ALL INCLUDED

That is a very important thing to understand as it says the chastening was so we might live. Also in verse 10 it says that the chastening mentioned was for our profit. What kind of profit would it bring forth? So that we could be partakers of His holiness.

 Now let’s go back and I will mention again something that I said yesterday in an answer to a comment by Cliff yesterday and this is what I said in my comment…. I know of people that have been going through extremely rough times to the point of despair at times and they say that it is God shaping and molding them. I am not talking about a few things going on but this has been going on for years and only seems to get worse. These people that I am talking about are people involved in ministry (whatever that means) and I feel real bad for these people as the rough times they are going through must be extremely difficult.

I am not mentioning this to in any way say that whatever these people are going through is not real and has to be very difficult and discouraging. I am simply using this as an example of what some people say the chastening of the Lord is which is not what the Bible says it is. Now let’s go back to what he says this chastening is all about. So that we could become partakers of His holiness. I have seen many people over the years go through these difficult times I mentioned and I have yet to see one that became more holy because of it. Whatever this chastening is that is mentioned it is clear that it is for our profit. What profit do these people get from what they claim is chastening from the Lord? I have yet to see anyone become “more holy” because of it and yet that is what the verse says. So what is this profit that it mentions that it is for?

The result of the chastening and scourging that he is talking about is that we may be partakers of His holiness. Whatever this chastening and scourging was, it was that we could become holy. How many people have become holy by being beaten by God and obedient to the law? Let’s be honest here. How many people do you know that have gone through some rough times that they believed to be the chastening of the Lord and they came out at the other end more holy? Do you know of anyone having become holy because they had been beaten up by God? I don’t think any of you can answer that you have seen anyone made holy by their sufferings. What I have seen is that these people become more bitter towards others and towards God as well because they think it is God doing it and they get to a point they cannot stand anyone questioning whatever it is they are going through.

If you think God is giving you a hard time to make you grow and become holy, you will get bitter and miserable. The chastening He is talking about is clearly stated that it produces holiness. The only holiness I know I have is the holiness that I have been given as a gift from God because of what Jesus did at the cross. I am a partaker of this holiness it is talking about because He was a partaker of my sin and He suffered the chastening and scourging on my behalf. This was so I could become a partaker of His righteousness which was imputed to me. Jesus did not deserve to be beaten and chastened by God and it was us that needed to be beaten and scourged. I can now partake of His righteousness and holiness because He did it all for me and I never have to suffer the chastening and scourging of the Lord.

Continued tomorrow……………