Why do we always read our New Testament and as Christians tend to neglect the study of the precious Old Testament; this is something that over the past couple years the Lord has convicted me of because of verses like 2 Timothy 3:16-17 “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” What I have come to find is such rich truth and blessed promises that are revealed all throughout the OT as well as encouraging and exhorting words that we all can grow from. Recently I came across the challenge of understanding the book of Habakkuk and what it was really all about and practically what on earth I was to take from it. In this short time of study, because the book is so small, I have seen the powerful Almighty one face to face.
The prophet Habakkuk wrote this book as a conversation with God and comes to the realization that regardless of His confusion about God’s plans for the nation of Israel, God’s people, He would believe the sovereign power of God and cling tightly to Him. Habakkuk was giving this prophecy during the end of the Assyrian empire and what was going on with all the evil in that time was causing Habakkuk to wonder why on earth God would allow all this evil to go on. The Truth of the entire passage is as John MacArthur puts, “the righteous will live by faith”.
I have learned so much from this short little book, so much that I pray will radically begin to change my walk with the Lord. How often do we find ourselves looking around at the wicked wondering why they prosper? Or maybe looking around at this "crazy" world and wondering how long God is going to let things go on for, or why He "allows" certain officials to take office, or governments to torture their people, or Christians to be persecuted and suffer for His name sake? How often do we cry out for justice and get no response? Or look at our circumstances and wonder how He could be working it all for the good of our lives and the glory of His name? I know I have found myself in this situation many times wondering, and yet what should our response be in these moments of confusion and bewilderment but to stop, to as Psalm 46:10 says to "Be still and KNOW that HE is God!"
Instead of just standing at looking at the problem head on we can take a lesson from Habakkuk and rather stand on solid ground by giving up on what we don't know and starting to remember what we do know. Habakkuk thought as JMac puts it, "Now wait a minute, my God is an eternal God, He's a righteous God, He can't stand sin, He's got to punish sin, He never does wrong, He always does right," and He began to tie down in his own mind that which he knew about God. Once he had established what he did know about God then it was much easier to cope with what he didn't know about the events around him".
I love Habakkuk's response to God in chapter 3, it shows simply states this "God I don't understand everything, I don't understand why You let Israel go, I don't understand why You're bringing the Chaldeans to judge them, I don't understand why You're going to wait to judge the Chaldeans after that, I don't understand any of the things, but I know one thing God, You're the God that is righteous, You're the God that's eternal, You're the God that never makes a mistake, You're the God that hates sin, You're the God that never does anything wrong and I'll stand on that and praise You anyhow" (John MacArthur).
"Although the fig tree shall not blossom, see, neither shall fruit be in the vines, the labor of the olive shall fail and the field shall yield no food, the flock shall be cut off from the fold, there shall be no herd in the stalls, and you just hear that, that's one of the greatest love songs I've ever heard, and that's exactly what it is. Can't you hear it here? The Lord, He is saying in verse 18, "Yet will I rejoice in the Lord. I will joy in the God of my salvation." Isn't that fantastic?- Here we see Habakkuk recognize and acknowledge the fact that even if all of nature falls apart, if everything is going wrong in the world, He will still choose to love God and praise Him for who He is.
He says God I don't care of all of nature goes crazy. I don't care if nothing's right in the whole world, I'm going to love You and rejoice in You and translated that's praise the Lord anyhow. I've learned to stand back from my circumstances and just get blessed about the God that I know. What an exciting truth. It truly is an amazing lesson and example for us to look to. He proved that the answer in our chaos is to stand still and look into the face of the Sovereign One and trust that He is in control and working everything together in His perfect plan of redemption. Humbly trusting and prayerfully waiting on His perfect timing, it is here that we see God more and more and fall more in love with Him and become unshakeable. May we all take a look at the prophet Habakkuk and choose to trust, for the righteous shall live by faith!
Friday, February 26, 2010
Sunday, February 21, 2010
Accountability: A Choice or a Command?
I have been thinking a lot lately about accountability and the NEED for it as believers. It is very often a neglected part of our spiritual growth and something that needs to be reprioritized both in my life and in the lives of all who claim to want to pursue holiness as they seek His face. I guess the reality is that we as Christians like to pretend like everything is ok, like we are somehow perfect or sinless even though we would never say those words. We think that we have the strength to fight sin alone and to seek the Lord as a lone ranger, but that is far from reality and far from what the Truth teaches us. In Ecclesiastes 4:8-12 we read, “"Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work: If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up! Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken." Just looking at those few verses we should see the blessing in numbers as believers and also the command for us to have this.
