HEBREWS HEB13
The
purpose of Discipline Hebrews
12:1-13
Recall the sequences of thought: 10:19-32 gave the call to perseverance under opposition – the exercise of faith; Ch. 11 demonstrated from the history of God’s people how such faith could endure and conquer; now 12:1-13 calls for continued perseverance, both in the light of the past and in view of God’s personal involvement in our lives.
1.
The ‘do’s and don’ts’ of persevering
(1-6)
a. Think about the positive incentives to press on:
i.
What encouragement comes from studying the lives of
God’s people? (1a). What Christian
biographies can you recommend?
ii.
The race track is already ‘marked out’ (v. 1
NIV). If God has set out the course, what encouragement can you derive
from that? Paul frequently uses
illustrations from the Greek games (1 Cor. 9:24-27; 2 Tim. 2:5; Phil. 3:12-14)
iii.
‘Fix your eyes upon Jesus’ (2). In practice what does this mean? How is He the ‘author and perfector’ of our
faith? Why is this encouraging? Think about
Phil. 1:1-6. How does Christ’s
acceptance of the cross (2) help us to press on?
iv.
What encouragement do you get from v 3? How does v. 3 tie in with Paul’s testimony
in 2 Cor. 4:16-18?
b.
But there are negatives we must get to grips with:
i.
What things can ‘hinder’ us from persevering?
(1). They’re not necessarily sinful in
themselves. What are we to do? (1)
ii.
Why has sin the ability to ‘hold on to us so tightly’,
even as Christians? What sins get at us
in this way? Think about the list in
Eph. 4:25-31 (Paul was writing to committed Christians). What are we to do with them? (1). How?
iii.
Think about the extent to which we really resist sin
(4). It’s a battle with the devil. What does Paul teach? (Eph. 6:10-18)
iv.
God has given us His word to encourage us (5b, 6), but
it’s easy to forget it when we are under pressure (5a). How can we deal with this problem?
2. Good
reasons for persevering (5-13)
a. We are God’s sons. How many times does the word ‘son’ or ‘sons’ occur in vs. 5-8. That, of course, includes all Christians – men and women. Think about the privilege of this relationship in the light of Gal. 4:4-7; Rom. 8:15-17. According to these verses in what relationship is God to us? And what is Christ? (see also Heb. 2:16).
b. The Father disciplines us. How many times does ‘discipline’ occur in vs. 5-11. If repetition is a good teaching method, God must have something important to get across here. The Greek noun ‘paideia’ is directly derived from ‘pais’, which is a ‘child’. So ‘paideia’, ‘discipline’, is literally, the rearing of a child, and can be used for ‘training’, ‘instruction’, ‘discipline’, ‘correction’. God’s involved in bringing up children – sons.
The question is, why does God discipline, rebuke, punish and train? It’s clear that in this chapter His disciplining and training relate primarily to two areas of experience: first, the opposition through which they were passing (3); second, the sin in which they could so easily become entangled (1,4).
Bear these two factors in mind as you think about the following details:
i. What should our attitude be to God’s training process? (5b).
ii. What does v. 6 tell us about God’s reason for training/disciplining us?
iii. What rather unpleasant aspects of disciplining do we experience? (5b, 6b, 7a, 11a). How is it that these can have a positive outcome?
iv. What kind of ‘life’ do we experience when we submit to this training? (9b, 19b, 11).
v. Note the reference to human fathers (7b, 9a, 10a). Why is our heavenly Father’s discipline even more worthwhile?
vi. Why should we be worried if we’re not disciplined? (8)
vii. How does God discipline us – or anyone else – when we/they get entangled in sin?
viii. What positive results come from experiencing opposition or difficulties in our Christian lives when we recognise them as part of or sovereign Father’s training programme? Illustrate from your own experience or your observations of other Christian’s lives.
c. Press on. Why are vs. 12, 13 an appropriate exhortation at the conclusion of vs. 5-11?
Note: v. 13 probably indicates that the believers should press on in the Christian way, knowing that opposition and other problems are all part of God’s training programme. Recognising this, those Jews who still hovered between true Christian faith and the temptation to return to Judaism (‘the lame’) would commit themselves to the Lord (be ‘healed’).
Thought: When we understand God’s purpose for us, we are better equipped to persevere.
Pray for eyes that are open to reality. ‘Moses persevered because he saw Him who is invisible’ (11:27). Paul had the same perception (2 Cor. 4:17, 18).