Tag Archives: Discipline

Adoption as Sons

Posted on by under Bible, Christian, Christianity, Disciple, Discipleship, Excellence, Faithful, LifeGiving, Mandate, Mature, Maturing, Message, Mission, Movement, Revolution, Righteousness, School Of The Spirit, Training, Transformation

All of the teachings I have heard on adoption focused on the benefits of being God’s adopted child but not the true maturity level where we are adopted, and the responsibilities that come with being adopted by God.

‘There are five verses in the NASB New Testament that speak to the vitally important truth on adoption, and all of them are in Paul’s epistles. Three of them are in Romans [8:15,23; 9:4], one of them is in Galatians [4:5], and one of them is in Ephesians [1:5].

It is important to note that Paul never says God adopts anyone as a child [Greek – brephos, nepios, paidion, teknon], or that once adopted the adopted person can live in immaturity and irresponsibility [Romans 11:21,22; many others]. Every reference on adoption is to the person who grows up into sonship [huiós]. No one can legally claim the benefits of adoption as sons if they have not matured into sons, and live responsibly as God’s sons.


The passage in Romans 9:4 is in reference to natural Israel who lost their inheritance [Matthew 21:43; Matthew 23:37,38] by continually rebelling against God and rejecting the One Person He sent to save them and bring them into all He saved them to inherit. In other words, God predestined them to grow up into sonship but they chose to remain immature and irresponsible so that they could behave in a way that was not congruent with the salvation the Savior brought to them. Natural Israel chose compromise over Christ and a covenant commitment to Him. We must not follow in their footsteps [See 1 Corinthians 10:1-15; Hebrews 2:1-3a].

All five of Paul’s references have the same phrase, “adoption as sons”, which is the Greek word, huiothesía [hwee-oth-es-ee’-ah]. This word is made up of two Greek words, huiós [hwee-os’ ], and títhēmi [tith’-ay-mee].

Huiós

According to Thayer’s Expanded Definition of New Testament Words a huiós is: “A person who reveres God as their Father, is a pious worshiper of God, someone whose character and life resemble God, a person who is governed by the Spirit of God.”

Paul, in Romans, defined a huiós this way, “For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God” [Romans 8:14].

In Hebrews Paul defines huiós as a person who submits to God the Father’s discipline, including His scourging them for the removal of their carnal nature that always resists the Holy Spirit.

Hebrews 12

“6 ‘For those whom the Lord loves He disciplines, and He scourges every son whom He receives.’ 7 It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline? 8 But if you are without discipline, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate children [not a genuine and legal child] and not sons.

9 Furthermore, we had earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them; shall we not much rather be subject to the Father of spirits, and live? 10 For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but He disciplines us for our good, so that we may share His holiness. 11 All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.”

Paul states scourging is so we will share in God’s holiness. To share means to participate in, to accept and use. In other words, God’s discipline is to mature us in to sonship so that we will live and look like God’s Son, Jesus Christ. [See Thayer’s on huiós above]


Of course, Jesus is the Perfect Son who wholly honored the Father, worshiped Him, perfectly re-presented Him and was always led and empowered by the Holy Spirit. It is Jesus who modeled for us all what true Christianity is and how it is to be lived. Even Jesus learned obedience through the things He suffered and He had to grow in favor with God the Father [Hebrews 5:8; Luke 2:52] – from childhood to a son!

Títhēmi

Títhēmi, according to Thayer’s, is defined as: “To set or put in [its rightful] place, to ordain, to fix and to establish. God never sets, or puts someone in place, or in a position for them to be immature and irresponsible. This precedent was started in the Garden of Eden and continues to this day.

Genesis 2

“8 The Lord God planted a garden toward the east, in Eden; and there He placed the man whom He had formed. 15 Then the Lord God took the man and put him into the garden of Eden to cultivate it and keep it.”

Verse 8 reveals access and verse 15 reveals the responsibility that comes with the access. Adam was to cultivate [work to grow] and keep [protect and promote] the Garden as God’s representative overseer of the Garden God placed him in, and the planet God placed him on.

