Genesis 18:14 God was working things out in Abraham's and Sarah's lives, and He had His own schedule for bringing them to the point of development where He could use them the way He wanted to. Is this unusual? No, it is not unusual at all. We all operate according to time schedules; we all set priorities about things. A teacher has 180 days in which to get across that year's knowledge to the student for him to advance to the next grade. Teachers operate in a similar way to God. God may have said to Himself, "It will take Me so long to bring Abraham and Sarah through a series of training programs until their faith, convictions, and character are to the point that I can really use them. Then, at the appointed time, Sarah will have the child." Abraham and Sarah had to cooperate with this. They had to yield to God's way and to exercise the faith that they had. If they were really tuned into God, if God was the center of their life, they would see in this process of time and experience through which God was putting them (what we call tests, discipline, or chastening) that positive and good progress or change was taking place in their lives.
Exodus 4:13-14 God severely chastens him, but at the same time, He provides Moses with Aaron. God must have known that Moses would react this way, as He had already put it into Aaron's mind to be on his way. God knows us well, inside and out. He knows our heart, our inclinations, our weaknesses, our strengths. It is easy to see how He supplies Moses' needs all along the way so that His servant can do the job. Will He will deal any differently with us? No, He will likewise always supply what we need. What a change occurs in Moses during those forty years! The hesitant and restrained Moses at the age of eighty is a far better man for God's purpose than the impetuous one at forty.
Exodus 14:5-10 The Israelites accuse Moses of not dealing with them fairly, murmuring that he should not have led them out of Egypt. This occurs just days after they went out with a high hand in the sight of all the Egyptians, joyful that they were free. How quickly their faith evaporated when fear began closing in on them! The Egyptians, their horses, their chariots, all the shining army and might of Egypt were represented there. The Israelites' backs were up against the sea, and they could see the death sentence approaching them as fast as a horse could pull a chariot. They thought their lives were hanging in a balance when they saw the army. The end of their lives was quickly coming within view. Had not God given them enough evidence through all His plagues against Egypt? Had He not given them enough evidence to impact their thinking, clearly dividing the Israelites from the Egyptians, beginning with the fourth plague? All of the plagues fell on Egypt, but none of them after that fell on the Israelites. Had He not impressed their minds enough on Passover when the blood of the Lamb enabled their firstborn to live while the Egyptians' died? We can learn and grow from this lesson. In principle, we all come to our own personal Red Sea. Every one of us fails repeatedly, just as Israel did when they lost their faith for a while. What we go through when we come up against our personal Red Sea is very similar to what Israel went through. God rescued and chastened them, but He did not dump them. He shows that He will continue to work patiently with us just as a teacher continues to work with students, even though some fail and rarely do anything well. A teacher is faced with the same principle that we are involved in with God. The teacher does not want to fail students, so he uses all of his time, energy, and efforts to encourage and instruct so that those who are failing will turn around, catch the vision, and begin to apply the right teaching. God thinks of time in the same way a teacher does: “There is still time to catch this person's interest and turn them around.” Therefore, God gave the Israelites forty years in the wilderness. Hebrews 11:29 shows that these people did recover their faith in time to go through the Red Sea. The major reason that they turned themselves around may have largely been because of faithful leadership, primarily by Moses and possibly by others as well. They exhibited some measure of faith, and God faithfully and duly records it. This ought to encourage those of us who fail from time to time. Many times our faith has failed, but God patiently continues to work with us. We cannot become discouraged, but must keep going on, because God will not stop. He will keep working with us.
Job 23:10-14 Many times, as we go about our lives, it seems as though this powerful Sovereign is nowhere around. Job 23:10-14; 24:1 records an interesting complaint of the perplexed Job, who represents anyone whom God has led through a trial. On the one hand, Job perceives by faith that God is almighty and is involved in the events of his life. He is also confident that he is obedient to God. On the other hand, he cannot understand why God is being so hard on him, where He is, or how He can be persuaded to change His course of action. Job feels God is treating him unfairly. He also questions why those who know God still sin despite realizing He will judge those sins. The piper must be paid. We know that whatever a man sows, he reaps—and still we sin! Many of us who have undergone a heavy trial have taken this course of thought. We may not use the same words, but they will have the same sense. We might say, "I am God's child, and I know I am not perfect, but I am not out there sinning a lot or terribly. Why is God so overbearing? Why does He seem so far away? Why does He not answer when I pray to Him? When am I ever going to get relief from this? Others seem to be doing things a great deal worse than I. Why are they getting away with it?" It is humbling to grasp that we are not completely in control of our destinies. A great, overriding Power sees life and its purpose far differently and with much greater clarity than we can even grasp. His every thought is righteous, and as our Creator He has every right to move us about as He wills. He is in charge, and nobody keeps Him from carrying out His ultimate purpose, to create a Family in His image. Psalm 33:14-15 provides an interesting insight into His work among men: "From the place of His habitation He looks on all the inhabitants of the earth; He fashions their hearts individually; He considers all their works." Isaiah 10:5-19 is on a much larger scale—involving an entire nation and millions of people. It predicts God's intention to use Assyria to punish Israel and His response when Assyria boasts of "its" accomplishment. This yet-to-be-fulfilled prophecy is a clear example of how God intervenes in man's affairs to complete His purpose. In verse 7, He even prophesies that Assyria will not want to cooperate with Him, but He makes them. After Israel is punished (verses 12-15), Assyria takes undue credit, and God's judgment begins in verse 16. The lesson to all is that we are empowered to do only what God wills or permits. There is no room for pride when God enables us. Like Job when he understood more fully, we as sons of God should be rightly humbled—and at the same time, greatly encouraged—by the awesome knowledge that His creative efforts focus on us (Job 42:1-6). Paul writes, "For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us" (II Corinthians 4:6-7). God is doing something very special in us, but all the praise and glory belong to Him. Even though His path for us may sometimes seem very rough, and He often appears distant and deaf, who is better in directing our lives toward a glorious end? Were we or some other human to choose our way, the result would surely be ignoble and shameful. To comprehend these truths and yield ourselves to searching for His path for us are among life's greatest accomplishments. Submitting to Him produces the abundant life Jesus so graciously wants us to have (John 10:10).
