What Have You Lost or Broken?

My Come Follow Me Studies for this week took me to Isaiah 13-35 in a lesson titled “A Marvellous Work and a Wonder.” The following material introduced the lesson. 

One thing that the Lord asks prophets to do is to warn about the consequences of sin. For Old Testament prophets, this often meant telling the rulers of mighty kingdoms that they needed to repent. It was a dangerous task, but Isaiah was fearless, and his warnings to the kingdoms of his day—including Israel, Judah, and surrounding nations—were bold (see Isaiah 13-23).

However, Isaiah also had a message of hope. Even though the prophesied destructions did come upon these kingdoms, Isaiah foresaw a chance for restoration and renewal. The Lord would invite His people to return to Him. He would make “the parched ground … become a pool, and the thirsty land springs of water” (Isaiah 35:7). He would perform “a marvellous work and a wonder” (Isaiah 29:14), restoring to Israel the blessings He had promised them. Neither Isaiah nor anyone else alive at that time lived to see this marvelous work. But we are seeing it today. In fact, we are part of it.

The scripture block taught several principles, including these: (1) Pride and worldliness will fail (Isaiah 13:1-11, 19-22; 14:1-20). (2) Jesus Christ is the promised Messiah (Isaiah 22:22-23; 24:21-23; 25:6-8; 26:19; 28:16). (3) Turning away from the Lord brings spiritual danger (Isaiah 24:1-12; 28:1-8; 28:1-8; 29:7-13; 30:8-14). (4) The Lord can restore what is lost or broken (Isaiah 29; 30:18-26; 35). This essay will discuss principle #4 about God restoring anything lost or broken.

The lesson material asks several questions about lost or broken things: “Have you ever lost something that you thought you would never find again? Or maybe something broke, and you worried that it could never be repaired.” God is concerned about our possessions and used some of them to teach parables, such as the “Parable of the Lost Coin.” He is also concerned about the lost or broken relationships in our lives. He is particularly concerned about our relationship with Him, but He is also concerned about our relationships with other people.

When we sin or turn away from God, Satan wants us to think that we are lost and can never return or be healed. This is a lie. Sister Amy A. Wright taught the following about broken relationships with God ("Christ Heals That Which Is Broken," Liahona, May 2022, 81–84). 

While the Savior was teaching in the temple, a woman was brought to Him by the scribes and Pharisees. We do not know her full story, just that she was “taken in adultery” (John 8:4). Often the scriptures give only a small portion of someone’s life, and based on that portion, we sometimes tend to exalt or condemn. No one’s life can be understood by one magnificent moment or one regrettable public disappointment. The purpose of these scriptural accounts is to help us see that Jesus Christ was the answer then, and He is the answer now. He knows our complete story and exactly what we suffer, as well as our capabilities and vulnerabilities.

Christ’s response to this precious daughter of God was “Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more” (John 8:11). Another way to say “go, and sin no more” could be “go forth and change.” The Savior was inviting her to repent: to change her behavior, her associations, the way she felt about herself, her heart.

Because of Christ, our decision to “go forth and change” can also allow us to “go forth and heal,” for He is the source of healing all that is broken in our lives. As the great Mediator and Advocate with the Father, Christ sanctifies and restores broken relationships – most important, our relationship with God.

The Joseph Smith Translation makes it clear that the woman did follow the Savior’s counsel and changed her life: “And the woman glorified God from that hour, and believed on his name” (JST, John 8:11 [in John 8:11, footnote c]). It is unfortunate that we do not know her name or other details about her life after this moment because it would have required great determination, humility, and faith in Jesus Christ for her to repent and change. What we do know is she was a woman who “believed on his name” with the understanding that she was not beyond the reach of His infinite and eternal sacrifice.

God is also concerned about our relationships with other people: parents, siblings, children, and other family members; friends and associates; strangers who cross our path. Sister Wright taught the following about broken relationships with other people.

In Luke chapter 15 we read a parable of a man who had two sons. The younger son asked his father for his inheritance, took his journey into a far country, and wasted his substance with riotous living.

“And when he had spent all, there arose a mighty famine in that land; and he began to be in want.

“And he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country; and he sent him into his fields to feed swine.

“And he would fain have filled his belly with the husks that the swine did eat; and no man gave unto him.

“And when he came to himself, he said, How many hired servants of my father’s have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger!

“I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before thee.

“And am no more worthy to be called thy son: make me as one of thy hired servants.

“And he arose, and came to his father. But when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him.”

The fact that the father ran to his son, I believe, is significant. The personal hurt that the son had inflicted upon his father was surely deep and profound. Likewise, the father may have been genuinely embarrassed by his son’s actions.

So why didn’t the father wait for his son to apologize? Why didn’t he hold out for an offering of restitution and reconciliation before extending forgiveness and love? This is something I have often pondered.

The Lord teaches us that forgiving others is a universal commandment: “I, the Lord, will forgive whom I will forgive, but of you it is required to forgive all men.” Extending forgiveness can take tremendous courage and humility. It can also take time. It requires us to put our faith and trust in the Lord as we assume accountability for the condition of our hearts. Here lies the significance and power of our agency.

With the depiction of this father in the parable of the prodigal son, the Savior emphasized that forgiveness is one of the noblest gifts we can give one another and most specifically ourselves. Unburdening our hearts through forgiveness isn’t always easy, but through the enabling power of Jesus Christ, it is possible.

God will help us to return to Him and be healed. He will also help us to mend the broken or lost relationships in our lives. Isaiah teaches, and the Book of Mormon confirms, the Restoration of His Gospel to the earth through the Prophet Joseph Smith. (See Isaiah 29:13-14; 30:18-26; 35.)  An important part of that restoration was the translation and publishing of the Book of Mormon – Another Testament of Jesus Christ. Isaiah calls the Restoration “a marvellous work and wonder” (Isaiah 29:14). I invite you to study Isaiah and the Book of Mormon to know how much God loves you wants you to return to His presence.