The Foolproof Discipline of God [Part 1]

Alan Wright, pastor, Bible teacher, and author of his latest book, The Power to Bless.

Once you know his heart and you know how good God is, and you know what the sound of the voice of his love is like, you can know if there is a loving expression of the discipline of the Lord versus the condemnation of the enemy. That's Pastor Alan Wright. Welcome to another message of good news that will help you see your life in a whole new light. I'm Daniel Britt, excited for you to hear the teaching today in the series, Foolproof as presented at Reynolda Church in North Carolina. If you're not able to stay with us throughout the entire program, I want to make sure you know how to get our special resource right now. It can be yours for your donation this month to Alan Wright Ministries. So as you listen to today's message, go deeper if we're happy to send you today's special offer. Just contact us at PastorAlan.org, that's PastorAlan.org, or call 877-544-4860.

That's 877-544-4860. We'll have more on this special offer later in the program. But now, let's get started with today's teaching.

Here is Alan Wright. Are you ready for some good news? For everyone in Christ, know this. God isn't mad at you. He's not ready to punish you. So if you experience discipline from the Lord, it is a wonderful gift.

And if He would correct you about something, it would be a tremendous expression of His love. We're in Proverbs in a study called foolproof. Because the Proverbs are all about making us wise and pointing us to Jesus who is the perfect expression of the wisdom of God.

And today we come to an important theme that is highlighted in Proverbs 12 verse 1. Proverbs 12 verse 1, whoever loves discipline, loves knowledge. But he who hates reproof is stupid. My apologies to any of the kids, we're taught not to say that word. It literally, the proverb reads like this in Hebrew, lover of discipline, lover of knowledge. Hates correction?

Stupid. Proverbs chapter 3 also highlights this along with many other references. But look over there at verse 11 of Proverbs 3. My son did not despise the Lord's discipline or be weary of his reproof. For the Lord reproves him he loves, as a father of the Son in whom he delights.

Later the writer of Hebrews quotes Proverbs 3 and Hebrews chapter 12. And after quoting the proverb says at verse 7, it's for discipline you have to endure. God is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline? If you're left without discipline in which all have participated, then you're illegitimate children and not sons. Besides this, we have had earthly fathers who disciplined us and we respected them. Shall we not much more be subject to the father of spirits and live? For they disciplined us for a short time as seen best of them, but he disciplines us for our good that we may share his holiness. For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.

We all know that we've done wrong and there's something inside of us that knows that wrong should be punished. At Vacation Bible School our daughter Abby was helping teach the first grade boys in Clemens on Friday and Saturday night. And on the first night Pastor Brandon was teaching in the large group along our theme of ocean explorers and he was talking about that God's love is deeper than the deepest ocean and so he loves you no matter what and he invited the kids to blurt out some of the things that they might know that if you did in their home it would not make mom and dad happy.

So he was inviting them to talk about some of the sin, you know, in their lives and make the point that God's love covers even that and so they started calling out things. One said, not cleaning up your room and another said, hitting your little brother. And you know they're calling out these little things but Abby has a first grade boy sitting next to her that leans over to the other six year old next to him and he said, well you could kill somebody. She's like, this guy's six years old.

He's already figured out worst case scenario. Here, even at a tender young age we start knowing there's right and there's wrong and when you've done wrong there is by default sort of a fear that comes over you that somebody would find out about it and you're going to get in trouble. Some people have such a positive self-esteem that they may not think about it as much like the little girl that went to her school teacher and said, ma'am I don't mean to scare you but my daddy said if my grades don't improve somebody's going to get a spanking. But that's the feeling we have if you've done wrong, somebody's going to get punished for this.

There's going to be a problem around here and because of this we tend to run from those that would correct us. But we come today to Proverbs 12 one and we see an absolutely different understanding of discipline. He's not talking about punishment here.

