God is the Judge

December 20, 2012 in Bible - OT - Psalms, Discipline, Meditations, Sovereignty of God

Psalm 75 (NKJV)
1 We give thanks to You, O God, we give thanks! For Your wondrous works declare that Your name is near. 2 “When I choose the proper time, I will judge uprightly. 3 The earth and all its inhabitants are dissolved; I set up its pillars firmly. Selah 4 “I said to the boastful, ‘Do not deal boastfully,’ And to the wicked, ‘Do not lift up the horn. 5 Do not lift up your horn on high; Do not speak with a stiff neck.’ ” 6 For exaltation comes neither from the east Nor from the west nor from the south. 7 But God is the Judge: He puts down one, And exalts another. 8 For in the hand of the LORD there is a cup, And the wine is red; It is fully mixed, and He pours it out; Surely its dregs shall all the wicked of the earth Drain and drink down. 9 But I will declare forever, I will sing praises to the God of Jacob. 10 “All the horns of the wicked I will also cut off, But the horns of the righteous shall be exalted.”
Mary’s song of praise following her visit to Elizabeth centers on the theme of God as Judge. Saturated as she was in the hymnody of the Old Testament, Mary used the words and themes there to shape her praise. And her praise sounds remarkably like Psalm 75.
Psalm 75 celebrates that God is the Judge. God raises up one and casts down another. It is God who is the Lord – who rules in the affairs of men and nations. What then is our duty and responsibility? Our duty and responsibility is to humble ourselves before Him and to honor Him. Why? Because He swears that He will destroy all those who are proud and stiff necked.
This is true both of the rulers of nations and of we simpler folk as well, whether men, women, or children. God takes pride seriously. He hates a haughty countenance, despises him who thinks more highly of himself than he ought to think. Therefore, because God is the Lord and we are not, we are to be humble, open to correction. We are to bow the knee before God lest we be destroyed. We are not to be like the fool who advertised his pride on the billboards of Spokane: “Bow the knee? Not me.” But he will bow the knee – either now willingly or in the future unwillingly. Solomon warns us in Proverbs 29:1, “He who is often rebuked, and hardens his neck, will suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy.” So what does this mean?
Men, are you cultivating relationships that provide you with accountability and correction? If you are married, do you listen to the wisdom of your wife and treasure the gift that God has given you in her? Married or unmarried, have you established relationships with other men who can correct you and exhort you? Men to whom you are directly accountable? If not, do so.
Women, are you cultivating relationships that provide you with accountability and correction? If you are married, do you listen when your husband endeavors to fulfill his calling of shepherding and husbanding you, correcting you? Are you willing to humble yourself before him as though he were God Himself and honor your husband for the office he holds? Married or unmarried, have you sought out relationships with other wise women who will speak the Word of God to you and not comfort you in your sin and complaint? If not, do so.
Children, are you listening to the correction and rebuke that you are receiving from your parents? God has put them into your life so that you can learn and grow and develop into godly, mature young men and women. Beware hardening your neck. Beware the hand of pride that would lead you to say, “I know better! My parents are foolish! They just don’t understand.” Listen and cultivate an obedient and humble heart. For this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus the Lord.
Reminded that this is our calling as the people of God – to be humble and open to correction – let us kneel and confess that we have often been proud and froward instead.