John 15:1-8 Christ came to this earth as THE BRANCH and fulfilled all righteousness, qualifying to replace Satan and rule as King over all the earth. He proved His worthiness by remaining in full accord with His heavenly Father, and bearing the spiritual fruit that makes redemption and salvation possible. Likewise, we - whether natural or grafted in (Romans 11:17-24) - are also branches attached to the solid trunk of the tree, Christ. It is only by our abiding in Him - our attachment to Him - our close relationship with Him - that we produce any growth or godly works. As Paul writes in Romans 11:16, "If the root is holy, so are the branches." Our righteousness, works, and holiness come to us only because of our connection to Him. Jesus says that God, in love, prunes us, chastens us, tries us, so that we become more profitable (see also Hebrews 12:3-11). He will do what He must to make us yield. But if we resist and eventually sever our connection with Him, we are fit only to be burned. God has no use for dead wood. God wants us to use this connection to His Son to "bear much fruit," just as Jesus Christ did. Doing so proves to Him, to ourselves, and to everyone else that we are true Christians, disciples of His Son, the Branch. By this, we will glorify God and secure our place in His Kingdom.
John 15:1-5 Jesus speaks about four kinds of branches: 1) those that bear no fruit, 2) those that bear fruit, 3) those that bear more fruit, 4) and those that bear much fruit. We will focus on the branches that bear no fruit. To get a clearer understanding, we need to understand a few points. - Jesus is the vine: In the vineyard, the vine is the whole grape plant. Vineyard keepers traditionally keep the vine at waist height—36 to 42 inches. The vine ends in a large gnarl from which branches grow in either direction along the trellis.
- God the Father is the vinedresser: The vinedresser is the vineyard's keeper. His task is cultivating each branch to bear as much fruit as possible. God will do this with love (I John 4:16), for our ultimate good (Romans 8:28).
- We, the members of God's church, are the branches: In the vineyard, the branches are the vinedresser's main focus because they produce the fruit. They must be carefully tended to produce the highest quality grapes and the biggest yield.
But, what is the fruit analogous to in this metaphor? What fruit are we to bear? Tracing the words "fruit" and "good works" through the Bible results in the conclusion that they are used nearly interchangeably. We can see this in Titus 3:14: "And let our people also learn to maintain good works, to meet urgent needs, that they may not be unfruitful." Colossians 1:10 is similar: ". . . that you may have a walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God." In practical terms, fruit represents good works or godly living. If we are not doing such things, we are like the branches that are not producing fruit. Fruit, or good deeds, are evidence of what is inside a person. In Matthew 3:8, John the Baptist tells the Pharisees and Sadducees to "bear fruits worthy of repentance." In other words, they were to produce evidence in their actions that they had repented. Is it possible to be in Christ yet produce no fruit? John 15:2 may seem to say that the Vinedresser cuts off every barren branch, but we need to look more closely at the words "takes away." This Greek verb, airo, actually means "to lift from the ground," "to lift so as to carry," and "to carry off." The translation "takes away" suggests cutting off, but in Greek literature, airo never means "cut off." "Lifts up" or "raises" is more correct in terms of vinedressing. In his book, Secrets of the Vine, Dr. Bruce Wilkinson converses with a vineyard owner from Northern California, who says, "New branches have a natural tendency to trail down and grow along the ground, but they don't bear fruit down there. When branches grow along the ground, the leaves get coated in dust. When it rains, they get muddy and mildewed. The branch becomes sick and useless." Dr. Wilkinson, thinking about John 15:2, asks, "What do you do, cut it off and throw it away?" "Oh, no," the vineyard owner replies, "the branch is much too valuable for that. We go through the vineyard with a bucket of water, looking for those branches. We lift them up and wash them off. Then we wrap them around the trellis or tie them up. Pretty soon, they're thriving." Are we not more valuable to our Vinedresser than branches in a vineyard? Certainly! So how does our Vinedresser lift us up? We can find an answer in Hebrews 12:5-6: "My son, do not despise the chastening of the LORD, nor be discouraged when you are rebuked by Him; for whom the LORD loves He chastens, and scourges every son whom He receives." The intervention of the Vinedresser in John 15:2 is similar to the discipline a parent gives his or her child. God is our heavenly Father, and we are His children. The two metaphors are parallel. There are three degrees of discipline or lifting up in Hebrews 12:5-6: - The First Degree, Rebuke: A rebuke is a strong verbal warning. When our children begin to misbehave, we rebuke them. Some parents can do this with just a look. God rebukes us by pricking our consciences through Bible study, sermons, and our interactions with each other.
- The Second Degree, Chastening: If the child does not listen to rebuke, a parent might intensify the punishment by sending him to his room, restricting his activities, or taking away his privileges. When God chastens us, we may feel anxiety, frustration, or distress. Pressures may increase at work or home, in our health, or in our finances.
- The Third Degree, Scourging: "To scourge" is to afflict with blows, to inflict physical punishment. The scourging Jesus received before His crucifixion caused Him excruciating pain. With rebellious children, a good paddling often does the trick, causing pain without injury. When God scourges us, the pressures of our chastening intensify: Instead of problems on the job, we may find ourselves without one. Instead of being merely sick, we may be deathly ill. The spouse may file for separation. Bankruptcy may loom over us.
