We've been talking about the fear of God, the favor of God, friend of God.
So today we talk about the discipline of God.
The discipline of God.
So that's what we'll talk about today.
And I mean it's a topic you avoid, eh?
Because that's the God we grew up with.
This disciplining God.
So you want to avoid that.
You want to let him be friend and favor and all this stuff.
But let's not talk about the discipline of God.
So today we decided to talk about it.
So guys, discipling or the formation of disciples is impossible without discipline.
Meaning you can't form disciples unless there is discipline involved.
And so what discipline really does, and we'll talk about it and you'll find out that, oh
shucks, this isn't as bad as I thought.
So discipline, see God's intent guys is that you partake in his divine nature.
God's intent is that you partake in his divine nature.
Let me simplify that going back to what we learned maybe 10 months ago.
We said that our primary call is a call to being.
I don't know if you remember that.
Our primary call is a call to being, which then made us ask another question.
Call to being what?
And the answer was call to being like God.
That was the answer.
And then we came up with this theme for the year which was world meet God.
As in when you meet me, you should begin to see aspects of the father in my life.
So God's intent always is I've got to make Jacob look like me.
I've got to help him partake in my nature so that others in the world can see what I
look like.
Because that's what Jesus came to do, right?
He came and said if you have seen me, you have seen the father.
So that's God's intent.
So he wants me to partake in his divine nature.
But here's what happens.
Discipline educates me.
Discipline educates me and keeps me fit.
Discipline keeps me fit to participate in or partake in his nature.
That's what the end of discipline is.
Discipline educates me or keeps me fit to partake in his nature.
While at the same time escaping the corruption of the world.
Where do we get this from?
Go to 2nd Peter 1.4 and you'll see it there.
Escaping the corruption of the world.
I mean, I'm just taking a verse from there and adding discipline to it.
So discipline educates me and keeps me fit to partake in God's nature and escape the
corruption of the world.
That's what discipline basically is geared towards.
Just remember that.
It's important that you remember this.
Discipline is not punishment.
It's never punishment when it comes to God.
Got to remove that idea.
You got to separate punishment and penalty from discipline.
Because that's what we think.
When our parents disciplined us, it was this thing of, ah shucks, he's going to punish
me now or she's going to punish me now.
Or there was a penalty attached to discipline.
So when it comes to God, God's intent is, I've got to use discipline in Jacob's life
to educate him and keep him fit to partake in my nature and to keep him from the corruption
of the world.
And there's never any punishment with it.
Never any penalty.
Because whenever there's punishment and penalty, there is fear.
And whenever there's fear, there is torment.
And whenever there is torment, there is no perfect love.
But God loves perfectly.
So got to separate those guys.
And it's very hard to separate.
Some of us are 40, 50 years old.
Some of us are younger.
And the thing is, at the end of the day, we've grown up with this attitude of discipline
and punishment go hand in hand and it's got nothing to do with each other.
Really, nothing to do with each other.
Just remember that in the back of your mind.
So here's how we can break up discipline.
It operates on three main levels, guys.
Three levels.
So here's what it looks like.
Discipline is training and instruction.
Training and instruction.
That's one aspect of discipline.
Training and instruction.
Two, there's something called the discipline of obedience.
We'll touch on that.
And three, there's discipline as chastisement.
These are the three levels that discipline operates on.
One, discipline is training and instruction.
Two, discipline is the discipline of obedience.
And three, discipline is the discipline of chastisement.
As in when you are chastised.
What's another word for chastise?
We hardly use that word.
We go, hardly tell our children, Tavis, I'm now going to chastise you.
No.
What's another word for chastise?
Pardon?
What did she say?
Scald.
Scald, yeah.
It's a little stronger than scald.
But try using it on your kids.
I'm going to chastise you.
And they'll think you're going to do some surgical procedure on them.
So these are the three levels it operates on.
