40 Days Prayer and Fasting (Expressing His Resurrection Life) DAY 36 Bible Reading for the Day: (Hebrews 12:1-29) INTRODUCTION: “And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him.” (Heb. 12:5) In the passage above, there is much emphasis on God’s dealing with us NOT as children but as sons. This is after the manner of the Pattern Son himself. There is world of difference in God dealing with us as children and Sons. As children, there are certain things that can be condoned. But as sons, more things are required of us. The difference between both is training, discipline, maturity. These are not just words, these are experiences we must go through and endure successfully, if we truly must be partakers of His holiness. The scripture above tells us not to DESPISE the CHASTENING of the Lord. The truth is that there is a tendency in us to despise it. This is as a result of the PACKAGING of the chastening. The chastening of the Lord could come in ways that are offensive to us. They come in daily circumstances and our interaction with people. But they do not walk around carrying a sign on them saying BEHOLD THE CHASTENING OF THE LORD. This means we must have a discerning heart to know when God is taking us through His chastening. One of the things that inform our wrong responses to the chastening of the Lord is that we have FORGOTTEN the exhortation and we have not CONSIDERED Him (Heb. 12:3&4). True sons have learnt to embrace Him who is the consuming fire, knowing that their deliverance and advancement lies in the fire. The closer we get to Him, the more the dross of our silver is purged, and we become brighter and can reflect the image of His Son. The closer we get to Him, the more the chaff in us is burnt, and all that remains is the wheat. This chastening of the Lord is an expression of His Love for us. We must constantly bear this in our minds. It is to SONS that God, the Father will give a kingdom to NOT children. Children are concerned with the base, beggarly elements of this life. They do not have the capacity to handle a kingdom yet. Prayer Focus: 1. Lord teach me to recognize and embrace Your chastening in whatever form it comes. 2. Lord teach me to glean wisdom in the processes you take me through. 3. Lord shake within me everything that can be shaken and help me to stand rock solid. 4. Lord help me to develop a right attitude towards Your chastening. (Amen)
Posted on: Thu, 26 Sep 2013 07:39:16 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015