Ninth Step of Sin-Physical Deterioration
By Dr. Jerry Lloyd
“For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.” Galatians 6:8
Sowing and Reaping
The idea behind sowing in the illustration of sowing and reaping is the idea of investing to receive a significant return on your investment. If a person sowed a kernel of corn and only got one kernel of corn in return, what would be the point? The point of sowing good seed is that you reap what you sow, and you reap much more than you sow, but there is a “growing season” before you reap.
When to Sow
Before we trust Christ as our Savior, our spirit is dead-separated from God. While our soul yields only to the desires of the flesh, our spirit, being dead, is not affected by the actions and desires of the flesh. When we trust Christ as our Savior, our spirit is born again. It is a new and separate birth from the flesh, and, although it inhabits the same house as the sin nature, it is still not influenced by the desires of the flesh, but our soul is.
Sowing for Eternity
After we trust Christ as our Savior, then begins a life of choices where your soul must choose between sowing to the spirit or sowing to the flesh. The above verse points out that if we sow to the flesh, we will reap corruption. Corruption, which is the results of sin, simply means to age, become diseased, die, and rot. Even rocks and buildings are subject to the decay because of the results of sin. These are the natural results of sin. All of creation is subject to corruption, because of man’s sin. This shows the pervasiveness of the corruption of sin. Consequently, God cannot allow sin into heaven, or there would be aging, decay, sickness, deterioration, and death in heaven.
However, God provides eternal life freely and surely to all who trust Jesus as the only and complete provision for sin.
If we choose to sow or invest our time, talents, energy, opportunity, and resources such as money to the spirit, then we will reap in life everlasting. Sowing to the spirit is not how you gain life everlasting, but it is how you reap rewards for life everlasting.
In which investment opportunity are you sowing? Remember, “You reap what you sow, you reap much much more than you sow (an hundred fold), but there is a ‘growing season’ before you reap.” Dr. Jerry Lloyd
9th Step of Sin-Physical Deterioration
I-Galatians 6:6-7
A-V7-Principles of _______________ and reaping 1-What is sowing and reaping?
2-3 Principles
B-V8- ________________ of investment
1-Saved have new choices
2-Spirit reaps life everlasting
3-Flesh reaps corruption
II-I Corinthians 11:30-32-What is _________________ ?
A-Romans 8:21-Even _______________ is subject to corruption
B-V30-Examples of corruption
C-V31-Method of ___________________
D-V32-If _______________ must judge
III-Hebrews 12:5-11-God’s __________________
A-V5-Negative _____________________
B-V6- __________________ of chastening Why? Proverb 13:34
C-V7-Outcome-Dealt with as _________________
D-V9-Father son relationship
1-Proverbs 29:15-Child left to himself
2-Proverbs 22:15-Foolishness bound in heart
E-V10-11- ___________ for our profit of holiness and fruit
IV-James 5:14-16- ____________________
A-V14-Sick
B-V15-He can be raised up by prayer
C-V16-If accompanied by confession
V-I John 1
A-V3- __________________ with-Others, God and Christ
B-V4-Brings ___________________
C-V6-7-Written for _________________
D-V8-9-The certainty and solution to a believer’s sin
Conclusion
God uses the natural results of sowing and reaping to chasten His children. God’s chastening can be avoided by (1) confessing our sin to God and the one who is wronged or hurt, (2) forsaking that sin, and (3) making recompense for damages done.
9th Step of Sin
Physical Deterioration
I-Galatians 6:6-7
A-V7-Principles of sowing and reaping
1-What is sowing and reaping?
a-Sowing-Investing
b-Reaping-Return
2-3 Principles
a-Reap what you sow
b-Reap more than you sow
c-Growing season between sowing and reaping
B-V8-Choice of investment
1-Saved have new choices
2-Spirit reaps life everlasting
3-Flesh reaps corruption
II-I Corinthians 11:30-32-What is corruption?
