As a father pities his children, so the Lord pities those who fear Him. For He knows our frame; He remembers that we are dust. (Psalm 103:13-14)

My wife and I have four children — three boys and a girl — with an age range of 17 years between the oldest and the youngest. Like all of you who have more than one child, we discovered that each of them are very different. They each have their own personality, quite different from the others, and all of them have pursued their own unique interests. To me, that is fascinating considering that they all grew up in the same household, were taught the same things and raised the same way. Yet, in terms of guidance and discipline, we realized that what worked for one didn’t always work with the others. Their uniqueness required that we adjust our approach, depending on the situation, if we wanted to see the desired results.

Now let’s extrapolate that idea to include the entire human race, past and present, in regard to how our Heavenly Father deals with His children. First we must acknowledge that, as David said, we are “dust” and born with an evil inclination; as it is written, “There is not a just man on earth who does good and does not sin” (Ecclesiastes 7:20). Though we are but dust — in other words, temporal — we also possess an eternal element. God created us to be a living soul. Unfortunately, our physical component tends to drag us downward toward the temporal side of things which is why we must be guided and corrected by our Heavenly Father. Therefore, that we might be provoked to focus on spiritual issues, it is established that “as a man chastens his son, so the Lord your God chastens you. (Deuteronomy 8:5).

It is also written that we should not despise the chastening of the Lord because “whom the Lord loves He chastens” (Hebrews 12:6). Okay, but why does it seem that He is quick to chasten one but slow to chasten another? Why does it seem that He is far more merciful to some than with others? The simple answer is because we are all different and He knows that what works for one doesn’t necessarily work for another. Some of His children would exploit His mercy for selfish reasons; some would be overwhelmed by His goodness and respond in an appropriate manner. In short, He knows His children well and knows how to get our attention. We all came into this world with the same carnal inclination but we don’t all develop spiritually in the same way or at the same pace.

Therefore, because He is a good Father, He shapes and disciplines us according to His Will that we might, by His instructions, acquire a good inclination and fulfill His purpose. So remember: the chastening of the Lord — though painful, and often different from what you see others being subjected to — “yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it (Hebrews 12:11).

Blessings and Shalom,  

Bill