THAT HURTS!

READING: JUDGES 6:11-15

Verse 13: “Gideon said to Him, “Oh my LORD, if the LORD is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all His miracles which our fathers told us about, saying, ‘Did not the LORD bring us up from Egypt?” But now the LORD has forsaken us and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites.’”

Gideon was struggling with the fact that Israel was greatly impoverished  because of the Midianites. Therefore he critically questioned the Angel of the Lord as stated in verse 13. Gideon expressed his conclusion, but in fact Israel had not really been forsaken. The reality was that they were undergoing chastening. Accordingly, when they did turn to the Lord, He delivered them. At times people are in distress as Gideon was. They say, “I don’t understand why this is happening.” Sometimes they actually feel that the Lord has forsaken them. However, like the Israelites, sometimes they too are being chastened for their own ultimate benefit. In these cases God is not forsaking them but loving them, and loving them enough to correct their behaviors. The Father is not to be doubted because times are hard. He does not forsake His children, but He does chasten us “...for our profit, that we may be partakers of His holiness.” (Hebrews 12:10). He does it because “...it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.” (Hebrews 12:11). He is for us not against us! That’s a thought – about God’s Word.

RESPONSE

1. What is your most memorable experience with chastening?

2. How can a person know they are being chastened?