A-Romans 8:21-Even nature is subject to corruption
B-V30-Examples of corruption
1-Weak
2-Sickly
3-Death
C-V31-Method of avoidance
D-V32-If God must judge
III-Hebrews 12:5-11-God’s chastening
A-V5-Negative responses
1-Despise-Rebellion
2-Faint-Discouragement
B-V6-Certainty of chastening Why? Proverb 13:34
C-V7-Outcome-Dealt with as sons
D-V9-Father son relationship
1-Proverbs 29:15-Child left to himself
2-Proverbs 22:15-Foolishness bound in heart
E-V10-11-Purpose
1-Our profit
2-Holiness
3-V11-Fruit
IV-James 5:14-16-Solution
A-V14-Sick
B-V15-he can be raised up by prayer
C-V16-If accompanied by confession
V-I John 1
A-V3-Fellowship with
1-Others
2-God and Christ
B-V4-Brings joy
C-V6-7-Written for fellowship
D-V8-9
1-V8-Certainty of sin
2-V9-Solution to sin of a Christian
Conclusion
God uses the natural results of sowing and reaping to chasten His children. God’s chastening can be avoided by (1) confessing our sin to God and the one who is wronged or hurt, (2) forsaking that sin, and (3) making recompense for damages done.
Sowng and Reaping
“Be not deceived, God is not mocked for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to the flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption, but he that soweth to the spirit shall of the spirit reap life everlasting.” Galatians 6:7-8
God is not mocked. What does that have to do with anything? Not much I suppose, except for the fact that God is in charge of all that this. He kind of set these things up. If it is not true that what we sow we reap, then there is a mockery of God, because God set everything up. Because of that, we can sow in hope. If we plant peas, then we are not going to get butter beans. That is true of ALL OF NATURE. It even includes spiritual things. That is a very good thing, because, if we sow to the spirit, we will reap spiritual things. However, the opposite is also true. If we sow to the flesh, we will reap corruption. That is not really the judgment of God. It is the natural results of sin, which God set up in nature at the fall of man.
Principles of Sowing and Reaping
But if we do not reap what we sow, then it would be a mockery to God, but God is not mocked.
So there are two sides to this coin. In this chapter we are concentrating on sowing to the flesh.
In the above verse you can either sow to the flesh or to the spirit. So, you have a choice to make.
There are principles of sowing and reaping. First of all, what is sowing and reaping? Sowing is investing. Whenever you go out to a field to sow, you are not hoping that you will get back the same amount you sow. If that would be all you would get, what would be the point of sowing? You may as well eat your seed and not risk having crop failure. Sowing is investing something expecting to receive a greater return. You have your choice where you sow and what you sow. You are going to reap what you sow, or else God is mocked. So, if you sow cantaloupe seeds, you are going to reap cantaloupe, unless God is mocked. Some people get weeds. God explains that, too, in the parable of the wheat and tares. The devil sowed the tares (weeds). In that parable, you could not tell what was sowed. Sometimes you have to wait until harvest to see what has been sowed. Some people hide what they are doing. Lying and hiding secret actions are a sure sign of sowing to the flesh, but you can be sure that, eventually, “Your sin will find you out.”
So the first principle is you reap what you sow.
The second principle is you reap more that you sow.
What Do We Sow?
We sow our time, our energy, our talents, our opportunities, and our material goods, which includes our money. You are going to sow these things somewhere. For example you have time, and you ought to use your time in such a way that you will get the best return on your investment. You have got the time, and you are going to use it for something. If you waste your time, then you are going to lose your investment. It is not going to give you the return that you would like.
All of the five things mentioned belong to God, and He has placed them in your possession so that you can invest them for His Kingdom and gain rewards. They are His, not yours, and He is going to take them back at the end of your life.So, you reap what you sow, you reap more than you sow, and the third principle is there is a period of time between the sowing and reaping. T here is always a growing season.
The Third Principle
When we lived in Spruce Pine, North Carolina, we planted a watermelon vine. We waited for it to mature, and finally the day came when it was ripe. I went out that day to cut it, and somebody else was also watching it grow, too, and they got it. A watermelon vine will grow for several weeks before it bears fruit, while fruit trees may take a half a dozen years before they bear fruit, but you do not have for to wait six years to know that you are going to reap what you sow.
