Missing the Grace of God from Heb. 12:15

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 07-10-03

 

 

                                                                                               

 

My Worship Time                  Focus:  Missing the grace of God

 

Bible Reading & Meditation             Reference:  Hebrews 12:15

 

            1.  Message of the verse:  “See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God; that no root of bitterness springing up causes trouble, and by it many be defiled;”  (NASB)  “Look after each other so that none of you will miss out on the special favor of God.  Watch out that no bitter root of unbelief rises up among you, for whenever it springs up, many are corrupted by its poison.”  (NLT)

            Once again there are different opinions on the subject of the grace of God that is contained in this verse.  There surely is a sense that this can mean if a person does not accept the salvation that is provided for them through Jesus Christ and His work on the cross that he is missing out on the grace of God.  However I do not believe that this is what the writer is focusing in on in this verse, although the example of Esau in the next verse does describe a person who missed out on salvation.  I believe that believers can miss out on the grace of God in their walk with the Lord because of unbelief, which can lead to other sins such as being bitter, sexual impurity, and living for the world and not for the Lord.

 

            2.  Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I can surely, at times fall to these types of sins in my life, which I am sure cause me to miss out on the grace of God because of them.  When trouble comes into my life, and it is good to remember that nothing comes into my life without passing through the sovereign fingers of God, that I should turn to God and to His Word for direction and help in my time of need, I am to believe the Word of God in spite of my circumstances or consequences to me.

 

The Word of God was full of challenges for me as I read it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  To believe the Lord and His Word even when it is hard for me to see the outcome of the troubles that I am going through at this time.  I do not want to live my life on a roller coaster type of emotions because of the trouble that I am going through, but have joy in my heart, knowing that the Lord is in control, and that He will work all thing out for my good and His glory.

 

Memory verses for the week:  Psalm 121:1-3

 

1.      I will lift up my eyes to the mountains; From whence shall my help come from?

2.      My help comes from the Lord, Who made heaven and earth.

3.      He will not allow my foot to slip; He who keeps you will not slumber.

 

Live with Peace and Holiness

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 07-09-03

 

My Worship Time                Focus: Live with peace and holiness

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                   Reference:  Hebrews 12:14

 

            1.  Message of the verse:  “14 Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord:”  (NKJV)  “Try to live in peace with everyone, and seek to live a clean and holy life, for those who are not holy will not see the Lord.”  (NLT)

            Dr. Wiersbe points out that as we run the race of being a believer we have two goals that we are to peruse and that is to live at peace with others and to walk holy before the Lord.  Now we know that as a believer in Christ He has provided us with peace with God because of His work on the cross, and Paul says that we also can have the peace of God in our lives too.  Peter says that we are to be holy because the Lord is holy.  As believers we are to live out the new life that God has given to us when we come to know Him as Lord and Savior, which is holy.  Our new self is holy, set apart to serve God, just as God is our Holy God.

 

            2.  Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I have had a hard time understanding exactly what living a holy life is in the past, and I still struggle with exactly what that life is, and even what the word means.  The Strong’s Concordance in not that much help to me, as it says about the word holy, “1) most holy thing, a saint.”  I know that God is holy and that I as a believer am to be like God in living a holy life, but because of the old nature it is difficult for me to live that kind of a life.  God is certainly different than those of the world because He is holy.

 

The Word of God was certainly a challenge to me as I read it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  To continue to believe the promises of God that He has had written in His Word concerning the storm that I am in, to trust His.

