JESUS THE BETTER WAY: JESUS ESTABLISHES A BETTER FAMILY
HEBREWS 12:3-13
Big Idea: We are part of God’s family and the character of God is being fashioned within us; his intent is for us to bear the “family resemblance.”
Supporting Scripture:
• Reading from the Old Testament: Job 5:17-26
• Reading from the Psalms: Psalm 94:8-15
• Reading from the Gospels: Matthew 12:46-50
• Reading from the Epistles: 1 John 3:1-3
INTRO
When I was a kid my dad used to drill into me the importance of a work ethic and the importance of finishing the task. He would always tell me things like, “Son, the job is not finished until the tools are cleaned and put away” and “Son, the job is not finished until the job is done correctly.” When I mowed the lawn (one of my youthful responsibilities) I could count on an inspection. It was not overbearing or rigid but there was a standard of expectation. If I “cut corners” my dad would make me return to the scene of the crime and do what I had neglected. If I did not clean the mower or put it away I was sent back out to “finish” the job. After a while (when he knew I knew the expectations) my failure to do the job correctly would come with some sort of a … “reminder.” I was taught that actions have consequences and rewards.
I must confess that I despised the standards and expectations and I despised the “reminders” when I failed to do a task properly. But, now I know these instructions were designed to instill character and life-skills. It worked too. To this day I hear my father’s instruction. To this day the job is not finished until it is done correctly and all the tools put are away.
I, in turn, drilled the same lessons into my son; and today I see the fruit of that in his life.
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There is a Biblical term that describes my father’s pattern of instruction. It is “paideia.” Paideia means “to train” and has the core idea of education. The word includes the idea of reproving, admonishing, disciplining, and even chastening. It is intended to instill character and life-skills. It is at work all around us.
• A mother makes her child play the piano every day even though the child resists and finds the drills difficult or mundane.
• A coach makes his players run wind sprints and bleachers even after the players think they have done enough and cannot run any more.
• A drill instructor in boot camp repeatedly puts his men and women through gut wrenching, painful and even humiliating drills until one day they are more than capable of doing what they never thought possible and can proudly wear the label “Marine.”
• A teacher makes a student rewrite a paper or redo a project knowing the student has more to offer than he or she cared to provide.
These (and other such examples) illustrate paideia. There are similar passion, foresight and goal-based expectations present in our Heavenly Father. When God corrects it is paideia. When God expects high moral and ethical ethical standards it is because of paideia.
It might be worthwhile to keep that in mind as we read today’s text, Hebrews 12:3-13. Whenever you see the word “discipline” the word is “paideia.”
HEBREWS 12:3-13
3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.
4 In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.
5 And you have forgotten that word of encouragement that addresses you as sons: “My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you,
6 because the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son.”
7 Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father?
8 If you are not disciplined (and everyone undergoes discipline), then you are illegitimate children and not true sons.
9 Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live!
10 Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness.
11 No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.
12 Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees.
13 “Make level paths for your feet,” so that the lame may not be disabled, but rather healed.
Our emphasis today is “Jesus Establishes a Better Family.” Earlier in the book (chapter 3) we looked at “Jesus Offers a Better Family Pedigree.” The emphasis in chapter three was on history and hindsight – the family tree – whereas today, when another family-oriented text comes into play, we will see an emphasis on the present and the spiritual fruit it can generate.
You see, our heavenly Father is in the process of fashioning us into the image of Jesus. He is in the process of instilling within us the “family resemblance.” He uses the struggles we go through to enrich us and mature us. His use of paideia is intended to accomplish faaaar more than mere punishment. It is designed to instill character and life-skills. It is designed to help you stand and withstand all that life (and the enemy) brings your way. Job 5 captures the gist of this well.