It is the same thing with your life. If you sow to the flesh, you are going to reap corruption after a period of time, and you are going to reap more than you sow. That is why God warns us in Ecclesiastes “Since sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the hearts men are fully set in them to do evil.” They do not realize that they will not get away with what they are doing. What we do will inevitably come to fruition. Otherwise, God is mocked.
It’s Only Natural
We know these principles are true in nature, but somehow, we think that in our spiritual life we are somehow exempt. We think we can sow our wild oats, and pray for crop failure. Such a prayer will not happen apart from the grace of God. There is no promise that if you confess, then you will not reap what you sow.
Reaping Corruption
Now, if we sow to the flesh, we will reap of the flesh corruption. What is corruption? Corruption simply means that you age, the body deteriorates, you wear out, you die, and then you rot. Dying and rotting is the tenth step of sin. Everything you do with, to, and for the flesh will have its effect in hastening or retarding this principle. The deterioration is the corruption. Just because you age, die, and rot, does not mean that you have sinned, (although you have sinned), and when you sin, you will reap what you sow. However, it could have been your parents’ sin, or the sin of those with whom you hang around. Sin corrupts everything that comes into contact with it. That is why you have to guard yourself, PROTECT YOURSELF, and separate yourself. Even if you do that, sin is in your genes. It is in your nature to sin. So you are going to suffer sickness, because of the sin on the earth; but if you sin, personally, you will suffer the natural results of sin.
When you see somebody who is sick, many times Christians have a tendency to assume it was because the sinned; but when we get sick, we assume that we caught it from somebody else. They may be sick because of their sin, but that is not your place to judge. You are to judge yourself. So, when you are suffering some malady, consult the Lord and inquire whether it is because of you sin, or something else.
Sometimes it is pretty obvious that they are sick because of their sin. A person who drinks alcohol on a regular basis will probably get sick because of it. A person who smokes will probably get COPD.
In Romans 8:22 God says, “For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth…For the creature (creation) also shall be delivered from the bondage to corruption unto the glorious liberty of the sons of God.”
So the creation or nature is subject to sowing and reaping, also. We see this in the amount that is sown yielding a greater crop. We see this in the fact that farmers are battling disease in their crops. That is the corruption. The sowing of man’s sinful nature is causing all of creation to deteriorate. The second law of thermodynamics WENT INTO EFFECT THE MOMENT MAN FIRST SINNED, AND EVERYTHING IN ALL THE UNIVERSE BEGAN TO DETERIORATE AND RUN DOWN, because of sin. Even rocks deteriorate. The things of man are all running down, also. Even marble buildings deteriorate. You have to have maintenance crews for buildings.
In North Carolina the county in which we lived received some grants to build a park. Everything was paid for by the federal government, and everything was nice when the construction contractors finished, but before the first year after its completion, the play ground equipment was broken and had to be replaced, the basketball goals were broken, and the sled run had deep gullies washed in it. Everything including buildings are under the curse of sin, even though nature and buildings do not sin. Everything is under the curse of man’s sin, even though not all things sin. In other words, when we sin, it not only affects our own body, life, health and welfare; but that sin affects everything in which it comes into contact, and its affect will, ultimately, reach as far as the end of the universe and everything in this physical dimension. Every single sin has that potential, however, there is a personal natural result as well. For example, a person who smokes will probably develop COPD or lung cancer. But the immediate and local results of sin does not cause people on the other side of the world to come down with COPD. The smoker and his family are the only ones affected by the personal natural results of that particular sin.
Three Choices
In verse 8 of Galatians 6 we see that we have three alternatives. We have a choice to make. “For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.”
If you sow to the flesh, you are going to reap corruption. You are going to age. Your health will deteriorate. You are going to get sick. You are going to die, and you are going to rot. Here’s the deal. When you die, the physical realm and everything you have accumulated, built, and accomplished for this life will be over. It may continue on for a while on earth, but it is over for you. The only things that you receive after death are eternal spiritual things. You will take nothing physical with you into eternal life. Every investment you have made in this life for this life, will be gone: both the investment and the return.