These are our Vinedresser's ways of lifting us up and washing us off. They are godly discipline designed to put us in the right position to begin producing fruit again. What about the rest of John 15:2? Pruning is indeed cutting, and cutting hurts. It might seem like punishment, like "lifting up," so we must distinguish between the two. The Vinedresser lifts up, disciplines, because we are not producing fruit. We have become spiritually sick and useless, so He needs to spur us to repent and return to fruitfulness. The Vinedresser prunes, however, because we are fruitful! That is when we need to count it all joy (James 1:2) and yield to His pruning shears, so that He may produce more fruit through us. Why is fruit-bearing so essential and valuable? Jesus gives us the answer in John 15:8: "By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples." He continues in verse 16, "I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain." Paul echoes this in Ephesians 2:10: "For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them." We would do well to inspect our "branch" of God's work to see what fruit God can expect from our corner of His vineyard.
1 Corinthians 11:31-32 Verse 31 teaches that God allows us the opportunity to exercise self-discipline and avoid His judgment by watching—searchingly examining ourselves, detecting our shortcomings, and recognizing our own condition. Yet, if we fail to exercise discipline, He will not. As in the example of Jonah, He is faithful and will complete His purpose (Philippians 1:6). If we fall short, He will discipline and chasten us because He does not want to see us destroyed. God's purpose—our salvation—does not change. Again, the only variable is how much we choose to suffer before He accomplishes His purpose. We choose whether we will be humble or be humbled. In many cases, not necessarily all, we choose our trials. It is the same in any family. If one son is dutiful and obedient, and the other is rebellious, pushing the envelope at every opportunity, it would come as no surprise which son suffers the greater trials (or receives the most discipline) in both number and severity. Each child has a choice. We also have a choice—to exercise the discipline now, or to receive it from God at some time in the future. So, how do we searchingly examine ourselves, detect our shortcomings, and recognize our own condition? How do we find the path we should be taking? God promises us in Proverbs 3:6, "In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths." The Message, a paraphrase, renders this verse as, "Listen for God's voice in everything you do, everywhere you go; he's the one who will keep you on track." When we acknowledge His presence—which striving to pray always does—He shines His light on the decision or thought. Consciously including God in the process makes the right choice more obvious. It also makes the choice a conscious one of obeying or disobeying God, rather than relegating it to habit or impulse. Too often, we are not exercising self-control because we are hiding from God's presence, just as Adam and Eve did (Genesis 3:8). We may hear that "still small voice" (I Kings 19:12), but we turn off our minds and just go with the flow, unresistingly following the dictates of our human nature, which has been under Satan's influence since our births. This tendency makes striving to pray always, being in constant contact with God, the best way to accomplish effective self-examination. By communicating with God before every decision, even before every thought (II Corinthians 10:5), we invite God into the situation, putting the spotlight of truth on our thinking and motivations—human nature's worst nightmare. With God's presence through His Holy Spirit, we are able to recognize our shame and our helplessness before God, helping to create a stronger awareness of sin that we cannot easily evade by rationalizing it. When face to face with the holy God, we cannot easily say that our sin is only a little thing. Nor can we use others as examples, saying, "They are doing it, so what is the big deal?" With God there, right in front of us, all our excuses fail. Once we bring God into the picture, the right way is more obvious, removing the many excuses our human nature concocts to allow disobedience. Then, the stark choice of obedience or blatant rejection of God faces us. When this occurs, it is a good time to pray for the will and power to do the right thing (Philippians 2:13).
1 John 4:18 If understanding how much God loves us and believing in it are so important, how can we tell where we stand in the strength of that belief? Verse 18 begins to answer that question. Fear and worry signal that we are not yet perfect in our belief in how much God loves us. If we believe that the God of infinite power and wisdom loves no one in the universe more than us, what do we have to fear or worry about? What good parent does not use all the resources available to ensure the well being of his or her children? We are in the minute-by-minute care of the great God (Matthew 10:29-31). "If God is for us, who can be against us?" (Romans 8:31). Similarly, Isaiah 43:13 (CEV) records an important promise from God: "I am God now and forever. No one can snatch you from me or stand in my way." Nothing outside of us can stand in His way of accomplishing His purpose to save except ourselves (John 6:39-40; 10:28; Philippians 1:6). As difficult as Job was, God knew exactly what trial was necessary—in his case, a quite painful one—to get the right result. He knows the buttons to push and the pressures to apply to set each of us straight. Job 36:15 (Today's English Version) tells us, "But God teaches men through suffering and uses distress to open their eyes." A second sign of our lack of faith in His love is how we respond to trials. If we believe in how much He loves us, then we know the trial is for our good. Because of His love, we should know that a trial is not just an arbitrary act without rhyme or reason. Because He is God, it cannot be an accidental circumstance happening without His awareness or concern. It definitely cannot be an act just to make our lives more difficult. These might be the thoughts of a child while receiving a spanking, but they should not be ours. A third way to measure the strength of our faith is to list the things that would make our lives better yet seem to be out of reach. For some, it is money; others, a job; and still others, a mate. Psalm 84:11 is a verse we can use to get the right perspective: "No good thing will He withhold from those who walk uprightly." If we are walking uprightly, our lack of a desired thing is in itself a good indication that at this time it is not good for us, no matter what we might think to the contrary. Otherwise, this verse cannot be true. Getting what we want rather than what we need can be spiritually lethal (Revelation 3:17). A final way to measure our faith is to examine if we ever feel we love ourselves more than God does. A person with this attitude begins to take things into his own hands because he cannot trust God to do it—he does not believe how good God is and how much He loves him. To doubt the depth of God's love for us is to deny God and the very essence of who He is—love. This describes Satan's attitude, one that could be considered insanity. Human nature, which mimics Satan's spirit (Ephesians 2:2), is suicidal, wanting to sin even though it knows the result is death. Thus, because human nature contains this spirit of self-destruction, God always loves us more than we love ourselves. It is vital that we build our faith in God's love for us and realize just how special we are to Him. He loves no one else in the universe more. I John 4:17 promises that perfecting our faith in God's love for us gives us the power we need to face our trials, our day of judgment, boldly. In doing so, we will be imitating the faith Jesus Christ exercised in facing His trails, showing absolute faith in God's love for us.