Blessed is the man whom God corrects; so do not despise the discipline of the Almighty. For he wounds, but he also binds up; he injures, but his hands also heal. From six calamities he will rescue you; in seven no harm will befall you. In famine he will ransom you from death, and in battle from the stroke of the sword. You will be protected from the lash of the tongue, and need not fear when destruction comes. You will laugh at destruction and famine, and need not fear the beasts of the earth. For you will have a covenant with the stones of the field, and the wild animals will be at peace with you. You will know that your tent is secure; you will take stock of your property and find nothing missing. You will know that your children will be many, and your descendants like the grass of the earth. You will come to the grave in full vigor, like sheaves gathered in season. (Job 5:17-26)
That’s a pretty tall order and quite a goal for paideia to accomplish. The good news is that God’s Spirit knows just how to bring that to completion and indeed is doing just that within you – even in the midst of the hardships you now face. He does that because you are his child and he is not content to allow you to be less than whole – less than you were designed to be – less than the image of God.
So may I ask you some questions?
• WHAT ARE THE HARDSHIPS YOU ARE GOING THROUGH AT THE MOMENT?
• ARE YOU APPROACHING THEM AS IF THEY ARE MERE EARTH-BOUND DIFFICULTIES OR ARE YOU ALLOWING GOD TO USE THEM TO MAKE YOU INTO HIS IMAGE?
• ARE THESE HARDSHIPS THE RESULT OF SINFUL CHOICES IN YOUR LIFE?
- If so, then your “paideia” must begin with a purging of the rebellion and we must “throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles” (Hebrews 12:1).
• ARE THESE HARDSHIPS CAUSED BY SOMETHING OTHER THAN SIN?
- If so then your “paideia” will result in the peaceable fruit of righteousness.
- James 2:2-4 says, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”
I am trying to remind you that God is doing something powerful within you. He is making you into the image of Jesus – instilling into you the family resemblance.
I am know what I am about to say can be misunderstood and seem harsh but that is not my intention. But let me suggest that some families and some family systems are “better” (more healthy) than others. We have all seen (or experienced) families that are violent, cruel, abusive, and destructive. These tend to produce generation after generation of similar family systems. On the other hand, we have all seen families that are civil, loving, responsible, peace-full and respectful of each other. They, too, teach the next generation how to seek spiritual, physical, and emotional health.
In the same way there are two “spiritual families” and one of these is most certainly “better” (more healthy) than the other. One is characterized by sin, hate, selfishness, and self-will. This is, to use Jesus’ imagery, those who have the devil as their father (John 8).
The other family (God’s) has strikingly different characteristics and today’s text discloses four of them. We will discover four very specific traits about God’s family and the family resemblance that it produces within you. I would like to close by giving them to you.
The family of God is Exemplified by:
1. LOVE (5-6)
• Verse 6 says, “The Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son.”
• The apostle John often reveled in God’s love. In his first epistle he says “How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. Everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure.”
The Family of God is Exemplified by:
1. Love (5-6)
2. RELATIONSHIP (7-8)
• Verses 7-8 say, “Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father? If you are not disciplined (and everyone undergoes discipline), then you are illegitimate children and not true sons.”
• The Psalmist (namely King David) was not immune to God’s discipline. He strayed off the track in some serious ways and yet he never doubted the faithfulness or goodness of God. In Psalm 103:13-14 the psalmist says, “As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him; for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust.”
• Not long ago Vickie and I were in a mall. There was a child there with his parents but the child was running the show. He was out of control and making everyone else in the mall feel awkward and miserable. I remember saying to myself (and probably to Vickie) “If that was our child …” But that was not my child and I made no overtures of loving correction (or outright discipline) towards him. My point is – if you can live like the devil and not experience the discernible correction of a holy God than you “belong to your father the devil and you will carry out your father’s desire” (John 8:44) because if you are God’s child you cannot get away with sin.
• God does not treat you as a distant relative. He treats you as a child He loves and has personally chosen to take responsibility for.
The Family of God is Exemplified by:
1. Love (5-6)
2. Relationship (7-8)
3. LIFE (9)
• Verse 9 says, “Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live!”