Sowing for Eternity
However, the things you sow to the spirit will continue after death, and many of them begin at physical death. Then for all of life everlasting you have the rewards of investing in the spiritual life. Furthermore, God tells us that when you invest in the spirit, you receive an hundredfold return on your investment. What that actually does is it changes your everlasting life. When you trust Christ as your Savior, you are saved from the lake of fire for free. The moment you trust Christ as your savior, God gives eternal life to you as a gift. You do not have to work for that. You do not have to invest for that. You do not have to pay for it. It is absolutely free, and it is forever. When you go to heaven, you will be happy for the most part, but the Bible teaches that there will be a time after we have been with the Lord for over a thousand years that God will have to wipe away tears from our eyes. There will be some of God’s servants from this life that did not prepare themselves to serve the Lord, and those who abused other servants of the Lord, and there will be those who were lazy and did not use their talents for the lord who will not receive places of authority in the Kingdom of God, and there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, but then after God wipes away all tears from our eyes, then there will be differences in how glorious our bodies are and our positions in the kingdom. Our crowns and rewards will differ with the amount of investment we make in the Kingdom of God, but we all will be happy and satisfied with God’s provisions. Some of the rewards are for the thousand year reign of Christ, and some of them are for eternity.
Count the Cost
Now consider the cost. If we live for ourselves for the rest of our life, God may allow us to live as much as fifty years on the earth using the things we have worked for in this life, but if we serve God, then we will gain these rewards for at least 1000 years, and some rewards we will have for all eternity. The choice is yours. Do you want to work hard for what you get in this life only to lose it after fifty years, or do you want to work for fifty years for God, and have him multiply your investment by an hundredfold for 1,000 years. Just by comparing the number of years, the return we will by forfeiting on our investment is 20 to 1, plus the return on the conservative side of an hundredfold is 10,000 %. That is an awful lot to gain to lose.
So, we can invest to the spirit and enhance our everlasting life. That is the up side. The down side is if you invest in the flesh, you will reap corruption.
Chastening and Rewards
What does it mean to reap corruption? God set this up in nature. God uses the natural sowing and reaping which is in the law of nature. Sometimes He allows the natural results of sin to punish His children. Punishment by God in this life is not the wages of sin. The wages of sin is death. JESUS PAID THAT PRICE ON THE CROSS. Chastening, on the other hand is God’s punishment and training of His children when they make foolish decisions. Chastening is training, teaching and disciplining. God says: “No chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby,” in Hebrews 12:11. So chastening is never pleasant, although, if you learn from it, you can make the most of it.
In I Corinthians 11:30-32 God says, “For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep.
Verse 31-For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged.
Verse 32-But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world.”
These Corinthian believers were chastened by the Lord because of their disobedience. Many in the church were weak, because of their sinfulness. They were reaping what they had sowed. Many were sickly because of their sin. They were reaping what they sowed. Many had died because of their sin. They had reaped what they sowed.
Have you ever heard someone say, “God would never kill a Christian. That isn’t the merciful God I know. God will just let you continue in your sin until your time is up. He wouldn’t shorten your time because of sin.”?
There is a problem with a statement like that. It just is not true. Oh, there is no question about the mercy of God, but the point is, it is really far more merciful for God to take a disobedient child home than allow him to reap the natural results of sin. Remember, chastening is grievous. A disobedient Christian is miserable according Revelation 3:17. When a Christian continues in disobedience, it also brings discredit to the church, therefore, hurting other believers. It hurts the cause and name of Christ, and drives people away from the Lord. The only person who benefits from the life of a disobedient Christian is Satan.
How to Avoid Chastening
Here is how to avoid our chastening. Unfortunately, you may still suffer the deterioration cause by sin earlier in your life, but you can receive forgiveness for your sin. This will clean the slate so God can reward you for the way you live the rest of your life, or clean the plate so God can put the fruit of the spirit on it in this life.
Judging Ourselves
“For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged.” So if we judge ourselves, God will not judge us by chastening us in this lifetime, nor judge us for the bad (II Corinthians 5:10) at the Judgment Seat of Christ. However, He does not promise deliverance from the natural results of sin. That would only come through the grace of God. That is not His promise. What happens when we do not judge ourselves? “But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world.”
