Brokenness – an Indispensable Quality for one to be used of God

TRINITY HOUSEHOLD OF FAITH

 

SUNDAY SERMON

27th November, 2022

Topic:                         Brokenness – an Indispensable Quality for one to be used of God

Preacher:                   Minister Akinola

Text:                           Hebrews 5:7 – 9

 

MESSAGE

Every one of us has been called into the life of brokenness. The call of God for us when He saved us is a call into a life of brokenness (Eph. 4:1). God called us into a life of brokenness and one thing you have to know is that the reason you have to be broken is for you to be able to serve God better.

Why you must be broken?

1. You must be broken so that you can serve the Lord acceptably. For you to serve God acceptably, you must be broken.
2. So that you can put the flesh where it belongs. If you don’t allow brokenness, the flesh will torment your life and not allow you get to where God has destined for you.
3. So that you can give room for the Spirit of God to occupy more space in your life. You have to be broken so that God’s spirit can have room: room to occupy and glorify Himself, to direct your life and guide you.

It is quite unfortunate that many believers, after being born again have refused to follow this path of brokenness. Our Daddy in the Lord has been talking about Spiritual authority but for you to exercise spiritual authority, brokenness has to take place. For you to be able to use more of His authority, brokenness has to take place.

If you are not broken, you can’t really follow Jesus. You remember when Jesus in Matthew 14 was with the multitude and they were hungry in that lonely place. Jesus asked them what they had and they told Him they had 5 loaves and 2 fishes. The Bible told us that Jesus raised the bread and blessed it but the bread was not administered until it was broken. Why must Jesus break the bread? The demonstration is that, you cannot be administered to life, your ministry cannot make impact and fill lives until you are broken. Jesus took the bread, broke it and distributed it. Then, they were filled and there was multiplication. You want there to be multiplication in your life? You have to submit yourself to God.

Just yesterday, the Holy Spirit laid something in my life that for every unbroken man you see, they are just disposables. Have you seen a disposable pack before? For how long do you use it? You use it once. Every unbroken man is a disposable, he cannot stay long in God’s presence, in the ministry and in what God has ordained for his life, why? Because once he is used, he is disposed. He is not broken, so, more of God cannot come into His life. God will only use a man that is unbroken as a disposable – a man that can only be used once.

In Hebrews 5:7 – 9, Jesus proved himself in the place of obedience. Though He was God, God did not give to Him that power to give life to everyone. Why? He had to go through the process of brokenness because He had come down as a man. God proved to people that if He had given something to Adam and he disobeyed, He has a son that can redeem it. There is no partiality with God, so Jesus had to pass through the brokenness process. If you want to go far in life, you have to follow the process because Jesus is the pattern. You cannot have any other pattern after Jesus, He is the pattern.

Jesus came as a baby, the prophecy had been said concerning Him (Matthew 1:21), yet without going through the process of brokenness, He couldn’t attain it. So, Jesus had to go through the process of brokenness. God placed Him under a man, an immortal under a mortal, receiving instructions and directions, why? Because he was broken in obedience. Jesus came under a mortal man, Joseph and Mary would instruct him and he would obey. Joseph knew how His pregnancy came about – He was conceived of the Holy Ghost. Mary knew how He came about also, yet He was subjected to obedience in order for Him to be broken.

Jesus did three things:

1. He learned obedience. Even though Jesus was God’s son, He had to learn from experience what it was like to obey. Are you obedient?
2. He proved obedience.
3. His obedience was not selective. For some of us, we have selective obedience. There are people we obey and people we don’t. There are instructions you listen to and there are those you don’t listen to – you select obedience. If you select obedience or obey because it is convenient for you, you are not obedient. Jesus obeyed even when obedience for Him was painful. When your leaders tell you something and you feel it is not comfortable for you, you just ignore but when your leader is saying something to you and you feel it is in line with what you can do, you grab it. Check yourself, are you broken?

A good example of Brokenness is Moses (Acts 7:17-27). Moses wanted to attain leadership but there is a question that he must answer. The question was: “Who made you leader over us?” (Acts 7:26). Not ‘what?’ When it comes to ‘what’, Moses had it, he was mighty in words and deeds. If it was “‘What’ makes you leader over us?” Moses had everything, but the people said, “Who made you leader over us?” That question took him forty years to answer. Moses had everything it takes; He was skilled in the wisdom of the Egyptians. He had everything, he was knowledgeable, could speak and people will listen and clap for him. If it comes to Nigeria, politicians would vote for him but the question was “Who made you?” not “What made you?” Many believe in the church that because they had studied very hard, they can become leaders.