 

Memory verses for the week:  Psalm 121:1-3

 

1.      I will lift up my eyes to the mountains: From whence shall my help come?

2.      My help comes from the Lord, Who made heaven and earth.

3.      He will not allow my foot to slip; He who keeps you will not slumber.

 

 

 

The Results of Discipline (Heb. 12:12-13)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 07-08-03

 

My Worship Time                  Focus:  The results of discipline

 

Bible Reading & Meditation             Reference:  Hebrews 12:12,13

 

            1.  Message of the verse:  “12 Therefore, strengthen the hands that are weak and the knees that are feeble, 13 and make straight paths for your feet, so that the limb which is lame may not be put out of joint, but rather be healed.”  (NASB)  “So take a new grip with your tired hands and stand firm on your shaky legs.  Mark out a straight path for your feet.  Then those who follow you, though they are weak and lame, will not stumble and fall but will become strong.”  (NLT)

            In verse 11 the writer gives one of the results of discipline when he says that it will “afterward it will yield the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it,” or have exercised by it.  This is one of the results of discipline.  It also encourages us to exercise in spiritual matters like the Word of God, prayer, meditation and witnessing, etc, and this all leads to joy.

            How are we then to respond to the discipline of God?  “We may respond to discipline in several ways: (1) We can accept it with resignation; (2) we can accept it with self-pity, thinking we really don’t deserve it; (3) we can be angry and resentful toward God; or (4) we can accept it gratefully, as the appropriate response we owe a loving Father.”  Life Application Bible

            Now the writer uses the word “therefore” to start out the 12^th verse, which means it refers back to what we have been reading.  In light of all of these things he has been telling us in this chapter he encourages us to do these things he writes in 12 & 13.  The writer is like a coach who tells us to get into the race and to get it together and run the race of life and by doing this we will also be able to encourage others around us to do the same.

 

            2.  Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I am sure that it is true that there are others who are watching how I react to the storm that God is leading me through, and I do believe that part of this is truly discipline from the Lord for a number of things that I know that I have been doing wrong concerning my investments and the wrong attitude that I have had about money.  This may all be discipline, but whatever it is the Lord is lovingly getting my attention and I have confessed many different things that I have done wrong and am still asking the Lord to continue to search me in regard to this storm that He is leading me through.  I pray that I will be a good example as to how I handle this storm of discipline from the Lord so that others who see me will see the Lord in my life giving me the strength and the peace to deal with it.  God loves me too much to leave me the way I was.

 

The Word of God was indeed a challenge to my heart as I read it this morning.

My Steps of Faith Today:  I want to trust the Lord to be true to His Word and search me, “23

 

Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me and know my anxious thoughts;

24 And see if there be any hurtful way in me, And lead me in the everlasting way.

Memory verses for the week:  Psalm 121:1-3

1.      I will lift up my eyes to the mountains; From whence shall my help come?

2.      My help comes from the Lord, Who made heaven and earth.

3.      He will not allow my foot to slip; He who keeps you will not slumber.

    

Earthly Discipline and Heavenly Discipline (Heb. 12:9-11)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 07-07-03

 

My Worship Time                  Focus:  Earthly discipline & heavenly discipline

 

Bible Reading & Meditation             Reference:  Hebrews 12:9-11

 

1.  Message of the verse:  “9 Furthermore, we had earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them; shall we not much rather be subject to the Father of spirits, and live?  10 For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but He disciplines us for our good, that we may share His holiness.  11 All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.”  (NAS)  “Since we respect our earthly fathers who disciplined us, should we not all the more cheerfully submit to the discipline of our heavenly Father and live forever?  For our earthly fathered disciplined us for a few years, doing the best they knew how.  But God’s discipline is always right and good for us because it means we will share in his holiness.  No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening—it is painful!  But afterward there will be a quiet harvest of right living for those who trained in this way.”  (NLT)

There are a number of points that I would like to make about this passage.  God disciplines in perfection in order that His children might reverence Him and to obey His will.  This is supposed to be the reason that our earthly fathers discipline us.

If we respond correctly to our Heavenly Father’s discipline we will live as verse nine says.  We must then take this that if we do not except the discipline in the way that God would want us to we could die as other Scriptures teach us.  1John 5:16 speaks of this, “ If anyone sees his brother committing a sin not leading to death, he shall ask and God will for him give life to those who commit sin not leading to death. There is a sin leading to death; I do not say that he should make request for this.”  This also happened in the OT on different occasions. (See 1Cor. 10:1-12 for evidence of this).  I must say that this is not the usual way that God deals with people, but He does do this on certain occasions as seen in Acts 5.

