162-Discipline Under the New Covenant#
162-Discipline Under the New Covenant
(Compiled by Sister Ren Wei)
The topic we are sharing today is: Discipline Under the New Covenant.
Hebrews 12:5-11:
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; for whom the Lord loves He chastens, and scourges every son whom He receives.” If you endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom a father does not chasten? But if you are without chastening, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate and not sons.
Furthermore, we have had human fathers who corrected us, and we paid them respect. Shall we not much more readily be in subjection to the Father of spirits and live? For they indeed for a few days chastened us as seemed best to them, but He for our profit, that we may be partakers of His holiness. Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.
Let us begin with a prayer:
Heavenly Father, we especially thank and praise You for granting us the beginning of a new week. Your words renew us and help us, allowing us to walk in our lives with Your words in this new week. Let us manifest the glory of Jesus and show forth Your victorious style. We commit the following time into Your gracious hands. May the Holy Spirit personally guard our hearts and grant us understanding of Your words. Thank You and praise You, Lord! In the name of our Lord Jesus, we pray, Amen. Hallelujah!
Brothers and sisters, when you think of discipline, what comes to your mind first? How does God discipline? In your impression, does discipline make you think of being hit with a stick or kicked? These are mild forms. Some even say, “God’s discipline is different from human discipline. God uses sickness, suffering, accidents, and death to discipline you.” Would you be willing to accept such discipline? Who would want to be repaired like that! That’s not discipline at all! It’s simply a way to destroy someone!
In the past, we received a lot of such teachings because of our misunderstanding of the original text. We used our own ideas to think about such matters, and some even testified, saying, “Thank the Lord, I can believe in Jesus because of God’s grace! If God hadn’t broken my leg, how could I believe in Jesus? If God hadn’t put cancer on me at that time, how could I have believed in Jesus?” If you hear this, would you still want to believe in Jesus? — No.
But would you dare not to believe? God would make you break your leg, God would give you cancer, and some even say, “Don’t think you can escape from God’s palm. If you go to heaven, God is there; if you go underground, God is also there. Let’s see where you can run!” In such circumstances, we feel that God is truly terrifying. So is God really that cruel?
Therefore, we must first understand what discipline is. What is the definition of discipline? The definition in the Greek original is nurturing, training, guidance. The scripture we just read says it is like a father nurturing a child. A child must be nurtured; it cannot be said that a child can grow up however they want after being born. If no one nurtures the child, their future will be very poor, and that is the parents’ failure to fulfill their responsibility.
The second meaning of discipline is training. God trains us through discipline with the aim of making us outstanding. First, we know that our identity is different from that of the world. How can we live out this different identity? This requires training; it is difficult to achieve without training. For example, in the past, when someone insulted us, we could insult them back; they insulted once, and we could insult ten times. But now we need to train ourselves to bless and pray for our enemies. If they insult you once, you bless them ten times. Don’t say this is easy; it requires training. Without God training us this way, we could not possibly do this.
Another meaning is guidance. God uses His words to show you a better way to live. Therefore, the meaning of discipline is absolutely not punishment. The Bible says: “What you endure is God’s discipline; He treats you as sons.”
Even if you do not understand that the Bible says discipline means nurturing, training, and guidance, you should understand from this passage that God treats us as sons. If you want to understand the meaning of discipline, think of how you treat your son. Would you treat your son with sickness?
If your son is really disobedient, would you let him get cancer to see if he listens to you? Or would you break his leg to see if he listens? Or would you let him die to see if he listens? All of these are wrong. Even if you do not understand the meaning of the Greek original, you should see what is said in the original text and understand that it is completely different from what we have said about discipline in the past. Moreover, God disciplines us as He treats His sons, and God’s wisdom in disciplining us is far greater than our wisdom in disciplining our children.
