The Discipline of Adversity

she had fallen at the last hurdle.

She had trained for so long,

so many hours of hard work,

so many late nights, long days,

being exhausted in body and in mind,

missing out on friends, on fun,

all because she had a goal in mind.

And now hardship had come,

and it was all too much.

Was it time to let go of that goal?

Was she going to let her family down?

As I was describing a situation,

what kind of image came to mind?

This is not a rhetorical question.

Anybody want to throw out anything?

What kind of situation were you imagining?

Sorry, Janet, I didn't hear you.

Dear sister.

A sports person?

Sports person?

You can imagine a sports person,

they've got a goal in mind,

they're going to run a marathon,

they've been training for this event,

42Ks is a long way,

and a person training for an event like this,

they make choices not to spend time on certain things,

they watch out for distractions,

but then a hardship like an injury could hit.

What other things were you imagining?

Anyone?

Maybe someone preparing for an exam,

training hard, working hard,

pursuing marks to get into a university.

Are you remembering when you worked hard

to get where you are today?

You know, there's that goal,

and so everything else goes out the window.

Exercise, friends, social time,

the only choice is to study hard or work hard.

But right at the end,

a hardship like stress under pressure can hit.

Hardships and difficult moments like this,

they break people.

You see injuries to professional sports people,

they make people retire early.

I've seen people change their university degrees

because it just became too hard.

I see the amount of half-started projects

around my house.

There's a towel rack I haven't finished replacing.

There's a broken kitchen cupboard I need to fix.

Because at one point or another,

they just get hard.

The author of the letter to the Hebrews

describes the Christian life like this.

It's been our slogan in that video we've been watching,

you know, with Liv running.

The author to the Hebrews describes this Christian life

as a race.

God has chosen people for him through his grace,

and now we run towards him.

Being with Christ and becoming like him,

that is the goal that we run towards.

And on the way,

we have plenty of choices to make.

Choices to follow him,

and not to just chase our own desires.

We must watch out for sin,

being aware of the dangers around us.

And as we run this race,

there will be hardships.

These hardships are different

to getting a broken leg from a race.

But as we pursue different goals,

hardships might break us

and make us finish early.

Or will the hardship

push us on to the prize?

But what's the point of hardships

and difficulty

as we follow Jesus?

How do we deal with frustrations and sin?

Do we just say,

come on James,

you'll be fine,

brush yourself off,

Jesus loves you.

And is that all that we do with hardships?

How do we view hard times

as Christians?

Today,

as we finish our series

on the disciplines of grace,

we're going to see how

God encourages us

when hardship and difficult times hit.

So please pray with me.

Heavenly Father,

we have all experienced

hard and painful times.

And we know as people

still living

that there will be

more hard and difficult times to come.

Father,

help us to understand

how you encourage us

and how you are with us

and love us

in those times, Lord.

Amen.

The author of Hebrews,

he writes to a church

who it seems

were faced with

much persecution.

They hadn't been persecuted yet

enough to shed blood,

but they were likely faced

with daily persecution.

And they're faced

with this question,

we're under attack

and so who is in charge?

Is God really in charge?

God,

are you sovereign

over our enemies?

Or are they more powerful

than you?

And so the author

describes Christianity

as a race.

one with challenges

and difficulties,

but with a joy,

a joy of being

with Christ.

Have a look with me

at Hebrews 12,

Hebrews 12:1

verse 1.

And let us run

with perseverance

the race

marked out for us,

fixing our eyes

on Jesus.

And then down

to verse 3,

so that you will not

grow weary

and lose heart.

There is temptation

to grow weary

and lose heart

with whatever goal

you are chasing.

And this is not a

short-term goal,

this is not even

a long-term goal

like a 42k marathon.

This is a lifelong goal

of following Jesus

and being with Him.

And the author

of this letter

encourages us

as we run this race.

Verse 5,

and have you

completely forgotten

this word

of encouragement

that addresses you

as a father

addresses his son.

It says,

My son,

do not make light

of the Lord's discipline

and do not lose heart

when He rebukes you

because the Lord

disciplines the one

He loves

and He chastens

everyone He accepts

as a son.

Father to child

discipline

is the way

that God

encourages us.

