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CORRECTION IS JESUS.
IS LOVE THE CENTER OF YOUR UNIVERSE OR SOMETHING ELSE?
Each of us should love correction, not despise it.

     Pv 22:15-FOOLISHNESS IS BOUND IN THE HEART OF A CHILD; BUT THE ROD OF CORRECTION SHALL DRIVE IT FAR FROM HIM.
     Pv 23:13-14-DO NOT WITHHOLD DISCIPLINE (or correction) FROM A CHILD; IF YOU PUNISH HIM WITH THE ROD, HE WILL NOT DIE. PUNISH HIM WITH THE ROD AND SAVE HIS SOUL FROM DEATH. (NIV)
     Some parents bring their children with no correction. Others bring them up with new psyclology such as using "time outs" and no spankings. Some might say my child is artistic or has a special problem, so I should not obey God’s Word in this case. God’s word is right. Man’s ways which are contrary to God’s Word have proved to be wrong. A child which is brought up as the Bible commands has a far better chance of coming to Christ, as it is written
     Pv 22:6-TRAIN UP A CHILD IN THE WAY HE SHOULD GO: AND WHEN HE IS OLD, HE WILL NOT DEPART FROM IT.
One should not combine foolishness or jokes with correction. Why are so few people these days coming to Christ? Look at the way many were brought up and then look at the lukewarm teaching in the churches these days.
     How can a child understand his heavenly father’s correction when he was never corrected by his earthly father as God commands?

     Regarding murmurings and complainings, it is written, Do all things without murmurings and disputings-Phili 2:14.
     Some focus more on their work for the Lord than on Jesus. However, the Bible tells us to keep our mind stayed on Jesus, if we want perfect peace.
     Some do not love the brethren as the Bible teaches. The Bible tells us to love the brethren.
     Love the Lord thy God with everything, all of your being.
     Some are not focused on thankfulness for all things. We are to give thanks for all things.
     Some keep looking back. Remember Lot’s wife, she looked back? Remember the children of Israel looking back to Egypt? Don’t look back to your past hurts. If you look back and not forward when you drive, you may crash. If you keep looking back to hurts from your past, you may become angry and stressed, so much so that people may not want to be around you. You may crash. Again, remember Lot’s wife.
     Don’t keep bringing up the past. We are to forget those things which are behind.
     If you focus on your own hurts or fears, you are not focusing on Jesus. Paul said, nothing moves me. Consider the rejection Jesus endured from His own brothers, His own people, and His own disciples.
     Do you have a problem forgiving those from your past? So if you have forgiven them, why do you bring them up again and again in your thoughts? If ye forgive not men their trasspasses, neither will your heavenly Father forgive you.
     Work must never be more important than a sweet spirit. Remember, you are to display the fruits of the Spirit.
     Do you think about leaving God’s calling, rather than being with Jesus for eternity?
     A person that is focused on self—my work, my hurts, my house, my yard, my car, and things you desire (me, myself, and I), is not focused on Jesus.
     In a person’s grief, it is very, very important they do not lie to themselves as their emotions flare up. In a person’s grief, if they lie to themselves in their heart and let dishonest words come out of their mouth, they shall have to give account of every idle word that they speak at the Judgment.
     For example: because of something that happens, a person feels no one cares. Therefore, untrue, idle words come out of their mouth toward other people or toward their brothers or sisters in Christ, accusing them of not caring, when it is not so.
     Thus, this person is in deep trouble with the Lord, as their accusations against the brethren actually fall against Jesus. It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.
     God’s Word tells us clearly not to be self-centered, but to deny our self, to die to ourselves, to humble ourselves, to surrender ourselves, to put off the old man, to become humble as a little child.

     In times of stress, Satan is able to put all sorts of lying thoughts into our mind. Because of the stress, our heart often chooses to believe the lies Satan puts there, as we get our eyes off Jesus and His Word and begin to get our eyes on the problems confronting us. Jesus did no such thing. Jesus set the example of how we are to deal with situations.

     People become blinded by their emotions and look at their problems more than believing God’s Word. We may become emotional, as our thoughts are filled with lies from the devil and sometimes begin to blame others. As we get our eyes on our problems and Satan fills our heart with accusing thoughts, we begin to stray from the way Jesus would have us walk. We begin to accuse others and to strive with others. These things, Jesus did not do.

     The children of Israel strove with God in the wilderness and accused Moses of many things. Do you do the same when things are not going your way?

     Regarding striving, it is written:

     Pv 3:30-Strive not with a man without cause.
     Pv 25:8-Go not forth hastily to strive.
     Do not go and tell what is bothering you to others, but go to the person himself and discuss the matter-ref Pv 25:9.
     Isa 41:11-…They that strive with thee shall perish.
     Hos 4:4-Yet let no man strive, nor reprove another.
     2 Tim 2:14-Of these things put them in remembrance, charging them before the Lord that they strive not about words to no profit, but to the subverting of the hearers.
     2 Tim 2:24-26-AND THE SERVANT OF THE LORD MUST NOT STRIVE; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient. A person that strives is really opposing themselves and is not walking in the way of truth. Their thoughts have been taken captive of the devil, but because of the hardness of their heart, they cannot understand this.