Sentence of Excommunication

April 2, 2012 in Bible - NT - Matthew, Discipline, Ecclesiology, Meditations

Matthew 18:15–20 (NKJV)
15 “Moreover if your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he hears you, you have gained your brother. 16 But if he will not hear, take with you one or two more, that ‘by the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.’ 17 And if he refuses to hear them, tell it to the church. But if he refuses even to hear the church, let him be to you like a heathen and a tax collector.
In the passage before us Jesus lays out the general pattern for church discipline. Private, individual confrontation is to be followed by increasing levels of accountability culminating, if necessary, in exclusion from the covenant community.
There are a variety of purposes served by such accountability but one of them is to make clear that Jesus really is Lord. When Jesus rode into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday he was correctly acknowledged as king and His kingship had ramifications in time and space – Jesus entered the Temple and cleaned out the corruption. We cannot spurn God’s law, reject His authority, and continue to comfort ourselves with the assurance that all is well. “Do you not know,” Paul writes to the Corinthians, “that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God” (1 Cor 6:8-10). Jesus really is Lord.
Approximately two months ago the elders, in obedience to Jesus’ command, informed the church that —-, a member of this church, was living in sin. Despite repeated admonitions and encouragements, accompanied with fasting and prayer on —- behalf, —- still obstinately refuses to hear the Church, and has manifested no evidence of repentance: Therefore, in the name and by the authority of the Lord Jesus Christ, we, the Session of Trinity Church do pronounce —— to be excluded from the Sacraments, and cut off from the fellowship of the Church.
Such action reminds all of us how susceptible we all are to the deceptions of the Evil One, the corruptions of our own flesh, and the allurements of the world. But for the grace of God we too would turn from Him. And so Paul warns us, “Beware brethren lest there be in any one of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the Living God; but exhort one another daily, while it is called ‘Today,’ lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.” (Heb 3:12-13)
Paul insists that we need one another – we need our brothers and sisters who will encourage us, pray for us, exhort us, rebuke us, comfort us, console us. And one of the ways that we help one another is by coming here every Lord’s Day and acknowledging together how much we need the grace of God. We gather together, bow the knee to God and confess our sins, pleading the cleansing blood of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ for our sins. And so reminded of this, let us kneel and confess our own sins to the Lord.

Suspension from the Supper

January 24, 2012 in Bible - NT - 2 Thessalonians, Discipline, Ecclesiology, Meditations

Public Suspension of —– —–
2 Thessalonians 3:13-15 (NKJV)
13 But as for you, brethren, do not grow weary in doing good. 14 And if anyone does not obey our word in this epistle, note that person and do not keep company with him, that he may be ashamed. 15 Yet do not count him as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother.
Paul closes his letter to the Thessalonians with several exhortations to the congregation at large. He begins by urging them, “brethren, do not grow weary in doing good.” Note that Paul’s command presumes that it is possible to grow weary in doing good – after all, we don’t warn about things that aren’t possibilities. In endeavoring to do good we face much opposition – both from within and from without – and so Paul commands us to never grow weary. The temptations of the Evil One, combined with the allurements of the world and the lusts of our own flesh, often make the task of doing good challenging, the temptation to grow weary alluring.
Because of the strength of this temptation, the temptation to give up doing good and simply start doing whatever, Paul exhorts the church to take seriously those who refuse to obey the Word of God. As Paul remarks elsewhere, a little leaven leavens the whole lump of dough. If a congregation permits sin to go unchecked, then that congregation cannot be surprised when such sin spreads. So notice that Paul urges the Thessalonians to act – “if anyone does not obey our word in this epistle, note that person and do not keep company with him, that he may be ashamed.” Paul’s command involves two parts – first, the Thessalonians are to “note” – mark – point out – publicly identify such a one. Second, they are to refuse to keep company – refuse to enjoy communion, including normal fellowship at the Lord’s Supper – with such a one. Why? What is the purpose of this marking? This suspending of normal fellowship? Note Paul’s words: “that he may be ashamed.” In other words, the purpose of this discipline is to awaken the sinner to the seriousness of his sin. As Solomon writes in Proverbs 20:30, “Blows that hurt cleanse away evil, As do stripes the inner depths of the heart.”
It is with sober hearts that the elders inform you today – in accordance with Paul’s words that such things are to be announced in the public assembly (1 Cor 5:4) – that —– —– is being suspended from fellowship in the Lord’s Supper.
For some time —– has been wavering in her service of Christ. During this time numerous folks have endeavored to encourage her and come alongside her. Within the last two weeks, however, she has made clear that she is turning away from Jesus and embracing a life of sin. It has become plain that for many months she has been lying to and deceiving her parents and others, using them to further her own selfish ends. She has been committing and is continuing to commit sexual immorality. She has rejected the Bible’s authority, declaring that it is not relevant for today. She has intentionally absented herself from corporate worship and avoided accountability.
—–’s parents and the elders have spoken to her and urged her to turn back to Jesus, to beware trampling under foot the blood of the covenant by which she was distinguished from the world. She has rejected these overtures. Our Lord commands us in Matthew 18:15-17:
““Moreover if your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he hears you, you have gained your brother. But if he will not hear, take with you one or two more, that ‘by the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.’ And if he refuses to hear them, tell it to the church…
In accordance with these words of our Lord, that when a brother or sister will not hear the exhortations of two or three witnesses the matter is to be brought before the church, the elders are bringing —–’s sin to your attention. Our purpose in so doing is twofold: first, that you would pray for —– and her family that the Lord would give —– eyes to see and ears to hear, that she would return to the Lord and flee from the foolish and destructive path that she is choosing. We know that all of us by nature are frail and prone to sin and deception, that but for the grace of God we would turn from him and serve self, and so let us pray that He would indeed have mercy upon her, bringing to her mind and heart the many things which she has been taught over the years.

