- Near to and Saves
Psalm 34:18
The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart;
And saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.
A broken heart and a contrite spirit is a wonderful blessing and gift of God because He promises to be near to such a person and He saves him. No one enjoys undergoing inner brokenness or conscience pangs and sorrows, but it is to just such a person that the Lord comes close to and saves. God loves to mend brokenness, put lives back together, and forgive sins and take away guilt and sorrow. As a matter of fact, this is the kind of person God is looking for, the person who is shattered and empty, overwhelmed by his sinful condition. Jesus eats with sinners, prostitutes and dishonest tax collectors. When Jesus comes near and saves such people their lives are restored to wholeness, their burdens lifted, and their sorrows turned to joy.
God resists the proud heart, avoids the stubborn heart and turns away from the hard heart. He avoids them because He cannot help them; He cannot come into their lives to fix what’s wrong because they won’t let Him in. Impenitence, unbelief and pride keep God away; godly sorrow, brokenness and humility bring God near.
God loves the proud, too, but He loves them in such a way as to bring them down and break them. Once broken, humbled and convicted of sin they are open to receiving Him, and so He comes to forgive, restore, and save. It is wiser on our part to “preemptively repent” of sin, guilt and shame before God must come and do some breaking in order to induce repentance and faith.