Every Christian must sooner or later experience the Lord’s chastening in his or her life, and the classic New Testament passage which deals with this subject is Hebrews 12:5-13. This, of course, only concerns Christians, members of God’s family, and it has no meaning at all to the unbeliever. In the Scofield Bible these verses are headed, ”The Father's Chastening”, and in them we find a repetition of the words “father”, “son”, ”child”. God is speaking to His own blood-bought children about a matter that intimately concerns them and about which they should be instructed. What is the Lord’s chastening? It is God's loving discipline in the life of every one of His children. Discipline includes instruction, correction and that form of punishment which will prevent or correct us from doing wrong things and will train us to do right things; it is not always in the form of punishment, nor does it follow that because God is chastening us we must necessarily have displeased Him. In a good school all the pupils are disciplined, and in God’’s school all His pupils are lovingly disciplined. Now turn to Hebrews 12, and note:- 1. Chastening is experienced by ALL the true children of God.ALL - and therefore if we belong to the Lord this is something we must expect. Look at verse 8: “…and everyone undergoes discipline…”; that is, all Christians. We must expect chastening for two reasons: (1) because God is our Father and chastening is an evidence of His love (verse 7); (2) because we are His sons, and chastening is a mark of sonship (verse 8). If we never experience Love’s discipline, then He is not our Father and we are not His children at all! 2. We are not to DESPISE His chastening.That is, we are not to regard it lightly and be insensible to the purpose of it - see verse 5. We often do despise the chastening of the Lord; we find ourselves entertaining wrong thoughts about Him and we begin to question His love and His wisdom. Let us beware of treating the chastening of the Lord lightly, or of failing to learn the lesson He is trying to teach us by permitting the chastening. 3. We are not to FAINT under it.Verse 5 tells us this, and it means, ”Don't collapse!” – as in verse 12! In the closing months of his life, Hudson Taylor, the great missionary to China, was so weak in body that he said, I’m so weak, I can’t work, pray or read my Bible. I can only lie still in God's arms like a little child and trust Him.” But that is all He asks us to do at the best of times, and incidentally, the remedy for becoming weak is mentioned in verse 3. 4. God’s chastening is always PROFITABLE.Sometimes an earthly father will chasten his son arbitrarily in a fit of passion, but our Heavenly Father never does this. His chastening is always for our profit - see verse 10. We are apt to think that chastening - sickness, sorrow, bereavement, hardship - spells loss, but it always spells gain. What is the gain that comes out of the Lord’s chastening? Verse 10 tells us - “that we might share in his holiness!” That is the great purpose in all His chastening - to make us holy, like the Lord Jesus - look up Romans 8:29. 5. We are not expected to ENJOY chastening.It is always “painful" - verse 11. It is not intended to be otherwise. Notice the four words used in this portion of scripture to convey to us the different aspects of God’s chastening:- - 1. Rebuke (verse 5).
- 2. Punishment (verse 6).
- 3. Discipline (verse 8)
- 4. Correction (verse 9).
Do you like it when the Lord rebukes, punishes, disciplines or corrects you? No - He does not expect you to! But: 6. There is ALWAYS a ”later on” to chastening.See verse 11 again. Chastening is fruit-producing. What kind of branch does the Lord purge, and why does He purge it? - look up John 15:2. The fruit that chastening produces is righteousness and peace - look up Hebrews 12:11. Righteousness means being right with God, right in our daily living, and therefore in the deepest sense being at peace. In other words, it brings us into conformity to God’s will, and only when we are brought there can we know real peace. When we are being chastened it is very comforting to hear the Lord say - John 13:7. Never consider the “now” apart from the “later on”! 7. We must be TRAINED by all His dealings with us.This is the condition of blessing, of profit - of present and future reward. Look at the last six words of verse 11. There is an implication in verse 9 which reveals: ”Submission to the Father”. Now look up Matthew 11:26.
Chastening Keeps Overcomers Spiritually Healthy The Lord also goes to each church with words of challenge and chastening (repent or else). There is a focused desire the Lord has for us that we stay on track and live out what He designed us to do and to be. This final word for Christ to His Church is so consistent with the constant message His apostles had already taught and written about in all the other books on the New Testament. God Only Chastens His Own Children Hebrews 12 has one of the clearest explanations of the methodology God uses in chastening. Note with me His three levels of dealing with us to encourage and produce repentance in us. God’s Chastening Has Three Levels What exactly do the surgery and radiation treatments on the cells that make up the Body of Christ actually look like from a Biblical perspective? Does God ever give us an insight into how He does this type of work? Stage 1: Rebuke – “My son, do not…be discouraged when you are rebuked by Him” (v.5). We hear God’s rebuke, even though we don’t always choose to respond. God can make Himself heard in many ways: a prick of our conscience, a timely word from another person, a Scripture, the preaching of God’s Word, or conviction by the Holy Spirit. (Do you see how wonderful and kind it is of God to use so many methods to get our attention and steer us away from peril?) What are His rebukes for? To remind us we are slaves of God: no identity outside of our Master, no plans other than His, no possessions of our own-everything we have, including ourselves, belongs to our Master. To remind us we are to read/listen to God and keep what His Word says to His servants. Stage 2: Chasten – “For whom the Lord loves He chastens” (v. 6). In other places in the Bible, the word chastening is used interchangeably with discipline. But in our text, we find a specific use that shows a more serious degree of discipline. Chastening is something you feel as emotional anxiety, frustration, or distress. What used to bring you joy now doesn’t. Pressures increase at work, at home, in your health or in finance. Many Christians bump along in this level of discipline, yet fail to read the signs. They feel unfulfilled at church, critical of their Christian friends, and “on the outs” with God. When they pick up their Bible, it feels like a lead weight instead of a welcome relief. Their relationship with the Lord seems blighted by sadness or lethargy they can’t quite trace. If any of these symptoms sound familiar, you don’t need to go to church more or try to read your Bible with a better attitude. You need to look for ongoing sin in your life, the dirt crusting over your leaves and cutting you off from God’s best. If you don’t respond, love will compel your Father to take more drastic measures. Stage 3: Scourge- “And scourges every son whom He receives” (v. 6). To scourge is to whip, to inflict punishment. It’s the same word the Gospels use to describe what the Romans did to Jesus just before they crucified Him. Not a pretty picture! In fact, for the word scourge, you could substitute “cause–excruciating pain.” What percentage of Christians do you think have experienced scourging? It may shock you to read that God scourges “every son.” That means you have most likely already been scourged in your life. Today, are you seeking to magnify Him as His temple that when gather, we collectively become ( I Peter 2)?