Why We Suffer
Now, there are many reasons we suffer. Some of them are not your fault, and some of them are. So we are to judge ourselves when things happen to us to consider if it is because of our own sin. Be careful, we do not have the wisdom, knowledge, responsibility, or privilege to judge why things are happening to others. We are forbidden by God to judge the motives, thoughts, spirituality, or faithfulness of others; (although we are commanded to judge the actions of others), but we have the command to judge ourselves. So, whenever you have a problem, you ought to ask: “Why? What is God trying to teach me?”
A Perfect Father’s Love
A good father is not going to punish his child and tell him, “That is for whatever you did wrong, today.” A good father will let his child know why he is being disciplined or trained, and why He did what He did. If we judge ourselves and change our behavior, then we can avoid the chastening and judgment of God; but if we do not, then we are judged and chastened by God. The problem is, most Christians do not listen to God when He tries to get their attention.
Hebrews 12:5
The definitive passage on chastening is Hebrews 12:5: “And ye have forgotten the exhortation…” Exhortation is speaking of encouragement. This passage tells us what happens when we forget the things God encourages us to do. When He says “forgotten” he is reminding us of what is written in Proverbs 3. Some people think that the Old Testament does not apply to us, yet it is amazing how often the Old Testament is quoted in the New Testament. There is a glaring error when we say that the Old Testament is not applicable to the church. The idea that the Old Testament does not apply to us is wrong. God inspired Paul to write: “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.”
The next word on which we want to focus is the word “children.” There was a difference between a child and a son. A child was not considered a mature son until he was 12 or 13 years old. So this passage starts out speaking to “children.”
“My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him.”
We see here two unwise responses to God’s chastening. The first way is to “despise” the chastening of the Lord. Have you ever run into a Christian that ran into hardship, then blames someone else, and, eventually, gets mad at God? Many times people become angry at God when things do not go their way. Take the example from I Corinthians 11:30. Let us say that a man dies because of his sin. His son is, usually, going to react one of two ways concerning his father’s death and his own relationship with God. Either he will draw up close to God and receive God’s comfort and, consequently, determine not to make the same unwise decisions his dad did, or, more often, he will rebel against God and drop out of church and blame God for his father’s self-inflicted demise.
Rebellion Against God
Rebellion is dangerous, because if you do not learn from the chastening of God, then you are likely to simply receive more severe chastening; and that could cost you your life, if you do not get your life straightened out before the disease, or the addiction, or God’s chastening bring on your death.
Furthermore, many times in their anger against God, they harm themselves as a means to punish God. Wait a minute, that does not make any sense at all, does it? Yet it is true.
Have you ever run into a person who does not believe in God? Sometimes if you ask them why they do not believe in God, rather than giving some rational reasonable explanation (as if there were one), they say something about all the bad stuff in the world.
“If there is a loving God, why is there so much evil, sickness, and destruction in the world?” they ask rhetorically. So they blame God for the wages of sin they have earned and determine to punish Him by not believing in Him. Well, if there is no God, then whose fault is it that there is so much evil and wars and fighting in the world? Clearly, if there is no God, then it must be man’s fault that there is evil, fighting, wars and such. BINGO! They got it exactly right! It is man’s sin that brought evil, sickness, sorrow and death into the world. In fact that is exactly why God came to die on the cross. He did it so we can be delivered from all of the sin, sickness, sorrow and death.
Discouragement and Depression
But there is another reaction that many have concerning the chastening of God. They will “faint” or become discouraged when they are rebuked by God. Rebuke is one form of chastening. So when some disobedient believers are rebuked, they become discouraged. They give up. Have you ever met a Christian who, when their besetting sin is preached against, rather than judging themselves, they judge the preacher or the church; and then just drop out of church altogether.
We are reminded about the fellow that read that alcohol caused sclerosis of the liver. Then he read that alcohol contributed to kidney failure. He read that one drink a day would raise his chances of having a stroke to one chance in three. It scared him so badly that he gave up reading. Sounds like a lot of Christians I know.