And this encouragement

is so we don't

lose heart

and so we don't

grow weary.

Now you might be

thinking,

discipline?

Discipline is what's

supposed to encourage me.

Maybe when you're

in the midst

of a hardship,

maybe something like

some comforting words,

everything's going

to be okay.

That's what encourages you.

Maybe a gift of food.

Maybe,

you know,

I mentioned a pile

of donuts

the other week.

That's really encouraging

to me in difficult times.

But here

we see that God

chooses

discipline

to encourage us.

What then

is discipline?

Here we go.

Here's a definition

of discipline for us.

Discipline

is training

or correction.

Discipline

is training

or education

by correction

or punishment.

Training

or education

by correction

or punishment.

And this is what

God does for us

and this is how

he encourages us.

Now the first thing

to note

with discipline

from God

is that he

does not

punish us.

God does not

see our sinful

behavior

and get angry

and send hardship

to us.

He does not go,

you know,

James,

case in your sinning

again,

here's a lightning

bolt to punish you.

God

does not

punish his people.

Let me say that

again.

God does not

punish his people

who follow Jesus.

But he disciplines

us through hardship

and adversity

in our lives.

These are painful

and difficult

but our hardships

are not punishments.

God has

met out

all of the

punishment

that we deserve

on his son,

Jesus.

That is the cross.

That is the place

where our punishment

has been dealt

with.

But he does

discipline us.

He corrects

and trains

our behavior

but in a

relationship with

him.

How do you feel

with me saying

that God

trains and

educates

and changes

our behavior

through discipline

and correction?

Do you feel

okay?

Does this idea

of discipline

make you feel

a little bit

awkward?

When we think

of God

as a father

who disciplines

us,

it can be hard

for us not

to think of

our own parents

or what we

are like

as parents

disciplining

our children.

And this can

go either way.

It could be,

oh look,

my father,

he never

disciplined me

at all

and I've

turned out

okay,

so what's

the point

of discipline?

I see no

point.

Or it could

go the other

way,

my father

was very

firm.

he always

disciplined me

very firmly

and I've

turned out

okay,

so of course

I want

God to

discipline

me.

Or our

view of

our fathers

can be

painful.

Maybe we

don't have a

relationship

with our

father at

all or

maybe some

of us have

painful

memories of

being disciplined

by a father.

Some of us

might right

now be in a

difficult

relationship

with our

fathers

where

discipline

has crossed

a boundary.

For that

person in

that situation

it can be

hard to

think that

God should

discipline.

Discipline

can only

seem like

a bad

word when

we view

discipline

from our

perspective

in the

world.

But here

in Hebrews

12

discipline

is about

loving

correction.

It is

guiding

and putting

us back

on the

path to

follow

the

Lord.

Before we

look at

what God's

discipline

actually looks

like,

the author

wants to

make sure

that we

get the

most out

of our

correction.

And so

he says,

my son,

do not

make light

of the

Lord's

discipline

and do

not lose

heart when

he rebukes

you because

the Lord

disciplines

the one

he loves

and he

chastens

everyone he

accepts as

his son.

he disciplines

because he

loves.

And the

first thing

he wants

us to

be aware

of is

not making

light of

discipline.

Making

light of

God's

discipline.

This might

seem difficult

to do.

If God

is disciplining

us, how

would we

make light

of it?

I think

of a

child who

disciplines

the, a

child who

disobeys the

parent and

is disciplined.

They can get

upset at the

parent, how

dare you

discipline me?

I was in

the right, you

were in the

wrong.

Maybe you

were like that

as a child,

maybe you've

seen a child

like that.

I see some

people smiling,

I don't want

to know.

A child in

that position,

thinking that

they are

right, they

will never

learn from

discipline.

And it's

as easy for

a parent to

think, I've

told my

child the

right way to

go, I've

disciplined

them.

But five

minutes later

they're doing

the exact

same thing

again, making

light of

discipline and

ignoring it.

A child, a

person, us

in that

situation, we

lack humility.

We lack

self-awareness

that we

desperately need

God to

correct us.

Don't make

light of the

Lord's

discipline.

Don't remain

indifferent.

Maybe you

can vaguely

see that God

is calling you

to change your

behavior.