The teachings we mentioned earlier are incorrect; these teachings are based on the Old Testament and not the New Testament. We emphasize again that the New Testament began after Jesus shed His blood on the cross; before that, it was all the Old Testament. Would God discipline His children in the Old Testament? — Yes. What was said earlier about using sickness, accidents, disasters, and even death is all from the Old Testament. Many brothers and sisters confuse the New and Old Testaments, so applying the punishments of the Old Testament under the New Testament is unbearable.
Let’s look at Leviticus 26:18: “And after all this, if you do not obey Me, then I will punish you seven times more for your sins.”
At that time, God had already issued commandments. God would use sickness and plagues, and enemies would rise up to attack you. If you still do not listen, God would punish you seven times more. This is the punishment that the people living under the Old Testament law received. Do not say that God will not bring disasters or punishments; under the Old Testament law, God indeed would. And it is absolutely not that if you make a small mistake, He will just fix you a little; rather, it is that He will punish you seven times more based on your original sin.
If you read Leviticus 26 carefully, you will find that when you plant crops, the land will not yield, and the heavens will be like bronze, dry and not raining. In such circumstances, can people still survive? This is the punishment under the Old Testament. We should be grateful that Jesus Christ has brought us out from under this punishment of the Old Testament, Amen!
Without Jesus, we would be living under the same punishment as the Jews today. The Old Testament records how bitterly the Israelites lived under the Old Testament law! There were often diseases, plagues, and enemies, and many died because of this. For the past 1500 years, the Israelites could not keep the laws and God’s words, and God continuously punished them until the arrival of Jesus Christ.
And today we are not under the law; we are under grace, Amen. Because the cross of Jesus has brought us the New Covenant, why won’t God use sickness, suffering, and death to punish you? Because your sins have fallen upon Jesus Christ, Amen! Let’s read Isaiah 53:4-5:
“Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed.”
Many of you can recite these two verses. Under the Old Testament law, if you could not keep God’s words, God would strike you like this, but now this striking has fallen upon Jesus. Now, even if you still cannot keep the law and still sin, logically, you should receive a sevenfold punishment, but now you have not been punished because Jesus has borne your pain; He was struck and afflicted by God.
Because of the punishment He received, we have peace; this punishment in the original text means discipline. Because Jesus was disciplined, God no longer disciplines you in the Old Testament way today. Jesus was disciplined, and you received peace; this is everything Jesus has done for you. But if you choose not to rely on Jesus today, then you can go back to living under the law!
That way of living will be very, very painful. You can completely choose to live in Jesus, Amen! Because Jesus’ body was torn, we received healing. He was wounded, and we were healed. How could you say that under the New Testament, God uses sickness, suffering, and accidents to punish us? If that were the case, it would mean that Jesus did nothing.
The cross of Jesus brings us a tremendous reversal. This reversal is that under the New Covenant, God no longer remembers your sins. Because of Jesus’ stripes, God wants to heal you today. No matter how terrible your condition is today, please remember that pain, sickness, and accidents do not come from God. You should look to the cross of Jesus Christ.
On the cross, He was despised and beaten, so today you can receive healing and wholeness because He has already paid the price. Such blessings are upon you, Amen! You have been redeemed at a great price. Would you treat your children with sickness, plagues, and death? Would you educate your children like that? Since you wouldn’t, do not believe that the Heavenly Father would treat you that way, Amen!
The Bible says very clearly, “If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good things to those who ask Him?” We know how to give good things to our children, and the Heavenly Father wants to give you the best today. So let’s repeat once more: sickness, suffering, accidents, and death are not lessons from God for you. God wants to train you just as you train your children, and the purpose is very simple: it is ultimately for your benefit, Amen!
Think about it, if sickness were upon your child, what benefit would that bring? That is not your child; it must be the enemy. Many times when we curse others, we hope they die. But if it were your child, with how much love you have for your child, you would hate that sickness, and you would want that sickness to disappear completely.
