7/7/13 Hebrews 12:5-11 Holy Discipline

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Hebrews: Real Faith Practices

Week 4: Holy Discipline

July 7, 2013

 

GETTING THINGS STARTED

  • What are some of the biggest rules for your family?  What rules, when you break them, drive your parents crazy?
  • What is the number one “little” rule you seem to always be getting in trouble for?
  • How do you know when you’ve goofed up and made your parents mad at you?
  • What was the hardest punishment you’ve ever received for breaking one of these rules?

 

It’s no fun to ever get in trouble, even though some of these stories are funny.  Getting in trouble is something every one of us can relate to.  We’ve all been there, and unfortunately many of us will be there again!  But as hard as it is to stomach sometimes, there is a reason for discipline.  It has a purpose.  And that is what we’re going to talk about in today’s lesson.

 

Read Hebrews 12:5-11 (nlt)

5And 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. 6For the Lord disciplines those He loves, and He punishes each one He accepts as His child.”

 

7As you endure this divine discipline, remember that God is treating you as His own children.  Who ever heard of a child who is never disciplined by its father?  8If God doesn’t discipline you as He does all of His children, it means that you are illegitimate and are not really His children at all.  9Since we respected our earthly fathers who disciplined us, shouldn’t we submit even more to the discipline of the Father of our spirits, and live forever?

 

10For our earthly fathers disciplined us for a few years, doing the best they knew how.  But God’s discipline is always good for us, so that we might share in His holiness. 11No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening—it’s painful!  But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way.

 

 

The writer of Hebrews makes an important metaphor here.  He compares God’s discipline to the discipline of a loving father.  When caring parents discipline children, it’s not out of meanness, anger, or spite.  It is out of love and concern.  If a parent did not care about shaping a child’s character and wanting the best for the child’s future, the parent would not bother with discipline.  Discipline is a sign of love.  It reflects a desire to train a child to be the best he or she can be.

 

God approaches discipline similarly.  God longs for us to lead Jesus-centered lives, lives that emulate His character.  So God disciplines us to bring us in line with the plan He has for us. God shapes us to be more like Him.  Once we can begin to look at God’s discipline this way, it not only makes enduring discipline easier, it also makes it productive.

 

 

This is the last of our four-lesson look at the book of Hebrews.  This week’s lesson tackles the challenging topic of God’s discipline.  Let’s check it out.

 

 

1. God’s discipline is motivated by love

 

  • Why do parents discipline their children?
  • What is the purpose of your parents’ discipline?  What is the goal of it?
  • What’s the difference between discipline and punishment?
  • Verse 7 speaks to something that we need to acknowledge, but that might be tough depending on our relationships with our parents.  If your parents didn’t love you or care for you, would they worry about trying to correct your behavior?
  • How is this so similar to how God uses discipline in our lives?  If God didn’t discipline us, what would that say about God’s attitude toward us?

 

Discipline is not fun.  That’s an understatement.  But it’s an essential nature of God’s character.  God disciplines us because He loves us.  God disciplines us because He wants us to be like Him.  God disciplines us because He wants us to live fuller lives, lives that make an impact.  We need to always remember that truth.

 

 

2. God’s discipline draws us closer to Him

 

  • Verses 9 and 10 express a truth that is kind of hard to deal with at times, but when we step back, it becomes easier to grasp.  When our parents, a coach, a teacher, or another meaningful authority figure exhibits fair, consistent discipline, how does it affect our respect level for them, knowing that they care for us?
  • What do these verses say is the purpose of God’s discipline?  Why should this be a goal of ours as well?
  • Could we become more like God without discipline?  Why or why not?

 

God’s discipline makes us more like God.  The only scenario in which we wouldn’t need to be disciplined is if we never veered from God’s path.  Except, we do that, all the time, because of our sin nature.  So God must bring us back in line with his plan of who we are and can be.  God uses discipline to change us into His image.  And, again, it’s done out of love.  But it’s also done with an eye toward who we will be in the future.

 

 

3. God’s discipline leads to growth and a better future

 

  • Obviously, discipline stinks in the moment.  But what does verse 11 say is the future fruit of discipline?
  • What does “a peaceful harvest of right living” mean in this verse?
  • How does discipline today lead to peace with God in the future?

 

It all goes back to God’s love for us.  God is active in shaping our lives.  God is not some hands-off power who sits in the heavens detached from creation.  God longs for us to be who He intended us to be in the first place: faithful, obedient, loving children who live our lives in relationship with Him, praising and glorifying His name.  Because of our sin, we can’t fully be these things.  But God knows that disciplining us today means crafting a future for us that is full of promise and potential.

 

 

ADDITIONAL DISCUSSION

Psalm 39:11 (nlt)

When you discipline us for our sins, you consume like a moth what is precious to us.  Each of us is but a breath.

 

  • Read Psalm 39:11. What picture of discipline does this verse speak to?

 

  • Why are we so often uncomfortable with the idea of God’s discipline?  Does that say more about God, or about us?

 

  • How is this understanding of who we really are in comparison to God essential to understanding the purpose and benefits of being disciplined?

 

APPLICATION

  • Think about times in your life when you sinned and faced consequences.  Without saying more than you are comfortable saying, what have you learned from these experiences?

 

  • What is a healthy way of responding to God’s discipline?

 

  • If we are constantly committing the same sins and facing God’s discipline, how can we pray for God’s help in changing our patterns of behavior?

 

 

SUMMARY

Discipline isn’t an easy topic.  No one likes to think about getting in trouble with parents or a boss.  But discipline with God often looks different from the world.  God’s discipline is meant to change us with the goal of steeling our character.  If God didn’t love us, He wouldn’t discipline us.  But because God loves us, He corrects us to bring about growth in us.  This lesson helped us see that while God’s discipline might not always feel great, it comes from a place of love and commitment, and is designed to draw us closer to Him.

 

For Keeps [Memory Verse]

As you endure this divine discipline, remember that God is treating you as his own children. Who ever heard of a child who is never disciplined by its father? (Hebrews 12:7 NLT).

 

 

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