“But now God has placed the members, each one of them, in the body, just as He desired.” [1 Corinthians 12:18]

And in Ephesians 4 Paul writes the following, “11 And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, 12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; 13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ. 14 As a result, we are no longer to be children [nḗpios], tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming; 15 but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love.”


Children may be born but it is the sons who can be given the responsibility to govern – “For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; And the government will rest on His shoulders.” [Isaiah 9:6]

It is possible to be granted access to the kingdom and all of its benefits and end up not inheriting the kingdom you were granted access to at your new birth. [See Matthew 5:3; Luke 12:32; 1 Corinthians 6:9,10; 1 Corinthians 9:24-27]

Have you allowed God to place you in a place of responsibility?

Are you being responsible with all of the responsibilities that place possesses?

Are you sure you are adopted by God?

Are you benefiting from benefits without the legal right to those benefits?

Receive and steward God’s passion, power, presence, priority, process, promises, protection, provision, pruning, purging, purity and purpose!

Dr. Kevin M. Drury, DMin

A radical spiritual revolutionary

Scourging!

Posted on by under Bible, Christian, Disciple, Discipleship, Excellence, Hard Work, LifeGiving, Mandate, Mature, Maturing, Message, Mission, Revolution, Righteousness, School Of The Spirit, Training, Transformation

Scourging could be thought of as that which removes the scourge from our lives, which it does in fact mean. But what about Jesus and His scourging at the hands of His Roman captors, antagonizers and murderers?

Jesus was scourged, not because He was a scourge, except in the hearts and minds of the Jews who betrayed Him and the Romans who abused Him, but because He was the solution to every scourge of every person on the planet, past, present and future!

Isaiah said this about Jesus and His heavenly Father –

Isaiah 52 / 53

“52:13 Behold, My servant will prosper, He will be high and lifted up and greatly exalted. 14 Just as many were astonished at you, My people, so His appearance was marred more than any man and His form more than the sons of men. 15 Thus He will sprinkle many nations, kings will shut their mouths on account of Him; For what had not been told them they will see, and what they had not heard they will understand.

53:1 Who has believed our message? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? 2 For He grew up before Him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of parched ground; He has no stately form or majesty that we should look upon Him, nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him. 3 He was despised and forsaken of men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; And like one from whom men hide their face He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.

4 Surely our griefs He Himself bore, and our sorrows He carried; Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. 5 But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, and by His scourging we are healed. 6 All of us like sheep have gone astray, Each of us has turned to his own way; But the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all To fall on Him.

7 He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He did not open His mouth; Like a lamb that is led to slaughter, And like a sheep that is silent before its shearers, So He did not open His mouth. 8 By oppression and judgment He was taken away; And as for His generation, who considered That He was cut off out of the land of the living For the transgression of my people, to whom the stroke was due? 9 His grave was assigned with wicked men, Yet He was with a rich man in His death, because He had done no violence, nor was there any deceit in His mouth.

10 But the Lord was pleased to crush Him, putting Him to grief; If He would render Himself as a guilt offering, He will see His offspring, He will prolong His days, And the good pleasure of the Lord will prosper in His hand. 11 As a result of the anguish of His soul, He will see it and be satisfied; By His knowledge the Righteous One, My Servant, will justify the many, as He will bear their iniquities.

12 Therefore, I will allot Him a portion with the great, And He will divide the booty with the strong; Because He poured out Himself to death, And was numbered with the transgressors; Yet He Himself bore the sin of many, And interceded for thetransgressors.”

One of the first revelations Isaiah gets and gives is Jesus would be crucified. Jesus used the phrase “lifted up” in John three and John twelve, when He described how He would die.

Next Isaiah saw how Jesus would not look human after His brutal treatment at the hands of His Roman tormentors. Whatever image you have of Jesus after He sweated blood in the Garden of Gethsemane, His beating and scourging at the hands of the Romans, and His eventual crucifiction and demonic assault during the whole process, if He still looks human you have not seen what He really looked like.