The Heavenly Father loves you just as much; He wants the sickness in you to disappear completely. He wants the excess parts within you to disappear completely. God will not use sickness, accidents, or death as lessons. Because God’s punishment for sin has been satisfied on the cross with Jesus, you can expect God’s grace today, not punishment. God will not punish you like He did in the Old Testament; you must first believe that God is willing to bless you. God will not use sickness to discipline His children or train you and me through disasters.
For example, if our daughter is playing with a group of bad kids, and those kids are up to no good, what should I do? It’s simple; I just pull my daughter out of that situation. I don’t need to discipline that group of kids; I won’t educate other people’s children because those kids are not mine, and they won’t listen to me. I just need to do one thing: pull my daughter out.
In this world, there are many evil people, many disasters, and many diseases, but you are a child of God, and God wants to pull you out from among them. God hopes you will live a life set apart like Him; He does not want you to live in sin, so He wants to pull you out. This is how God trains and disciplines you. If we are unwilling, God will pull you out; this is how God trains and disciplines you.
In the Old Testament, Lot lived in Sodom, where the sins were very severe. God wanted to judge Sodom, and when Lot was to leave, he was reluctant to come out. What did the angels do? One angel took him by one hand and pulled him out, and then God brought down judgment, Amen!
If God did this for just one Lot, how much more for us? According to our thoughts, since Lot loved Sodom so much, he should perish with Sodom. If you don’t want to come out, then let it be. But God did not do that; He directly pulled His people out of that suffering. So this is how God disciplines us today.
Because we are His children, that one reason is enough for God to help you. God will not care about the worldly; He will not care about the unbelievers, just as you would not care about other people’s children. Even if you do care, they won’t listen to you. God is only responsible for His children today. The people of the world do not want to listen to God’s words, so God lets them live however they want on this earth.
Once they accept Jesus, God will take full responsibility for them, allowing that person to live a brand new life, Amen! Because we belong to the Heavenly Father, God loves us, and He exhorts you as He would a son, saying, “My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord.” Here, it quotes a passage from the Old Testament. Let’s look at Proverbs 3:11-12:
“My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord, nor detest His correction; for whom the Lord loves He corrects, just as a father the son in whom he delights.”
Let’s take a look at the text we read today and see what the differences are.
Hebrews 12:5-6: “My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord, nor be discouraged when you are rebuked by Him; for whom the Lord loves He chastens, and scourges every son whom He receives.”
Both passages say not to despise the chastening of the Lord. In Proverbs, there is a parenthesis indicating it is correction, while here it is punishment. Therefore, in the Old Testament, if you despised the chastening of the Lord, God would punish you seven times more based on your original disobedience. This is the content of the Old Testament. Even so, you still cannot detest it; you must endure it.
After enduring, Leviticus 26 concludes, “If you confess your sins to God, acknowledge your rebellion, and are willing to obey the covenant of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, God will turn and heal you.” This is the Old Testament. We see that even in the Old Testament, God’s purpose in correcting them is still love. The methods and ways are different. He disciplines them in different ways, but the ultimate goal is still love.
For example, many kings in the Old Testament were very wicked; they cast aside God’s words and worshiped the god Molech. What is Molech? It is a bronze statue with fire in its belly and outstretched arms. When the Israelites worshiped this god, they would sacrifice their own children by placing them in the fire to be burned.
God had to stop His people from such foolishness, from burning their own children. Therefore, God allowed the Babylonian army to invade. It seemed as if God raised up King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon to conquer Jerusalem and take all the Israelites captive, making them slaves for seventy years. In fact, before this, they had already begun to worship idols, and the phenomenon of burning or killing their own children had become very common.
Because they had completely cast aside God’s words, God had no choice but to intervene and discipline them to stop the evil. After seventy years, God brought them back. This is how God disciplined His children in the Old Testament. “Just as a father corrects the son in whom he delights.”
In Hebrews 12, it also says, “Do not be discouraged when you are rebuked, for whom the Lord loves, He chastens.”
But here, the word for discipline is not the same as the one above. In the New Testament, this “discipline” is what we refer to today as nurturing, training, guidance, Amen! This is the distinction; in Chinese, we cannot see it as they all appear to mean the same, but the meaning has changed when quoted.