Moses had everything, yet he was not broken. He refused to be called Pharaoh’s son, He abandoned the palace and chose to set out because he heard from his mother who discipled him about his origin but that was not the case, the people asked him, “Who made you?” When he heard that word, he knew people already know that he had killed an Egyptian. He fled. It was not Pharaoh that pursued Moses, he fled because he knew that there was a deficiency in his life that he had to deal with. There was something that was not there that had to come – this brokenness. He could not have spiritual authority because the question was: “Who made you?” He went to Midian and enrolled himself in the University of Midian – the University of Brokenness. When he got there, he became a shepherd. He came down from his highly exalted position to serve. Moses had never served by the well side because he was a prince. He was broken to sit there, to shepherd and feed the flock. When he got to that University, he learned what it takes to be obedient and broken.

Beloved, may I announce to you that until you are broken, you may not attain your peak in Christianity. You may say brokenness is meant for Pastors alone, no! Before a man becomes a Pastor, he was a Christian. You will do yourself more disadvantage if you think brokenness is only meant for pastors. Until you are broken, you may not attain God’s plan for your life. Either you like it or not, if you want to be administered like the bread that was broken, you have to surrender and take the dealings of God. Some people cannot be corrected, when you correct them, they take offence. When you introduce any correction, they pick offence but we have to maximize this season. God is set to do something in your life, maximize this opportunity, don’t look down on anybody. One person God cannot deal with is a man that is proud. If someone has been given the role of a leader and you are under the person, no matter the qualification of that person, submit. God heard Jesus because he had obeyed Him (Hebrews 5:7).

What did Moses learn in the University of Midian?

1. He learned that he had to be humble (Ex. 3:11). When God came to him, he said, “Who am I?” Forty years ago, he wasn’t thinking like that. He learned obedience. He said, “Who am I that I will lead this people?” But before then, without that, he went out and intended to lead them but was disappointed. He learned humility. He was broken to be humble.
2. He learned the act of praying. Moses discovered he had to be praying. It was when he was in the School of Midian – the School of Brokenness that he learned how to climb mountains to pray (Ex. 3:1) and that was when God appeared to him. It became his usual practice. He came to the mountain. He learned to be praying. He was broken to know that it is not by power nor by his skill or qualification.
3. He learned submission. He learned to be submissive. He submitted to Jethro, his father-in-law. He took instructions from him. There was no record that there was argument between him and Jethro. He did not contest nor query Jethro’s decision. I tell you, if you want to go far in life, you have to submit yourself to be broken.
4. He learned faithfulness. He was faithful (Numbers 16:16).

These are things Moses learned and improved on and he was perfect in it. The Bible said, “Jesus Christ learned, improved and was perfect in it.” God will always take everyone through that same process of brokenness, no man can be exempted.

The mark of a man that is broken is that they apologise without justifying oneself. When you see a man that gives apology but has to defend his apology, that man is not broken. “I am sorry, but…”, you are not broken.

The mark of a broken man is a man that acknowledges his mistake. He does not argue it and he submits to leadership.

Either here or anywhere, don’t allow familiarity with leadership cause you to ignore laid down rules. It won’t help you and you are doing yourself harm. Some of us think that we can do whatever we like and nobody can query us. Yes, nobody can query you but you peg your life.

After Moses had been broken, the Lord came to him and said, “I will send you.” The question he could not answer forty years ago, after he had been broken, the answer came. After he had learned in the University of Brokenness, God appeared to him and said, “I have listened to you, now you are qualified to lead them.” Moses asked what he should tell them if they asked who sent him. Do you think he just asked that question casually? No. God told him to tell them that He is the I am that I am. God will give you answer to every query that has come your way in Jesus Name, Amen. This season, God will give you answer to the query of your enemy. Amen. But the way to that is to be broken.

 

Prayer

1. Lord, I want you to have more room in my life, I am submitting myself to your plan, break me the way you please. Break me down, I release my life to you.
2. Ask God for more of His brokenness in your life.