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This print of a painting by Mike Parks which Mike gave to me in the early 1980’s is the closest I have ever seen to what Jesus must have looked like, and even it does not come close to what Isaiah saw, and what Jesus literally looked like.

And Jesus willingly allowed that to happen to him because He loved us that much!

And it pleased the Father for Him to go through that!

And Isaiah said He was “smitten by God!”

And Isaiah said “It pleased God to crush Him and put Him to grief!”

Now what about you and me? The writer of Hebrews says this about our heavenly Father and His love for His sons [mature children] in chapter twelve.

“4 You have not yet resisted to the point of shedding blood in your striving against sin; 5 and you have forgotten the exhortation which is addressed to you as sons, ‘My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor faint when you are reproved by Him; 6 For those whom the Lord loves He disciplines, and He scourges every son whom He receives’ [Proverbs 3:11,12]. 7 It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline? 8 But if you are without discipline, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate children and not sons.

9 Furthermore, we had earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them; shall we not much rather be subject to the Father of spirits, and live? 10 For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but He disciplines us for our good, so that we may share His holiness. 11 All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.

12 Therefore, strengthen the hands that are weak and the knees that are feeble, 13 and make straight paths for your feet, so that the limb which is lame may not be put out of joint, but rather be healed. 14 Pursue peace with all men, and the sanctification without which no one will see the Lord. 15 See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God; that no root of bitterness springing up causes trouble, and by it many be defiled; 16 that there be no immoral or godless person like Esau, who sold his own birthright for a single meal. 17 For you know that even afterwards, when he desired to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no place for repentance, though he sought for it with tears.”

The Book of Hebrews is written to Jewish believers in Jesus Christ who were being tempted to abandon Christ and return to the dead religious system of Judaism. When Christ was crucified God tore the veil separating the holy place from the Most Holy Place. What was discovered was there was no Ark of the Covenant which means the High Priest, and all the priests had been carrying on as if nothing had happened. God was not behind that veil! And God had not been there when the High Priest entered on the Day of Atonement since the return of the Jews from Babylonian captivity hundreds of years before.

The writer of Hebrews says there is a new and living way to enter into God’s presence, and that way was through The Way, Jesus’ crucified Body [Hebrews 10:19,20]. And God will never reinstitute the old way that is dead and gone.

The writer of Hebrews uses the word ‘scourges’ to express God the Father’s discipline of every son God He loves, and without that level of discipline a person proves they are not legitimately God’s offspring.

The word ‘scourge’ is the same word that is used of Jesus’ brutalization! Just as it pleased the Father to have Jesus scourged it also pleases Him to scourge every son He loves! How can that be you may be wondering? What is the purpose of scourging? I know one reason for it is to inflict maximum pain. The greatest reason and revelation is to remove the flesh from the person being scourged.

Ahh, so when the Father scourges His sons it is for the purpose of removing stubborn flesh that keeps us from living life like the Son who modeled what a Christian’s life was supposed to look like? Yes! Exactly! That is why to resist being scourged disqaulifies a person from being a legitimate son who longs to be like God’s only begotten Son, Jesus!

The writer of Hebrews then uses the connective word ‘Therefore.’ In view of what was just written we must see what was written after the word ‘therefore.’

  • Strenghten the hands that are weak
  • Strengthen the knees that are feeble
  • Make stratight paths for your feet
  • So that the limb which is lame may not be put out of joint, but be healed
  • Pursue peace with all men
  • Pursue sanctification [being set apart to God and His purpose for your life]
  • Without this separation no one will see the Lord
  • See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God
  • Which would result in a root of bitterness springing up causing trouble, and defilement
  • So no one would be like Esau who sold his birthright for a temporary perceived problem
  • Which resulted in his not being able to find repentance which leads to God’s blessing, even though he sought for it with tears

Can you imagine how carrying, not just the physical cross Jesus bore, but the full weight of His Father authorizing the agony He found Himself in, and that willingly He chose to go through, would force Jesus to rely on the only Higher Power that could help Him. The very One who gave permission for this to happen to Him.