But is it really a command? A lot of people like to believe that it is just something that would be “wise” or “good” but that it isn’t really necessary, or that it is only needed when we want it etc. but I believe after searching through the Word that it is in fact something that God commands believers to have. I look at Jesus’ example and He had disciples, he had people who he prayed with, talked with and were encouraged by. If He is the One we are to emulate then why don’t we? Here are just a few reasons I believe that the Bible commands the Christian to have accountability or to be discipled…
In 1 Corinthians chapter 12, we read that Christians are all part of the same body - the body of Christ - and each member needs or belongs to the other. This Scripture suggests the importance of strong accountability between Believers. It is important for every Believer to have at least one other person in which to confide, pray with, listen to, and encourage.
Galatians 6:1-2 gives a helpful principle, "Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted. Carry each other's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ." If your accountability friend has done something contrary to the Bible, you are called to confront him gently, forgive him, and comfort him. It also admonishes you to consider yourself because no one is above temptation.
Another aspect of Christian accountability is encouraging each other to grow in their spiritual maturity. Hebrews 10:24 says, "And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds." 1 Thessalonians 5:11 says to, "…encourage one another and build each other up…"
And the Bible tells us to do many "one anothers" (this is just the top ones)
- Love one another (John 15:17)
- Serve one another (Galatians 5:13)
- Bear one another's burdens (Galatians 6:2)
- Be kind to one another and compassionate (Ephesians 4:32)
- Confess sin to one anothers and pray (James 5:16)
- Be devoted to one another and honor others above you (Romans 12:10)
-Accept one another (Romans 15:7)
- Encourage one another and build up each other (1 Thess 5:11)
- Spur on one another in love and good deeds (Hebrews 10:24)
With all that said you may be feeling overwhelmed, I know I did, but we must take the Truth and do something with it! We have to be willing to be teachable, a teachable attitude/heart is one of the greatest things that we can have as a believer. There is so much benefit to partaking in the fellowship of accountability with another believer, or believers and the promise of growth as well. Proverbs 27:17 says it well, “"As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
But is it really a command? A lot of people like to believe that it is just something that would be “wise” or “good” but that it isn’t really necessary, or that it is only needed when we want it etc. but I believe after searching through the Word that it is in fact something that God commands believers to have. I look at Jesus’ example and He had disciples, he had people who he prayed with, talked with and were encouraged by. If He is the One we are to emulate then why don’t we? Here are just a few reasons I believe that the Bible commands the Christian to have accountability or to be discipled…
In 1 Corinthians chapter 12, we read that Christians are all part of the same body - the body of Christ - and each member needs or belongs to the other. This Scripture suggests the importance of strong accountability between Believers. It is important for every Believer to have at least one other person in which to confide, pray with, listen to, and encourage.
Galatians 6:1-2 gives a helpful principle, "Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted. Carry each other's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ." If your accountability friend has done something contrary to the Bible, you are called to confront him gently, forgive him, and comfort him. It also admonishes you to consider yourself because no one is above temptation.
Another aspect of Christian accountability is encouraging each other to grow in their spiritual maturity. Hebrews 10:24 says, "And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds." 1 Thessalonians 5:11 says to, "…encourage one another and build each other up…"
And the Bible tells us to do many "one anothers" (this is just the top ones)
- Love one another (John 15:17)
- Serve one another (Galatians 5:13)
- Bear one another's burdens (Galatians 6:2)
- Be kind to one another and compassionate (Ephesians 4:32)
- Confess sin to one anothers and pray (James 5:16)
- Be devoted to one another and honor others above you (Romans 12:10)
-Accept one another (Romans 15:7)
- Encourage one another and build up each other (1 Thess 5:11)
- Spur on one another in love and good deeds (Hebrews 10:24)
With all that said you may be feeling overwhelmed, I know I did, but we must take the Truth and do something with it! We have to be willing to be teachable, a teachable attitude/heart is one of the greatest things that we can have as a believer. There is so much benefit to partaking in the fellowship of accountability with another believer, or believers and the promise of growth as well. Proverbs 27:17 says it well, “"As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
Saturday, February 13, 2010
Guide Your Heart!