Jesus also made slight adjustments to many verses from the Old Testament. For example, the Old Testament says, “You shall fear the Lord and be afraid of Him,” but in the New Testament, in John 4, Jesus says, “God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” This is the meaning of worship. Although both phrases are the same and quote the Old Testament, God has changed the term; one is fear and dread, while the other is worship. This is a difference between the Old and New Testaments. Jesus’ words always bring you life, not death. Jesus brings you joy and peace, absolutely not fear. Because under the fear of the Old Testament, the Israelites did not change.
Therefore, when we read Hebrews, we must understand: Hebrews is a transitional book. The meaning of Hebrews is a group of people who have crossed over the great river. When you read Hebrews, you will find that many things from the Old Testament transition to the New Testament. For example, the comparison between angels and Jesus, the transition from Aaron’s priesthood to Jesus, and the transition from the law to grace. We should live in the latter.
So here there is a comparison. When you read Hebrews, you will find that many Old Testament verses are quoted, and there are subtle differences in the New Testament. These verses have transitioned and undergone some changes. Today, God will not forcibly change your behavior using the past method of striking you; God is willing to let you willingly follow Him, Amen!
“For whom the Lord loves, He chastens.” The motivation has changed; because you are loved by God, He will discipline you. Therefore, when you are rebuked by Him, do not be discouraged, because it is because God loves us that He rebukes us. If someone beside you privately tells you, “Brother, your current way is really not good; don’t do it anymore,” they are rebuking you out of love, and you should accept it, Amen! Do not say, “Why are you saying this to me?” Rebuke is beneficial to you, just as we rebuke our children. If other people’s children are playing recklessly outside, it has nothing to do with us, and we do not need to rebuke them. But if our own child does something wrong, we will rebuke them to stop their wrong behavior, and the purpose is because we love them.
So it can be confirmed: as long as we are children of God, loved by God, no one can escape God’s discipline. Everyone must be trained and guided by Him. He disciplines you because He loves you. If you look to Jesus, you can overcome many problems in your life. If you do not rely on Jesus but on your own words, you will be bound by many of your emotions and anger. If you look to Jesus, your desires will be controlled because Jesus is there; He will help His children.
For example, a sprinter, do you think he can win first place by sleeping at home every day? He must undergo rigorous training. Do you know how much training he puts in? While you are sleeping, he is training; while you are playing on your phone, he is training. Therefore, in the end, he receives that glory.
Today, God wants to train you with His words, and after training, He wants you to surpass the world. First, we must adapt to knowing that we are different from the world; you have great potential. As Christians, we must first know that we are different from the world. After knowing this, we must join the ranks of training. Although it may not be comfortable at the time, discipline is necessary. God wants to discipline you; you must understand that God loves you. If we allow our children to grow up freely, that is not love for the child, but harm.
For small children, if parents have principles, the child can feel loved more. For example, if parents speak without principles and always scare the child, “Don’t do that, or I will discipline you,” “If you do that again, I will hit you,” and you scare them like this for a year, they will have no reaction; it will be as if you said nothing.
If you are principled and say, “If you do that again, I will discipline you,” the first time the child may not take it seriously, but when they do it again and you really hit them with a stick, the next time when you educate them with words, they will not only listen but will also feel that you love them.
Children are like this, and we are the same. If you have believed in Jesus today but are indulging in drinking, gambling, and smoking, and nothing happens to you, do you think this is a good thing? This can only prove that the Holy Spirit is not in your heart, that you have no relationship with God, and that you are not a child of God, which is why you do such things.
Hebrews 12:8: Discipline is for all sons. If you do not receive discipline, you are illegitimate and not sons.
If you are not a son, that is a problem. How can a non-son enter the kingdom of heaven? How can a non-son be loved by God? This point must be understood: God disciplines you because you are loved by Him, Hallelujah! A father raises and disciplines his child out of love. I recently read a book called “Give Them Grace,” which talks about how to raise children, and it is very good.
