Have you ever wondered why life can be exceedingly hard? In the most despairing season of my life I more than once sinfully raised angry fists shaking them at God crying out, “Why did you give me this woman!?!” (For the record, twenty-nine years later we are happily married, and I adore her more and more year by year.) But then, I was in desperate need of change. Today, I praise God that he didn’t see fit to leave me the way he found me. In the past, I wondered why I was being punished. Now, I see he designed trials to discipline me into greater conformity to Christ.
The trouble we often have in understanding what God is up to in our suffering is that we look first at our circumstances to see God through them. At best this practice gives us a distorted view of God. We need to reverse our gaze and look at the truths of God’s Word to see him clearly first and then view our circumstance (lectures by Dr. Stuart Scott). In the following paragraphs I want to discriminate between discipline, punishment, or the something else that may be going on and then take a look at the careful hand of God in our discipline.
Discernment in Hardships
The “something else” I refer to is simply the fact that we live in a sin fallen world. Genesis 3 teaches us that there will be thorns and thistles in hard ground, pain in child birth, strife between spouses, and constant enmity between the offspring of the serpent and the offspring of the woman… Life will be hard because sin remains in the world. There may be times where this is the only reason we struggle. In other words, the struggle is NOT a direct consequence of our own sin or the sin of others.
Punishment is quite different from discipline in this conversation. To explain what I mean, punishment leans toward the idea of making a person suffer. We humans tend to impose penalty or retribution unto one another for offenses both perceived and real. Those separated from Christ can be especially cruel. Yet even those who profess Christ make mistakes, operate out of mixed motives, or act in sin toward others (Richard D. Phillips, Hebrews: Reformed Exposition Commentary). We may suffer violent consequences from our own sin or the sin of others, or both. The outcome of these punishments it that we merely and only suffer. Jesus Christ offers his children a distinct difference. In my best understanding of Scripture, the only place Jesus Christ will punish without instruction is in the eternal fires of Hell. Once consigned to eternity in Hell there is no opportunity to learn, change or grow. Those who go there will only ever suffer (Isaiah 66:24, Revelation 21:8).
In great contrast our loving Father’s discipline here on earth is for our eternal good (Hebrews 12:10). Hebrews 12:3-17 teaches us many things about discipline. For instance, it is out of love that both father and Father discipline his children. Also, even though all discipline is painful for a moment it comes with instruction and has a purpose. Further, discipline calls us to respond by lifting drooping hands and strengthening weak knees. God is always at work for our good and our growth.
Our Careful God
The main thrust of discipline from God Almighty is a kind loving concern for our eternity. He deeply and intensely pursues us for our good and growth into Christlikeness. Whereas we discipline ourselves for much smaller goals: high scores on the PFT, excellence in our MOS, promotion! Indeed, we inflict many pains on ourselves and endure them for the sake of our good and our growth here on this earth. Yet, these things are temporary and will flee away as a mist in the morning. Much like our earthly goals, eternal goals set by our Father in Heaven also require our endurance and often include some pain.
Speaking on Hebrews 12 Richard D. Phillips teaches that “trials are designed to make us stronger, to apply force against the muscle of our faith to push us forward toward our spiritual potential.” He defines divine discipline as “the biblical teaching that God chastises and trains his children by means of the difficulties and hardships of life.”
Consider Malachi 3:3 which refers to the then coming Christ as a refiner and purifier of silver. In those days the silversmith would stoke the fire to just the right heat, take a lump of ore in his tongs, hold it in the center of the flame for just the right amount of time, never taking his eyes off the lump. His mission was to burn off the dross in order to polish the remaining silver with the goal of seeing his reflection in the silver. When Jesus takes us up in his tongs to put us in his fire, he knows just how high to turn up the heat. He knows just how long to hold us in the fire. His goal is only to burn off enough of the dross of our sin that his reflection would shine through us into the world and into eternity.
This is why the Holy Spirit through James can tell us to consider it pure joy when we face trials of many kinds. The goal of our Lord in our discipline is that we would be mature and complete lacking in nothing (James 1:2-3). I am glad the LORD God did not see fit to leave me the way he found me. Nor will he leave me the way I am! I can choose to put myself in his path by practicing the spiritual disciplines or he will use people circumstances and events to bump (discipline) me back into his path (Donald Whitney: Personal Spiritual Disciplines). The same is true for you.
On a Personal Note
Thank you, brothers and sisters serving in the military today! Though every era of every service has significant challenges to overcome, you are serving in particularly difficult times. Thank you for carrying the baton forward! Please know that I pray for you all as I write to you. Please feel free to leave comments or questions that might prompt future articles.