I was in WBS the other morning and we were talking about thinking on Truth as Philippians 4:8-9 talks about as opposed to letting our emotions and feelings guide us. This is something that I have, and still, struggled with for many years. It is something that I believe plagues girls much more than guys and yet it is a sin that is commonly seen as "respectable" as Jerry Bridges would say, or "ok"; it is just plain overlooked as a sin at all. What we don't realize is that justifying it and not fighting to overcome it through Christ's strength really leaves us in even more despair, hopelessness and fear.
All that to say, as I was sitting thinking about a personal practice that God has instilled in my heart one of the woman chimed up and said, "It is all about guiding your heart and not letting your heart guide you!" My heart smiled at that moment because it was total TRUTH! I realized that that is EXACTLY what Proverbs 4:23 is implying when it says to "guard your heart". Many people take that as some sort of warning for girls to take and protect their heart from people hurting it (esp guys) but that is not the context or the actual meaning of the text, it is rather telling all Christians, guys and girls, to guard their heart from their own flesh. John MacArthur and Piper have said many times that we are our own worst enemies when it comes to our battle for holiness, and that is the truth. We must realize that we have to be on guard 24-7 towards ourselves. It starts with a simple thought, an unchecked motive, a wavering emotion and the next thing we know we are in sin.
So, with all that in mind, I started thinking, I started thinking about how I am guiding my heart or even supposed to as opposed to letting it guide me. Something I have done personally over the past 3 years or so has been to post the words "THINK TRUTH" everywhere I go (mirror, phone, car, etc) and Psalm 46:10 that says, "Be Still and KNOW that I am God". This practice has helped me to keep me emotions aka my heart in check. When I am tempted to worry, to fear, to wonder why things are happening, to question a circumstance or whatever; I stop, I look at these signs, I remember that verse and I literally start preaching to myself. In Psalm 42 the Psalmist talks to himself over and over and over again, he is preaching to himself rather than listening to himself. When we allow our minds and hearts to listen to the crazy unchecked emotions, the hurt feelings, the confusion, fear or worry and we dwell on that we are bound to not only be discouraged, but we are led into sin.
So what do we do then? Well, we start right away by taking EVERY thought captive to the obedience of Christ as 1 Corinthians talks about. If something comes into our minds or our hearts, anything, that is not of the Lord, something that is not Truth, we need to cast it out and replace it with something that is Truth. Where do we find Truth...well the only place is in the Word of God. That is why we must saturate our hearts and minds in the Truth. We must memorize and mediated daily on Scripture. We must pray and spend time with our Maker. We must check ourselves constantly against His Word and His standard and we must guide our heart and our lives by what is True and nothing else. The more we begin to do this, the easier it becomes (I promise God's truly been showing me so much grace as He has sanctified me so much in this area). We can't focus on ourselves, we must focus on Him and His Word, keeping our eyes constantly fixed on the author and perfector of the Faith (Hebrews 12:1-2).
So let's together as Christians, but especially as woman learn to Think Truth, learn to call the sin of worry, fear, doubt, etc. sin, and start to guide our hearts with that only source of Truth we have, the Word, and may His peace and strength bring us all the encouragement, hope, and love we need!
All that to say, as I was sitting thinking about a personal practice that God has instilled in my heart one of the woman chimed up and said, "It is all about guiding your heart and not letting your heart guide you!" My heart smiled at that moment because it was total TRUTH! I realized that that is EXACTLY what Proverbs 4:23 is implying when it says to "guard your heart". Many people take that as some sort of warning for girls to take and protect their heart from people hurting it (esp guys) but that is not the context or the actual meaning of the text, it is rather telling all Christians, guys and girls, to guard their heart from their own flesh. John MacArthur and Piper have said many times that we are our own worst enemies when it comes to our battle for holiness, and that is the truth. We must realize that we have to be on guard 24-7 towards ourselves. It starts with a simple thought, an unchecked motive, a wavering emotion and the next thing we know we are in sin.
So, with all that in mind, I started thinking, I started thinking about how I am guiding my heart or even supposed to as opposed to letting it guide me. Something I have done personally over the past 3 years or so has been to post the words "THINK TRUTH" everywhere I go (mirror, phone, car, etc) and Psalm 46:10 that says, "Be Still and KNOW that I am God". This practice has helped me to keep me emotions aka my heart in check. When I am tempted to worry, to fear, to wonder why things are happening, to question a circumstance or whatever; I stop, I look at these signs, I remember that verse and I literally start preaching to myself. In Psalm 42 the Psalmist talks to himself over and over and over again, he is preaching to himself rather than listening to himself. When we allow our minds and hearts to listen to the crazy unchecked emotions, the hurt feelings, the confusion, fear or worry and we dwell on that we are bound to not only be discouraged, but we are led into sin.