Or maybe they become discouraged like the dog that bit the duckling and got down in the mouth.
Is it unspiritual to become discouraged? Well, read about the prophet Jeremiah. He was so depressed that he was known as the weeping prophet. One of the books God inspired him to write is called Lamentations. Many great men in the Bible became greatly discouraged. Do not judge another Christian and assume that if they are discouraged or depressed that it is because of their sin.
The Correct Response
So we do get discouraged and depressed, but that is not the correct response to God’s rebuke or chastening.
“For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.”
When God chastens us, He is demonstrating His love toward us.
My wife, Julie, used to teach kindergarten. Sometimes when she would talk to a parent about disciplining their child, the parent would say, “I can’t punish my child. I just love them too much.”
That is an impossible statement. The Bible says in Proverbs 13:24: “He that spareth his rod hatest son: but he that loveth him chasteneth him betimes.” Betimes means early. That would be early in life, as well as early in a situation. A loving parent never waits for the third or fourth infraction. Remember, this is what God says, and He is always right.
Have you ever seen a parent that will count down from ten before disciplining their child? That is simply telling the child that they have nine more counts before they have to obey. “Get out of the road a truck is coming!…One…Two…”
God’s Response
Well, maybe that works for your children, but we are learning how God disciplines us. He does it out of love, and He does it early. He does it early in your Christian life, and early in each act of rebelliousness, so that you do not have to suffer the natural consequences of your sin; but, if you do not correct the situation, then you become addicted to that sin, or it becomes a habit. Then you enter the ninth step of sin which is when you become weak and sickly because of sin. You begin to deteriorate physically. That is why God disciplines us. He disciplines us out of His love for us.
Verse 6 says, “For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.”
Why does God chasten every son whom He receives? Because He loves every one of His children, and every one of His children is disobedient at times.
Verse 7 says: “If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not?”
Enduring Chastening (Or Not)
This verse tells us the correct response to chastening. We are supposed to endure chastening. First of all this verse gives the indication that we might not endure chastening. There is the possibility that we may not live through the chastening of God. Remember what we learned about the disobedient Corinthians? Many were weak and sickly among them… and many slept.
However, “endure” goes further than simply living through it. It includes the idea of applying what you learn. God inspired Paul to write of those that “would not endure sound doctrine” to Timothy. They did not apply the sound doctrine they had been taught. So, when God chastens us, we need to apply the sound doctrine He is trying to teach us.
When things are going wrong, we need to check back at what we need to learn. Am I suffering because of my association with someone with whom I should not be spending time? If that is the case, then you must do something about it. You need to make changes. Apply what God is teaching to your life. God says, “If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons.”
What Is a Son?
“Son” is contrasted with the “children” earlier in the passage. Now God is talking about a mature son. I have four kids, and sometimes they do not do certain things that I wish they would do, and sometimes they are doing things I wish they were not doing. But I do not spank them over it. That is because they are all married. They can listen to what I have to say about it, and then do what I say without threat of punishment. Or not.
What Is a Good Father?
Verse nine says, “Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: (we used to respect our parents when they corrected and disciplined us.) shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live?”
We can see here that if we are not in subjection to what the Father of spirits says, we may not live.
Verse ten says: “For they (our earthly fathers) verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but he (God) for our profit.”
God chastens us for our PROFIT. Is that not what we are looking for in sowing and reaping? What He wants to do for us is give us profit. Many times He disciplines us and chastens us through using the natural results of sowing and reaping, and the natural results of sin to chasten us.
The rest of the verse shows us some of our profit. “That we might be partakers of his holiness.”
In verse eleven God states the obvious when He says, “Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby.”
Unpleasantness of Chastening
Chastening is always unpleasant. Chastening is always grievous. “Nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby.” What is it we are wanting? We are wanting fruit for our labors, and that is exactly what God is doing for us. We are wanting a good return on the labor we sow in this lifetime. There are two kinds of fruit. There is the bad fruit which you can read about in Galatians 5:19-21. There is also the fruit of the spirit. You can read about those in verses 22 & 23.
