“NOT SONS!”

Hebrews 12:3-9                                       (ESV)

“3 Consider HIM who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted.

4 In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.

5 And have you forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons? "My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor be weary when reproved by him. 

6 For the LORD disciplines the one HE loves, and chastises every son whom HE receives." 

7 It is for discipline that you have to endure. GOD is treating you as SONS. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline?

8 If you are left without discipline, in which all have participated, then you are ILLEGITIMATE CHILDREN and “NOT SONS”.

9 Besides this, we have had earthly fathers who disciplined us and we respected them. Shall we not much more be subject to the FATHER of spirits and live?”

One can stomach just so much birthday cake before it begins to nauseate simply by thinking about it!  So it is with the “prosperity gospel”, a lie straight from the great deceiver.   Observing a video recently from Joel Osteen where he said that if he brought his children to church in tattered clothing that we might not think too highly about him.  

Which brought back my childhood years in my memory banks.  We didn’t have running water in our house when we first moved to the house in the mid-1960’s.  For about six months we had carry water from the well and heat our bath water on the cook stove.  To say the least, our clothing was not the most fashionable.  However, it was the best my mother could provide, and miraculously, all three children survived!  

Hebrews 12:6 gets directly to the point that Scripture is making, “For the LORD disciplines the one HE loves, and chastises every son whom HE receives”!  If you aren’t being disciplined or chastised, you might not be one who receives HIM?  If you have an easy road with no hardships, would you ever search for help?  Would you be searching for TRUTH when everything was falling into place?  

Although I never experienced the love from my earthly father that I so desperately wanted, I was constantly told and shown by my mom unconditional love in great measures. The best thing she did for her children was to make sure we were exposed to the WORD OF GOD.  Knowing I was a son of a lady with a heart for her children gave me worth.  Not having everything that most children had, despite her working every shift available, gave me an appreciation for what I WAS blessed to have.  

Knowing that I am CHOSEN by our CREATOR to be one of HIS own is a Blessing beyond description.  Being one who is “NOT SONS” of GOD is something that I cannot imagine.  My EYES have been opened and I can SEE lies from the enemy.  My prayer is that if your EYES haven’t been opened that you will be drawn to HIM and be separated from the “NOT SONS” crowd!!!