bruising, but when God’s son was offered up for sin, he was mocked, striped, spit upon, ridiculed and beaten mercilessly for hours on end… they tried to make him doubt his relationship with God.
I want to bring out how that Jesus was bound and abused so that he can set us free and give us joy. I need to look into Joy deeper…. The joy of the Lord is our strength…. for the joy that was set before him Jesus endures the cross…. Jesus prayed that our joy be full…. Maybe Joy means much more that we suppose? David asked God to restore the joy of his salvation…. Maybe joy is less like a luxury vacation and more like being connected with God’s glorious mission?.... maybe it’s more like wielding a bloody two edged sword in a desperate battle to glorify our king?
Possibly work this in? In Genesis chapter 2, it says that "the LORD God formed man from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.” Mankind has a soul, that soul is distinctive to mankind. Animals don’t have a Soul like man, but they do have a brain that was made by the same loving creator that made our brain and there are similarities in the base functions. Have you ever seen the TV commercial that shows pitiful half-starved dogs that are trembling and frozen in fear, while their rescuers try to show them a little kindness? That reaction is hardwired into their brains, it’s one of the few lifesaving responses that a dog has to danger, other responses could be that the dog bites or runs away. The problem is that the dog has been abused to the point that it can no longer discern danger from safety. In humans, we have the "fight, flight or freeze” instinct that is controlled by the sympathetic nervous system. It’s a lifesaving instincts given to us by our loving creator, in times of danger, our bodies undergo automatic changes that include increased heartrate and breathing and shutting down things like your immune system and digestive system so that all energy can be diverted to muscle groups that supercharge your ability to fight or run, while our brain kicks into emergency survival mode, your vision and hearing can change for example. God also gave us an automatic system, called the parasympathetic nervus system, that brings everything back to normal once the danger has passed. These parts were designed to work in harmony but ever sense the fall of man, there have been glitches. I knew a lady that died of cancer at a young age. She had kept dark secrets about things that were done to her as a child. Statistically, that trauma and the subsequent secrets made her more likely to have health problems like cancer. I think because the trauma had triggered a glitch between her sympathetic nervous system and parasympathetic nervus system. This is only one example of how different parts can get out of balance.
This is key to understanding the point that I want to make; The abused dog has a part of his brain that is wounded, it’s stuck, and no matter how good the intentions of the rescuers, the dog is likely to bite, run away or freeze in fear…. You may condition the dog to be more at ease, but that wounded part is still be there, much like the lady with childhood trauma or soldiers with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) or adults that were abused as children with Complex Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (CPTSD), they can train their brains to control those urges, they can act like nothing is wrong but we may still have those hidden parts that only God can heal.
There's hope for the hopeless
And all those who've strayed
Come sit at the table
Come taste the grace
There's rest for the weary
Rest that endures
Earth has no sorrow
That heaven can't cure
I strive to keep my bible study methods simple. I try to let the context of the original writer and audience, coupled with the context and usage of the English words, as used in the context in the rest of the bible define things. Not all bible versions will have used the exact words, so, for point of reference, please know that I used the King James version of the bible. You may find it helpful to reference this version if you have trouble following along.
Thanks for reading, Larry