He's talking about a gift that's given to us. And I want to show you today what has become very dear to my understanding of God and instructive of my relationship with God and perhaps it'll be a new paradigm for you to see the correction of God not as something to be feared but as a wonderful gift from a loving Father to be embraced that would draw you near to God in hope and in greater intimacy with Him while helping your life for the better. We're going to be talking about the discipline of the Lord. There's a whole lot that's at stake here because the Proverbs themselves go over this many times. The two words that are used in Proverbs 12 verse 1, the first one referring to discipline or translated as discipline, the second is reproof, are related terms.

They're similar in their meaning. And between the two of those terms, they're used 30 times in Proverbs, 99 times in the Old Testament. The theme of this is important. It runs through the Scripture. And whenever you see an important theme that just keeps recurring through Scripture, it's wise to pay attention and go, and why is this so important to God? And I think the reason it's so important to God is because He's a loving Father.

And just like any one of us as any parent would know who loves their kids, you want it to go well for them. You want them to head towards life, not towards death. And ultimately with God, He sees things in this way, that the way that you are responding to correction in your life can either be really life-giving or it can be really destructive to you. It's the difference between receiving instruction from the Lord and knowing it's God and knowing that He's good, versus always hearing a voice of condemnation. Many examples in the Scripture of stark contrast, but none more stark than that of Peter and Judas. Because Peter and Judas had so very much in common, didn't they? They both, in a very vile way, betrayed and denied the Lord Jesus.

I mean, just think about this for a moment. Both were privileged to be amongst the twelve. Both of them heard every question and answer series with Jesus amongst the people. Were there for the Sermon on the Mount.

Were there when Jesus healed people and touched people. They both, Judas and Peter, spent three years of their lives with the Messiah and saw it all. And for both of them, Jesus predicted their betrayal, their diabolical acts. He said in Matthew 26 of Judas, One of you will betray Me. And He said, quite frankly, to Judas in John 13, What you're going to do, do quickly. But He also predicted it to Peter in Luke 22. Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat, for I have prayed for you, that your faith may not fail.

And when you've turned again, strengthen your brothers. And Peter said to him, Lord, I'm ready to go with you both to prison and to death. And Jesus said, I tell you, Peter, the rooster will not crow this day until you deny three times that you know Me. Both of them were utterly selfish in the moment of temptation.

They were looking out for their own interests. And Luke 22 verse 3 says, The devil entered Judas, and on one occasion, Jesus actually turned to Peter and said, get behind Me, Satan. Both Judas and Peter had envisioned Jesus as being this earthly political ruler, an earthly king.

They were wrong about that, both of them. Both their rejections of Jesus were so heinous. The rejection and betrayal of Judas led to Jesus's crucifixion. But most people don't ever think about how bad Peter, his words were. Most scholars, when Peter was denied Jesus, most scholars agree the language there in Greek is conveying that Peter cursed. He used the Lord's name in vain, probably. He essentially said when he denied Jesus the third time, I don't know the blankety-blank man.

They were both awful. And here's the other thing, they both had real remorse. I think sometimes people forget this about Judas, how much remorse he had. We know that Peter did. Matthew 26, Peter remembered the saying of Jesus, Before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times. And he went out and wept bitterly. But do you know that Judas was even more remorseful? Judas, according to Matthew 27, 3, his betrayer saw that Jesus was condemned. He changed his mind.

Do you know that? The text says he changed his mind. And he brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and the elders, saying, I've sinned by betraying innocent blood. And they said, what's that to us?

See to it yourself. And throwing down the pieces of silver into the temple, he departed. So he gave back the money. He was in abject remorse.

But then, here's where the difference came. Judas, after having tried to make amends and they wouldn't take the silver back and he couldn't do anything, he experienced a mental torment and he hated himself, he condemned himself, and he killed himself. But Peter, who had in a very similar way betrayed Jesus, Peter was awakened by love. Something happened inside of Peter where when he wept in remorse, it did not become to him a worldly sorrow that led to death, but a godly sorrow that led to repentance. And in John 21, in a beautiful way, Jesus reinstates Peter. And it's so beautiful after the resurrection that when Jesus speaks to the women and tells them to go tell the disciples that he's raised from the dead, he highlights Peter. He says, tell the disciples and Peter. He was very excited for Peter to know that Jesus was alive.