So what do we do then? Well, we start right away by taking EVERY thought captive to the obedience of Christ as 1 Corinthians talks about. If something comes into our minds or our hearts, anything, that is not of the Lord, something that is not Truth, we need to cast it out and replace it with something that is Truth. Where do we find Truth...well the only place is in the Word of God. That is why we must saturate our hearts and minds in the Truth. We must memorize and mediated daily on Scripture. We must pray and spend time with our Maker. We must check ourselves constantly against His Word and His standard and we must guide our heart and our lives by what is True and nothing else. The more we begin to do this, the easier it becomes (I promise God's truly been showing me so much grace as He has sanctified me so much in this area). We can't focus on ourselves, we must focus on Him and His Word, keeping our eyes constantly fixed on the author and perfector of the Faith (Hebrews 12:1-2).
So let's together as Christians, but especially as woman learn to Think Truth, learn to call the sin of worry, fear, doubt, etc. sin, and start to guide our hearts with that only source of Truth we have, the Word, and may His peace and strength bring us all the encouragement, hope, and love we need!
Saturday, February 06, 2010
Dear John? Redeeming Love? WHAT IS LOVE?
Last night I saw the much anticipated Dear John. I don't know what it is about movies like that or A Walk to Remember or The Notebook that lure the hearts and emotions of millions of women all throughout the world, and even some guys, but that is the truth. As I was sitting there watching this "love" story I began to realize the emptiness in it all. It was quite sad to say the least. I didn't walk out of that movie being satisfied or excited for the two main characters or even inspired in any way, instead I walked out sad and disappointed in more than one way. And then if like a light bulb went off in my head I had some what of an epiphany...I realized that the reason I was so sad and disappointed was because this was anything but a "love" story; in fact it was nothing more than a story of temporary happiness and faded reality. SO WHAT you might ask? Well I'm getting to my point, I promise :). I recently had the opportunity to read one of my favorite fiction books of all time called, Redeeming Love after much nudging from my best friend. What I found after reading this book was a completely different reaction, I was actually excited, satisfied and thankful. But why? It all came down to one basic truth, it came down to the driving force, the center of the "love" described and lived out in both of these movies and that was Jesus Christ and the lack there of.
When we read verses like 1 John 4:8 which says, "Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love" we see that love, TRUE love is only found in God and through the grace and mercy we experience through redemption. Without experiencing that kind of love, without knowing God face to face, we cannot love. Human love that is not motivated by, not driven passionately through, and not grounded in redemptive love is not really love but rather emotions and feelings hidden behind a word that holds little value L-O-V-E. Think about it for a moment, how often do we throw that word around ourselves? We "love" pizza and we "love our grandma", we "love baseball" and we "love" to learn, but do we really LOVE those things? The English language lacks words that hold the weight of their true meaning. In the Greek language there were several different words for love.
AGAPE: general attraction, holding one in high regard, divine, unconditional, self-sacrificing, active, volitional, and thoughtful love...this was the kind of love Jesus exemplified perfectly.
EROS:passionate love, with sensual desire and longing...this is the kind of love only intended to be shared between a husband and a wife
PHILIA: friendship love
STORGE: affection, like that felt by and towards parents
THELEMA: "will" or "desire"
So as you can see the Greeks did a better job at describing their love. Anyways, back to the whole reality that unless you are in Him you can't express or experience TRUE love. But why? Love is not a feeling, although feelings are a response to it. Love is not an emotion although it produces many. Love is an action, it is a choice, a desire to put oneself above another, a desire to serve, to lay down a life for...it is seen most perfectly in Jesus Christ, through our redemptive picture. In the book of Hosea, God called the prophet to marry an adultress woman in order to show the people what they had become in relation to their walk with Him. This book is the model of the book Redeeming Love . In this book we see how Michael Hosea, the main character, loves his "Angel" (Sarah) with the love that God commands, with the love that God empowered and enabled Him with. And as you read this book you fall more in love with Jesus Christ because you realize how much HE loved you. In Himself, God is love; through Him, love is manifested, and by Him, love is defined. SO no wonder I always walk away empty, upset and not entertained by these fictional movies that draw millions, it is because the love exemplified is not really love, as it truly is intended to be defined.
