The Lord's Discipline

“But if his descendants forsake my instructions and fail to obey my regulations, if they do not obey my decrees and fail to keep my commands, then I will punish their sin with the rod, and their disobedience with beating. But I will never stop loving him nor fail to keep my promise to him. No, I will not break my covenant; I will not take back a single word I said. I have sworn an oath to David, and in my holiness I cannot lie: His dynasty will go on forever; his kingdom will endure as the sun. It will be as eternal as the moon, my faithful witness in the sky!” 
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭89:30-37‬ ‭NLT‬‬

God makes it clear that He will punish His children for their disobedience. Just because they are His does not mean that they are let off the hook for their sin. To the contrary! Because they are His, they will be corrected. “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. For the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes each one he accepts as his child.” 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? 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. 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? 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. 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.”
‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭12:5-11‬ ‭NLT‬‬ God will take the board of education and apply it to the seat of learning in order to correct us. He loves us and His love compels Him to discipline us. True love rejoices in truth and righteousness. God's holiness cannot abide unrighteousness. He, because of His nature, responds to our unrighteousness with proper punishment. The punishment is not to hurt us but to help us become more like Him. Yes, the pain is felt in the midst of the spanking, but He wants to keep us from the results of our sin - death and destruction. Just because David was God's anointed king did not grant him immunity when he sinned. The same is true for us!
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