     When our emotions rise, we are to cast down:
     2 Cor 10:5-imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ. When emotions arise we are to cast down our dishonest thoughts and bring our wrong thinking under control to the obedience of Christ. If we do not, sometimes we are found to be in far more sin than the person we are upset with.

     Remember, perfect peace can never be achieved by accusing others. Our mind needs to be stayed on Jesus, not on our hurts or evil thoughts against others. Remember, by entertaining accusing, evil thoughts against the brethren, they actually fall against Jesus, which leaves the person that has such thoughts in deep spiritual trouble, unless they repent.
     A person that has an accusing spirit may not want to hear these words, but God’s Word is sure and cannot be broken. And if a person with an accusing spirit will not be corrected by God’s Word, then they are in more sin and have need of repentance. Love is the fulfilling of the law. Accusing is the fulfilling of what Satan wants, for he is called the accuser of the brethren.

     Difficult to correct. A person that is difficult to correct is usually focused on themselves, not on Jesus or His Word.
     Pv 3:11-MY SON, DESPISE NOT THE CHASTENING OF THE LORD; NEITHER BE WEARY OF HIS CORRECTION:
     Pv 15:10-Stern discipline awaits him who leaves the path; he who hates correction will die.
     Pv 15:10-CORRECTION IS GRIEVOUS UNTO HIM THAT FORSAKETH THE WAY: AND HE THAT HATETH REPROOF SHALL DIE.
     Pv 15:10-Correction is grievous unto him that forsaketh the way: and he that hateth reproof (or correction) shall die.
     Jer 5:3,4-O LORD, ARE NOT THINE EYES UPON THE TRUTH? THOU HAST STRICKEN THEM, BUT THEY HAVE NOT GRIEVED; THOU HAST CONSUMED THEM, BUT THEY HAVE REFUSED TO RECEIVE CORRECTION: THEY HAVE MADE THEIR FACES HARDER THAN A ROCK; THEY HAVE REFUSED TO RETURN. THEREFORE I SAID, SURELY THESE ARE POOR; THEY ARE FOOLISH: FOR THEY KNOW NOT THE WAY OF THE LORD, NOR THE JUDGMENT OF THEIR GOD.
     Jer 7:28-BUT THOU SHALT SAY UNTO THEM, THIS IS A NATION THAT OBEYETH NOT THE VOICE OF THE LORD THEIR GOD, NOR RECEIVETH CORRECTION: TRUTH IS PERISHED, AND IS CUT OFF FROM THEIR MOUTH.
     Zeph 3:2-SHE OBEYED NOT THE VOICE; SHE RECEIVED NOT CORRECTION; SHE TRUSTED NOT IN THE LORD; SHE DREW NOT NEAR TO HER GOD.
     2 Tim 3:16,17-ALL SCRIPTURE IS GIVEN BY INSPIRATION OF GOD, AND IS PROFITABLE FOR DOCTRINE, FOR REPROOF, FOR CORRECTION, FOR INSTRUCTION IN RIGHTEOUSNESS: THAT THE MAN OF GOD MAY BE PERFECT, THROUGHLY FURNISHED UNTO ALL GOOD WORKS.

     And when a person is corrected, many want to justify their actions with excuses or even counter-accusing the one corrrecting them. This usually indicates the person has not humbled themselves and is not willing to repent and change.

     When a person is corrected by the one God has put over them, but rejects that correction, then one of the following things usually takes place.
     God allows that person to go into total blindness, yet they never know this. As they fall into deeper blindness, they forget what manner of person they were. Thus, they cannot see they have fallen; however, their minister and even other Christians around them can see it clearly.
     In other cases, God begins chastening them by various means. They may become sick or have various problems happen to them. Because they will still not repent, their sickness or hurts may increase. Other things may happen to them. Accidents just begin happening, nothing seems to go right. Still if they do not repent, then their sickness or hurts may become permanent. In other cases, God just lets them go and nothing more happens, other than they miss the Rapture or eventually die and perish for eternity. But the blindness of their own heart makes it, so they never understand this until the end.

     When we are corrected, we ought to be humble, not answering again, not justifying ourselves, but humbly receive the correction, and come to repentance-ref Titus 2:9.

     Gal 5:22-25-…The fruit of the Spirit is
     love,
     joy,
     peace,
     longsuffering (or patience),
     gentleness (or kindness),
     goodness,
     faith (or faithfulness),
     meekness,
     temperance (or self-control): against such there is no law.
     And they that (belong to Christ) have crucified the flesh (or sinful nature) with the affections and lusts or (passions and desires).
     If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk (or keep in step with) (or) in the Spirit.

     Dwell in the fruits of the Spirit. Love is the fulfilling of the law, not striving and having accusing thoughts. When a person’s work becomes so important that their love for the brethern and fellowshipping disappears, that person is heading in a wrong direction.

     This includes all of us, beginning with the preacher and elders.