This book mentions that because we love them, we discipline them. When children are very young, you can only give them laws; you cannot reason with them. You cannot say, “Oh, that’s boiling water! Don’t touch it!” But when you turn around, they will still touch it. This is because small children do not have discernment. So for infants, do not reason with them; either take the boiling water away or take them away directly.
I hope the brothers and sisters in our church understand this principle. Once you come to church, do not reason with very small children. If they are making a fuss, directly send them to Sunday school because the church cannot take them away. This is a way of disciplining children. Gradually, they will become disciplined children. If we do not discipline our children when they are small, when they grow up, the state’s laws and society will discipline them for us. It is better for us to discipline them with love. When society and the law come to discipline them, there will be no love left. Therefore, God disciplines us, trains us, and guides us to make us different from the world and walk a blessed path.
We must not skip God’s discipline. Once we understand that the church being strict with you is good, in my eyes, I am training you with the biblical way. I want all of you to be different from the world, so my methods may become stricter. This is also a gradual process. However, when you look back at your life, you will find it is completely different. I am completely training you with the Bible and God’s way. I hope everyone listens and tries to be trained. Now, using love to discipline them is to avoid more serious consequences in the future.
We share the first point: Discipline is for our benefit.
Let’s look at a verse, Proverbs 19:18: “Chasten your son while there is hope, and do not set your heart on his destruction.”
A child without nurturing will wander the streets and become a thief; wandering will lead to becoming a bigger thief, and wandering will lead to prison. No one disciplines them. Today, you should discipline them while there is still hope. If your child is already 18 years old and has become an adult, you have missed the real opportunity to discipline them, and you can only pray for God to change them.
It is best to teach children about God before the age of twelve; in the latter half of their lives, they will not go astray. According to biblical principles, once a child reaches twelve, they have the ability to think and make decisions independently. At this point, you must communicate with them as an adult using reason and love, rather than using parental authority to say, “I am your father; you must listen to me.” This method will no longer work, and they will become more rebellious.
Before the age of twelve, you are their guardian; you can guide them to discern right from wrong and tell them what is right and what is wrong. So, while there is still hope, discipline your son! Teach him with God’s words! Do not let him walk towards destruction, Amen!
Our earthly fathers discipline our children as they see fit. Our earthly fathers discipline our bodies and behaviors, while the management from within can only be done by our God. Therefore, when God disciplines you, He will absolutely not destroy any part of your body, and in the end, your child will not end up in a hospital bed. If you believe in the Lord and are afflicted with sickness, lying in bed unable to move, it indicates that there is a problem with your faith; God has no problem.
Someone told me yesterday, “Grace is a rather incomplete gospel. You always talk about God wanting to give us health; we should say, ‘God, give me some disasters!’ Because sickness is a blessing, suffering is packaged love…” I said, “If you pray like this, does it mean you are too comfortable right now and want God to give you some sickness?” The person replied: “If God does not give you sickness, then He does not love you.”
If you have such thoughts, just think about how well your latter half of life will go. The Bible says in Isaiah 53: “Because of the punishment He received, we have peace; because of the wounds He bore, we are healed.” So why should we seek this suffering? It is because they have believed incorrectly, leaving an opening for the devil to attack them.
We would not discipline our children like this; how much more would our spiritual Father discipline us in His way to benefit us? Our discipline of children may not be correct; we do not know how the child feels, and we may make mistakes. But God knows what our needs are, and He will supply us in due time, Amen!
We do not know what is best; we will make mistakes. But God’s discipline for us is always the most correct. The purpose is for our benefit, so that we may partake in His holiness. Today, many of us have misinterpreted this verse, saying that God uses sickness and suffering to discipline us, making us holy. May I ask: Can sickness make people holy? For example, if discipline leads to losing a leg, that cannot make someone holy; it only makes them incomplete. If you think sickness can make you holy, then God has many ways to do it without love. Why did Jesus say He loves us, rather than saying, “I am sickness; I can make you holy; I can help you overcome everything”?
