Prompting in the race

 

And you have forgotten the exhortation which speaks to you as to sons: “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.” If you endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom a father does not chasten?  But if you are without chastening, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate and not sons.  Furthermore, we have had human fathers who corrected us, and we paid them respect. Shall we not much more readily be in subjection to the Father of spirits and live? For they indeed for a few days chastened us as seemed best to them, – Hebrews 12.4-9

 

Nobody likes the notion of chastening or discipline. I think it is because we have been on the receiving or even the giving end of chastening which was not discipline but just pure punishment.

 

Punishment sometimes has to be meted out. It is a sad, but a true, fact.

But we really mess up if we confuse it with chastening or discipling. Punishment is to exact a penalty. It may or may not teach anything.

But discipline, as seen by the very nature of the word, is intended to teach. Discipline is done in love. Sometimes it is going to be painful, but it is always done in love.

 

As we can see in the next few verses our fathers disciplined us and we disciplined our children. We did what seemed ‘best to us’ and I know, for one, I really blew it on more than one occasion.

 

But God always acts in love. He always chastens perfectly.

 

We can’t despise God’s discipline – He always does it in love and He always does it right and it is always for our benefit.

 

We’ll come back here tomorrow.