Strange thing is guys, even as parents, part of you, those of you who are parents should
begin to take this teaching not just in terms of God in you, but also in how you can deal
with your children.
Because it operates on these three levels.
Where did you guys come out of?
Yeah.
Sorry I asked.
It's like rabbits out of a hat, man.
Yeah, thank God for them.
Look at all the dirt on the ground.
I mean, praise God for kids.
Okay, so guys, even as parents, this applies.
Where you need to use discipline for training and instruction.
You need to use the discipline of obedience and you need occasionally to use discipline
as chastisement.
And this is the last resort, strangely.
So when you study discipline, you have to study it in this progression.
If you study it any other way, if you change this progression, you might get a twisted
understanding of God and a twisted understanding of discipline.
Because most of us see discipline as just this and we immediately superimpose that on
the father and he comes out looking really ugly.
But this is where he goes when other steps have not worked.
And so you have to understand discipline in this progression if you want to have an accurate
picture of the father and of this whole concept of discipline.
Any questions before we go on?
Yeah, I'm going to explain all three.
Yeah, who brought me that water?
Derek.
Your membership fee just went up, man.
Okay, so let's talk about the discipline of obedience first.
The discipline of obedience.
Guys, the discipline of obedience is when you experience, how do I put it?
Sometimes guys, what God does is he takes you through an experience where you have to
yield to God through times of intense pressure and suffering and he lets the word test you
so that you become perfect.
Now having said that, let's take an example.
Joseph, Psalm 105, verses 17 to 21.
And it says, the word of the Lord tested Joseph.
His hands were put in fetters, his neck or hands or legs or two parts of the body were
put in fetters and he was subjected to a whole lot of pressure till the word of the Lord came to
pass.
The point being, discipline as obedience is when there's a cost exacted or a demand placed on you
to see whether your untested obedience can now move to a place of proven obedience.
Let me say that again.
Discipline in terms of obedience is when God demands of your life a yieldedness to him as
you go through what seems like intense pressure and suffering and yet his intent is, I'm going
to bring you Jacob from this place of untested obedience to proven obedience.
So, go ahead Maurice.
Psalm 105, verse 17 to 21.
Where it's experiencing the depths of yieldedness to God through times of intense pressure
and suffering.
Jesus went through it, Hebrews chapter 5, verses 14 and 15.
The Bible says in Hebrews chapter 5, verses 14 and 15 that Jesus learned obedience through suffering.
And the only way you can learn the discipline of obedience is when you've been given a promise
that you're holding on to, knowing that it doesn't matter what I go through, I'm going
through this, even if I have to suffer I will come out on the other side because a promise
has been given and it'll happen.
Another way you go through this discipline of obedience is for the joy that is set before you.
Where Jesus endured the cross and the shame, why?
Because of the joy that was set before him.
Everybody who is a Christian goes through this.
I mean your testimonies, your stories here are an example of this.
What he spoke about last week, when he talked about God exacting a cost from him and Mariana
in terms of having moved here to do what they're doing here, there was a cost that was exacted.
There's nobody who can come into maturity without going through the discipline of obedience.
Nobody.
Well what very often happens is we don't like the intense pressure and the demand that's placed on
our lives and so we opt out of it.
We don't see it through.
And so what happens is you still go to heaven, you still are the father's beloved but you never
come into maturity.
This is why I keep saying if God is putting to death something in your life, die quietly.
Don't die screaming.
A seed doesn't say, oh I'm falling on the ground, oh the mud is around me squeezing the life.
The seed dies.
Can you imagine if every seed started screaming?
It'd be very noisy man.
But John 12 24 says, unless a seed falls to the ground and dies, it shall not bear fruit
and it will die.
It will stay alone.
That's what John 12 24 says.
So know this that this will happen in your life and be grateful for it.
Dance with joy when this happens because it is the only way you're going to come into any
form of maturity.
No other way around it.
So have Mariana and Jason come to Vancouver and are they going through different trials?
Great.
They're in the right place.