If you do not listen, I will give you a small illness; if you still do not listen, I will give you a big illness. If one illness does not work, I will give you ten illnesses; I do not believe you will not listen.” This could achieve results in the Old Testament, but in the heart, there is no submission to God. The God of the New Testament will not use such methods; God uses love to bring you back. So God tells you today, “I have a better way; I want you to benefit. If you are willing to put down your way of living and follow God’s leading, God will let you live a life different from the world, and God will make you holy. To partake in holiness means that our lives and actions are distinct from the world.
So how can we partake in Jesus? By grace from God. Under God’s grace, we will still discover our faults and shortcomings. When we discover them, we can tell ourselves: “Even though I see this fault and shortcoming, I still believe God loves me, and His blessings are still upon me because of Jesus’ grace.” At this time, you will act differently from the world. So when the enemy attacks you, you will bless him because you are different from the world; you carry the likeness of Jesus, who never holds curses in His heart.
Jesus always blesses others because His heart is full of blessings. I am a representative of Jesus, so I am willing to bless my enemies. Although they do not deserve it, I am willing for God’s grace to come upon them, Hallelujah. This is called a different life. First, you must know that God’s discipline can make you different from the world. So when you go out, others will say, “Wow! This is a Christian! Their way of handling things is truly different from the world.” Therefore, after being trained by God, we live like Jesus and view the world like Jesus. When Jesus faced any situation, He did not say, “What a worry! What should I do?”
So today, you must accept training and face problems by living like Jesus. If you want to know how Jesus faced life, read the four Gospels of the New Testament carefully. This will tell you how Jesus faced the problems of the world. You must learn to live this way; this is what it means to partake in His holiness. When you do this, you will also reap benefits. This is what some people tell me: “Ren, I found that when I declared and prayed, I had power. When my relative fell ill, I declared for him, and his illness was healed.” This is partaking in His holiness.
In the past, we would say, “You should pray well! This might be God’s discipline for you! This is God wanting to fix you! You must have sinned!” The comfort in the past was like this, but now it has reversed! I command this illness to leave you in the name of Jesus. A different life emerges. I hope everyone can live like this. This is God’s discipline, using God’s words to train your thoughts and words, training you to live a different life.
Let’s look at a passage from Jude 1:18-21:
“They told you that there would be mockers in the last time who would walk according to their own ungodly lusts. These are sensual persons, who cause divisions, not having the Spirit. But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.”
Do you see it? There are two different comparisons. In the last days, in this era, there will be many who mock us, many who attack each other, walking according to their own lusts, living however they want, and living in corruption without feeling bad. Now, there are many people forming factions; they are sensual, living according to the flesh. They can curse you if they want and praise you if they want. Such things are increasing; these people do not have the Spirit and are unbelievers. But we must build ourselves up on our most holy faith, using God’s words to train us, using God’s words, and Jesus’ words to nurture us, train us, and guide us. How do we do this? By praying in the Holy Spirit, which means praying in tongues; those who can receive should receive, and those who cannot can pray with understanding. We must keep ourselves in the love of God. Only love can change people.
So brothers and sisters, you must often keep yourselves in God’s love; do not always keep yourselves under God’s law. Look to the mercy of our Lord Jesus, and always remember that everything we have today is due to the mercy of our Lord Jesus. God’s grace is upon us, which we do not deserve, so we have nothing to be proud of. What we have is merely God’s blessing upon us. If you become proud and cannot see God’s grace, then these blessings will disappear. It is not that God takes them away, but that you can no longer receive God’s grace because of pride. Therefore, God gives grace to the humble; the humble can see God’s grace and receive God’s grace.
The second point: Discipline yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.
If discipline causes you pain, like losing an arm or a leg, I do not think there will be any peace within you.