These writings in chapter 12 relate with the five exhortations in Hebrews.  If believers do not heed those exhortations then the Lord make choose to take their life in order not to graciously stop them from sinning more.  God makes no mistakes, even though it is not pleasant to go through His discipline, for He does it for our own good. 

The word in verse 11 which is translated as trained is the same word translated exercise in 5:14, so we are exercised by God’s discipline, and if we willingly submit to it then there will be a quiet harvest of right living.

 

2.  Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I believe that God’s Word teaches that as a believer that I am to first of all bring honor and glory to Him, and there are far too many times when I do not willingly do this, for I do things that make me happy, not considering what they do to my heavenly Father.  The flesh is, or old nature, only wants to do what is contrary to the Word and will of God, so I must continually battle it by the power of God’s Spirit and His Word so that whatever I do may be done to the honor and glory of God, my Father. 

As I am going through this time of discipline from the Lord it is necessary for me to truly find out what He wants me to learn so that by His grace I will not have to take a repeat course on this subject, and most of all so that I will have greater reverence for the Lord and a deeper desire to do His will regardless of my circumstance or consequences to me.

 

The Word of God was very convicting to my heart as I read it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  To continue to seek from God exactly what he wants me to learn from the situation that I am in right now, and to believe that God will work out, even these things, for my good and for His glory.

 

Memory verses for the week:  Psalm 121:1-3

 

1.      I will lift up my eyes to the mountains; From whence shall my help come from?

2.      My help comes from the Lord, Who made heaven and earth.

3.      He will not allow my foot to slip; He who keeps you will not slumber.  

 

 

An Example of Discipline (Heb. 12:7-8)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 07-04-03

 

My Worship Time                  Focus:  An example of discipline

 

Bible Reading & Meditation             Reference:  Hebrews 12:7- 8

 

            1.  Message of the verses:  “7 It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline?  8 But if you are without discipline, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate children and not sons.”  (NASB)  “As you endure this divine discipline, remember that God is treating you as his own children.  Whoever heard of a child who was never disciplined?  If God doesn’t’ discipline you as he does all of his children, it means that you are illegitimate and are not really his children after all.”  (NLT)

            The writer now moves on to personal experiences of being disciplined, and takes that from the father, as he would discipline one of his sons.  I have heard it said that we never have to teach our children to do wrong, but we certainly have to correct their wrong doing, and the reason that is because we love them.  Sometimes it not only hurts the child to do this but it also hurts the father, but this is what they call tough love.  We as parents probably would on many occasions want to discipline one of the neighbor’s children but because they are not ours we do not do so.  Our heavenly Father only will discipline His own children, and the reason behind this is His great love for His own children.  He loves us too much to leaves us go in the direction that we are going.  One of the interesting words in this passage is found in verse 8 and it is the word translated in the NASB, “illegitimate,” which is only used one time in the Bible, and is translated “bastard” in the KJV.  Dr. MaCarthur says that this could be a reference to Hagar and Ishmael, as he was an illegitimate child of Abraham.

 

            2.  Spiritual meaning for my life today:  It is just like God to have me study a passage in His Word that certainly applies to the situation that I am in at this time, and it surely could be said that I am being disciplined by the Lord at this time of my life because of the investments I am involved in.  I will quote a portion from a verse note from the “Life Application Bible” that comes from verses 5-11 in Hebrews 12:  “Who loves his child more—the father who allows the child to do what will harm him, or the one who corrects, trains, and even punishes the child to help him learn what is right?  It’s never pleasant to be corrected and disciplined by God, but his discipline is a sign of his deep love for us.  When God corrects you, se it as proof of his love, and ask him what he is trying to teach you.”

 

The Word of God was challenging to me as well as convicting to my heart as I studied it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  I certainly want to believe the truth of this section of Hebrews and I certainly want to learn what it is that God wants me to learn for my investment discipline so that I do not have to take the course over again.

