Discipline for Our Good

Hebrews 12:3-4 ESV

“Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted. In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.”

Jesus Christ, the Son of God (and God), was perfect in every way. Yet, because he was also man, he was still tempted in every way, just as we are--yet he did not sin (Heb. 4:15).

The religious leaders in the temple of God (at that time) consistently tried to trip him up with his words, so that they would have cause to accuse him. But, he did not give in to them.

And, then they hung him on a cross to die, as though he was a common criminal, although he had done no wrong. But, before they did that, they gave him a mock trial, they spat upon him, they mocked him, they tried to egg him on, to get him angry, and then they beat him beyond recognition. And, in all of that, he did not sin.

But, worse than that, when he hung on that cross to die for our sins, he literally became sin for us, taking upon himself the sins of the entire world so that he could put our sins to death, in order that we might die with him to sin and live to him and to his righteousness (1 Pet. 2:24; Rom. 6:1-23).

So, he sets the example for us in resisting Satan and sin, in fleeing temptation, and in saying “NO!” to ungodliness and fleshly lusts. And, in him we have the strength to endure hostility against ourselves. And, we are empowered of his Spirit in resisting the devil and in fleeing temptation, and in saying “No!” to the flesh, and in saying “YES!” to God every day.

Hebrews 12:5-11 ESV

“And have you forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons? “’My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord,    nor be weary when reproved by him.For the Lord disciplines the one he loves,    and chastises every son whom he receives.’” “It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline? If you are left without discipline, in which all have participated, then you are illegitimate children and not sons. Besides this, we have had earthly fathers who disciplined us and we respected them. Shall we not much more be subject to the Father of spirits and live? For they disciplined us for a short time as it seemed best to them, but he disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness. For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.”

God does not tempt us to sin, but he allows us to be tempted of Satan. He allows Satan and his hordes to come against us, to try us, and to scheme against us. But, he gives us his spiritual armor with which to fight off Satan’s evil attacks against us, too, and to be victorious over sin and Satan.

Our Lord allows us to go through trials and tribulations, too, that try our faith, for through them he is disciplining us like a loving father in order that we might be trained in holiness and righteousness, and in uprightness and godliness. He disciplines us through our trials in order that he might purify us, prune us, make us holy and conform us to his likeness, too.

Through his divine discipline and correction, we learn to not depend on ourselves, but on the Lord for everything. We learn to draw on his strength rather than on our own. We learn endurance and perseverance. And, we grow to maturity in our walks of faith, provided that we respond to our trials by submitting ourselves to God’s will for our lives, and providing that we don’t rebel against God and go our own way, instead.

So, the trial we are going through right now with this global pandemic, God is allowing for our good. He is using this in our lives to make us holy, to purify us, to cleanse us of all unrighteousness, to get us to rely on him and not on our own resources, and to get us to walk with him in holiness and in purity of devotion to him as our ONLY LORD AND SAVIOR.

We Need to Know

There are some things about this global pandemic of which we need to be aware, though. We need to be aware that we have an enemy, Satan, who is working against us, to destroy us in any which way that he can. And, he has many people working for him who are out to destroy us, as well, and who are out to conquer us and to take us down. So, we need to be aware of his tactics, so that we are not taken in by his deceptions, for they are many.

And, these things are written down for us in the scriptures regarding the kinds of things we can expect to take place in these last days before the return of Christ, which really began in Jesus’ lifetime on this earth. And, the scriptures teach, that although we don’t know when Jesus is coming again, that we can know when his coming is near by the signs we were told about, so that his coming should not surprise us who are watching and waiting for him.

Now, the scriptures don’t spell it all out for us regarding who is who and exactly how they are going to carry out the conquering of nations and peoples and the saints of God. They give us more of an overall description of what to expect. So, it is up to us to pray, to ask God for understanding, and to pray for much spiritual discernment to recognize the signs before us.

But, we have to get away from filling our minds with all the junk that is out there, and all the news, and all the social media memes and such which have the potential of filling our minds and hearts with all sorts of information intended to make us fearful, to confuse us (it is very confusing), to get us to panic and to tempt us to be afraid of anything and everything, pretty much.

And, we have to get alone with God and truly open our ears and our hearts to hear what he is saying to the churches right now, in our situation we are going through today. And, we have to know that not everyone tells the truth, and that not everyone is who they say they are, and that much can be faked, or statistics can be twisted, and all kinds of trickery and manipulation of minds can be happening without us even realizing it if we aren’t aware.

So, pray. Ask God who is who and what is what and what is true and what is false. Ask him to show you where you are being deceived, and be willing to hear him out. Ask him to open your blinded eyes. For, we have a real enemy out there who is out to get us, but we will get sucked into his trap if we aren’t aware he exists, and if we aren’t aware of his plots against us.

So, just know that what it says in Revelation 13, in particular, is happening now. The world is being conquered by a group of elite wealthy and powerful people who run the world, in reality. The US government works for them. What is happening to us now, our government has done many times over to people of other nations in order to conquer them for the beastly New World Order. This is the same M.O. they have been using for many years.

The portended “crisis” situation may vary from year to year, and nation to nation, but other than that, they follow the same script, basically. For, first they create the chaos and the disorder, which then proves that these nations, and now America, too, are in trouble, and that they need “fixed.”

And, then they go in as “saviors” with a preplanned “remedy” to their “problem,” which is exactly what is happening now, too. And, this is all part of Agenda 21 which is the New World Order’s agenda for global domination and for total global control over all people. It is a business plan which they are following, and if you know what is in their agenda, you can see how it is now being played out with this current crisis, too.

But, I am not asking you to believe me. I am asking you to pray and to ask the Lord what is going on behind the scenes. Ask him if what you are seeing in the news is 100% truth or even partially true, and ask him to show you the hidden agenda that is behind it all. But, be pure of heart first or you aren’t going to discern what he will say to you.

Hebrews 12:12-13 ESV

“Therefore lift your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees, and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be put out of joint but rather be healed.”

Evil is rising. Our faith is being tested. We are being allowed to go through some of God’s divine discipline which is intended to lead us to pure walks of faith in Christ, and away from any sins or compromises with the world or any worldliness or idolatry that might exist in our lives presently. And, what we are having to endure is painful, but God has a plan for it all, too.

He wants to strengthen us in our walks of faith with him. He wants us to trust him fully, no matter how bad things might get, and he wants us to be of courage and to not be afraid. And, he wants us walking in holiness.

How Beautiful Heaven Must Be

Songwriters: A. P. Bland / A. S. Bridgewater / Dwight Moody Brock

…In heaven no drooping nor pining,

No wishing for elsewhere to be;

God's light is forever, there shining,

How beautiful heaven must be.

How beautiful heaven must be

Sweet home of the happy and free;

Fair haven of rest for the weary,

How beautiful heaven must be…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kCfHh-Ra1N8

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