And with Valentine's Day right around the corner "LOVE" is to be displayed and shown everywhere. My encouragement to all of you is whether single, dating, engaged, or married, show LOVE, TRUE LOVE, God-defined love to the people in your life. But start by thanking God for the love that He has shown you through redemption. Reflect on the cross, remember what He did and what He saved you from, and OH HOW HE LOVES YOU. That love is what must motivate you to love, without that you will never be truly satisfied, truly made happy because if Jesus Christ isn't the foundation for your love, well it really isn't "LOVE" at all.
When we read verses like 1 John 4:8 which says, "Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love" we see that love, TRUE love is only found in God and through the grace and mercy we experience through redemption. Without experiencing that kind of love, without knowing God face to face, we cannot love. Human love that is not motivated by, not driven passionately through, and not grounded in redemptive love is not really love but rather emotions and feelings hidden behind a word that holds little value L-O-V-E. Think about it for a moment, how often do we throw that word around ourselves? We "love" pizza and we "love our grandma", we "love baseball" and we "love" to learn, but do we really LOVE those things? The English language lacks words that hold the weight of their true meaning. In the Greek language there were several different words for love.
AGAPE: general attraction, holding one in high regard, divine, unconditional, self-sacrificing, active, volitional, and thoughtful love...this was the kind of love Jesus exemplified perfectly.
EROS:passionate love, with sensual desire and longing...this is the kind of love only intended to be shared between a husband and a wife
PHILIA: friendship love
STORGE: affection, like that felt by and towards parents
THELEMA: "will" or "desire"
So as you can see the Greeks did a better job at describing their love. Anyways, back to the whole reality that unless you are in Him you can't express or experience TRUE love. But why? Love is not a feeling, although feelings are a response to it. Love is not an emotion although it produces many. Love is an action, it is a choice, a desire to put oneself above another, a desire to serve, to lay down a life for...it is seen most perfectly in Jesus Christ, through our redemptive picture. In the book of Hosea, God called the prophet to marry an adultress woman in order to show the people what they had become in relation to their walk with Him. This book is the model of the book Redeeming Love . In this book we see how Michael Hosea, the main character, loves his "Angel" (Sarah) with the love that God commands, with the love that God empowered and enabled Him with. And as you read this book you fall more in love with Jesus Christ because you realize how much HE loved you. In Himself, God is love; through Him, love is manifested, and by Him, love is defined. SO no wonder I always walk away empty, upset and not entertained by these fictional movies that draw millions, it is because the love exemplified is not really love, as it truly is intended to be defined.
And with Valentine's Day right around the corner "LOVE" is to be displayed and shown everywhere. My encouragement to all of you is whether single, dating, engaged, or married, show LOVE, TRUE LOVE, God-defined love to the people in your life. But start by thanking God for the love that He has shown you through redemption. Reflect on the cross, remember what He did and what He saved you from, and OH HOW HE LOVES YOU. That love is what must motivate you to love, without that you will never be truly satisfied, truly made happy because if Jesus Christ isn't the foundation for your love, well it really isn't "LOVE" at all.
Tuesday, February 02, 2010
Producing a Harvest of Righteousness
I finished Jerry Bridge's The Discipline of Grace today and wanted to share what I just read because it so encouraged me. I usually don't do this, but the remainder of this blog is from Jerry Bridge's lips...
"Hebrews 12:10-11 -"Our 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. No 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."
God always disciplines us for our good. He knows what is best for each one of us. He doesn't have to debate with Himself over what is most suitable for us. He knows intuitively and perfectly in nature, intensity and duration of adversity that will best serve his purpose to make us partakers of His holiness. He never brings more pain than is needed to accomplish His purpose. As Lamentations 3:33 expresses: For He does not willingly bring affliction or grief to the children of men.
Returning to Hebrews 12:10 observe how the writer equated our good with becoming more holy. The apostle Paul wrote of a similar manner in Romans 8:28-29 "And we know that all things God works for the good of those who love Him...For those God foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of His Son." To be conformed to the likeness of Christ and to share in God's holiness are equivalent expressions. T hat is the highest good to which a believer can aspire.
That is the design of God in all of adversity and heartache we experience in this life. There is no such thing as random or chance events in our lives. All pain we experience is intended to move us closer to the goal of being holy as He is holy.
