God Disciplines His Own
“My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline,
and do not lose heart when he rebukes you,
because the Lord disciplines the one he loves,
and he chastens everyone he accepts as his son.” Hebrews 12:5b-6
Guys are sometimes jerks and like to give each other a hard time. That was what we were doing to a football player in our Autobody class at the vocational school during our senior year. Someone had come up with a lie trying to pull one over on the guy and I stupidly joined in. As we were trying to convince him of the lie I was shocked to hear the words said to convince him: “I swear to God”. They came out of my mouth. As a Christian there are a number of things you don’t do, and that was one of them.
A few hours later we were crowding the guy still giving him a hard time. There were three or four of us aggravating him when he drew back and threw a punch that landed square on my mouth. I didn’t hit him back. I knew instantly what had happened. God used that guy to teach me a lesson I should have already known. You don’t lie, and you never back that lie up by using an oath in God’s Name. I would add–and don’t give a football player a hard time.
I’ve been corrected by God a few times in my life. It is never pleasant. You don’t want to go through it. But we all sin and fall short of God’s glory, even those who are Christians. This side of heaven we are never free of the influence of the world, those around us, and our own human weaknesses.
It is better to be corrected by God as His children than to be outside of His grace and mercy. There is no doubt God blesses and favors His children, but He also disciplines and corrects us. While not pleasant, His discipline shows that He cares about how we behave on this earth.
It is a good idea to be aware of our weaknesses and faults and to stay on guard and wary of them. First we must be honest about our shortcomings. I know mine well. I try very hard to keep them in mind and avoid letting them get the best of me. We need God’s help to avoid sin. By relying upon God we make it less likely we will need correction, and hopefully over time our failings become less and less.
We have a loving Father who cares about us so much that He corrects us when we get off of course in our lives. Though discipline is unpleasant, the end result is beneficial.
Have you ever been corrected by God?