But you

don't actually

spend time

meditating on

what it

means.

It's not

helpful for a

child to

ignore their

parents'

discipline.

You know, the

parent who

says, don't

touch that, it's

hot.

You know, you

want your child to

learn the lesson

from the

instruction and

not them

touching it.

God does the

same thing.

Don't go down

that path.

That is not the

best way to go.

you will hurt

yourself.

This is not

the way I

have for you.

Don't ignore

me.

And when we

don't think

about the

discipline that

God gives to

us through

hardship, we

don't learn

from it.

And when we

refuse to

consider our

deep and

difficult times,

our lives and

relationships with

God will just

remain shallow.

some of us

can be

indifferent to

God's

discipline, but

for others, they

can be crushed

by it.

They are

overwhelmed and

lose heart.

And so the

author of the

Hebrews wants

to make sure

that you don't

make light of

God's discipline,

but don't lose

heart by his

discipline.

Don't be like

the runner who

collapses on

the track

completing that

race.

Maybe we

hate conflict,

we're unable

to deal with

correction.

Maybe you

are afraid that

if God is

disciplining you,

it means he's

angry with you.

How do we

face discipline

from God

without losing

heart and

without making

light of it?

The Lord

disciplines the

one he loves.

And he

chastens

everyone he

accepts as

his son.

God

disciplines the

one he

loves.

This is a

strange

doctrine.

It's a really

difficult thing,

but it's also a

wonderful truth.

On the one

side, God

disciplines, but

it's only because

he loves.

God

disciplines

because he

loves.

God

doesn't

discipline out

of wrath

or anger.

He's not

punishing.

It is truly

only from love

because he

has made us

his children

and brought

us into

his family.

One where

he is the

father and

he cares for

us.

He cares for

our instruction.

The author

to the Hebrews

encourages this

church when they

are under

attack.

He reminds

them of

these promises.

Don't lose

heart.

Don't make

light of God's

discipline.

He will guide

you in your

growth and

he does

this all

because he

loves you.

So we

come to

the question,

how?

How does

God actually

discipline us?

Hebrews 12

Hebrews 12:7

verse 7.

Endure

hardship as

discipline.

Just those

simple four

words,

endure

hardship as

discipline.

Hardship.

Adversity.

This is

God's

discipline.

This is

his correction

or training

for us.

Now remember

the Hebrew

church were

being persecuted.

They were

being attacked.

Is it

that God

is doing

that through

fatherly love

to correct

this church?

It doesn't

say that God

looks on while

his people are

being attacked

and going

through hardship.

hardship, but

that the

Lord is

the one

who disciplines.

He is

the one

who chastens.

He is

the one

who corrects

and teaches.

Does that

mean that

in some

form God

is in

charge and

responsible for

all hardship?

Is it

possible that

God not

only allows

hardship, but

actually sends

hardship to

us, to

draw us

closer to

him, to

correct and

to train

us?

Is God

in control

of all

hardship?

Is he in

control of

all of the

difficult seasons

that we face

and experience

in life?

Of sickness

and loss?

Of losing

a job?

A relationship

of hurt

and brokenness?

Does God

just allow

these things

to happen

or is he

in some

way involved

in them

all?

Imagine

two types

of surgeons

for me.

There's

the emergency

room surgeon

and then there

is the elective

surgery surgeon

and I'll have

our surgeon

correct me

later if I'm

wrong about

this.

So we've

got our two

surgeons, the

emergency room

and then the

elective planned

surgery.

The first

emergency, the

first one, the

emergency room

surgeon, a

person comes

in with a

mangled leg.

Let's think of

the situation,

what's happened

to them?

Sorry, bike

accident.

Thank you,

Nolly.

But let's go,

just a simple

bike accident.

Okay, that's

nice, simple.

They've fallen

off their bike

and their leg

is damaged.

The emergency

surgeon operates

to save the

leg and fix

the situation.

Okay, and

then it's a

very different

from my limited

understanding of

surgery, which

I have no

understanding other

than that TV

show House.