Proverbs 29:17-19:
“Discipline your son, and he will give you rest; yes, he will give delight to your soul. Where there is no vision, the people perish; but he who keeps the law, happy is he. A servant will not be corrected by mere words; for though he understands, he will not respond.”
Proverbs is also known as the book of wisdom, which tells us many life principles. If you can understand the life principles in Proverbs, you will possess wisdom. Wisdom can generate wealth, good relationships, and many good benefits, Amen!
Disciplining your son will give you rest. If you do not discipline him, you will often worry about him in the latter half of your life. Are there mothers like this? “Oh, how I wish I had disciplined my child well when they were small!” You will spend your whole life worrying about that child. Therefore, you must discipline your son. When he has the ability to discern for himself, you will be able to rest. He will give you rest.
The latter part of the verse states: “He will also give delight to your soul.” From now on, if you educate your child with biblical teachings, and your child is willing to listen to God’s words in every step, he may be in a high position or very famous in wealth, and he will bring you joy. Every time you mention your son, you will say, “My son is brought forth by God.” On the contrary, if you do not teach your child when they are small, and when they grow up, they engage in theft and other wrongdoings, one day when this child ends up in prison, will that bring you joy? At that time, it will turn into weeping.
Brothers and sisters, this tells us about wisdom—“Where there is no vision, the people perish.” Today, we not only receive grace, but the key is to live out that grace. If you are always just listening and not living it out, that is not yours. The part that is lived out is the part that belongs to you.
Where there is no vision means there is no revelation. If God does not give you any revelation or guidance, the people will begin to perish. I hope that we, as brothers and sisters under grace, will behave better than those under the law and better than the world. Do not say, “I have believed in the Lord; I have been saved; I can enter the kingdom of heaven; I can do whatever I want.” This will cause you, your family, and your friends to suffer losses. Originally, God wanted to bless you, but in the end, you have no blessings.
Only by keeping the law—here, the law under the New Testament refers to the law of the Spirit. The law that the Lord Jesus gave us is to love one another. If we know that the law the Lord Jesus gave us is to love one another, then go love your brother, and then you will be blessed. This blessing will be evident in your life, and the world will see that you are truly a blessed person.
Only a servant will not be corrected—under the Old Testament, the Israelites were servants, including the great prophets Elijah and Moses. So do you know why servants are beaten? Do you know why servants are punished with sickness, disasters, and enemies rising up against them? Because servants do not take their master’s words seriously; even though they understand, they do not pay attention. We do not want to be servants; we want to be sons. Servants here refer to those under the law. Today, I hope we all live under grace; you are a son. Do not be treated like a servant; if God disciplines you as a servant, you will be miserable. Today, you are a son, and God disciplines His sons with love.
In practice, God uses His words to discipline you. Therefore, for sons, God will not use accidents, disasters, or enemies to discipline you. Although servants may indeed face these, you are no longer a servant; you are a son, and God will use the words of Christ to discipline you. If someone says, “What if I do not listen? What then?”
Today, the common church says, “You must love God; you must serve God. If you do not serve God, God will discipline you. God will take away your job; He will not believe you will serve Him.” You are giving them the law again. If we do not listen, will God give us the law? God’s principles will wait. After this is said, you will all be willing to be sons and willing to be disciplined. Everyone remembers that if you have already become a son and are unwilling to listen to the words of Christ, God will wait for you, wait for your return, and wait for your repentance.
In the Bible, in Luke 15, the parable of the prodigal son, at first, was the life of the younger son blessed? Was he carefree? But he insisted on relying on himself, living independently of his father’s provision. This is because he was unwilling to listen to his father’s words, unwilling to receive his father’s grace and gifts. When he wanted to rely on himself, he became self-righteous. His father did not stop him. Today, under grace, if you say, “I want to sin; I want to curse; I want to attack others,” you have such freedom.
God has only one method: to wait for your return. After the prodigal son went out, who suffered losses? At first, was he not comfortable, enjoying food and drink? But he found that after losing everything, his life became very difficult. This difficulty cannot be said to have come from his father; it is because he willingly chose to live in pain. He chose the wrong path from the beginning. He was unwilling to listen to his father’s words and insisted on leaving. He thought leaving was freedom, but in reality, it was indulgence.
