Message by Larry Thacker Jr. from November 29, “Broken Families”
The family is supposed to be our safe place, but for many it’s just the opposite. Why are so many of our families so broken? The first answer is simple enough. They are made up of broken people. We’re all born into sin, and even after we find Jesus we struggle with our flesh. We make mistakes. We hurt each other. We go and do things outside of God’s design.
I believe that Satan attacks the family in particular because he understands its importance. God designed it to show us His love in all its forms. Our families are supposed to mirror God’s family. Destroying the family destroys something fundamental to who we are. For this reason, we aught always to strive to heal broken relationships.
But what if the family cannot be healed? I have often been somewhat troubled by these words of Jesus, “For I came to SET A MAN AGAINST HIS FATHER, AND A DAUGHTER AGAINST HER MOTHER, AND A DAUGHTER-IN-LAW AGAINST HER MOTHER-IN-LAW; and A MAN’S ENEMIES WILL BE THE MEMBERS OF HIS HOUSEHOLD.” (Mt. 12:35-36 NASB) In many places around the world today, these words would not be hard to understand at all. Converting to Christianity often means ostracism or worse from one’s own family.
A few years ago, I realized how these words apply even to us, who usually don’t suffer more than a bit of scorn for our decision. It still hurts, but isn’t fatal. A true follower of Jesus will live a life that looks at least a little like Jesus. He or she will make choices in accordance with what is right and true. Wherever light and darkness meet, the darkness must give way. If you are living for the truth, you will be opposed, and that opposition may come from those closest to you. This kind of brokenness Jesus told us to expect.
That doesn’t mean we give up. We keep on loving, keep on forgiving, keep on praying, and keep on speaking the truth. We pursue peace. We put our own pride aside and confess when we are in the wrong. We long for the day when Jesus returns and reunites His family. But it does mean that until that time there are some wounds that will not heal and some relationships that will not mend. Do not be discouraged. If you have done all that you can do, leave the rest in God’s hands. Keep standing in the truth, and do not compromise the things that matter.
