A Broken Heart

Roman mythology has a legend that Cupid was the god of desire, affection and erotic love, supposedly the son of Venus, goddess of love and Mars, god of war. His bow and arrow were used to shoot uncontrollable desire into the “victim.” Once hit by his arrow, they had no choice but to fall in love.

If Cupid were real, he could be a billionaire many times over, because his services would be in great demand to satisfy the desires of folks who want certain ones to love them for personal gain or to satisfy their own desires.

Isn’t it funny how legends are built around some truth, but twisted to weave a story that promotes and exalts pagan gods and their interaction with humans? The REAL source of love doesn’t shoot arrows at people to make them love; He just loves with such intensity that it calls for reciprocation. He has no ulterior selfish motive, no axe to grind; He just loves unconditionally.

Unlovable people are so because they don’t love themselves and feel that it would not be possible for anyone to love them. This attitude causes them to act and react to any efforts to express love toward them to be rejected and misunderstood. Soon they find themselves alone and lonely, fulfilling their opinion of themselves, perpetuating and recycling their unhappy life.

The Psalmist wrote, “Oh, that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men” (Psalm 107:8). The psalmist wasn’t satisfied to just express this once; the wish is repeated in the same Psalm 107 in verses 15, 21 and 31. It is a fact that people who praise the Lord will experience the incredible love the Lord has for them. That love is “…shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us” (Romans 5:5).

No, it is not Cupid’s arrow supposedly filled with love that we need, it’s the love that caused God to manifest His love toward us, “because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him” (1 John 4:9).

Love can make you feel on top of the world—or can break your heart and make you feel like the world is on top of you. Human love can be fickle, here today and gone tomorrow. One reason is that what the world calls “love” is sometimes nothing more than attraction or lust and isn’t guaranteed to last. But we can feel absolutely secure in the Love that God gives. He doesn’t love on a whim; He doesn’t love “because, when, if, until ” or wait until approached with love. He initiates and embraces the object of His affection with love that cleanses and elevates the lowliest of mankind.

You see, “We love him, because he first loved us” (1 John 4:19). He didn’t sit there on His throne waiting for us to clean up our act so He could love us. He didn’t even have expectations that we could; He knew we could not. Instead, “…God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8).

My friend and I used to sing a song titled “The Heart that was Broken for Me.” I have not been able to find the music, but I remembered part of it (below, as I remember it).

The Heart That was Broken for Me

“There are hearts filled with sorrow

At the plight of lost man.

There are hearts fill with mercy so free,

But there’s none with compassion

For the world and its strife

Like the heart that was broken for me.

“How his heart must have suffered

When he died all alone,

In such deep agony, there on dark Calvary.

Oh what love, oh what mercy

To the world has been shown

By the heart that was broken for me.”

The heart of Jesus was broken that ours could be mended, made new and capable of loving like He does. No one has ever had a heart broken like His. He carried the sins of the whole world to Calvary, took responsibility for them as they were nailed to His cross. No one who ever lived had the ability to do that; only the sinless Christ could propitiate for our sins and make us pure in His Father’s eyes. His mission was accomplished! God saw our sins on the cross of Jesus and marked our debt “Paid”! He must have had a broken heart too when He saw His only beloved Son dying on that cross, but what a glorious victory was won. No wonder the Psalmist exclaimed, “Oh, that men would praise the LORD!”

Incredible! Jesus died that we could live in His love. After His burial, He arose from the dead so we too could have eternal life after this life here has ended. He paid the penalty, and His broken heart over our sins was mended with His resurrection and the preparation He is making for our “homecoming.”

He is anticipating our arrival. Have you made the necessary preparations by accepting what He did for you? If so, He is looking forward to showing you to your place, at His place. If not, don’t wait any longer; it might be too late very soon.

Jesus is in the business of mending “Broken Hearts”; give Him yours to lovingly mend. It doesn't matter what may have broken it, He can put all the pieces together expertly so that is will be new!