The Cost of Discipleship - "Coming To Grips" - (Part 5)

“Coming To Grips With God’s Discipline Of The Believer” - (Erwin Lutzer) God takes sin very seriously, especially sin in the lives of His children. In the school of the Christian life, there is discipline, sometimes severe discipline. And for those who will not respond to any of God’s other disciplines, there is an ultimate remedy. With this segment, we conclude our study of God’s discipline in the life of a believer. We have learned that there are many ways that God seeks to get the attention of His disobedient children. He uses guilt, the enslavement of sin, emotional trauma, and even Satan to bring us to the point of desperation. He wants us to repent without a hidden agenda. Now we will consider God’s final act of discipline so that we might be restored to fellowship with Him. Physical death is the ultimate act of God’s disciplinary hand. Old Testament examples of people who died because of specific sins are numerous. Nadab and abihu, the sons of Aaron died because they deliberately disobeyed God (Lev. 10:1-7). Korah and his family opposed God and died (Numbers 16); and Uzzah touched the ark and God killed him (2 Samuel 6). There are New Testament examples too: Ananias and Sapphira lied to God about their gift to the church and both died (Acts 5:1-11). Some believers in Corinth died because they partook of the Lord’s Supper in a flippant way (I Cor. 11:30). And the offender in the Corinthian church referred to earlier would have died if he had not repented. John wrote that we as believers should pray for those whose sin does not lead them to death. But then he also adds, “There is a sin leading to death; I do not say that he should make a request for this” (I John 5:16). The “sin unto death” is probably not a specific sin, but a certain kind of sin that is so severe that it merits the physical death of the individual. We have no idea how many people have died prematurely because they did not respond to God’s chastening hand. To complete this study I must mention in passing that God may use the special gifts of His Grace in bringing us to repentance, though this may seem inconsistent with all of the things we have been studying to this point. We have talked about God’s rod of correction such as guilt, trauma and even Satan. But the fact is that often God also brings us to our senses by sending us unexpected blessings. Who of us has not been shamed into repentance simply because God blessed us in ways that we so clearly did not deserve? One woman said that as a teenager she attended a party where she could have been seduced or even raped. The fact that God protected her from harm (even in the midst of a police raid), led her to such praise to God that she never desired to become involved in such situations again. The hearts of God’s people are often won back to Him because of incredible displays of His mercy when it is least expected. Paul taught that the kindness of God is designed to lead unbelievers to repentance. Sure this principle applies to believers as well (Romans 2:4). The bottom line is that God never tolerates sin in the lives of His children. Through the prompting of the Holy Spirit, yes, even through the harassment of the devil if necessary, He will teach us that sin grieves His heart. And there are no favorites in His classroom. So how shall we respond to God’s discipline? We read, “My Son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor faint when you are reproved by him” (Hebrews 12:5). There are three possibilities when we fall under God’s disciplinary hand. First, we can take it lightly, that is disregarding it, ignoring the warnings. This of course, results in great hardness of heart and actually makes further discipline necessary. To regard discipline lightly is to shield ourselves from the lessons God intended to teach us. I have a brother-in-law who was spanked by his father for eating chocolates. Yet, even while he was lying across his father’s lap receiving his whipping, he reached over and took another one from the box near the couch! My car has a “Check Engine” light on the control panel. I can ignore it, continue to drive and get by quite well. But eventually something serious will happen to the motor. If I ignore the warning, I am taking it lightly. Some people experience great trials and yet never stop to check their spiritual lives to ask: what is God trying to teach me? Their sorrows are wasted, or worse, they become spiritually insensitive and morally careless. The second possibility is to faint, that is, to simply give up, unable to integrate the trial into a meaningful spiritual experience. Some people backslide, deeply bitter with God because of circumstances that they believe are quite unfair. They just decide that the fight is not worthwhile. The third possibility, of course, is to learn from the trial and let it be the means of drawing us closer to God. How shall we view the trials or disciplines of life? We should: 1. Ask God to search our hearts (Ps.139:23-24)to reveal any sins or failures that may be causing this hardship. This step seems elementary, but is basic to all of our spiritual training. The reason many believers fail to learn from life’s disappointments is because they do not give God time to show them what He might be trying to teach them (Eccl.3:11). The problem of connecting a particular sin with specific discipline is often difficult, sometimes impossible. But we must seek wisdom to know whether God might pinpoint a relationship. 2. We must not interpret the patience of God as the leniency of God. If we live with deliberate sin and do not see God’s disciplinary hand, we should not deceive ourselves into thinking that He is ignoring our transgressions. He does not take sin lightly. Many a believer has misjudged the severity of God. A minister, who was involved in adultery, said he was totally confused when God continued to bless his ministry despite the ongoing affair. He expected the judgment of God to fall, but it didn’t, at least not immediately. People continued to be saved and the church grew despite this secret sin. Of course the disciplinary process had already begun but he did not realize it. The guilt of the adultery, the lies to cover it, and the fear of exposure were already taking their toll on his personal life. God was not ignoring the sin. He was simply disciplining this man on His own schedule. The warning light was blinking furiously, but he ignored It. “Do not be deceived and deluded and misled; God will not allow Himself to be sneered at (scorned, disdained, or mocked by mere pretensions or professions, or by His precepts being set aside). He inevitably deludes himself who attempts to delude God. For whatever a man sows, that and that only is what he will reap” (Gal.6:7, 8, Amp.). Eventually his life and ministry all came apart, of course. God’s hand upon him was severe. He now knew that his Heavenly Father had no overlooked this sin despite His longsuffering. Unfortunately, he had interpreted the longsuffering of God as the indifference of God. One of the most dangerous experiences we can have is to commit deliberate sin and appear to “get by.” This will only develop our confidence to repeat the same sin, expecting the same kind of 2. leniency from the Almighty. There are times when God appears to be indifferent to the sins of His people, but He is only waiting for His correct timing (Isa.55:8). The woman who commits adultery without getting pregnant or contracting some form of sexually transmitted disease is being chastened by God just as consistently as the person who commits the same sin and experiences the consequences listed above. Not a single one of God’s children ever gets by with deliberate sin; chastisement of some kind is absolutely inevitable. Let us remember that we can learn from every trial whether we know the reason for it or not. We’ve met them in previous sections in this study; it was not necessary for a couple to know whether there was a connection between their deformed baby and premarital sex; the woman who got her divorce on a flimsy pretext may have become ill even if she had remained married. There may have been other ways that God was disciplining them for these failures. They along with all the rest of us, can learn from every trial, even if we are unsure about a connection between personal sin and our hardships. All trials have a broader purpose, as the Apostle Paul taught; “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort; Who comforts us in all our affliction so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted of God. For just as the sufferings of Christ are ours in abundance, so also our comfort is abundant through Christ” (2 Corinthians 1:3-6). Every trial is designed to draw us closer to God and to teach us the divine comfort of God. The “trial of our faith is more precious than gold that perishes.” Blessed is the person who can accept the hardships of life and grow through adversity. Blessed is the person who can learn from the burdens of life as well as from its blessings.