"No discipline seems pleasant at the time", the writer of Hebrews said. Adveristy comes in many forms: serious illness or injury or death or unemployment, disappointments, humiliations etc. All of these afflictions ARE painful. They have to be to accomplish their intended purpose of pruning away what is unholy in our lives so tha true holy character may be produced. We should admit the pain.
Later on however the hardship, the discipline, the pain produces a harvest of righteousness and peace. The "harvest of righteousness" is equivalent to sharing in His holiness. Discipline, then, is one of the chief means God uses to make us holy. The road marked to holiness is paved with adversity. If we want to be holy, we must expect the discipline of God through the heartaches and disappointments He brings or allows to come into our lives.
The discipline also procudes peace for those who ahve been trained in it and by it. The word trained is the one Paul used in 1 Timothy 4:7 which was borrowed from the athletic word of the day. There will be rest that comes to the believer when we go to be with the Lord but there is also a peace to be enjoyed in this life for those who have learned to endure adversity as the evidence of God's fatherly hand upon them to make them more holy.
Our ultimate hope, is not in maturity of character in this life as valuable as that is, but in the perfection of character in eternity. Looking forward to that time, Paul wrote "I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us" (Romans 8:18).
It is not that our present hardships aren't painful, we have seen in Hebrews that they are indeed painful, but we need to learn to look by faith beyond the present pain to the eternal glory that will be revealed in us. Remember, the God who disciplines us will also glorify us.
So the discipline of adversity is given to us by God as a means of our sanctification. Our role in this disciline is to respond to it, and to acquiesce whatever God may be doing, even though a particular instance of adversity makes no sense to us. As we do this we will see in due time the fruit of the Spirit produced in our life."
"Hebrews 12:10-11 -"Our 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. No 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."
God always disciplines us for our good. He knows what is best for each one of us. He doesn't have to debate with Himself over what is most suitable for us. He knows intuitively and perfectly in nature, intensity and duration of adversity that will best serve his purpose to make us partakers of His holiness. He never brings more pain than is needed to accomplish His purpose. As Lamentations 3:33 expresses: For He does not willingly bring affliction or grief to the children of men.
Returning to Hebrews 12:10 observe how the writer equated our good with becoming more holy. The apostle Paul wrote of a similar manner in Romans 8:28-29 "And we know that all things God works for the good of those who love Him...For those God foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of His Son." To be conformed to the likeness of Christ and to share in God's holiness are equivalent expressions. T hat is the highest good to which a believer can aspire.
That is the design of God in all of adversity and heartache we experience in this life. There is no such thing as random or chance events in our lives. All pain we experience is intended to move us closer to the goal of being holy as He is holy.
"No discipline seems pleasant at the time", the writer of Hebrews said. Adveristy comes in many forms: serious illness or injury or death or unemployment, disappointments, humiliations etc. All of these afflictions ARE painful. They have to be to accomplish their intended purpose of pruning away what is unholy in our lives so tha true holy character may be produced. We should admit the pain.
Later on however the hardship, the discipline, the pain produces a harvest of righteousness and peace. The "harvest of righteousness" is equivalent to sharing in His holiness. Discipline, then, is one of the chief means God uses to make us holy. The road marked to holiness is paved with adversity. If we want to be holy, we must expect the discipline of God through the heartaches and disappointments He brings or allows to come into our lives.
The discipline also procudes peace for those who ahve been trained in it and by it. The word trained is the one Paul used in 1 Timothy 4:7 which was borrowed from the athletic word of the day. There will be rest that comes to the believer when we go to be with the Lord but there is also a peace to be enjoyed in this life for those who have learned to endure adversity as the evidence of God's fatherly hand upon them to make them more holy.
Our ultimate hope, is not in maturity of character in this life as valuable as that is, but in the perfection of character in eternity. Looking forward to that time, Paul wrote "I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us" (Romans 8:18).
It is not that our present hardships aren't painful, we have seen in Hebrews that they are indeed painful, but we need to learn to look by faith beyond the present pain to the eternal glory that will be revealed in us. Remember, the God who disciplines us will also glorify us.
So the discipline of adversity is given to us by God as a means of our sanctification. Our role in this disciline is to respond to it, and to acquiesce whatever God may be doing, even though a particular instance of adversity makes no sense to us. As we do this we will see in due time the fruit of the Spirit produced in our life."
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