Today, are you measuring how much of your life is tied to what is Christ’s priority. Do you share His focus upon believers being encouraged, trained, strengthened and challenged?
Chastisement (discipline), ah yes, one of our favorite words in the Christian community. Although, it does seem as if some take this word to mean punishment; which in reality, is quite the opposite -believe it or not. Has it occurred to any of us that discipline actually leads to peace? Look at what the Bible has to say about it: Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby (Hebrews 12:11). Discipline leads to peace, but there is a stipulation: we must allow ourselves to be trained by it. We must be willing to learn the lessons involved. That might be stating the obvious, but you’d be surprised by how many resist it. The harder you fight against discipline, the harder the lesson will be to learn. It’s vital to stay teachable! Successful discipline requires humility. You cannot point the finger at other people when you are experiencing hardship due to your bad decisions or even rebellion. You cannot hope to change for the better without a willingness to see things about yourself you may find distasteful. Sometimes, we can be blind to our shortcomings, and they require chastisement to expose them. Until you see things from God’s perspective, you may believe those shortcomings are okay; even though, they are doing you more harm than good. In fact, they are robbing you of peace. Without righteousness there is no peace. Any shortcoming void of righteousness is also void of peace. Moreover, they come between you and God, especially if they go unchecked. Remember, truth leads to freedom (see John 8:31-32). While going through the experience of correction, you may feel as if God hates you, or is punishing you. Because God is love, He will always do what is beneficial to you. If it doesn’t benefit you, it’s not on Him; it’s on you. That may sound like a strong statement, but think about it. If you refuse correction, things may very well get worse. Peace will continue to elude you. Remember the stipulation. Hebrews 12:3-6 For consider Him that endured such contradiction of sinners against Himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds. Ye have not yet resisted unto blood, striving against sin. And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of Him: For whom the Lord loveth He chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom He receiveth. Who is the Ultimate Example of humility? Jesus. Consider another passage of Scripture: Though He were a Son, yet learned He obedience by the things which He suffered (Hebrews 5:8). By all means read the entire chapter to get full context of the verse. Now think about this: if Jesus endured hardship, who are we to not endure it as well? Chastisement is a sign of love on God’s part, and obedience is a sign of ours (see John 14:15). Hebrews 12:1-2 Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, Looking unto Jesus the Author and Finisher of our faith; Who for the joy that was set before Him endured the Cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.
Ask about discipline: What’s the difference between discipline and chastening? Chastening is God’s way of disciplining us to make us more obedient to Him. Read Jeremiah 31:18-22…like an untrained calf, bring me back that I may be restored. According to this verse, chastisement includes being trained, pointed in the right direction. Also, it is similar to restoration. According to versebyverseministry.org, Chastisement is the process of disciplining until it ends and obedience is restored. Read Psalm 32:8-9…The most powerful example of chastisement in the Bible is the way the Lord chastises the nation of Israel over the course of its history. The Lord’s discipline eventually leads back to faithfulness at the end of the age. What were some things that God did since the Israelites weren’t obeying? He let them get invaded by Assyrians. He sent lions to kill them. Ask about additional examples of Chastisement: In what other instances has God chastised his people? Ask about examples of chastening: What are some everyday examples of God chastening us?…God allows you to go through a financial struggle as the response to financial selfishness. God allows others to spread rumors about you after you spread rumors about others. God allowing your girlfriend to get pregnant after you have been falling into temptation to sleep with her. In all of these examples, God lets painful struggles occur with hope that you will depend on Him for support. Does anyone disagree with these examples? Read Job 33:12-33…Chastened with pain on his bed? What does this mean?…Through our trials that God allows us to go through, we may lean more on God. Read Psalm 6:1… Is chastisement associated with God’s wrath. From God’s perspective, instilling fear often helps to put someone back on the right path. When has this happened in the bible? Read Psalm 94:12…Chastening is associated with God’s teachings from the law. Does this indicate that God may chasten or punish/correct a person that sins? It appears that chastening is an important part of our relationship. Inevitably, we will stray, but God will correct us, chasten us, and bring us back to him. Read Psalm 118:18… Does this mean that God won’t kill you if you reject his correction? Read Proverbs 15:10…We may need to get more context to this. Does this mean that those who hate God’s correction will be killed by him or will inevitably die because we are all sinners?…With discipline comes peaceful fruit of righteousness for those who have been trained by it. Ask additional questions: What does his correction look like? Is he wrathful in his correction? What does God’s wrath with chastisement look like? Are we allowed to use chastisement towards each other? Is chastisement the same thing as discipline? When chastised by God, does it result in pain, guilt, or death? Read Hebrews 12:4-13 Ask about lessons learned: What lessons can we learn in this scripture about discipline or chastening? These include the following: - Do not stray when we are rebuked.
- Respect God and His discipline as we respect our own father’s discipline.
- Discipline is temporary, but it is good for you in the long run. Discipline gives struggles meaning.