Bearing Fruit
What about a peaceful life and peace of mind? Have you ever met a Christian that just has to have a glass of wine or can of beer to settle down after work? Why are so many Christians struggling with addictions? Is it because they have peaceable fruit in their lives?
Deliverance from Chastening
How can we get out of having to go through chastening? We have sinned, and chastening is coming. How can I possibly avoid the coming chastening? Notice I did not say certainly, but I said “possibly” avoid the consequences of our sin. God gives us the solution in James 5:14-16:
“Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord:
Verse 15-And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.
Verse 16-Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.”
“Is any sick among you?” What are the consequences of sin? “For this cause many are weak andsickly among you.” If so, what does the person who is sick or weakly because of his sin need to do? “Let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.”
Calling for the elders of the church looks back at the priesthood in the Old Testament. Several chapters in the Pentateuch were devoted to instructing the priests how to diagnose and treat diseases. James was the first of the New Testament books to be written, it was, therefore, closest to the time that the priests would inspect the diseased person and give some sort of treatment. Soon the temple would be destroyed and the priesthood would come to an end, and the priests would be replaced by the elders of the church. Even to this day there is no longer a Levitical priesthood.
“Let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.”
Anointing with Oil
It might sound like we are being instructed to pour oil on the heads of the sick, but, if we understand what anointing with oil means here, we find that this practice was more like the use of oil, such as olive oil and essential oils, as therapeutic. The word that is used here in the Greek language in which this was originally written is much different than the Greek word for the ceremonial way the “anointing” of prophets, priests, kings, and Christ, (which means “anointed One,”) were anointed.
The meaning of the word used here, instead of a ceremonial anointing, means “to rub or apply; to create a plaster.” This was speaking about the most advanced form of medication of that day. They would put herbs, which were very effective remedies back then, into oil, which was also a very effective medication. The oil was, usually, olive based, but that term could also include the use of petroleum products, which is used in many of our medications today.
Medical Treatment
An example of this usage can be seen in the parable of the “good Samaritan.” What did the Samaritan use to treat the wounds of the injured man? He applied oil and wine. The wine would have sugar in it, which aids in healing when applied topically, and if it was old wine, it would also have a little alcohol content, which was antiseptic. The oil itself would be a soothing and healing emolument with healing herbs suspended in it. This is exactly what James chapter 5 is speaking about. So, in James 5 God is saying to go ahead and use the medication. It is not wrong to go to the doctor. Paul, who at one point had the power to heal until his mission of completing the writing of the Word of God was verified, had Dr. Luke travel with him and attend to his “thorn in the flesh.” But then what should happen? The sick person was supposed to come to the elders, confess his sins, which likely had made him sick, then the prayer of faith could raise him up.
Verse 15 says, “And the prayer of faith shall save the sick.”
He is not talking about spiritual salvation, here. He is talking about physical salvation. He is speaking about being delivered from the malady. So you can receive relief from your physical malady if you follow God’s instructions. Otherwise, you may receive some temporary relief through the medication, but the natural results of sin will simply express itself by some other symptom.
There is more to the instructions God gives us, here. First you go to the doctor and take your medication.
“And the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.”
Method of Forgiveness
You have got to have your sins forgiven to receive the healing. How do you have your sins forgiven? When speaking of forgiveness, it is obvious that we are not talking about spiritual salvation. Forgiveness has nothing to do with spiritual salvation from the lake of fire. That happened the moment you trusted Christ as our Savior. Forgiveness is conditional. Salvation is free based on no other condition than faith alone in Christ alone.
So, how do you have your sins forgiven? “Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.”
You call for the elders of the church. They pray over you, then you have to confess your faults. Notice this is not saying confess your faults to God. This is telling you to confess your faults to others. Primarily, it is talking about confessing you sins to those you have sinned against. I say “primarily,” because, if it is a secret sin, then you only confess it to God, and if it is a public sin, then you must confess it to the congregation. But if you do not confess your sin, there is no use for them to pray over you. That is what you need to do is get forgiveness. So, you must confess to all those who are involved, so they can forgive you.
What is confession?