Second, our purpose in bringing this to your attention is that you would consider writing to —–, expressing your love for her as a member of this body and urging her to repent and return to Jesus. The elders will provide you with contact information in the week to come should you choose to do so.
Suspending —– from the Lord’s Supper is an act of love, “For whom the Lord loves he disciplines even as a father the son in whom he delights.” —– is our sister and so as we admonish her we treat her “not as an enemy but as a beloved” sister who has lost her way. And these reminders of the deceitfulness of sin remind all of us of our need to confess our sins to the Lord. So let us kneel as we confess our sins and pray for our sister.
Our Father,
We are prone to sin, tempted to grow weary doing good. The temptations of the Evil One distract us, the enticements of the world draw us away, the lusts of our own flesh incline us toward evil. But for your sustaining grace we would each pursue our own way rather than the way of Jesus. We none of us by nature desire to take up our cross and follow Jesus – for following Jesus means dying to sin and self and none of us relish the prospect. We pray your mercy upon us. Remember your lovingkindness and mercy toward our sister —–. Restore her to her knees that she would bow before you and seek your forgiveness, that she would abandon the path of sin and destruction on which she has set herself and that she would return ot the narrow way that leads to life. We pray also that you would keep all of us from sin and deception, pour out your grace upon us that we would hunger and long for righteousness and purity and every good way. Through Jesus Christ our Lord and by the power of Your Spirit,
Amen.


The Discipline of Fathers

April 22, 2011 in Children, Covenantal Living, Discipline, Ecclesiology, Meditations

Hebrews 12:7-11 (NKJV)
7 If you endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom a father does not chasten? 8 But if you are without chastening, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate and not sons. 9 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? 10 For they indeed for a few days chastened us as seemed best to them, but He for our profit, that we may be partakers of His holiness. 11 Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.

A couple weeks ago we observed that one of the duties fathers have before the eyes of God is to exhort and comfort and bear witness to each of our children. We are to bring them to a knowledge of the truth, striving to show them the beauty of a life lived in honor of our Lord Jesus Christ. Today we learn that an essential part of that training is discipline. Fathers are to discipline their children.

We learn from our text today a number of things about this discpline. First, discipline originates from a specific type of relationship. It is our sons and daughters that we are called upon as fathers to discipline. As much as we might deplore the conduct of the neighbors’ kids, as much as we might grieve for their long term health and prosperity, those children have not been entrusted to us and so it is not our responsibility to shepherd them. But it is our responsibility to discipline our own children – precisely because they are our own children given to us by God Himself in trust.

Second, discipline aims to imitate the discpline of our Father in Heaven. Hence, discipline is designed primarily for the profit of our children and not for our own profit. Indeed, when we use discipline primarily as a tool for our own comfort then we are misusing the tool. God discplines us for our profit, that we might share his holiness. So we are called to discipline our children for their profit, that they might be blessed. Discipline is a gift that we are to give to our children not a set of shackles to wrap around their legs.

Third, discipline is supposed to be unpleasant. Not all gifts are pleasant in the short term. A father who makes his son weed the garden is not given a short term gift but a long term gift – training the rewards of hard work and diligence. A father who spanks his disobedient child is not giving his child something that is pleasant in the short term – but in the long term he is delivering his son from hell. And what greater gift could be given? Discipline is supposed to hurt.

So, fathers, discipline your children. Do not grow weary in doing good. And discipline them because they are your children and you love them – so the discipline should be for their good, their profit. And remember that this means it will hurt.

Children, for your part, respect your fathers and mothers. Hebrews calls upon you to honor and respect your parents in the midst of discipline. God has entrusted your parents with this authority and insists that you must heed and obey – even as you would obey God Himself.

These admonitions remind us of the many ways in which we have fallen short. We have sinned and are in need of the forgiving grace of God in Christ. And so let us confess the many ways in which we have fallen short. We will confess our sins privately and then corporately using the printed confession found in your bulletin. Let us kneel together as we confess.

