Ladies ~ God always has a specific reason for everything that He does or allows into the lives of His followers. It is not as important that we know exactly what He is doing or why He allows certain trials or circumstances and not others - the important thing is to trust Him with every detail of our lives even when He chastens and corrects us. Proverbs 3:11 “My son, despise not the chastening of the LORD; neither be weary of his correction” Every single thing that God allows into our lives is purposeful, we should not detest or despise them, knowing that the steps of His own people are ordered by the Lord. It is Satan, not God that tempts us with sin and tries to usher unrighteous, corrupt, and hurtful plots in our lives. It is the Devil that creeps around deceptively seeking whom he may devour with his fiery darts. Satan always has bad motives and wants us to fall into sin. It is God who filters out exactly what He will allow us to face down here. He does not allow Satan to have rule or possession over His people. He allows us to be tempted by Satan, yet He gives us answers, ammunition, armor, and power to withstand. In fact He, Himself is our shield and hiding place! Satan ushers harmful things into our lives for our destruction, God allows some of them into our lives for our own good. Yes, you did read that right; God does allow some seemingly bad things into our lives. We need to remember that seemingly ‘good’ or ‘bad’ situations in life are not always what they appear to be. Some of the things that we would view as ‘blessings’ and make our lives easier, and that make us happy, are not always good for us in the end. For example: Our children would count it a blessing if we let them do what they want, eat only what they want, go to bed if they want, hang with who they wish, wear what they want…but everyone knows that what they would esteem a ‘happy life,’ would be to their own destruction. The same is true with ‘bad’ things. They aren’t always what they seem. The seemingly ‘bad’ things that good parents, purposefully, bring into their child’s life, have one motive; what is best for their child, physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually, socially, and morally. I am so thankful that my parents didn’t fold to the pressures that my sisters and I would sometimes try to manipulate their better judgment with! This is just a human parental illustration …things do get past us as human parents at times, but NOTHING gets past our heavenly Father. If you were to do a word study on Proverbs 3:11 (above) you would find it quite interesting~ Despise= spurn, cast away, disdain, loathe, refuse, reject. Chastening= reproof, warning, instruction, restraint, discipline, rebuke, doctrine. Weary= to be disgusted or anxious, abhor, to be distressed, grieved, loathe, vexed. Correction= chastisement, correction, refutation, argument, reasoning, rebuke, reproof. This verse in my words, after having done the word study: “My beloved, when the Lord has to restrain, warn, rebuke or instruct you, don’t spurn His wisdom with a rebellious disdain and don’t reject His right ways as vile or worthless. Neither allow yourself to be anxious or grieved at His divine interaction in correcting your mindset and will. Do not allow yourself to be rebelliously disgusted with God’s sovereignty and His wise reasoning in the affairs of your life.” God always has a specific reason for everything that He does or allows into the lives of His followers. It is not as important that we know exactly what He is doing or why He allows certain trials or circumstances and not others. The important thing is to trust Him with every detail of our lives. When we focus on Him and His goodness we are able to reach maximum profit from each trial. We then, become partakers of His holiness. But when we focus on the trials themselves, we get overwhelmed and start doubting God’s goodness. This is exactly what Satan wants us to do. It is wise to take our focus off from the rod that God chooses to instruct us with, but rather keep our focus on the loving, all wise, hand that holds it. The following is a long section of scripture, however it is the best and most thorough teaching that we have on chastening; a must read! God wants us to know what He is doing when He chooses to chastise us and He has recorded it clearly for us in the book of Hebrews. Remember in context, Hebrews chapter 11 was telling us of many of the awesome examples of believers that lived victorious and heroic lives, for God, by faith. How they withstood insurmountable trials and afflictions because their faith in God was so strong. Then the Holy Spirit inspired the writer of Hebrews to exhort you and me, today, using their testimony of faith… “Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. 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. 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” (Heb. 12:1-11). When God ushers trials into our lives and sees fit to chasten us in any way, we are not do despise it. It is to our advantage and God’s glory that we submit to it, trusting that He only chooses what is best for His people. “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose” (Rom. 8:28). Remember when you quote this scripture in Romans that it indeed says ALL things. Also remember that it only pertains to those who ‘love God and them who are the called according to his purpose.’ Those who belong to God, He will guide and protect and Father. Those who belong to Satan do not get nurtured or trained as children, because he is a negligent, irresponsible, unloving parent to those who follow him. When unbelievers have trials come into their lives we should not comfort them with this verse; clearly it does not pertain to them. Instead we should comfort them with the hope and good news of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. God knows the exact and wisest, proportion, measurement, timing, and circumstance, as well as the precise and most effective method, trial, blessing, people, and happenstance, (right down to the detailed degree) that we need at the right and most accurate time in our lives and He providentially orchestrates every little thing for our good, and our growth, with the motive of His glory in it all. So comforting to belong to an omnipotent (all powerful), omniscient (all knowing), omnipresent (at all places at all times) God! Prosperity and adversity are both used by God to bring us to the place that we need to be in our pursuit of holiness. “Behold, happy is the man whom God corrects: therefore despise not the chastening of the Almighty” (Job 5:17).
Posted on: Fri, 25 Oct 2013 10:34:15 +0000
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