Imagine on the

other side with

the elective

surgery surgeon,

a patient has

come in with a

cancerous growth

on their leg and

the surgeon has

planned out what

he needs to do,

he's taken

MRIs, x-rays,

multiple scans,

and he can see

the growth inside

the leg and

they plan out

what they're

going to do,

they draw on

the leg what

they're going to

do, and he

takes a scalpel,

presumably,

slices the

leg, removes

the cancerous

growth, and

then fixes it

back up.

So we've got

these two

options.

One responds

to the damage

and fixes it,

one surgeon

plans it,

there is pain,

but there is

a healing as

well.

Which of

these two is

our God-like

when it comes

to hardship

and pain?

Is God-like

the elective,

is God-like

the emergency

room surgeon

who sees

our pain

and just

fixes us up,

heals us,

and goes,

there you go,

you'll be fine,

go on.

Or is

God sovereign

and in

control?

He has

planned out

what needs

to happen

to us,

and the

pain of

hardship

will hurt

us,

much like

the scalpel

to the

leg.

But he

brings healing

through that

as well.

God is

not a

passive

observer.

He doesn't

sit idly by

while we

are being

attacked,

while we

are under

hardship.

The picture

of God

here is

a father

who is

intimately

involved

in raising

up his

children.

He is

the one

who is

disciplining.

God is

the one

who rules

over

sinners.

He is

the one

who is

in control

of those

who are

persecuting

the church.

Those people

are still

guilty,

but God

uses them

to work

out his

loving

purpose

of

disciplining

this

church,

of

growing

them

up

in

their

faith.

And he

does the

same

for us.

I was

really sick

a couple

of weeks

ago.

What

started

as a

cold

grew

into

a

flu

and

then

very

quickly

full-blown

man

flu.

Ladies,

you'll

know how

bad

this

is.

Turned

into

a chest

infection

and four

of us

at home

were hit

really

hard.

Alyssa

unfortunately

was hit

really

bad,

but she

was the

least

sick

somehow.

She

wasn't

well.

I

couldn't

do

much

at the

time

but pray

to God,

help me

get better.

God

help me

get better.

Now,

God

was in

control

of that

situation.

I can't

see the

exact

connection

between

being

sick

and my

sin,

but looking

back,

it's made

me wonder,

it's made

me wonder,

was God

trying to

teach me

something

then?

Was he

disciplining

me because

I don't

depend on

him and

I depend

on

antibiotics,

just the

fact that

I will

get better?

I still

think I'm

physically

capable.

Do I

have an

idol of

health and

self-control

that God

was just

trying to

break down

so that I

depended on

him?

I wonder

if God

uses

hardships

because we

just don't

listen.

Does God

use hardships

because it

is too

easy to

ignore him

when all

is going

well?

And he

needs to

remind us

of how

much we

need to

depend upon

him.

We do

like to

draw the

connection,

God is

sending this

because of

my sin,

this hardship

is all of

my fault,

I'm being

punished for

this.

can we

tell always

if a

particular

hardship

has come

from a

specific

sin in

our life?

Well,

we might

be able

to,

the Holy

Spirit

might bring

it to

our

attention,

but I

think

chasing

reasons for

hardship

can be

a danger.

It can

make our

lives much

like a

Western

version of

karma,

where we

think this

hardship has

happened because

of my sin,

I'm at fault

and God

has sent

this to

me,

this pain

is because

of that

action I

did,

but I

think this

is dangerous

because

Jesus has

taken our

punishment for

our sins,

and we

don't have

to bear

some of

the pain

for our

sin,

Jesus has

taken that,

but every

expression of

discipline is

intended to

bring us to

be more like

Jesus.

Now,

during a

moment of

hardship,

we often

will not

see the

point.

We won't

see what

God is

doing.

But during

hardship,

it should be

enough for

us to

know that

God is

in control,

and this

hardship is

somehow for

our good.

The author

to the

Hebrews gives

us an

encouragement,

God is in

control of

all things,

even

hardships,

hardships,

and he

uses them

for our

good to

guide and

grow us.

The

encouragement and

comfort here

must come from

the fact that

God is in

control.

So God

encourages us

to continue

the race,

and he uses

hard times to

discipline us.

But why?

Why?

Why does he

use hard and

painful things?

Verse 7

again,

God is

treating you

as his

children.

For what

children are

not disciplined

by their

father?