• I must admit that, even though my dad’s disciple towards me as a youth was unpleasant and unwelcome, I am grateful for it now. Life is better because I have a sense of responsibility, a work ethic, and a willingness to “do hard things.” My dad deserves the credit for that. My quality of life is much better than it could have been otherwise.
• So it is with your loving Heavenly Father. Jesus has come to give you “life and to give it to the full” (John 10:10). This fullness and abundance only comes when life is lived in communion with Jesus and according to the will of God.
The Family of God is Exemplified by:
1. Love (5-6)
2. Relationship (7-8)
3. Life (9)
4. CHARACTER (10-11)
• Verse 10-11 says, “God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.”
• This is not the only place in the New Testament where are are told that God’s people will live holy, just, and peaceable lives is it? These are characteristics of Jesus and they are the characteristics that God is instilling within us too.
• When I was young my grandparents took me on a vacation with them. It is still a fond memory but I remember once, while Grandpa was filling the car at a gas station, that I said something rather inappropriate about someone else at the station. My grandpa paused from filling the car, called me by a nickname that only my family used, and said “We are Pells. Pells do not act that way. Pells do not say things like that.” Since that day I have never repeated what I said – I am a Pell and I wanted to share in the characteristics that came with the name.
WRAP-UP
Psalm 94:12-15 says, “Blessed is the man you discipline, O Lord, the man you teach from your law; you grant him relief from days of trouble, till a pit is dug for the wicked. For the Lord will not reject his people; he will never forsake his inheritance. Judgment will again be founded on righteousness, and all the upright in heart will follow it.”
Francis Havergal reminds us that “God has not promised skies always blue; flower-strewn pathways all our life through.”
God knows exactly what he is doing within you. He knows how to use the hardships that come your way to make you into His image. A sculptor looks at a piece of marble and then uses a chisel to break away all the defects and unnecessary stone to create a piece of art. The process seems violent. It requires force. From the vantage point of the marble it may even be “painful.”
Let us never forget that God is in the process of making us like Christ. Sometimes that process can be difficult and even painful. But it is being carried out under the supervision of a loving God with a grand vision for you. It is … paideia.
Our emphasis today is “Jesus Establishes a Better Family.” The family of God is so much better than the alternative. Love (5-6), relationship (7-8), life (9), and spiritual character (10-11) all exemplify the family of God. By confessing Jesus as Lord you can be “born again” – you can pass from death into life. And you can begin to experience this new life in Christ.
Let’s conclude with our covenant prayer from Hebrews. May I encourage you to use this prayer as a means to submit to the loving hand of God’s correction and instruction?
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This sermon is provided by Dr. Kenneth Pell
Potsdam Church of the Nazarene
Potsdam, New York
www.potsdam-naz.org
Jesus: The Better Way
(A Congregational Prayer from Hebrews)
Leader: Heavenly Father, giver of all good gifts,
Leader: Because Jesus is better than our legends
All: We will look to Him for character
Leader: Because Jesus is better than our human potential
All: We will look to Him for strength
Leader: Because Jesus is better than our family pedigree
All: We will look to Him for identity
Leader: Because Jesus is a better mediator
All: We will look to Him for reconciliation
Leader: Because Jesus serves as a better guide
All: We will look to Him for direction
Leader: Because Jesus offers a better relationship
All: We will look to Him for communion
Leader: Because Jesus makes better promises
All: We will look to Him for assurance
Leader: Because Jesus ensures a better peace
All: We will look to Him for comfort
Leader: Because Jesus provides better possessions
All: We will look to Him for satisfaction
Leader: Because Jesus instills a better motivation
All: We will look to Him for purpose
Leader: Because Jesus establishes a better family
All: We will look to Him for belonging
Leader: Because Jesus awards a better inheritance
All: We will look to Him for our future
Leader: Because Jesus imparts a better life
All: We will look to Him for an example
Leader: In the name of Jesus, the Better Way, we pray.
