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He disciplines and punishes

Hebrews 12:3-6 (JDV)

Hebrews 12:3 You see, consider him who endured such hostility from sinners against himself so that you won’t grow weary in your throats and give up.
Hebrews 12:4 In struggling against failure, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.
Hebrews 12:5 And you have forgotten the encouragement that addresses you as sons: My son, do not take the Lord’s discipline lightly or lose heart when you are reproved by him,
Hebrews 12:6 for the Lord disciplines the one he cares about and punishes every son he receives.

He disciplines and punishes

Sometimes in our attempt to encourage those struggling with sin, we are quick to separate the act from the actor. We tell them that what they are struggling with is not God’s punishment. But the author of Hebrews equated our struggle against failure and God’s discipline and punishment. Sometimes they can be the same thing. Like a good father, our heavenly Father sometimes disciplines and punishes us to get us back in line. He only does this because he cares about us. It is not a sign of his rejection, but his reception.