Are Mark and Rhonda who moved from Quadra Island having a difficult time adjusting?
Great.
Otherwise you should have stayed there.
You shouldn't have come.
No one put a gun to anybody's head.
But if you're here, then well, learn it because there is something called a discipline of
obedience which brings you into maturity.
It just changes you, man.
Changes you.
This is why in John 15 verse 2, I love what Jesus says.
Jesus doesn't say that every branch that does not bear fruit I will prune.
He says every branch that bears fruit I will prune.
Jesus says, if you can bear fruit, my life shall be your life's life.
prune. He says every branch that bears fruit I will prune. That's what he says.
That Jacob it's so good to see you bearing fruit. Now let me come and prune
your branches so that you bear more fruit. And what is the usual way of
pruning? With the word because later on he says immediately after that that you
are already pruned back by the message or the word I have spoken. So what
happens is God will then give you a promise or God will give you a thing in
the distance through his word and say okay start walking towards this Jacob
and in the process demands and pressure increase man. Enjoy it because it's the
only way you're going to come into who you are. It's the only way. Jesus went through it.
Jesus went through it. He learned obedience through suffering. This is the
discipline of obedience. It's submission to the will of God in the arena of men
so that God's plan unfolds. Let me say that again. It is submission to the will
of God while you live amongst people. This is not just between God and you.
It happens in the context of people. Joseph went through it. David went
through it. I mean what happens the day he's crowned king? He runs as a refugee.
What happens to Joseph? He's a prisoner. What happens to Moses? Driven into the
backside of the Sinai. There's not a single person in the Bible from the
Hebrews chapter 11 who didn't go through the discipline of obedience. Wonderful
thing. Wonderful thing. It moves you from untested obedience to proven obedience.
It moves you from untested obedience to proven obedience and the process
involves intense pressure and suffering. The process involves intense pressure
and suffering. It moves you from untested obedience to proven obedience.
Abraham had to go through it and the Bible actually says and then God tested
Abraham. Moving him from Abraham, father of faith, let me now take you from
unproven obedience to untested obedience to proven obedience and then he became
the friend of God and it was credited to him as righteousness. Any questions on
that one before we move on? Anything you want to add or disagree with?
No, I'm not saying sickness is part of that. I'm not saying sickness is part of that.
Is it possible for God to put on us pressure more than we can bear? No.
Because in everything we go back to the scriptures, right? Because the scriptures
are the final authority when it comes to experiences and the scriptures say he
will not test us beyond our ability to bear but with it will give us ways of
escape. So that can't happen. Yeah, thank God for scriptures. Otherwise it'd be
guess-working, man. Any other questions? Okay, let's talk about chastisement then
before we go on to the first one. Chastisement. Chastisement is when
basically Hebrews 12 6 puts it this way, Hebrews 12 6 puts it this way, for the
Lord disciplines the one he loves and chastises every son whom he receives. For
the Lord disciplines the one he loves and chastises every son whom he receives
one more time for the Lord disciplines the one he loves and chastises every
son whom he receives which means Jacob because he's a son of God not the son of
God because Jacob is a son of God it is natural that God will discipline Jacob
and will chastise him if Jacob goes beyond a point. This is not automatic you
can be hey tell me something was Jesus chastised by the father? No. Sure our
chastisement was put on him that's a different thing was Jesus chastised by
the father? No. Why? He was obedient. This is a place you go to unfortunately all
of us go there but this is not who this is not what God starts with this is
where God goes to why because it's course correction chastisement is always
course correction. Course correction from what? Course correction from stubbornness
course correction from unrelenting sin yeah unrelenting course correction from
unrelenting sin course correction from the loss of the fear of God I'll read it
again after I'm done and course correction from destiny destroying
choices that we make so let me say that again God uses chastisement only when
other forms of warning have failed and now you're at a place of such stubbornness
that your neck has gone so brittle that if anyone touches it your head will fall
off that's when course correction comes in or course correction happens when
there is unrelenting sin. C-O-U-R-S-E Angela yeah course correction yeah and so
stubbornness unrelenting sin thank you Jacob I think that's what you said loss
of the fear of God that's another thing that happens a loss of the fear of God
