A Broken Heart

In our stake conference today, our stake president focused on these words of the Savior to the people of the Book of Mormon: “I am the light and the life of the world. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. And ye shall offer up unto me no more the shedding of blood; yea, your sacrifices and your burnt offerings shall be done away, for I will accept none of your sacrifices and your burnt offerings. And ye shall offer for a sacrifice unto me a broken heart and a contrite spirit” (3 Nephi 9:18-20). In the time of the law of Moses, leading up to the death and resurrection of the Savior, the covenant people of the Lord offered physical sacrifices of animals and food to show their devotion to Jehovah. These words from Jesus to the people highlight the change He made in this requirement: they were to no longer offer up animals but a part of their own selves. We need to have a broken heart and a contrite spirit. Surely this requirement is in some ways harder than the previous law. The Lord wants a part of our heart and soul to be given to Him—not just our possessions—so that He can bless and heal and change us. But what does it mean to offer up a broken heart?

               When we think of a “broken heart” in the way that we might use it in everyday life, the term brings to mind incredible sadness and grief. Someone who has lost a loved one might say that their heart is broken, or someone whose relationship with one they love is broken up will complain of a broken heart. But I don’t think the Lord means that to have a broken heart spiritually we need to be full of sorrow and despair. I love the way that Elder Bruce D. Porter taught it, “As in all things, the Savior’s life offers us the perfect example: though Jesus of Nazareth was utterly without sin, He walked through life with a broken heart and a contrite spirit, as manifested by His submission to the will of the Father. ‘For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me’ (John 6:38). To His disciples He said, ‘Learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart’ (Matthew 11:29). And when the time came to make the ultimate sacrifice entailed in the Atonement, Christ shrank not to partake of the bitter cup but submitted completely to His Father’s will. The Savior’s perfect submission to the Eternal Father is the very essence of a broken heart and a contrite spirit. Christ’s example teaches us that a broken heart is an eternal attribute of godliness. When our hearts are broken, we are completely open to the Spirit of God and recognize our dependence on Him for all that we have and all that we are. The sacrifice so entailed is a sacrifice of pride in all its forms. Like malleable clay in the hands of a skilled potter, the brokenhearted can be molded and shaped in the hands of the Master.” So, to have a broken heart as the Savior asks us to doesn’t mean that we are filled with sadness but rather that we have are willing to submit to His will. To have a broken heart is to get rid of all of our pride and humbly seek to follow Him. Perhaps the term is best understood as an antonym for another scriptural word: hard-hearted. To be hard-hearted means that we will not listen to the Lord or seek to do His will. We only want to do things our own way.  To be broken hearted, then, means that we have broken away the hard pieces of our heart and opened it up for Him to mold. Our heart is like clay in the potter’s hands to be shaped instead of stone that will not bend.     

               When the Savior came in person to the Nephites and Lamanites, He reiterated this invitation. He declared, “And behold, I have given you the law and the commandments of my Father, that ye shall believe in me, and that ye shall repent of your sins, and come unto me with a broken heart and a contrite spirit. Behold, ye have the commandments before you, and the law is fulfilled” (3 Nephi 12:19). I think that highlights another way to look at what it means to have a broken heart: to repent. As we repent each day, we are showing the Lord that we want to submit our will to His. There is perhaps some sorrow for sins committed, but to have a broken heart is also to have joy in being cleansed by Him. I love how Elder Porter put it in the same talk: “Those who have a broken heart and a contrite spirit are willing to do anything and everything that God asks of them, without resistance or resentment. We cease doing things our way and learn to do them God’s way instead. In such a condition of submissiveness, the Atonement can take effect and true repentance can occur. The penitent will then experience the sanctifying power of the Holy Ghost, which will fill them with peace of conscience and the joy of reconciliation with God. In a wondrous union of divine attributes, the same God who teaches us to walk with a broken heart invites us to rejoice and to be of good cheer.” Having a broken heart in the way the Savior commands will ultimately lead us to joy, not sorrow.