Rejecting God’s Discipline

Though I disciplined and strengthened their arms, yet they devise evil against Me; Hosea 7:15

Discipline is used to correct and strengthen a person. Athletes go through extreme disciplines to condition themselves to be able to play a sport to the best of their abilities, hoping to be better than everyone else. It helps remove bad habits and reinforces good habits in whatever sport is being played. Without the discipline to practice and train daily, one will be unable to become great. This can be used in every area of life.

Hosea records God saying of the Israelites that even though He had disciplined them and strengthened them, they devised evil against Him.

America started out as a small nation with people who had a focus upon God. The government of the nation was patterned after God’s pattern for Israel. It grew to be a large nation that influenced the entire world with God’s hand of favor upon it.

Over time people rejected God’s discipline and began to devise evil against Him, increasing the evil more and more. Churches have joined in the evil, bringing on God’s judgment against the nation and the people. Gossip, lying, cheating, stealing, hate, revenge, and sinful actions are accepted and practiced all the time inside and outside the church.

Those who claim to believe in Christ are to be set apart as different and holy unto God. The believer is to accept God’s discipline, His correction, and training in all righteousness and holiness, striving to be more like Christ every day.

Repenting of sin, turning away from sin, and following Christ should be the discipline and strength of every believer. God has given the believer everything needed to live this life in abundance and to be ready for the life to come.

In your life, you have certain disciplines that you follow very faithfully. You are able to stick to them without much thought. One of those disciplines should be to follow Christ and become more like Him. This means you must repent and turn from all sin and take on His holiness and righteousness.

Do not use what God has given you to devise evil against Him but use it to serve Him. God is ready to give you all that you need and more to do His will on this earth. You have His Holy Spirit and His word to lead and guide you in His holiness and righteousness.

Are you guilty of rejecting God’s discipline?

Today I pray that you will know Jesus as your Lord and Savior; that you will accept God’s discipline in your life; that God will reveal any evil in your life; that God will strengthen you to turn from all sin; and that you will glorify God with your whole life.

This is an updated edition of a post originally published on Insights from Tom

About the Author

Tom Arn is happily married for 30 years to his wonderful wife Cammie. They are blessed by God with eight wonderful children and one grandchild. Tom has worked as a children’s pastor, senior pastor, and many times (and currently) as a Sunday School Teacher. He has a General Ministries degree with a Bible College. He started doing a short devotional type Bible study on Facebook in 2014, going through the books of the Bible chapter by chapter, section by section. Tom writes what he feels God is placing on his heart.

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