and that happens quite often in New Testament Christianity because we see
God as a God of mercy and he keeps we know that he's merciful we know that
he's merciful and what happens in the process is we lose the fear of God it's
not supposed to be that way but sometimes mercy does not provoke repentance it
provokes I can get away with this and then God has to step in with chastisement
and the last one is when you I mean you can add to it but another reason why
chastisement is used is when I am making destiny-destroying choices in my
life and God cares so much to see Jacob become all that he needs to become that
he steps in with chastisement but remember what we talked about when we
talked about the nature of the father we said one of the character
attributes of the father is that he engages in anger-free discipline anger
free discipline his discipline or chastisement is never loaded with anger
it's anger free and like Wayne shouted out from behind it actually has the
love that a father has for his son in it so it's it's just full of a father's
love for his son what makes it so different from our human fathers is that
there's no anger in it man there's no anger in it you know I've been strong
with Jason at times but I've never been angry with him never been angry with him
I don't even have a biological father-son relationship with him but the point
being guys if Jacob who's super flawed can do that with another person who's
made tons of mistakes which we won't talk about right now that's another
sermon that he'll teach next month the mistakes that my wife and I have made
that's the title of the next sermon but that aside guys God's discipline is
anger-free you've got to remember that it'll make you more comfortable with
the father at the end of the day how we view the father is how we view life and
ourselves so when you suddenly begin to see the father as our shucks he treats
me like a dad treats a son and his discipline even though I don't like it
because he himself said it isn't pleasant will never have anger in it it
kind of makes it easier to handle it guys makes it easier to handle it
Chastisement may take different forms it may take the form of rebuke like
strong rebuke you read the book of Revelation then you'll see it in
Revelation 2 21 where he says hey you've been tolerating Jezebel he says to the
church in Tyatira and he says you've been tolerating her and I have given her
time to repent and she hasn't repented so here's what I'm gonna do I'm gonna
put her on a sickbed and any of her followers I'm gonna deal with them
harshly too and suddenly you begin to think oh shucks there are different
ways that God uses chastisement it may take the form of rebuke here's the thing
that sometimes boggles my mind it may also take the form of affliction
affliction even leading to death which we see in 1st Corinthians 11 where God
says some of you have been so not into keeping the church together you've been
trying to disunite the church and so don't be surprised that some of you are
sick and some of you are dead 1st Corinthians 11 verse 30 so sometimes
discipline takes a form of affliction and another form of discipline is when
human adversaries rise up against you the Bible talks about that when
Solomon began to go askew God disciplined him by raising up human
adversaries to block him so those are three ways that chastisement can work
itself out and it always ceases when correction manifests it always ceases
when correction manifests guys here's the thing though why not live here why
even go down here why not live here why come down here it's possible but
unfortunately we don't seem to get the hang of it but today we'll only be
talking about the discipline of training and instruction mainly just so
we understand that and then we'll talk about the other ones in detail later so
today we talk about discipline in the context of instruction and training by
the Holy Spirit isn't it awesome that the Holy Spirit calls himself the
counselor the guide the comforter the helper I mean put all that together and
you have an awesome instructor man and now you see why Psalm 32 verse 8 makes
so much sense where God says Jacob I'll instruct you and teach you in the way
you should go and I will counsel you with my eye upon you and then he goes
on to quickly add since I'm doing that do not be like a stubborn horse or mule
which needs bitten bridle to bring it back on course as in see oh you are I see
again the point being guys track the attract will be easier so you see how it
works then I will instruct you with my eye upon you training and instruction is
one of God's favorite ways of disciplining man and why does he do it as
we said earlier the intent is to conform me to the image of the Sun to
image of the Sun I Hebrews 12 10 puts it this way God disciplines me for good in
order that I may share in his holiness God disciplines me for good in order
that I may share his holiness God disciplines me so that the fruit of
righteousness may be made obvious in me and again guys nobody is free of the
same first Corinthians 925 here's what Paul says Paul says everyone who
competes in the game and if you're in God you are in the game a God's playing