Suspension from the Lord’s Supper

February 25, 2011 in Bible - NT - 2 Thessalonians, Discipline, Ecclesiology, Meditations

Several weeks ago we spoke of the necessity of discipline within the Christian community. Even as our fathers separated themselves from the mixed multitude in Nehemiah’s day, the church is commanded to publicly censure those professing the Name of Christ who refuse to obey the Word of God. Listen as Paul commands the Thessalonian church to implement the first stage of this public discipline, a stage we commonly refer to as Suspension from the Lord’s Supper:

2 Thessalonians 3:13-15 (NKJV)
13 But as for you, brethren, do not grow weary in doing good. 14 And if anyone does not obey our word in this epistle, note that person and do not keep company with him, that he may be ashamed. 15 Yet do not count him as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother.

Paul begins his words on discipline with an exhortation to the congregation at large, “brethren, do not grow weary in doing good.” Note that Paul’s command presumes that it is a temptation to grow weary in doing good – after all, we don’t warn about things that aren’t threats. In endeavoring to do good we face much opposition – both from within and from without – and so Paul commands us to never grow weary. The temptations of the Evil One, combined with the allurements of the world and the lusts of our own flesh, often make the task of doing good challenging. Add to this that other people frequently discourage us from doing good and we begin to understand that the temptation to grow weary is indeed great.

Because of the strength of this temptation, the temptation to give up doing good and simply start doing whatever, Paul exhorts the church to take seriously those who refuse to obey the Word of God. As Paul remarks elsewhere, a little leaven leavens the whole lump of dough. If a congregation permits sin to go unchecked, then that congregation cannot be surprised when such sin spreads. So notice that Paul urges the Thessalonians to act – “if anyone does not obey our word in this epistle, note that person and do not keep company with him, that he may be ashamed.” Paul’s command involves two parts – first, the Thessalonians are to “note” – mark – point out – publicly identify such a one. Second, they are to refuse to keep company – refuse to enjoy communion, including normal fellowship at the Lord’s Supper – with such a one. Why? What is the purpose of this marking? This suspending of normal fellowship? Note Paul’s words: “that he may be ashamed.” In other words, the purpose of this discipline is to awaken the sinner to the seriousness of his sin. As Solomon writes in Proverbs 20:30, “Blows that hurt cleanse away evil, As do stripes the inner depths of the heart.”

It is with sober hearts that the elders inform you today – in accordance with Paul’s words that such things are to be announced in the public assembly (1 Cor 5:4) – that ———— have been suspended from fellowship in the Lord’s Supper. For the last eight years and more the elders of Christ Church in Spokane and the elders of Trinity Church have endeavored to help ———– overcome sinful habits of communication in their home. These sinful habits include anger, outbursts of wrath, malice, dissension, lies, false accusations, bitterness, resentment, and all manner of evil speech (cf. Eph 4:25-32; Col 3:8-11). Despite repeated warnings and numerous attempts at accountability these habits have remain unchanged. As a result, ———— are living separately for the second time in as many years. Because they have failed to give heed to our private exhortations, we are now announcing this to the church, praying that God will use this to convict and restore them to one another and to the fellowship.

In so announcing, we would remind you of Paul’s exhortation, “do not treat [them] as enemies but admonish them as our brother and sister.” Your duty is to pray for and admonish ————- as professing Christians to repent of their sinful conduct and be restored to one another and to the body. And remember that we are to do this in a spirit of gentleness, taking care lest we also be tempted (cf. Gal 6:1-5). How might you be tempted in the midst of correcting them?

• Pride – Imagining that you yourself are above such sins and superior to ————-. Such is not the case. But for the grace of God, we would all be in like circumstances. So please pray for ———–, asking God to show them mercy.
• Gossip – Using this as an opportunity to speak uncharitably about ———– with others rather than as an opportunity to pray for them and long for their restoration.
• Slander – Listening to false accusations that may be made against the elders, accusing us of heavy-handedness or insensitivity in disciplining them. Let us assure you that this action is the culmination of years of patient shepherding that has borne no fruit.
• Flattery – Listening to sob stories from either ———- in which they blame others for their plight. By listening you would be allowing them to say what they want to say rather than calling them to hear what they need to hear. Admonish them to deal with their own sin in a godly fashion – by confessing it to the Lord and forsaking it (2 Cor 7:8-12).

These warnings against sin serve as a reminder to all of us of our need to confess our sins to the Lord. So let us confess our sins – first privately and then corporately using the prayer found in your bulletin. Let us kneel as we confess our sins together.

The Discipline of Fathers

January 5, 2011 in Bible - OT - Proverbs, Discipline, Meditations

Proverbs 3:11-12 (NKJV)
11 My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord, Nor detest His correction; 12 For whom the Lord loves He corrects, Just as a father the son in whom he delights.