He was very excited to see the man who had betrayed him three times, denied him three times. There's such a difference, you see, between discipline and punishment. And it's important for any parent to understand this.

I won't have time today to really talk about the skills of discipline and parenting, but I think you can extrapolate from what I'm saying some really important principles for your own parenting. But we're talking about God and the way He interacts with us. Discipline comes from the root word that is also the root of disciple. So you see disciple inside of discipline.

Remember that. And a disciple in the New Testament, a disciple, the word for it in Greek means a learner. The word discipline itself comes from the word for pupil. So discipline is about teaching. That's Alan Wright, and we'll have more teaching in a moment from today's important series. Ever feel like something's holding you back, as if you lack an important key that could change everything?

Is there someone you love who seems stuck? You'd like to help them, but how? What's missing? Blessing. We all need a positive, faith-filled vision spoken over our lives. You can learn how to embrace the biblical practice of blessing through Pastor Alan Wright's new book, The Power to Bless, which quickly became an Amazon number one bestseller after its recent release.

Until now, the hardcover book has only been available through retail sales. But this month, Alan Wright Ministries wants to send you the book as our thank you for your donation. When you give this month, you'll not only receive the bestselling book, but you'll also receive a free five-session video course in which Pastor Alan teaches how to bless and covers content not found in the book.

The video course includes a detailed study guide perfect for personal growth or small group discussion. Make your gift today and discover the power to bless. Call us at 877-544-4860.

That's 877-544-4860. Or come to our website, PastorAlan.org. Today's teaching now continues.

Here once again is Alan Wright. Discipline is about teaching. It's about instruction. Discipline is therefore an expression of love. But punishment is an expression of justice. Discipline is about giving a gift to the one receiving it. But punishment is about taking something from the one who's being punished. Punishment is about the need of the one administering the punishment. But discipline is not about the need of the one who's giving the discipline. Discipline is about the need of the one who's receiving it.

Sometimes a parent might need to cool off and just step away for a little while. That can be wisdom. But God's never like that. God never loses self-control. And here's the other thing about punishment versus discipline.

It's very important to understand. Punishment mandates penance. And what penance is, is the demand for the one who's being punished to do some things to help balance the scales of justice.

Do some things to prove yourself worthy of any measure of grace that you might receive. Or to at least stave off further worse punishment. But discipline does not look for penance. Discipline is not looking for someone to prove themselves. Discipline is looking to help someone grow, change, become better, and advance. It's all the world of difference.

And sometimes we get confused about the two because they at least have this in common. Both discipline and punishment carry with it some sting of pain. And beloved, pain in and of itself is a good thing.

Nobody wants to feel pain, but it's a good thing we can feel pain. I was out working in the yard this week and I was out there all sweaty and so humid. All of a sudden I felt something sting and the fire out of my back right through my shirt.

I did the old rip the shirt off, you know, like what is going on. And I had gotten stung by a wasp, I mean bad. I mean for three days I had this big, big whelp on my back that was all scratchy and itchy. I hated feeling the sting of the wasp. But the only thing worse than not feeling the sting of the wasp would be to not feel it.

Because what I found out was there's a wasp nest nearby. And if I hadn't felt it sting in me, then I would have probably just continued on and gotten stung a lot more times. Hansen's disease, commonly known as leprosy, is so often thought of as being a disease where people become dismembered and disfigured. But most all of that is because part of the problem of Hansen's disease, leprosy, is that you can lose sensation and not experience pain, especially on your skin.

So you can have infections and not know it. Pain itself is a good thing. You touch a hot stove and pain says don't do that again. So yes, there can be pain in the discipline that we experience from the Lord. But it is not the kind of pain that we think of when we think of abusive parents and unjust laws and frustrations and anger in the world. All of that that we experience, sometimes we transpose those feelings onto God as if He is that way.