this amazing game in the universe it is the only game in the universe that began
ages ago and will be concluded and like it or not anyone who competes in the
game goes into strict training in the earth they do it to get a crown that's
perishable but we do it to get a crown that will last forever first Corinthians
925 so enjoy being trained I know I've said this story before but just for the
sake of the tape guys I read this even recently that when they pick horses to
pull the Queen's chariot through this not chariot what do you call those
things now carriage through the streets of London they go and go to some of the
finest tables in the country and then they pick these 16 or 20 of the finest
horses and then they bring them to this place where they are sorted out and they
pick about 10 or 12 and after that these horses are that used to run free now
have to learn how to walk properly they take them through rooms where there's
fire and they have them walk through fire that suddenly bursts out of
different corners and then they have cannon shots going off on the side they
got guns going off on the side they've got car eggs car backfires going on off
on the side they were loud crowd noises that suddenly erupted in the room and
through it all these horses have to learn how to stay still and then after
that they are trained through all this noise to listen to the whisper of the
trainer not a loud shout but a whisper and to distinguish one whisper from
another whisper and then after that they select six or eight horses that finally
have the privilege of pulling the Queen's carriage through the streets of
London that is how it is guys this thing called training and instruction is so
vital to end up pulling the King's chariot it's the only way I happen
through discipline training and instruction the other thing it does say
in Psalm 94 12 I love the way some versions put it it says in Psalm 94 12
how blessed the man you train God this is how the message puts it how blessed
the man you train God the woman you instruct in your word providing a
circle of quiet within the clamor of evil providing a circle of quiet within
the clamor of evil as in as you begin to train and are instructed you'll find
that you have the ability to rest in the midst of a storm remember that pilot
Scully who landed a plane in New York on the river and one of the things that was
said about him over and over again was how calm he was because he had thousands
of hours of flying and through all that was happening and you should be inside a
cockpit a when it when a plane begins to crash you have all kinds of sounds going
off it is so scary you want to shut the sounds but the sounds are meant to do
exactly the opposite and through it all he stays calm and lands the plane on the
river and not a single life is lost so one of the things that training and instruction of
discipline does is it allows you to live in a circle of quiet in the middle of
clamor actively begin to ask God father I'm your child I'm your son discipline me
what an odd prayer to pray it's the most frightening prayer all these years of my
life the last thing you want to go tell God is discipline me and now you're saying but
father I'd love it I'd love to be trained and instructed because I want to ultimately
pull the chariot through the streets the chariot of the king so let's see what we
can do to make this happen in our lives first thing guys training and instruction
training and instruction comes through doctrine training and instruction comes
through doctrine as in let me let me define doctrine for us at least in terms
of how I mean it doctrine is the truth the present truth regarding any set of
Christian beliefs that's how I'm defining it as in let's take healing okay so what is the
present truth not yesterday's truth or truth from a hundred years ago what has God presently said
you take the hundred years ago and you take what God is saying today and you find out okay what
is the present truth regarding this or you take salvation remember we knew what it was to be born
again but we didn't know what born again meant so Christ life we did this course called Christ
life and Christ life showed us what the truth was with regard to salvation so doctrine is the
present truth with regard to any set of beliefs that Christians hold and so one needs to understand
that when it comes to training and instruction it has to come from the word all scripture is
breathed out by God and it's profitable for teaching for reproof for correction for training
in righteousness the thing is guys most of us I don't necessarily read the word every day and
if we do we don't study it we just read it most of us don't study it so here's a suggestion that
I want to employ and I hope you employ try and see if you can work it out this week where
instead of just reading why don't you pick a book or why don't you pick a character or why
don't you pick a theme or why don't you pick a set of beliefs that you need to understand more
or why don't you pick a role that someone is playing in the Bible and then why don't you