Last week we learned that the reason God puts His childen through trials and tribulations, the reason that He chastises us, is because He loves us. God is absolutely sovereign, absolutely in control of each and every event, good or bad, which befalls us. Hence, no matter what we are experiencing, we can be assured that God intends it for our good – regardless the motives of others involved.

Today, I would like to turn our passage to the direct issue which it is addressing – discipline in the home. We have been meditating upon the lessons which the fathers of Israel are to teach us as the people of God. And here in our text is one of them – fathers teach us about our Heavenly Father.

Solomon words are quite plain: “For whom the Lord loves He corrects, Just as a father the son in whom he delights.” A righteous father, one who loves and cherishes his children, is one who is concerned for each child’s spiritual and personal growth and maturity. A father knows that “foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child” and so he utilizes discpline to “drive” this foolishness far away from him. And the practice of fathers in performing this salutary function for their children teaches us, teaches the entire community, about God Himself and His determination to sanctify us, to make us increasingly men and women of character by disciplining us.

So fathers, how are we doing? Are we engaged with the discipline of our children? Are we concerned for them? Or are we distracted by other things, thinking that other things are more important? Hear the Word of God: he who fails to correct his son hates his son.

But not only must we be engaged in discipline, we must also be engaged in a way that glorifies our Father in heaven, that imitates His character toward His children. Hence, our discipline must always be for the good of our children – must be designed to bless them and strengthen them and make them ever more faithful servants of Christ Jesus. Discpline is supposed to be a gift.

So what are ways we can be tempted to distort this? Our chief temptation is to discipline our children not for their good but for our good. So we discipline them to get them out of our hair – to prevent them from disturbing our tranquility or our enjoyment of some other activity. Or we discipline them because we are frustrated with ourselves or with our day at work – we take out our frustration on them. Or we discipline them because we are concerned what others might think of us, because we are embarrassed by their behavior. In all these cases, the discipline is for us rather than for them – but this is not how our Heavenly Father treats us. Consequently, if we discpline our children this way, we are teaching a false Gospel, a Gospel that says, “God is so concerned about Himself that He has no time for His creatures.” Let us teach a true Gospel, a Gospel that says, “God is so happy in Himself that He has abundant time to lavish affection on each of His children.”

And for you children out there, remember that this passage teaches you an important lesson – if your parents love you, they will discipline you. It is the permissive parent, the parent who says, “Oh do what you like I don’t really care” who truly doesn’t care. So when your parents hold you accountable, when they discipline you and give you consequences for your behavior, be sure to thank them for loving you and caring for you. Discpline is a gift – and we all know to say thank you when we’re given a gift.

Reminded that we engage with those we truly love, let us kneel and confess that we have failed to love our children as we ought, failed to respect our parents as we ought.

The Universality of Sin

November 9, 2009 in Bible - OT - Proverbs, Discipline, Meditations

Proverbs 22:15 (NKJV)
15 Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child; The rod of correction will drive it far from him.

Imagine if you will a toddler in a room full of toys. There are toys of all kinds and more than one of each toy. The toddler is happy, playing contentedly in one corner of the room. Into this idyllic scene introduce another toddler. Which toy will the new toddler want? The room is full of toys, multiple copies of each toy. But which toy will the new toddler want? The one that our original toddler was playing with contentedly.

Parents are prone to ask their children, when some nasty behavior starts manifesting itself in the home, “Where did you learn that? Who taught you that?” And, of course, there are times when our sinful patterns of behavior are shaped by those with whom we associate. But the deepest answer to our parental question, “Who taught you that?” is “I learned that quite well from my father Adam.” Solomon tells us in our text today that one of the things we learn from the toddlers who are, mind you, part of the Kingdom of God is the universality of sin.

The great Bishop of Salisbury under Queen Elizabeth, a man by the name of John Jewel noted in one of his sermons:

Behold man’s nature, and consider it even from our first birth. How full of affections, how wayward is the young child which lieth in the cradle! His body is but small, but he hath a great heart, and it is altogether inclined to evil. And the more he waxeth in reason by years, the more he groweth proud, froward, wilful, unruly, and disobedient. If this sparkle be suffered to increase, it will rage over, and burn down the whole house.


