SONS OR BASTARDS?
Thursday – July 12, 2018, Tamuz 29, 5778
Are you taken aback by the title? It is Bible. Greetings and welcome back to this wonderful faith building Bible Study from the Book of Hebrews. God is so good, He is so good to chasten us, not for His benefit only but primarily for ours. Let’s go ahead and read aloud our primary Bible text and dive right in for an abundant feast of pure water, health for our spirit, soul, and body, the whole man.
Hebrews 12:7-10 (KJV)
7 If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not?
8 But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons.
9 Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live?
10 For they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness.
The Scripture before us admonishes us to endure chastening. When we endure the chastening, then God can deal with us as sons. Not all in the Kingdom of God are sons (or daughters). At salvation we all are made children of God, but becoming a son is the result of a maturation process. It is easier for mature people to receive correction than the immature in the Kingdom of God. Consider the following passage before we move on.
Galatians 4:1-2 (KJV)
1 Now I say, That the heir, as long as he is a child, differeth nothing from a servant, though he be lord of all;
2 But is under tutors and governors until the time appointed of the father.
Jesus has inherited all therefore in Him we also are heir of all, joint-heirs in Him. However, until we reach certain milestones of maturity we do not have access to all of the Kingdom of God. I am not referring to the fundamentals of salvation like eternal life but I am referring to our level of responsibility and the level of power that can flow through us. The appointed time of the father is not some chronological date that applies to all say like voting at age twenty-one. It has to do with maturity and a certain level of maturity may be reached by one person in the Kingdom of God in say three years and another may not be at the same level after forty years. It all has to do with our diligence, our discipline, and our willingness to receive the Word of God even when, perhaps especially when, it conflicts with previously held beliefs.
Our primary text goes on to tell us that if we are not being chastised then we are not sons but bastards. A bastard is an illegitimate son, not a son at all, outside the Kingdom of God. Our Heavenly Father sees us all as sons by faith whether we have attained to that level or not. Our Heavenly Father is not chastising those outside of the body of Christ, the Kingdom of God. His Holy Spirit is convicting them of sin, of the need for righteousness, and a coming judgment (justice). You must catch the fish before attempting to clean them. As we move forward in our text looking to verse nine the author points out the juxtaposition of the natural with the physical. Correction in the natural engenders more reverence or respect in the natural and thus the same is true in the spiritual. We are best served to come under the authority of our natural fathers. In that place of submission, we will be granted to exercise more authority and power. Our privileges and responsibilities grow proportional to our reverence, respect, and honor of our natural father’s and so also with our Heavenly Father. In comparison we are so much better served when we come into subjection to our Heavenly Father who has given us eternal life. As we submit to His authority, which is a sign of maturity, then He is able to put more into our hand or under our authority. We can be heir of all, have all authority and ownership however until we mature we do not see any of the benefits of that inheritance of authority and ownership. Let’s take a look at verse ten in a different translation of the Bible.
Hebrews 12:10 (HCSB)
10 For they disciplined us for a short time based on what seemed good to them, but He does it for our benefit, so that we can share His holiness.
The point that I am bringing out is that our earthly fathers did what seemed best to them, our Heavenly Father knows what is best for us. Our Heavenly Father’s correction is to make us more and more like Him, sharing in His holiness or divinity. Just look at the blessing at the end of this teaching from 2 Peter 1:2-4 which tells us that our knowledge of the Word makes us better able to share in the Divinity of our Father and our God. Seems to me wholly worthwhile to get as much knowledge of Him and make it ours if we are looking to be like Daddy. Remember, it is impossible to have faith without knowledge.
Until our next publication, I speak this Scriptural prayer over your life right now, receive it in the name of Jesus, confess it, and walk it out with thanksgiving.
2 Peter 1:2-4 (KJV)
2 Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord,
3 According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:
4 Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.
By: Dr. David Wood, Author, Bible Teacher, and Prophetic Voice
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