How does God discipline us?

How does God discipline us? His discipline has to do with whatever He is bringing us through and whatever
He is charging us to endure. Do not consider God's discipline as anything else. God's discipline is what we endure
every day, things such as harsh words, an unkind face, a sharp tongue, an impolite retort, an unreasonable criticism,
unexpected troubles, various kinds of shame, irresponsibility, infractions, and other more serious problems arising
in the family. Sometimes it may be sickness, poverty, affliction, or difficulty. We encounter many things and
endure many things. The apostle said that all these are God's discipline! It is for discipline that we endure.
Watchman Nee.How does God discipline us?

The most painful discipline when God simply removes his presence from my life.

I've had many of the things occur that Watchman Nee described but there's nothing quite as painful as having the presence of God removed from my life.

It is for discipline that we endure.

1Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. 2Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

4In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. 5And you have forgotten that word of encouragement that addresses you as sons:

"My son, do not make light of the Lord's discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you,

6because the Lord disciplines those he loves,
and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son."[a]

7Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father? 8If you are not disciplined (and everyone undergoes discipline), then you are illegitimate children and not true sons. 9Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live! 10Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. 11No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.

12Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees. 13"Make level paths for your feet,"[b] so that the lame may not be disabled, but rather healed.

habakkuk3 wrote:

The most painful discipline when God simply removes his presence from my life.

Please explain your above statement. Because it contradicts scripture; He will never leave you nor forsake you.

It's a pattern in scripture and if it's not happened to you I praise God that you haven't experienced this pain.

I'll give you one but there many instances where this is shown in scripture. Abraham's disobedience birthing his Ishmael cost him God's presence for 13 years (See Genesis 16:17 versus Genesis 17:1).

I can't imagine how Abraham survived this. I couldn't live without the presence of Jesus in my life and when he withdraws due to my disobedience it's quite painful. There's nothing more precious to walk with Jesus and when he's gone there's nothing more painful.

Please explain your above statement. Because it contradicts scripture; He will never leave you nor forsake you.

God's manifest presence is conditional. His abiding presence is forever.

God never leaves us or forsakes us. But He does withdraw our conciousness of His Presence.

Sometimes because of sin or our fault. Other times he does so to teach us to live by faith and not on our feelings.

When we lose His consious Presence, we need to seek Him. If we seek Him and do not find His Presence returned, we simply must take Him at His word, "I will never leave you nor forsake you".

Often when we grieve Him by disregarding His speaking, his leading, or His prompting, we lose His concious presence. And though we confess and repent, we do not immediatly regain Him.

He does so to teach us to fear to grieve Him. He does so to teach us to walk carefully and to fear his absence.

But in any case, He never leaves us. And even his absence from our conciousness is out of love and dicipline that we might learn to fear Him.

Often it is when we have sought Him and not found Him that we say, "Lord, even if I never enjoy your Presence again, it is fine because it is your will and all is well that you do" that He returnes.

In this way He teaches us to love Him purely for His sake and not our own enjoyment.

His Presence is within us in our regnerated spirit. It is an eternal union and cannot be broken. If we are in Christ, we are one spirit with Him (1 Cor 6:17). If we are redeemed and regenerated, God indwells us forever.

But our enjoyment of Him is conditional upon our obedience to Him and our fellwoship with Him.

Most often when we cannot find His Presence, we need just to thank Him and declare the Divine Facts. We need to say, "thank you Lord that though I do not percieve you, I thank you that your Word is sure and that you are within me and that you will never leave me nor forsake me. I thank you that "He that is joined to the Lord is one spirit. And this is either true or it is not.

We need to declare the divine facts and we will find the Spirit within us bearing witness and God's Presence within us restored.

Graftedbranch

I Praise God that I don't have to depend on my works to keep me in God's presence. With Christ born again in me and with all those that believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, We don't have to depend on anybody but Jesus Christ, because that is who God is depending on to finish the good work He has started in us.

Jesus Christ is our Hope of Glory. Him being in us is our only hope of keeping our oneness with God by His Son in us.

Galatians 2:16 Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.

Galatians 2:20 I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

How does "God discipline us?" When you love someone and you let them down, and the one you let down says I love you and gave myself for you, what is our want? It is to love Him back just the way He loves us. He then says I am the only One that can give you this love, that you can love me back. Galatians 5:1 Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.

Romans 8:1-4 There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.

It is our Love affair with God that disciplines us. Jhn 17:26 And I have declared unto them thy name, and will declare [it]: that the love wherewith thou hast loved me may be in them, and I in them.

Jhn 15:9 As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love.

Rev 3:19 As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.

Praise God He loves me, for His rebuke and chastening when I am wrong or need changing. This is the love of God and all I want is to love God the way He love me, by the Love of the Son that is in me.

In Christ's Love: Phillip

Every post on this thread touches my heart greatly.

With me,a form of God's discipline would definitely be guilt and shame whenever I sinned or disobeyed Him..sigh

mamaluk

Dear friends,
I recently posted a reply on the topic, concerning whether or not we can lose our salvation which was actually appropriate to this thread, and it was from the Westminster Confession Chapter 5, section 5. I hope that you enjoy it.

In Christ,
Aeryck

Because it contradicts scripture; He will never leave you nor forsake you.

Where does the bible say this?? I think this is a little out of context.

"My Sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give to them eternal Life, and they shall by no means perish forever, and no one shall snatch them out of My Hand. My Father who has given them to Me, is greater than all, and no one can snatch them out of My Father's hand. I and the Father are One. (John 10:27-30)

Romans 8:31-34: What then shall we say to these things. If God is for us, who can be against us? Indeed, He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not also with Him freely give us all things? Who shall bring a charge against God's chosen ones? It is God who justifies, Who is he who condemns? It is Christ Jesus who died and rather who was raised, who is also at the right hand of God, who also interceeds for us. Who shall separate us from the Love of Christ...?

Graftedbranch



The most painful discipline when God simply removes his presence from my life.

It is not hard to find substitutes for God which give god-like experiences, that make one feel close to the divine.

When Samuel was a child, God’s voice was rarely heard because of apostasy. Even the spiritual leader, Eli, was so hardened to the voice of God that God had to use a child to speak to him.

Today, many are so calloused to spiritual realities that if God were to talk to them in a still small voice,they wouldn’t even notice. So God uses “louder” methods.

Now, I’d like to address the original question of the post. How does God discipline us? So far, all the responses seem to have a “punishment” flavor. Yet “discipline” means TEACH, not punish. Indeed,
sometimes a slap on the wrist is the only way we will “get it”. I’ve had several of those. Yet, there are countless other ways that God is involved in our lives constantly teaching us his ways, constantly drawing us to him and making us more sensitive to him. For me, he has done that in many ways - revelatory experiences, the still small voice, scriptures, prayers, through songs, through words from others (including my perceptive children), various experiences, trials, SI, and many, many other ways. God has the entire universe at his disposal.

Diane

Not to be read: Just an old man's rambling mind.

There is not doubt that there are reasons why God disciplines us and what the results are of such discipline, but exactly how God disciplines us is perhaps a little more of a mystery than we realize. I keep thinking of Peter who denied Jesus three times, and the bit about Satan wanting to sift Him, and that Jesus had prayed that his faith should remain....(xcuse me I am a little tired, and wondered if Job, and Moses, King David and so many other examples in the Old Testament of men and women who were discipline by God to bring about more fruit, you know where Jesus talks about the Father pruning us etc...just jammin', see whatcha got..peace Aeryck)