study it when I was in England I met a guy and I gave him four people to study Mordecai,
Jethro, Luke and Barnabas why because this guy that I was speaking to is a guy who's just brilliant
at coming alongside and helping people build and make things happen so I said go study Luke, Jethro,
Mordecai and Barnabas and he didn't even know where Mordecai was and so he had to go and find
out where Mordecai was and then he began to learn and now he's growing in it because he has his
desire to increase when was the last time you and I actually studied the word to draw doctrine that
will help solidify beliefs that we have because we just read through right time to move into
things and just reading through we started that when we were seven. Begin to study. Any questions
on that before we go on? As much as possible attend tellyos don't worry about the money if
there's if you don't at present have the money to pay forget it attend it some of the stuff we are
teaching at tellyos is so brilliant that it'll change the way you function attend. Acts 29 should
have the rich privilege of attending regardless of whether we have the ability to pay for it or not
because hey this is a bread for the children surely we can eat it I'd so welcome you even if
you want to come this Wednesday turn up man because each each part of the course can stand
on its own that's a suggestion we got 15 minutes more guys the next thing is training and instruction
so the first point is training and instruction comes through the word second training and
instruction comes through restraint training and instruction comes through restraint rebuke and
correction training and instruction come through restraint rebuke and correction
first Thessalonians 512 says this first Thessalonians 512 it says we ask you brothers to respect those
who labor among you and are over you in the Lord and admonish you and esteem them very highly in
love because of their work one of my responsibilities is to make sure that I admonish you as in correct you
rebuke you and if you shy away from it or begin to build a defense then there's nothing I can do
man nothing I can do so that's one of the things we have to learn that rebuke restraint and
correction happens in the context of the body and some of the elders and the equipers that are
appointed are meant to do that that's one scripture the next scripture says in Colossians 316 let the
word of Christ dwell in you richly teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom singing
psalms and hymns and spiritual songs with thankfulness in your hearts to God this is where
the body now begins to function in a way where sin is no longer mind your own business where sin
now becomes an issue that even the body begins to confront not to find out faults but now the
body begins to function in a way that begins to correct and if necessary rebuke but follows an
order or a process can you imagine why we get away with what we get away in church because sin is our
own private business and there's no rebuke correction or admonishing within the context of
the body but how can you function without that man what if your children never had restrained
rebuke or correction in the body this question may be running through your mind and I hope it's
not so Jacob who does that to you oh man you have no idea I get enough of it anything I am today is
because of people who had the guts to speak into my life and my greatest advantage is I open my
life to people to correct it was not an advantage till about 15 or 16 years ago but my greatest
advantage is I've opened my life to people to correct and they correct me Proverbs 18 one I've
quoted it here before but I want to quote it again whoever isolates himself seeks his own desire he
breaks out against all sound judgment whoever isolates himself seeks his own desire this is
from the ESV the NIV says it differently whoever isolates himself seeks his own desire and he
breaks out against all sound judgment let me put it this way guys a closed life is a recipe for
stagnation dulled vision and error a closed life is a recipe for stagnation dull vision and error
let me say that again a closed life is a recipe for stagnation dulled vision and error doesn't matter
who you are a tomorrow if I close my life off to you and to others who have the audacity to speak
into my life here's what will happen to me one I'll begin to stagnate to my vision will dull and
three I will go into error I'm seeing a day I sit with some people who are much better than me but
who think just by themselves and do not go to others to bounce things off and they are already
beginning to go into error I'm talking about people who are really mighty in God that's the
scariest thing the mightier you get in God the more you isolate yourself or you get yes men around
you who will agree with everything you see this is why we should never lose this aspect of giving
time to question what is being preached even while we're preaching it and you should challenge
concepts if you think they are in error one of the nicest things that happened in Acts 29 without
planning it is we during all these questions times in the last seven years you've never raised a
