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; 6FOR THOSE WHOM THE LORD LOVES HE DISCIPLINES, AND HE SCOURGES EVERY SON WHOM HE RECEIVES.” Hebrews 12:5-6

We must first believe that our Lord, the all-powerful creator of the universe, loves us dearly and His love does not waver. No matter what wrong we do or how many times we make a mistake, God will not abandon us and, because of His love for us, will constantly work to make us perfect and whole in our faith. While we may easily discard things that do not work for us, the Lord will never give up on us. The Lord’s love endures forever and is steadfast.

Second, we must understand and accept that the Lord has authority over us. When we do not obey Him, God will discipline us. Why? God sends hardships our way to help us learn and develop our faith because He loves us. When He disciplines us, we must immediately recognize our error, ask for forgiveness, repent what we have done wrong, and obey Him correctly as soon as possible. 

For the chosen, God considers our lives of faith in this world and our eternal lives in the next as a whole. While the unchosen exist only in this world, our lives in this world determine and extend into our eternal lives in heaven. God does not defer responsibility for our success or failure in achieving eternal salvation. He guides us through the truth of his Word in the Bible and his servants – ministers, teachers, mentors – who provide His message and teachings, to show us the right path through each moment of our daily lives. 

When things go well and good things happen for us, it happens solely through God’s power. Do not be mistaken in thinking that it is our skill and ability which create our successes. Similarly, hardships also come from our Lord. When we face difficulty, we cannot battle against God and try to resolve them through our own efforts without God’s aid. These challenges are God’s way of teaching us, and our focus must be on figuring out what we must repent and fix. When we recognize what we must correct, we must quickly address it, so we can turn God’s action towards us into a blessing. 

Do not be resentful, complain, or give up hope because difficulty comes to us. Understand it is God’s love and desire to help us. Many do not see this, do not seek to understand the cause, and do not repent. They suffer more and imprison themselves in pain. God appreciates our efforts when we try to improve our faith. Our discipline turns into a blessing. 

In each moment of each day, simply ask yourself whether your action will lead to God’s blessing or discipline. Ask yourself, “What does God want me to do here?” By having a dialogue with Him from moment to moment, we live connected with God. Seek out what lesson to learn. When we repent and correct, then the discipline will be resolved. Similarly, it is important that, when good things happen in our lives, we understand why and reinforce that behavior. The one who acts according to God’s direction is the one having an active conversation with God. All our hearts, minds, and actions become aligned with God’s purpose. This is a blessed life. 

Let us live our lives awake. Reflect on the past to see where God has blessed or disciplined us. Know correctly why we receive blessings and are being disciplined. Repent and fix. Dialogue with God and follow his purpose. Hardship comes when we are arrogant, when we disregard God’s direction, and act on our own desires. Be humble. Be reconciled with and live connected with God. This is how we receive God’s blessings. 

Click for Korean sermon https://soundcloud.com/yhpaik/1987-8-7-shorta