Train Story: The child ended up bruised and battered, with cuts and a swollen lip. And the injuries were the result of being kicked out of the way. Sometimes, like this train conductor, God must [give us a kick] in order to save us. [That kick may feel painful, and we may get bruised, but in the end, it works out for our good].
That’s the main idea that we will look at this morning– that God disciplines us because He loves us and for our own good. Rom (8:28) 12:1-3
Vs 4 In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.
In other words, don’t stop! Keep on resisting to the point of blood, until the day you die. Soldier on in your fight against sin. Stay in the battle until the day God takes you home to glory.
Billy Sunday: “I’m against sin. I’ll kick it as long as I’ve got a foot. I’ll punch it as long as I’ve got a fist. I’ll butt it as long as I’ve got a head. And I’ll bite it as long as I’ve got a tooth. And when I’m old, fist-less, footless, and toothless, I’ll gum it till I go home to glory.
1 Corinthians 9:27 “I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave..”
In your struggle against sin, keep on resisting until the day you die.
Vs5-8 And have you completely forgotten this word of encouragement that addresses you as a father addresses his son? It says, “My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, 6 because the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and he chastens everyone he accepts as his son.” Proverbs 3:11
Vs7 Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. For what children are not disciplined by their father? If you are not disciplined—and everyone undergoes discipline—then you are not legitimate, not true sons and daughters at all. (6 Times)
In the original Greek language, “paideuō =discipline” literally means “child training.” …the whole training and education of children (which relates to the cultivation of mind and morals, and employs for this purpose now commands and admonitions, now reproof and punishment) It also includes the training and care of the body
It includes everything a parent does to equip their children for life. It includes instruction and correction, teaching, and corporal punishment, as well.
(Who is the Greatest) Matthew 18:2-3 He called a little child to him and placed the child among them. 3 And he said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
God is not a heavenly dictator, who is just waiting to give us a hard time and kick us while we’re down. He is our heavenly Father, and He views us as His sons and daughters. In this passage, we see not God’s judgment or infliction of punishment, but His parenting skills.
This passage is about parenting, and we learn here how our heavenly Father parents us.
When God disciplines us He is not lashing out in anger, but He is nudging us back to the right path or out of the way of danger; He is pushing us out of the path of the train that will surely wreck and wreak havoc in our lives.
Why does God discipline us, Vs6 says, the Lord disciplines the one he loves. We discipline our children because we love them and we want them to succeed in life. God does the same thing with us.
Vs8 If you are not disciplined—then you are not legitimate, not true sons and daughters at all.
God disciplines His legitimate children. Those who have come to faith in Jesus, His Son. God’s Discipline is not a sign that God hates you; it’s a sign that He loves you very much!
God loves us the way we are, but he loves us too much to leave us that way. God wants us to grow and mature spiritually, That’s why He disciplines us.
“God’s Love sometimes shows up in the form of discipline.” So, in the midst of your hardship, endure it as a discipline, and don’t ever doubt God’s love for you. Learn to appreciate God’s discipline because that discipline is the evidence that you and I are true sons and daughters!!
Vs9-10 Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of spirits and live! 10 They disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness.
Vs9 says that discipline leads to children respecting their fathers (or parents). When we discipline our children, were showing them that we love them enough to put in the time and effort to teach them right from wrong, to give them the necessary skills to navigate through life, because we want them to succeed in life. In doing that we will earn their respect…(Now or Later)
Our earthly fathers didn’t always discipline us right, but they did the best they could with their limited, worldly knowledge. However, Our Heavenly Father in His infinite wisdom always does it right. It’s so important we understand that: God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness.
Vs11 No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.
Discipline seems to be painful, but it is far less painful than facing life unprepared because of a lack of discipline. It is far less painful than suffering failure or making dangerous or deadly mistakes. Discipline is not as painful as it seems, especially when weighed against the difficulties we face when we have no discipline.
Those who have been “trained by discipline” “it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace.” Are there areas of your life that would be considered unrighteous? And what is the fruit of righteousness? It is peace.
You will fail. You will likely fail often. It will be painful. It will be discouraging. At times it will test you to your very core. But the end goal is to produce in us, righteousness and peace.
Don’t be afraid of the painful discipline needed to grow stronger. Let it prepare you to do and be all that God has called you to do and be.
Vs12-13 Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees. 13 “Make level paths for your feet,” so that the lame may not be disabled, but rather healed.
We read here about hands hanging low and feeble knees, revealing that it’s easy to become worn out and weak during times of hardship/discipline.
We also read about making level/straight paths for our feet, which shows how easy it is to depart from the path of righteousness and discipline. If we allow ourselves to become spiritually weak and go astray, then what is “lame” can get worse and become “disabled,” and we can completely fall down in our faith, and refuse to get up.
We are encouraged in verse 13 to be healed. We are healed by simply receiving God’s discipline and looking to the end result, fixing our eyes on Jesus the author and finisher of our faith.
Closing
The Word here boldly states that all hardships that we face, either persecution at the hand of sinners, trials, and tribulations of living in a fallen world, or God’s corrective hand discipline; are to be endured from the standpoint that God has not abandoned us, but instead is training us to become righteous and holy in His sight! (Peace)
If God did not train and correct His children’s behavior, He “would be deficient in His capacity as our Heavenly Father!”
Even though at times God’s discipline is excruciatingly painful we need to see it and understand it as an expression of His love for us and evidence that we truly are His sons and daughters.
Psalm 139:23-24 Search me, O God, and know my heart; Test me, and know my anxieties; 24 And see if there is any wicked way in me, And lead me in the way everlasting.
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