And He's not, beloved. I can't give you a list and say well here are the things that would be like punishment and here are the things that might be the discipline of the Lord. I can't really give you a list like that because we walk in a unique relationship with God. But what I want you to see instead is the nature of God and the way that God speaks to us and what His heart is like. And once you know His heart and you know how good God is and you know what the sound of the voice of His love is like, you can know if there is a loving expression of the discipline of the Lord versus the condemnation of the enemy.

Let me just be plain about this. I think sometimes people just because they experience something difficult in this world immediately start blaming God for it. Listen, God doesn't discipline in ways that even an earthly sinful parent wouldn't think of. Wouldn't give my child cancer or destroy his life or do something to permanently hurt a child.

Who would do such a thing as that? Let me just be honest with you and tell you candidly that I've found over the years of walking with God and I'm almost hesitant to even say this because it's tender to me and I'm also embarrassed to say that the times that the Lord has disciplined me I see a pattern to it. And it has been that Lord is particularly mindful to help me and correct me if I ever misuse my words.

And this has increased in my life. You know there's some scriptures about the Lord holding teachers higher accountability and some of that. Well I really feel this with my words and it's not been just one time that this has happened to me.

Let me just give you a recent example that I think was a discipline of the Lord. And again it's unvarnished and I'm sorry to even have to share it but I think I want you to know what discipline feels like. I rarely do this but I was texting someone and we talked about another person in the text which is a terrible idea in the first place unless it's something lovely that you're saying about the person. But I was sort of feeling egged on in some frustration and so I sent back a text. It didn't have cursing, it wasn't awful, don't think the worst of me about it but it was still something negative about the person. And I don't have any idea how this happened. I have no idea. I sent the text and I looked down and I hadn't sent it to the person I was gossiping with.

I sent it to the person themselves. And it wasn't anything to do except just feel immediate severe pain in my soul. Alan Wright. Today's teaching on the foolproof discipline of God. It's from the series Foolproof and stay with us.

Alan is back here in the studio sharing a parting good news thought for the day in just a moment. Ever feel like something's holding you back? As if you lack an important key that could change everything?

Is there someone you love who seems stuck? You'd like to help them but how? What's missing? Blessing. We all need a positive faith-filled vision spoken over our lives. You can learn how to embrace the biblical practice of blessing through Pastor Alan Wright's new book The Power to Bless which quickly became an Amazon number one bestseller after its recent release. Until now the hardcover book has only been available through retail sales but this month Alan Wright Ministries wants to send you the book as our thank you for your donation. When you give this month you'll not only receive the bestselling book but you'll also receive a free five session video course in which Pastor Alan teaches how to bless and covers content not found in the book.

The video course includes a detailed study guide perfect for personal growth or small group discussion. Make your gift today and discover the power to bless. Call us at 877-544-4860 or come to our website PastorAlan.org.

Alan as we're back here in the studio we have a parting good news thought for the day here. Placing a bookmark and the conclusion of our teaching on the foolproof discipline of God continues with our next broadcast. When the Lord disciplines it is for the purpose of teaching.

The word discipline like the word disciple comes from the word for teach or for student. And so God doesn't, for the Christian, God doesn't punish. Your sin has been punished on the cross of Jesus Christ. So what discipline therefore is about is about God giving you instruction in a loving way. There are times Daniel as I was just describing today's broadcast there are times in which you have great remorse maybe because of folly in your life.

Maybe because of some great mistake. But that remorse God doesn't want it to lead you into what Paul calls worldly grief. But into Godly grief which draws you to Him.

So that's what we're learning about. And the comparison here as we'll see tomorrow is really between Judas and Peter. Both were very, very sorrow for their sin. With Judas it led to his own death. With Peter it led to him becoming the preacher at Pentecost. What a difference how you look upon the mistakes of your life. This good news message is a listener supported production of Allen Wright Ministries.