“Jesus answered [Pilate], “You would have no authority over Me, unless it had been given you from above.” [John 19:11]

“21 For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps, 22 who committed no sin, nor was any deceit found in his mouth; 23 and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously.” [1 Peter 2]

How is that for loyalty?

In our twenty first century version of Christianity we call scourging abuse! Abuse is such a misused word in modern Christianity. Any attempt to bring discipline or to hold a ‘Christian’ accountable falls under the abuse category. It pains me to say that but that is the brutal truth!

And yet, those who submit to it discover their lives will produce the peaceable fruit of authentic righteousness.

Scourging?

Anyone?

Receive and steward God’s passion, power, presence, priority, process, promises, protection, provision, pruning, purging, purity and purpose!

Dr. Kevin M. Drury, DMin

A spiritual revolutionary!

 

Fathers, Discipline And Personal Training

Posted on by under Bible, Christian, Excellence, LifeGiving, Righteousness, School Of The Spirit, Training

God has always been a Father!

God is pro fatherhood! Fatherhood in His Kingdom is a level of maturity, not merely a male who impregnates a woman.

 God has always been a personal trainer!

Kingdom fathers and personal trainers believe in discipline. Fathers and personal trainers know that undisciplined people rarely achieve greatness or fulfill their potential. Fathers and personal trainers “push” people beyond what they believe they can achieve and beyond where they are, and they help them see that there is a price to pay to get where they are going and that price is well worth paying.

There is a heavenly clarion call being trumpeted by apostolic and prophetic voices calling their tribal people home – into communities [common unities] where fatherhood is valued over denominational truth [their denomination’s version of truth] – and where true father’s are disciplined and exercise discipline as compared to quasi-father’s who just want to be friends and have “fun”.

Fun is such an overused word in the Kingdom of God!

Hear the words of the writer of Hebrews as you read this text from Hebrews 12:5-17 NLT ~~~~

5 And 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.’ 6 For the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes each one he accepts as his child. 7 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? 8 If 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. 9 Since 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? 10 For 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. 11 No 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. 12 So take a new grip with your tired hands and strengthen your weak knees. 13 Mark out a straight path for your feet so that those who are weak and lame will not fall but become strong. 14 Work at living in peace with everyone, and work at living a holy life, for those who are not holy will not see the Lord. 15 Look after each other so that none of you fails to receive the grace of God. Watch out that no poisonous root of bitterness grows up to trouble you, corrupting many. 16 Make sure that no one is immoral or godless like Esau, who traded his birthright as the firstborn son for a single meal. 17 You know that afterward, when he wanted his father’s blessing, he was rejected. It was too late for repentance, even though he begged with bitter tears.”

V5 – “Have you forgotten the ENCOURAGING words God spoke to you as His children?”

  • The writer then quotes Proverbs 3:11,12 – “My child, don’t make light of the Lord’s discipline, and don’t give up when He corrects you. For the Lord DISCIPLINES those He loves, and He punishes each one He accepts as His child.

It is interesting to me that the writer of Hebrews use the phrase “encouraging words” to describe the discipline of the Lord. This tells me that discipline involves injecting courage into [in courage or put courage in] the hearts and minds of those who ‘receive’ correction.

V6 – “For The Lord disciplines those He loves, and He punishes each one he accepts as His child.”

  • Discipline and punishment are equated with love and acceptance. You don’t hear that taught in most pulpits today!

V7 – “Who ever heard of a child who is never disciplined by a father?”

  • The writer expresses surprise that anyone would consider not being disciplined by their father!

V8 – “If God does not discipline you . . . it means you ARE illegitimate and not REALLY His children at ALL.”