If you are

not disciplined,

and everyone

undergoes

discipline,

then you are

not legitimate.

The author

uses a very

real-world

example to

explain why

God disciplines.

In the

first century,

children were

disciplined by

their fathers.

It was their

responsibility.

They had the

primary focus

of disciplining.

And the

argument goes

that children

are disciplined

by their

fathers unless

there is

something wrong.

An illegitimate

child would

not be

disciplined.

Discipline is

actually a

proof for us

that we have a

close relationship

with God.

We are

not

illegitimate

children he

feels burdened

to carry like

he's just

got to feed

us, but he

doesn't want to

look at us.

It's actually

the opposite.

God disciplines

us because we

are so close.

Now our

fathers

discipline as

best as they

thought possible,

but God as a

father disciplines

not like us.

A parent might

have a good or

a bad relationship

with discipline.

Even the best

parents discipline

as best as

they think.

But we are

all fallible.

Every parent

is fallible.

They're

inconsistent and

often guided

by emotions.

Anyone who

has tried to

discipline a

child in a

godly manner

knows that there

are simply times

when you don't

do the right

thing or you

just don't know

what the right

thing to do

is.

How do I

discipline this

child?

How much

do I

discipline

them?

How much

is too

much?

What is

harsh?

What is

enough?

I've seen

my children

shrug off

discipline.

Just water

off a

duck's

back.

But I've

also seen

them emotionally

crushed by

my discipline.

Finding the

right balance

between those

two is a

challenge.

God is

not an

inconsistent

parent.

He doesn't

discipline

harshly based

on his

emotions.

God always

cares for us

in the same

way.

He doesn't

have debate

with himself.

What is the

best thing to

do in this

moment?

He knows

what we

need and

he only

gives us

what we

need.

Verse 10,

God disciplines

us for our

good in order

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.

God has a

purpose behind

every piece

of hardship.

It's not

pleasant,

it's just like

that scalpel,

but it is

done for our

good,

for our

holiness,

for our

peace,

and for our

righteousness.

righteousness.

And those

are definitely

the places

that we need

to be growing

in as

Christians.

It is not

pleasant,

but it is

designed only

for our

good.

When we

are in the

midst of

hardship and

pain,

we can't

understand why

it's happening.

All we can

do is to

cry out to

God to

end the

pain,

bring this

suffering to

an end.

It might

not be

years later

until we

realize what

God has

done.

He may

have sent

hardship and

difficult times

to you when

you were a

teenager to

prepare you to

be who you

are today.

He may have

corrected you and

disciplined you in

your 20s so

that in your

40s you were

able to survive

what was going

on.

He might be

disciplining you

today in

hardship because

of what is

coming in the

future.

We might

never know

the reason

for a

season of

hardship and

pain but

God knows.

He's planned

it and he is

sovereign over

it.

Even though we

can't see what

God is doing

in the midst of

hardship we

must remember

that he is

sovereign and

in control.

If you're in a

season of

hardship or

pain or

adversity today

hold on to

that truth that

God is in

control and he

loves you.

Remember these

two truths when

hard times come

because the

longer that we

live the more

likely that

difficult times

are coming.

I heard about

a woman who

was about to

become a

grandmother.

Her new

grandchild was

in a different

state in the

US and to

see this

grandchild she

would have to

fly.

But this

woman hated

flying.

was absolutely

terrified of

it.

But the

only way to

overcome her

fear to

endure the

hardship of

flying was

with the

destination in

mind.

We have a

journey marked

out for us

with the joy

of being with

the Lord at

the end of

this race.

But this

journey called

life is not

always easy.

there are

good times.

There are

hard times.

And God

uses these to

train and to

correct and

adjust our

hearts and he

does this

lovingly because

he is our

father who

loves and

cares for us.

Let me pray.

Heavenly

father you

are a good

and generous

God.

We thank

you that you

are in

control of

all things,

that you

are in

control of

good times

and difficult

days,

Lord.

Father,

when we

are in

those difficult

days,

those hard

times,

remind us

that you

are in

control and

that you

love us.

Use these

to discipline

us,

to bring us

back to

you,

so that we

can reach

the end

of this

race marked

out for

us.

For what a

joy it is

to be your

children,

Lord.

Amen.

Amen.