 

Memory verses for the week:  Psalm 121:1,2

 

1.      I will lift up my eyes to the mountains; From whence shall my help come from?

2.      My help comes from the Lord, Who made heaven and earth.

 

The Discipline of the Lord (Heb. 12:5-6)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 07-03-06

 

My Worship Time                  Focus:  The discipline of the Lord

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                         Reference:  Hebrews 12:5-6

 

            1.  Message of the verse:  “5 And you have forgotten the exhortation which speaks to you as to sons: ‘My son, do not despise the chastening of the LORD, Nor be discouraged when you are rebuked by Him; 6 For whom the LORD loves He chastens, And scourges every son whom He receives.’”  (NKJV)  “And have you entirely forgotten the encouraging words God spoke to you, his children?  He said, ‘My child, don’t ignore it when the Lord disciplines you, and don’t be discouraged when he corrects you.  For the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes those he accepts as his children.’”

            This is the beginning of a new section in the outline given by Warren Wiersbe in his book on Hebrews, “Be Confident.”  He entitles this section “The assurance of the love of God,” and tit goes from 12:5-12:13.  There are three subsections in this section and the first one is verses five and six where he says that the love of God is confirmed by the Scriptures, for in this subsection the writer quotes from the book of Proverbs chapter three and verses eleven and twelve.  It is interesting that this is said to be and exhortation, which means an encouragement, and that may seem strange considering the subject that he is about to get into, the subject of discipline and punishment, or scourging.   What the writer is saying in these two verses is that if you belong to the Lord there is going to be a time when the Lord will use some tough love to move you into the right direction, the direction that He wants you to be going.  The writer says that we are not to despise this chastening of the Lord and we are not to be discouraged by it either, for whom the Lord loves he disciplines.  He even scourges those who are his own, and Dr. Wiersbe says that this could be seen as physical illnesses. 

 

            2.  Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I would have to say that the problem that I am going through with my investments could be seen as a discipline from the Lord, a way that the Lord is refining me more into the image of His Son.  I can say that in many ways that I do not like it, however I do realize that this is proof that I do belong to the Lord, and that the Lord loves me too much to have me remain as I was.  My prayer through all of this is that I would learn and put into practice the things that the Lord is teaching me, and that if it is in His will for my life that I would recover my investment in a timely matter, the Lords timing.

     

 The Word of God was certainly challenging to my heart as I read and studied it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  To trust the Lord, that He will be true to His Word, and that I would also be true to His Word, as I go through this discipline concerning my investments.

 

Memory verses for the week:  Psalm 121:1,2

 

1.      I will lift up my eyes to the mountains; From whence shall my help come from?

2.      My help comes from the Lord, Who made heaven and earth.

Not Yet Dying for the Cause of Christ (Heb. 12:4)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 07-02-03

 

My Worship Time                  Focus:  Not yet dying for the cause of Christ

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                         Reference:  Hebrews 12:4

 

            1.  Message of the verse:  “You have not yet resisted to bloodshed, striving against sin.”  (NKJV)  “After all, you have not yet given your lives in your struggle against sin.”  (NLT)

            It seems to me that the writer is giving his readers a contrast of what they were going through with that of what Christ had already gone through for them.  Now as he finishes this contrast he concludes that they had not given up their lives in their struggle against sin.  They may be called upon to do this at some point in the future, and if they are they have at the best example to follow, that being Jesus Christ.

 

            2.  Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I think it is good to remember the song that starts out this earth is not my home I am just a passing through in light of this verse I am looking at this morning.  As a believer in Jesus Christ I am to be obedient to what He has called me to do while on this earth for it is only my training ground for my real life beyond the blue.  If at some point in the future the Lord would call me to lay down my life for the cause of Christ I would pray that I would be faithful and trust the Lord to give me the strength to do that very thing.

 

The Word of God was very challenging to my heart as I read it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  To believe the Word of God and to trust the God of the Word in spite of my circumstances or consequences.

 

Memory verses for the week:  Psalm 121:1-2

 

1.      I will lift up my eyes to the mountains; From whence shall my help come?

2.      My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.