  • One of the signs that we are truly God’s child is we accept discipline. If we run from and refuse to receive discipline it is an indication that we are not related to God. Rebellion is associated with witchcraft! Witchcraft is an expression of the core value of the prince of darkness.

One of the contemptible issues in our modern Christian churches is leaders who refuse to exercise discipline in regard to unruly members. There are so many churches to choose from and there are too many leaders willing to accept people into their community for the sake of having seats filled and bank accounts with plenty of money in them.

“Christians” will migrate to places where they can have “fun” and “enjoy”  the benefits of the community without truly being connected or committed to the community. The “fun loving” Christians feel entitled to the benefits without the responsibility to those in authority.

V10 – “For our earthly fathers disciplined us for a few years, doing the best the knew how.”

  • Our earthly fathers may be natural or spiritual. They represent God’s delegated authority in our lives. Human fathers, even in their imperfect attempts to bring correction, do what they think is best for us. This is not speaking of the obvious abusive fathers that some have had in their lives. Abuse is never to be tolerated by anyone on any level.

We are to honor those in authority over us, whether in the home, at work or in church. We demonstrate respect for God in the way we respect those God has placed us under in life. We may not agree with everything they do or say but we are not responsible for what they do or say. We are responsible for treating them with the same respect we treat God Himself. No real respect for God’s leaders shows no real respect for God.

Jesus said on judgment day we would give an account for how we treated the poor and the imprisoned. “Inasmuch as you did it to them you did it to Me.”

How much more will be be held accountable for the way we treated those in authority?

V10 – “God’s discipline is always good for us, so that we may share in His holiness.”

  • Holiness, or separation to God for His holy purposes lived out through us is connected to discipline.

V11 – “No 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.”

  • Discipline is NOT fun! How about that for all you who think that God is only interested in you having fun? “It IS painful!” But the result of discipline is a harvest of right living for those who are trained by it. The Greek word trained is ‘gymnazo’. According to Thayer’s Dictionary of New Testament Words it means:
    1. to exercise naked [in a palaestra or school of athletics]
    2. to exercise vigorously, in any way, either the body or the mind

It comes from a root word that means to be stripped, or laid bare. Seems like the Lord’s training regimen is thorough and is meant to expose every flaw we have in our life.

This is the same word the writer of Hebrews uses in chapter five verse 14 to speak of the mature in Christ. Maturity requires discipline and discipline must be applied personally by the individual and individually by the Lord.

ARE WE HAVING FUN YET?

V12 – “So take a new grip with your tired hands and strengthen your weak knees.”

  • Get a grip! Reevaluate your position concerning God’s purpose for your life. Take personal responsibility for your inability to handle what God’s dealing are with you and your inability to walk it out in a way that is honorable.

V13 – “Mark out a straight path for your feet so that those who are weak and lame will not fall but become strong.”

  • Straighten up! Do you not realize your inconsistencies are adversely affecting the walk of other people?
  • Your walk should help others not hinder them!

V14 – “Work at living in peace with everyone, and work at living a holy life, for those who are not holy will not see the Lord.”

  • Stop causing trouble! Do your homework as it relates to being holy! If you don’t, the Lord will know it and will not allow you to see Him!

V15 – “Look after each other so that none of you fails to receive the grace of God. Watch out that no poisonous root of bitterness grows up to trouble you, corrupting many.”

  • You are not in this by yourself. You are responsible to others and for others. The way you relate to people affects your access to God’s grace [His divine ability]. Your negative attitude toward others is poisoning you and corrupting others because you have negated the grace of God in your own life. How is that working out for you?

V16-17 – “Make sure that no one is immoral or godless like Esau, who traded his birthright as the firstborn son for a single meal. 17 You know that afterward, when he wanted his father’s blessing, he was rejected. It was too late for repentance, even though he begged with bitter tears.”

  • What will it profit you if you get your way but lose everything God predetermined for your destiny?

Keep THE Faith! Keep THE Passion!

Dr. Kevin M. Drury, DMin

A Hisstorymaker!