question to diminish me or find fault with me or to reduce me to something less all your questions
have been from a place of I need to find out more and it just happened naturally the reason you can't
try this in some churches is because the intent will be let me show how foolish the pastor is but
you've never done that here I salute you for that but maybe never lose out on these things eh so
restraint rebuke and correction has to happen within the context of the body and you must if
you want to be trained and instructed into maturity allow me to correct you admonish you rebuke you
and open your life to that I think I've said this before I remember meeting with him in the food
court in Lansdowne and he would come and sit with me now we've spent about four months together and
he and I would talk and one day I went to him and I said to him listen Jason you are not really
opening your life up you say the right things and we talk about some godly things and then that's
it but you aren't opening your life and so I said to him here's what I want you to do I want you to
go home right now let's not talk today but if you don't want to open your life and learn then
don't waste my time so come back next week and tell me if you want to take this further I was
hoping he'd come back and praise God that he did a but my question to you is if I came and said
that to you would you be offended or would you have the ability to respond like him regardless
of how old you are or what your gender is if I came and said that you're not say differently
do I would never they say there say that to hurry because different folks need different strokes so
you don't use the same measure with everybody but if I came and said the same thing to you in a
different way how would you respond would you be offended or would you continue to be open yeah just
a thought just a thought moving on training and instruction comes through checks or warning
training or instruction comes through checks or warnings as in God says Jacob don't be like a
horse or a mule that stubborn who needs bitten bridle to bring them back on track you know when
God wants to warn you the warning is very clear you don't have to be an expert in hearing to hear
warning it's very clear heeding the voice of God through repeated warning sometimes through a message
sometimes through a dream sometimes through a Holy Spirit check sometimes through God blocking
your path let me give you an incident I know it's wrong to text while I'm driving I've known that
for a year and a half but I would silence in the gallery and so so I would just pick up the phone
and a quick yep or nope because I wanted to stay within reason of disobedience you don't want to
be outright disobedient so you can send four-letter words and stuff like that so it would be K or
yep nope so I would be doing that and the Lord kept saying don't Jacob don't people would tell
me hey that's not a good idea but I would just afford the luxury of breaking this law and then
I remember one day there were two occasions when while I was texting I missed the car in front by
two or three inches I mean it was the grace of God and I knew what the Lord was saying and I would
actually respond saying father I get the message I get the message I won't do it again I kept doing
that and then didn't change and look at the irony of it I get my new iPhone 6 I go to pick it up
and I've got a backup camera and the works it's a really nice car and yet as I picked my iPhone 6
and I'm reversing I go hit a pole that breaks my lamp I'm thinking to myself father I'm so sorry
I wasn't getting this you kept telling me multiple times and here I'm so thrilled about my iPhone
phone now I've got the phone in my hand and it's just putting I remember telling the Lord father
I'm so sorry that I had to pay to learn this lesson because it was a blooming light it just
broke but you know how blooming lights are expensive so I remember going and fixing it
I remember telling the Lord oh by the way my name is Jason just for the tape yeah so I remember
telling the Lord father I don't know why sometimes I take so long to learn and since then the habit
stopped but the point is why did I have to be as stubborn as a mule I mean my name is not part of
mule kill but that's a inside joke don't worry about that so the point being guys sometimes God
sends warnings checks blocks and we just don't hear I love how Paul negotiated with the Holy
Spirit now negotiated this pathway in Acts chapter 16 6 so it says and so Paul went through the
region of Phrygia and Galatia having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in
Asia and then when they had come up to Mycea they attempted to go into Bithynia but the Spirit of
Jesus did not allow them the Holy Spirit is so active in checking us from going a certain route
and it is easy to hear him you don't have to be quiet or go into a zone or pray when he wants it's
super easy to hear man everybody here can hear even little kids can because God knows how to
do that so training and instruction comes with check or warning and the final one is training
