Good morning,
Adam
and Eve had no idea that their delightful stroll through the garden
that day would lead them and all their children on a journey from truth
and peace into a world of lies and pain. They had never heard a lie
before and when the tempter offered them benefits in life beyond what
God had given them, it seemed to them like a offer too good to pass up.
He offered them the power to know good and evil. They had no idea that
what they did gave them the power of knowing life from the enemy’s
point of view and that they would instinctively believe that view until
God opened their minds and hearts to the difference between loving truth
and fear driven control.
From that day on every human being has
had to choose to listen to God or listen to the sweet lies that make
much more sense as we go through life. That day God began to discipline
these sinners, and the pain and challenge of knowing God’s peace has
been with us ever since. Since then, we all sin and enjoy the
satisfaction of having our own way no matter what God thinks.
Now
if we are going to know God and become a genuine part of his family, we
have to learn the truth that God has very clear guidelines for us to
follow. The writer of proverbs made it clear that the Lord disciplines
those he loves. God insists that we listen to the truth that he has
given us, and then accept his standards when making choices about what
is really right and wrong. That means that we must look for his truth
rather than be satisfied with what we think. That means that we must be
willing to stop doing what God says offends him and rely on him for the
strength to follow his set of instructions. That means that we must
accept the pain and punishment that he builds into our lives in order to
get our attention and change the truths that control our lives. That
means that when we ignore what he thinks and insist that we have the
right to do things our own way, we must accept his punishment as an act
of his love to get us back on the right track. The writer of Hebrews
quoted these same verses to remind us that God’s standards are still the
same. The kind of discipline God gives us is designed to change our
hearts and then our life style. Religion is all about changing our life
style while resenting God’s guidelines for Godly living. May the Lord
help us to be grateful for the painful part of his love.
Hebrews 12:5 And
have you forgotten the encouraging words God spoke to you as his
children? He said, “My child, don’t make light of the LORD’s discipline,
and don’t give up when he corrects you. 6 For the LORD disciplines
those he loves, and he punishes each one he accepts as his child.”
Roy Wisner
