Does God discipline His children?

 

I was reading Ps 94 this morning, and verse 12 caught my eye:

 “Blessed is the one you discipline, LORD, the one you teach from your law;”

It stood out because…this is not something we ever want to think about, is it?  That God actually disciplines His children – and even though the next verse gives us a very good outcome of such discipline:

“That You may grant him [power to calm himself and find] peace in the days of adversity, Until the pit is dug for the wicked and ungodly.”

It still isn’t pleasant to the ear, is it!

I expected to find something more about this in the Old Testament, and sure enough, there are a few.  Lamentation 3:27-28 being but one:

“It is good for a man to bear the yoke while he is young.  Let him sit alone in silence, for the LORD has laid it on him.”

But the following verses from the New Testament really brought it home:

Heb 12:5-11 “5and you have forgotten the exhortation which is addressed to you as sons,
         “MY SON, DO NOT REGARD LIGHTLY THE DISCIPLINE OF THE LORD,
         NOR FAINT WHEN YOU ARE REPROVED BY HIM,

           6FOR THOSE WHOM THE LORD LOVES HE DISCIPLINES,
         AND HE SCOURGES EVERY SON WHOM HE RECEIVES.”

7It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline? 8But if you are without discipline, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate children and not sons. 9Furthermore, we had earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them; shall we not much rather be subject to the Father of spirits, and live? 10For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but He disciplines us for our good, so that we may share His holiness. 11All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.”

If you find yourself in an uncomfortable place – find out from the Lord if it is your own doing (for we do reap what we sow, so carefully scrutinize your lifestyle and decisions or lack of decisions, maybe inner healing is needed), or if it is an attack from the enemy (in which case you have to find the door in your life that was opened for this attack, maybe even go for deliverance), or if it is the Lord Himself disciplining you.  If this is the case, only He can point the reason for it out to you.

I think in all cases, my advice would be to do something about it as soon as possible, so as not to prolong the agony!

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