and instruction come through diligent practice of the word diligent practice of the word as in the
first thing we talked about was training and instruction come through doctrine as in learning
truths learning truths from the word learning truths from the word now we are talking about
diligently practicing them let me put it this way guys whatever God shows you in scripture you must
experience in life whatever God shows you in scripture you must experience in life whatever
God shows you in scripture you must experience in life that is a connect if I only am shown
things in scripture and they don't spill over eventually into my life then I'm like the guy
who looked in the mirror walked away with an impression that I was really handsome but perhaps
I'm not so just make sure that there's a diligent practice of the word in first Corinthians 927
Paul puts it this way I discipline my body and keep it under control pummeling it to make it my
slave gosh man hard words I discipline my body by keeping it under control by beating it or
pummeling it to make it my slave so take things into custody as you go into 2015 take things
into custody make a decision make a decision hey on one hand there's God's sovereign power
to help you and on the other hand there's your responsibility God gave me lungs and a respiratory
system that's working well but I can I mean have you ever had kids who threatened to stop
breathing you never had a child like daddy I've seen children do that if I don't get that I'm
going to stop breathing and they try to hold their breath and it never works so your parents
don't have to worry about that one it never works so don't get scared by that one but the point I'm
trying to make which has nothing to do with what I just said is that God has given me lungs and a
respiratory system but it's up to me to breathe inhale and exhale it that is my responsibility
and so it's like that when it comes to the word and practicing it and taking into custody the
things that I have to God is saying Jacob I've got all my power and grace ready for you I will do it
but you have to submit your will and agree one of the things I was hoping I could challenge you to
do on your sheets of paper is write down one area just one area that is making a resurgence in your
life and you don't want it to if you're sitting next to your spouse shield the paper away so is
there anything that's making a resurgence in your life is there anything that's hindering you is
there anything that's shortening your usefulness is there anything that's shortening your life
perhaps because you're going back into an area that you shouldn't go back into write it down put
into practice the word saying this thing shall not rise in me again I'm putting an end to this
thing six seven eight nine years I've been like this 2015 I will not continue with this habit I
do not know how to break it you alone or God have the power to do it but I'm coming and saying please
do it your sovereign power now mixing with my responsible will saying oh God please do
discipline me your God as in train and instruct me so that I change sure I've carried it as part
of my personality saying this is just me but this is not necessarily the best part of my
personality so change my personality that's an excuse we often hide behind it this is just my
personality well I've got news for you not all parts of your personality are good half your
personality is defective and so is mine we can't hide behind this is just me this is the way I've
grown up well time to change isn't it and who will notice it first your spouse and your children
and your dog and your cat they'll notice it first and then the rest of us will begin to notice it
at the end of the year guys if you really undergo discipline or training at the hand of the Holy
Spirit there will be visible evidence at the end of the year if you really undergo discipline and
training under the gracious wonderful counselor helper comforter guide hand of the Holy Spirit
there will be visible evidence that's the measure of your faithfulness through the process say so
I'm when I was doing these notes I wrote down a certain habit in me that I want to change that's
just been with me for so long that's done harm to me to people I want that to change and so I've
written it down the other thing I want to change is the way I study the Bible I don't want to study
the Bible the way I'm doing I'm reading through it I'm preparing notes I teach well but I want to
the Bible in a whole different way want to start afresh want to want to grasp truths about things
that God wants us to step into what I have a future perspective otherwise you guys will not
go further because Jacob won't go further got to change all this guys I'm looking forward to 2015
and I want to start tomorrow why not today okay today any questions comments disagreements
challenges anything you want to add or subtract anything you don't agree with anything you want
to add don't want to add anything no insights that you want to add this is true I didn't
understand can you rephrase it yeah you can get a get out you can turn the tape off you can get a
get out of jail free card but all that gets you is out of