Despise Not Chastening

Background Scripture: Hebrews 12; Job 5
Lesson Scripture: Hebrews 12:5-13; Job 5:17-18

Introduction

Chastisement is not a pleasant word. It means “to censure severely or inflict punishment on (as by whipping).” 1 We all have felt a certain amount of chastisement from our parents or some other authority figure. Those experiences usually bring a sense of shame and humiliation. In those times when we felt the chastisement was undeserved, we may have felt a sense of resentment and offense.

When Christian parents administer discipline, the child usually knows why. A rule of good parenting is to tell our children why we are punishing them, and hopefully proper discipline will bring good results. The chastening of the Lord is not always so clear. The Scripture tells us that “time and chance happeneth to them all” (Eccles. 9:11) and that “man is born unto trouble, as the sparks fly upward” (Job 5:7). How do we sort through our experiences and determine what is just life and what really is the chastening hand of the Lord? May the study of this lesson yield a greater understanding of the value of chastening.

Key Verse

But he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold (Job 23:10).

Lesson Scripture

Studying the Lesson

Several key points are made in this text. The Lord loves us, and so He chastens us. He does this because we are his children, and He wants the best for us. If we are without chastisement, we are not his children.

Verse ten is somewhat of an enigma. Do parents chastise their children for their own pleasure? The deeper meaning of this verse is that our earthly fathers disciplined us for a little while, doing the best they knew how or what seemed right to them. God in turn disciplines us for our good that we may share in his holiness. Earthly fathers will make mistakes, but God does not err in his judgment.

Job tells us to be happy when we are corrected, but it isn’t in human nature to enjoy adversity, and we tend to pair misfortune with God’s displeasure. We do better by picturing a parent disciplining a child for some misdeed and then gathering the child in close and comforting them. When this is properly done and received, the child snuggles down and feels loved and secure in the arms of the parent. We can experience this after a time of chastening. The peace of a submitted will and the security of being in Him is a great blessing.

Practical Truths for Today

Will the chastening of the Lord ever be completely understood? Rarely does a child fully understand the correction and guidance of its parents until much later. A lot of the trouble and difficulty we encounter in life can be a result of the curse that was placed on the human family after man fell in the garden. So, are we to consider the disappointing, painful, and grievous eventualities of life as chastisement? Droughts, floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, tsunamis, earthquakes, volcanoes, fires, accidents, sickness, and health issues of every kind are part of life on this earth. Life is terminal—we all die, and death is final and heart-rending. Untimely deaths generate so many questions: “Why me, Lord, and why not others?” Many times there are no answers.

A sister once remarked that a drought upon the land was her fault because of her disobedience. Why we think calamity and misfortune are our fault can be understood when we peruse the Old Testament. We readily see that God placed a natural blessing upon obedience and fidelity to Him, but He also pronounced a natural curse on his people when they strayed and disobeyed Him. Does this carry over into the new dispensation of grace and mercy? Jesus never spoke in these terms in all his teachings. He rather would have taught that bad things were not the result of individual sin. Jesus clearly taught in Luke 13:1-5 that the calamities that had befallen those people were not because they were worse sinners than others. The same principle is found in the account of the man born blind (John 9:1-3).

Is it even reasonable to believe that all calamities and misfortunes are somehow a result of our sin and are linked to God’s punishment? God surely speaks to us through these events, and we certainly should be listening for his voice. How we receive these things, however, is much more important. Whether or not an event is the chastening hand of the Lord might be relative to the need of our own heart. When the circumstances of life can be accepted with grace and submission, these things would not necessarily be chastisement, but if they cause us to become agitated, unreasonable, and difficult to get along with, it can indicate a need and be a severe chastisement.

When everything is going our way, the work is abundant and pays well, the crops are excellent and prices are good, our health is great, and we are socially accepted, we tend to forget God. When our children fit in with their peers, then life is good. We breeze along and tend to not recognize our great need of God. This has happened to mankind for many generations. A certain amount of adversity is not only beneficial, but needful. Our Lord employs tribulation as an instrument for our own spiritual growth. These things will work for the good of the believer and will draw us closer to God and to our brethren for support.

A lot of the chastening we experience is in our heart, mind, and spirit. It comes from reading the Word of God and from the still, small voice. It may come from our brother or sister as a gentle reproof or comment. At times it comes from a sermon. All of us need help from the brotherhood. Ultimately, the need of the correction we receive settles in our heart, and it sanctifies us and makes us better fit for his service. Only then will we see the real blessing of being a part of the church. As our lesson text states, none of this is joyous when we are in the middle of the storm, but when we let it bring about the peaceable fruit of righteousness, it is a blessing to us and others.

We should not let the events of life separate us from our relationship with Christ. A common response to adversity is to give up on God. Job’s wife did that, but he recognized that when everything else is gone, all that remains is that which has eternal value. Placing value in eternal things is ultimately how we understand life, and we will often need to remind ourselves that nothing can separate us from the love of God.

In conclusion, we may never know for sure when God is chastening us, but chastening is evidence of the Father’s love for us as his child. With this in mind, we will not want to resist chastening and correction. When the sea of life tosses our boat, let us hold still and let God speak to our hearts. Never give up on Him; remember, the teacher is always silent when giving a test. How comforting it is to know that God loves us and wants us to be saved more than we want it ourselves. We are his children, and all things work together for good to them that love the Lord.

Questions

1. Why does trouble tend to shake our faith in God instead of immediately drawing us closer to Him?
2. Why do we tend to take adversity as a personal affront to God’s love for us?
3. Is it important to understand when we are being chastened by God?
4. Parents often make sure their children know why they are being disciplined; does God do this for us?
5. 1 Merriam-Webster

Source: COGICM Daily Bible Readings (Daily Bible Readings, PO Box 124, Glenn, CA 95943).