Today, if God requires you with His words, doing some things under grace is true freedom. If today I tell you, “You are all under grace; it does not matter! Feel free to sin! Attack others; it does not matter,” that is indulgence. He thought leaving the father was happiness, but in reality, leaving the father is a great loss because he would have to take responsibility for his own life later.
Today, our Heavenly Father is also willing to wait for us to obey His words. Please remember, brothers and sisters, God has time to wait for us. If you have accepted grace today, accepted the gospel, but are unwilling to accept the pastor’s words, unwilling to live in sin, and unwilling to sin, God says, “I wait for you.” My way of treating you is the same; I also wait for your return.
Today, God will not use sickness, suffering, or disasters to discipline you; God is waiting for you. But the wasted time belongs to those who are unwilling to listen, and the lost blessings also belong to those who are unwilling to listen. So when the prodigal son has nothing left, when he returns again, does he understand? So brothers and sisters, do not wait until that time to say, “I want to return to church.” You do not know how much you have lost! When you return, there will be peace and blessings in your heart, but why waste that time?
We who are willing to live under grace must humble ourselves before God every day, seeing the provision Jesus gives us. Do not act like a servant who is unwilling to be disciplined. Today, God treats servants and sons differently. God always treats sons with love, Amen. So when a son is unwilling, the father says nothing but sends the son away. Then the father waits at the door every day for the prodigal son to return. So if any of you sin, I am also here waiting for you to return every week because when you return, peace will dwell in your hearts.
“Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward, it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.”
The latter part refers to a period of time. When you are willing to accept spiritual training, it may start uncomfortably, but after training, it will yield the peaceful fruit of righteousness. When you bear the fruit of righteousness, even those who do not believe in Jesus will greatly admire you. This is God’s way; God gives us the opportunity to grow. As long as you are willing to live according to God’s words, God’s words are extremely blessed, and you can bear the peaceful fruit of righteousness.
If someone says, “I am willing to live in bitterness, condemnation, and anger,” please do! I am still here waiting for your return. Because if we are unwilling, God cannot help us. I hope each of us is willing to accept God’s discipline and this spiritual training because after accepting such training, your life and your family will change, Hallelujah.
I hope that starting today, we try to do such things. May your mouth only speak words of blessing, regardless of who you face, only speaking words that build up. Even if they do not deserve it, try to train yourself. You are not making them do anything; you are training yourself to bear the peaceful fruit. When you are often in God’s peace, no matter what problem, person, or matter you encounter, you will be at peace. This is God allowing you to bear the fruit of righteousness.
Let’s look at the last verse: 2 Peter 1:2: “Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.”
This is a blessing. The original text does not have “may”; “may” is an intention, a blessing. The original text directly states: “Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.” So every week when you come, you are coming to know our Lord Jesus and our God, and peace will be added to you. You are already obedient people because you are accepting God’s discipline, training, and nurturing.
Let us pray together:
Heavenly Father, we especially thank and praise You. Thank You for renewing us once again through these words today. Because we are Your beloved sons and daughters, You will discipline us. Today, You will not use sickness, suffering, or death to discipline us; You will discipline us with Your love and bless us with Your guidance. You want us to willingly listen to Your words. Lord Jesus, I am willing to live according to Your words.
I am Your child, and I am also different from the world. I am willing to partake in Your holiness and live a life different from the world. Starting today, I am willing to train myself to speak only words of blessing, not curses, only blessings. Jesus, please help me to accept such spiritual training in my life, so that I can continually bear the peaceful fruit of righteousness within me. Because I continually know Jesus, the peaceful fruit will continually be within me. In You, I am a blessed person, Hallelujah.
I will also become a blessing to others. This week, I will be a blessing to others, Hallelujah. All glory be to You. In the name of Jesus, Amen!