- Verse 7 indicates that we should endure hardship as discipline. Does this mean that God’s chastening is prevalent through our struggles. What if we thought this way? What if we thought, “When I am going through a struggle in life, it is God’s effort in directing me to him, helping me to become more disobedient to Him”? Then we would be less fearful of life challenges.
- Verse 12 says that we should strengthen our feeble arms and our weak knees/Make level paths for our feet. This is a reference to Proverbs 4: 26-27. What does this mean?
Finally, remember this: As a follower of Christ, you will be chastened so that we remain obedient to Him The Lord disciplines and will chasten those that he loves.
12:1-11 The persevering obedience of faith in Christ, was the race set before the Hebrews, wherein they must either win the crown of glory, or have everlasting misery for their portion; and it is set before us. By the sin that does so easily beset us, understand that sin to which we are most prone, or to which we are most exposed, from habit, age, or circumstances. This is a most important exhortation; for while a man's darling sin, be it what it will, remains unsubdued, it will hinder him from running the Christian race, as it takes from him every motive for running, and gives power to every discouragement. When weary and faint in their minds, let them recollect that the holy Jesus suffered, to save them from eternal misery. By stedfastly looking to Jesus, their thoughts would strengthen holy affections, and keep under their carnal desires. Let us then frequently consider him. What are our little trials to his agonies, or even to our deserts? What are they to the sufferings of many others? There is a proneness in believers to grow weary, and to faint under trials and afflictions; this is from the imperfection of grace and the remains of corruption. Christians should not faint under their trials. Though their enemies and persecutors may be instruments to inflict sufferings, yet they are Divine chastisements; their heavenly Father has his hand in all, and his wise end to answer by all. They must not make light of afflictions, and be without feeling under them, for they are the hand and rod of God, and are his rebukes for sin. They must not despond and sink under trials, nor fret and repine, but bear up with faith and patience. God may let others alone in their sins, but he will correct sin in his own children. In this he acts as becomes a father. Our earthly parents sometimes may chasten us, to gratify their passion, rather than to reform our manners. But the Father of our souls never willingly grieves nor afflicts his children. It is always for our profit. Our whole life here is a state of childhood, and imperfect as to spiritual things; therefore we must submit to the discipline of such a state. When we come to a perfect state, we shall be fully reconciled to all God's chastisement of us now. God's correction is not condemnation; the chastening may be borne with patience, and greatly promote holiness. Let us then learn to consider the afflictions brought on us by the malice of men, as corrections sent by our wise and gracious Father, for our spiritual good.Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous - It does not impart pleasure, nor is this its design. All chastisement is intended to produce pain, and the Christian is as sensitive to pain as others. His religion does not blunt his sensibilities and make him a stoic, but it rather increases his susceptibility to suffering. The Lord Jesus, probably, felt pain, reproach, and contempt more keenly than any other human being ever did; and the Christian feels the loss of a child, or physical suffering, as keenly as anyone. But while religion does not render him insensible to suffering, it does two things:(1) it enables him to bear the pain without complaining; and, (2) it turns the affliction into a blessing on his soul. "Nevertheless afterward." In future life. The effect is seen in a pure life, and in a more entire devotedness to God. We are not to look for the proper fruits of affliction while we are suffering, but "afterward." It yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness - It is a tree that bears good fruit, and we do not expect the fruit to form and ripen at once. It may be long maturing, but it will be rich and mellow when it is ripe. It frequently requires a long time before all the results of affliction appear - as it requires months to form and ripen fruit. Like fruit it may appear at first sour, crabbed, and unpalatable; but it will be at last like the ruddy peach or the golden orange. When those fruits are ripened, they are: (1) fruits of "righteousness." They make us more holy, more dead to sin and the world, and more alive to God. And they are (2) "peaceable." They produce peace, calmness, submission in the soul. They make the heart more tranquil in its confidence in God, and more disposed to promote the religion of peace. The apostle speaks of this as if it were a universal truth in regard to Christians who are afflicted. And it is so. There is no Christian who is not ultimately benefited by trials, and who is not able at some period subsequently to say, "It was good for me that I was afflicted. Before I was afflicted I went astray; but now have I kept thy word." When a Christian comes to die, he does not feel that he has had one trial too many, or one which he did not deserve. He can then look back and see the effect of some early trial so severe that he once thought he could hardly endure it, spreading a hallowed influence over his future years, and scattering its golden fruit all along the pathway of life. I have never known a Christian who was not benefited by afflictions; I have seen none who was not able to say that his trials produced some happy effect on his religious character, and on his real happiness in life. If this be so, then no matter how severe our trials, we should submit to them without a complaint. The more severe they are, the more we shall yet be blessed - on earth or in heaven. 11. joyous … grievous—Greek, "matter of joy … matter of grief." The objection that chastening is grievous is here anticipated and answered. It only seems so to those being chastened, whose judgments are confused by the present pain. Its ultimate fruit amply compensates for any temporary pam. The real object of the fathers in chastening is not that they find pleasure in the children's pain. Gratified wishes, our Father knows, would often be our real curses.fruit of righteousness—righteousness (in practice, springing from faith) is the fruit which chastening, the tree yields (Php 1:11). "Peaceable" (compare Isa 32:17): in contrast to the ordeal of conflict by which it has been won. "Fruit of righteousness to be enjoyed in peace after the conflict" [Tholuck]. As the olive garland, the emblem of peace as well as victory, was put on the victor's brow in the games. exercised thereby—as athletes exercised in training for a contest. Chastisement is the exercise to give experience, and make the spiritual combatant irresistibly victorious (Ro 5:3). "Oh, happy the servant for whose improvement his Lord is earnest, with whom he deigns to be angry, whom He does not deceive by dissembling admonition" (withholding admonition, and so leading the man to think he needs it not)! [Tertullian, Patience, 11]. Observe the "afterwards"; that is the time often when God works. Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: a further argument to persuade Christians not to despise nor faint under the Lord’s chastenings, is the good issue of them, subjoined to fortify them against the suggestions of flesh and blood, as if they could not be from love, nor for good, because they are smarting and grievous; therefore the Spirit asserts the truth as to both: All these chastenings and rebukes that the Father of spirits inflicts on his children, not one excepted, are, for all the time they are so inflicted, sensed by his children to be as they are; they feel them to have no joy in them, but a great deal of grief, pain, and smart; they are not pleasing of themselves, and God would not have them to be so, but his to feel the smart of his rod, when he corrects them with it.
Nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby; yet have not his children any reason to despond or faint under them; for they are not always to continue, and there accrueth after them a benefit to them, that will make amends for them all the afterward following to eternity: this chastening rendereth and bringeth forth to all the corrected children, who labour to improve the smart, under God’s direction and blessing, a righteous compliance with the whole will of God, and a purging out of all sin, Isaiah 27:9; filling the soul full of joy and peace, and securing to the chastened a confluence of all that good that will abundantly reward them for their sufferings, setting them above them, and making them blessed, Isaiah 32:17 Romans 5:1-5 Jam 1:2-4.
Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous,.... These words anticipate an objection, taken from the grief and sorrow that comes by afflictions; and therefore how should they be for profit and advantage? The apostle answers, by granting that no affliction "seemeth" to be joyous, in outward appearance to flesh and blood, and according to the judgment of carnal sense and reason; in this view of afflictions, it must be owned, they do not appear to be matter, cause, or occasion of joy; though they really are, when viewed by faith, and judged of by sanctified reason; for they are tokens of the love of God and Christ; are evidences of sonship; and work together either for the temporal, or spiritual, or eternal good of the saints: and so likewise indeed "for the present time", either while under them, or in the present state of things, they seem so; but hereafter, either now when they are over; or however in the world to come, when the grace, goodness, wisdom, and power of God in them, in supporting under them, bringing out of them, and the blessed effects, and fruits of them, will be discerned, they will be looked upon with pleasure: but for the present, and when carnal sense and reason prevail, it must be allowed, that they are not matter of joy,but grievous; or matter, cause, and occasion of grief; they cause pain and grief to the afflicted, and to their friends and relations about them; and especially, they are very grieving, and occasion heaviness, and are grievous to be borne, when soul troubles attend them; when God hides his face, and the soul is filled with a sense of wrath, looking upon the chastening, as being in wrath and hot displeasure; when Satan is let loose, and casts his fiery darts thick and fast; and when the soul has lost its views of interest in the love of God, and in the grace of Christ, and in eternal glory and happiness. Nevertheless, afterwards it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them that are exercised thereby: who are used unto afflictions; "trained" up and instructed in the school of afflictions, as the word may signify; in which many useful lessons of faith and hope, patience and experience, humility, self-denial; and resignation of will, are learned: and to such afflictions yield "the fruit of peace"; external peace and prosperity sometimes follow upon them; and oftentimes internal peace is enjoyed in them; and they always issue to such in eternal peace and everlasting happiness; and this peace arises from the "righteousness" of Christ, laid hold upon by faith, which produces a true conscience peace, and entitles to that everlasting joy and rest which remains for the people of God. Moreover, the fruit of holiness may be designed, which saints by afflictions are made partakers of, and the peace enjoyed in that; for there is a peace, which though it does not spring from, yet is found in the ways of righteousness; and though this peace may not be had for the present, or while the affliction lasts, yet it is experienced "afterwards"; either after the affliction is over in the present life, or however in eternity, when the saints enter into peace; for the end of such dispensations, and of the persons exercised by them, is peace, Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby.
EXEGETICAL (ORIGINAL LANGUAGES) Hebrews 12:11. The blessing of every chastening. Comp. Diog. Laert. v. 18 (cited by Wetstein): τῆς παιδείας ἔφη (sc. Aristotle) τὰς μὲν ῥίζας εἶναι πικράς, γλυκεῖς δὲ τοὺς καρπούς.
πᾶσα παιδεία] comprises the human and the divine chastening; yet the author in connection with the second clause (ὕστερον δὲ κ.τ.λ.) has no doubt mainly the latter before his mind.
πρὸς μὲν τὸ παρὸν κ.τ.λ.] seems indeed for the present (so long as it continues) to be no object of joy, but an object of grief; later, however (i.e. when it has been outlived), it yields to those who have been exercised by it (comp. Hebrews 5:14) the peace-fraught fruit of righteousness.
δοκεῖ] characterizes the opinion of man; since the matter is in reality very different.
δικαιοσύνης] Genitive of apposition: peaceful fruit, namely righteousness, i.e. moral purity and perfection. It is called a peaceful fruit because its possession brings with it peace of soul. δικαιοσύνης is not to be understood as a genitivus subjecti (Piscator, Owen, Stuart, Heinrichs, Stein, and others): a peaceful fruit which is yielded by righteousness; for surely παιδεία is mentioned as the subject producing the καρπὸς εἰρηνικός.
Hebrews 12:11. πᾶσα δὲ παιδεία.… Another encouragement to endure chastening: if it is allowed to do its work righteousness will result. “Now all chastisement for the present indeed seems matter not of joy but of grief, afterwards however it yields, to those who are disciplined by it, the peaceable fruit of righteousness”. [πᾶσα, as Chrys. says, τουτέστι καὶ ἡ ἀνθρωπίνη καὶ ἡ πνευματική.] πρὸς τὸ παρόν, see Thucyd., ii. 22. οὐ δοκεῖ … λύπης, Chrys. καλῶς εἶπεν· οὐ δοκεῖ. οὐδὲ γάρ ἐστι λύπης ἡ παιδεία, ἀλλὰ μόνον δοκεῖ, see Bleek. Chastisement is here viewed as an opportunity for cultivating faith and endurance and to those who use the opportunity and are exercised and trained by it, διʼ αὐτῆς γεγυμνασμένοις, it necessarily yields, renders as the harvest due, ἀποδίδωσιν, as its fruit increased righteousness of life. But why “peaceful” εἰρηνικὸν? Probably because the result of the conflict (γεγυμνασμένοις) and victory is peace in God and peace of conscience. It is a peace which can only be attained by those who have used their trials as a discipline and have emerged victorious from the conflict.