“Foolishness,” Solomon warns us, “is bound up in the heart of a child.” Only a fool like Rousseau, who abandoned his children to an orphanage rather than be inconvenienced with their sin, could imagine that humans are good by nature and only become evil by observing others’ example. As any parent who actually interacts with his children knows, the evil doesn’t come only from outside. The sin is bound up in our hearts at birth

And so Solomon reminds us that the course of action parents must pursue in order to rescue their children from their own foolishness is discipline. “Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child, the rod of correction will drive it far from him.” As parents we must be diligent to train and correct our children in the course of their life, so that, by God’s grace, they be rescued from the folly they inherited from Adam. The rod of correction will drive foolishness from him.

As any gardener knows, it is not difficult to grow weeds in the garden – they seem to appear quite spontaneously. We don’t need to do anything for them to grow and to grow abundantly. What is difficult is to grow vegetation. Likewise in a child. Children left on their own will be a shame to their father and their mother. As Bishop Jewel remarked, “If this sparkle be suffered to increase, it will rage over, and burn down the whole house.” Permissive parenting is not a biblical virtue. Solomon declares, “The rod and rebuke give wisdom, But a child left to himself brings shame to his mother” (Pr 29:15). If you love your children then discipline them, help them to see the foolishness that is wrapped up in all of us by birth.

So toddlers – in reminding us of the universality of sin and the need for discipline – should point us to our Heavenly Father. If we understand that our children are born in sin and in need of discipline, then we must also perceive that as we grow older the sin doesn’t disappear, it just becomes more sophisticated. Consequently, we too stand in need of correction to drive foolishness from us. But who will discipline us? If we are God’s children, adopted into His family, He promises to discipline us for our good. He uses discipline – trials, persecutions, heartaches – to drive foolishness from our hearts and make us more like Jesus.

Reminded of these lessons taught to us by the toddlers in our midst, let us kneel and confess our sin to our Father.

The Discipline of the Lord

May 5, 2009 in Bible - NT - Hebrews, Discipline, Meditations, Trials

“Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.” Hebrews 12:11

Discipline should be a lively topic in families. Fathers and mothers ought always to be reminding their children of the reasons for chastening. And as we explain these things, the text before us today should frequently be on our lips. “Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.”

Notice that the author of Hebrews tells us two things about discipline that we can pass on to our children but which we should also be passing on to ourselves. For first and foremost this passage concerns the way in which God trains us; only by analogy does it discuss the discipline of a father with his children. What then do we learn about discipline?

First, we learn that discipline is painful. No discipline seems enjoyable at the time it is administered. Its intention is to be painful. And so, you children out there, when your parents get out the rod or when your parents impose some consequence upon your sinful behavior – don’t expect the consequence to be enjoyable. Hebrews tells us – its intention is quite the opposite. It is intended to be painful. For it is the pain that trains us and fashions us – the pain that teaches us to avoid that pattern of behavior in the future.

Most of us parents are adept at delivering this lesson to our children. But how often do we deliver this message to ourselves? Brothers and sisters, the discipline of the Lord does not seem pleasant at the time. When the Lord puts us through some trial or when the Lord disciplines us for violating His commandments, why is it that we expect things should be jolly? He is sharpening us; disciplining us; chastening us. We expect our children to know what those things mean; so why do we have such a hard time letting it soak in to our own consciousness? No discipline is enjoyable at the moment.

But this is not the only thing we learn about discipline. While discipline is painful, it is not intended to end in pain. The ultimate goal of the Lord’s discipline, as should be the goal of parental discipline, is the cultivation of the peaceful fruit of righteousness in our lives. Our Lord promises to use discipline to make us more lovely people. He is training us. That which He purposes to create within us by means of trials and chastisement is righteousness.

But note that this righteouness is not an automatic biproduct of discipline. If we are to see the fruit of righteousness in our lives then we must, in the words of our text, be trained by the discipline. In other words, we must take the discipline to heart and learn from it. We must not harden ourselves to the discpline; must not complain that we have been treated ill; must not kick against the goads. Rather we must bow the knee before our Lord and learn the lesson.

And so, children, how are you responding to the discipline of the Lord through your parents? Are you bowing the knee? Are you acknowledging the authorities that God has placed over you and submitting yourself to them? Does discipline produce in you the peaceful fruit of righteousness? Or is it instead producing resentment, bitterness, gloom, or depression? And what of us adults? How are we responding to the discipline of the Lord? Does discipline produce in us the peaceful fruit of righteousness? Or does it instead produce resentment, bitterness, complaining, grumbling, depression?

As we come into our Father’s presence this morning let us kneel and confess that we have not received His discipline as we ought.