11. the peaceable fruit of righteousness] The original is expressed in the emphatic and oratorical style of the writer, “but afterwards it yieldeth a peaceful fruit to those who have been exercised by it—(the fruit) of righteousness.” He means that though the sterner aspect of training is never pleasurable for the time it results in righteousness—in moral hardihood and serene self-mastery—to all who have been trained in these gymnasia (γεγυμνασμένοις). See Romans 5:2-5.
Hebrews 12:11. Πᾶσα, all) which is applied by both fathers of the flesh and the Father of spirits.—δὲ, but) This is the figure Occupatio.[75]—δοκεῖ, seems) For a feeling of pain and sorrow often prevents a sound judgment.—λύπης, a matter of grief) Those who chasten, seem to have for their object the grief or pain of those who are chastened; but this is not the case: 2 Corinthians 1:24; 2 Corinthians 8:8.—εἰρηνικὸν—δικαιοσύνης) LXX., καὶ ἔσται τὰ ἔργα τῆς δικαιοσύνης εἰρήνη, Isaiah 32:17. Εἰρηνικὸν, peaceful, Heb. שלם, LXX. εἰρηνικὸς, Genesis 37:4, etc.: an antithesis to δοκεῖ, seems. He who chastens, shows that he has acted faithfully: he who is chastened, acknowledges that, and feels grateful; and hence peace.—γεγυμνασμένοις, to those who are exercised) Such as these have both a lighter burden, and whatever burden they have, they bear it with greater ease. They acquire experience by exercise.—ἈΠΟΔΊΔΩΣΙ) yields, viz. the fruit, which had been formerly kept back.—δικαιοσύνης, of righteousness) This explanation, after the language (the sentence) had kept the reader in suspense, is sweetly added at the end: the peaceable fruit, namely, of righteousness, with which a man being endued, approaches with joy to the Holiness of GOD.
[75] See App. Anticipation and refutation of an objection which may be raised.
Verse 11. - Now no chastening seemeth for the present to be joyous, but grievous (literally, not of joy, but of grief): nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness to them which have been exercised thereby. This is a general statement with respect to all chastening, though the expression of its result at the end of the verse is suggested by the thought of Divine chastening, to which alone it is certainly, and in the full sense of the words, applicable. "Of righteousness" is a genitive of apposition; δικαιοσύνη is the peaceable fruit yielded by παιδεία. And the word here surely denotes actual righteousness in ourselves; not merely justification in what is called the forensic sense: the proper effect of chastening is to make us good, and so at peace with our own conscience and with God. It is by no means thus implied that we can be accepted and so have peace on the ground of our own imperfect righteousness; only that it is in the fruits of faith perfected by discipline that we may "know that we are of the truth, and assure our hearts before him" (cf. James 3:18, "The fruit of righteousness is sown in peace;" also Isaiah 32:17, "And the work of righteousness shall be peace"). Hebrews 12:11No chastening for the present seemeth (πᾶσα μὲν παιδεία πρὸς μὲν τὸ παρὸν οὐ δοκεῖ)Lit. all chastening - doth not seem. Πᾶσα of all sorts, divine and human. The A.V., by joining οὐ not to πᾶσα all, and rendering no chastisement, weakens the emphasis on the idea every kind of chastisement. Πρὸς μὲν τὸ παρὸν for the present. For the force of πρὸς see on Hebrews 12:10. Not merely during the present, but for the present regarded as the time in which its application is necessary and salutary. Μὲν indicates that the suffering present is to be offset by a fruitful future - but (δὲ) afterward. To be joyous but grievous (χαρᾶς εἶναι ἀλλὰ λύπης) Lit. to be of joy but of grief. It yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness (καρπὸν εἰρηνικὸν ἀποδίδωσιν δικαιοσύνης) Perhaps with a suggestion of recompense for the long-suffering and waiting, since ἀποδιδόναι often signifies "to give back." The phrase ἀποδιδόναι καρπὸν only here and Revelation 22:2. Καρπὸν fruit with διδόναι to give, Matthew 13:8; Mark 4:8 : with ποιεῖν to make or produce, often in Synoptic Gospels, as Matthew 3:8, Matthew 3:10; Matthew 7:17; Luke 3:8; Luke 6:43, etc.: with φέρειν to bear, always and only in John, John 12:24; John 15:2, John 15:4, John 15:5, John 15:8, John 15:16 : with βλαστάνειν to bring forth, James 5:18. Ἑιρηνικός peaceable, in N.T. Only here and James 3:17, as an epithet of wisdom. Quite often in lxx of men, the heart, especially of words and sacrifices. The phrase καρπός εἰρηνικός peaceable fruit (omit the), N.T.o , olxx. The phrase fruit of righteousness, Philippians 1:11; James 3:18, and lxx, Proverbs 3:9; Proverbs 11:30; Proverbs 13:2; Amos 6:13 : comp. Psalm 1:3; Psalm 57:11. The genitive of righteousness is explicative or appositional; fruit which consists in righteousness or is righteousness. Unto them which are exercised thereby (τοῖς δἰ αὐτῆς γεγυμνασμένοις) Who have been subjected to the severe discipline of suffering, and have patiently undergone it. For the verb see on 1 Timothy 4:7. Rend. "it yieldeth peaceable fruit unto them that have been exercised thereby, even the fruit of righteousness." This preserves the Greek order, and puts righteousness in its proper, emphatic position.
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