Confession is going to the person against whom you have sinned, telling them what you did, then admitting that it was a sin. A confession will never begin with the word “if.” “If I have hurt you….” Is not a start to any confession. Neither will a confession contain the word “but.” The word “but” is, usually, accompanied by the word “you.” Confession is owning up to what you have done, and agreeing with God that it was a sin. The definition is “name by name and agree with God Saying you are sorry has nothing to do with confession.
In I John 1:3 God shows us with whom we need to have fellowship. “That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ.” This is what we must do to have fellowship with one another. “And truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ.”
So, to have fellowship with God you must have fellowship with the brethren. People that are not in church, when it is assembling, are out of fellowship with the church, which is the body of Christ, and THEY ARE OUT OF FELLOWSHIP WITH GOD.
“And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full.”
This is what we must do to have full joy. It is impossible for anyone who is not obedient to these commands of God to have full joy. If you have fellowship with God and the church, then you will have joy. If you forsake the assembly, then you will not have joy. Usually, the first thing that happens when you get out of fellowship with God is you lose your joy. Do not wait until you lose your temper, or go out and get drunk, or commit murder to consider that you are out of fellowship. Just ask yourself, “Do I have full joy?” Chances are, if you are out of step with God, the answer will be “No.”
Verse 6-7 says, “If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.”
Cleansing of a Believer’s Sin
What He is talking about here is cleansing the sin that is causing pain to you by robbing you of your full joy and breaking your fellowship with your brothers and sisters in Christ, with God, and is bringing the chastening of God upon you. When that sin is cleansed, the effects of that sin may also be removed, chastening may be withdrawn, fellowship with God and other Christians can also be restored, and, if you remain obedient, then you will receive full joy.
Cleansing may or may not remove the malady that you contracted while you were living in disobedience to God. It can, but that would be grace. That is not guaranteed. I can tell you this, though. Your chances of being delivered from the consequences of sowing and reaping by the grace of God is far greater if you stop participating in the behavior that brought it on you in the first place than if you continue in it. That is kind of a no brainer, don’t you think?
I John 1:8 God tells us the first thing we need to understand in order to receive forgiveness.
“If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.”
We have to realize and admit that what we did is a sin. The next thing we must do is confess the sin. Verse 9 says:
“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
If you confess your sin to God then you are cleansed. This is the formula to be cleansed of private sins in your daily life. For God to forgive you, all you have to do is confess to Him alone. When you are cleansed, the sin will not continue to make you sick. The disease, which is the result of sowing and realing, might continue to make you sick, but if you are cleansed of your sin, then God might give you deliverance even of the disease by His grace.
So, what are the three things you need to do when your body begins to suffer the deterioration caused by sin?
1-First-You need to confess your sin to the appropriate person or persons whether it by (1) God, (2) the person you sinned against, or (3) the church.
2-Second-You need to stop doing that sin, and
3-Third-You need to make recompense or restitution to the person who was harmed by your sin.
Remember, confession and forgiveness is for fellowship, not for salvation from the lake of fire.
Forgiveness for Salvation
There is an unconditional forgiveness for sins that God provided while He was being nailed to the cross when He said, “Father forgive them, for they know not what they do.” He did not make that statement about people who were seeking Him. He did not say that about believers. He said it about the soldiers who were nailing Him to the cross. Before we trusted Christ as our Savior, Jesus forgave us for our sins. That is why He died for us. However, in our daily lives we need to continually confess our sins so we can have the potential to have fellowship with God as our sins are cleansed daily, because we do sin daily.
Moreover, if you have never trusted Jesus to get you to heaven, you do not need to receive forgiveness for salvation. That forgiveness has already taken place. If you die unsaved, you will go to hell with your sins completely forgiven, but you must trust Christ’s payment for your sins. When you trust Christ as your Savior, at that point you receive the payment He made for all of your sins.
What Does It Mean to Trust Christ As Your Savior?
What does it mean to trust Christ as your Savior? It simply means to believe that what He did on the cross saves you and keeps you. You must believe that Jesus is God the Father who became a man to pay for your sins by His death, burial, and resurrection to get you to heaven. He died. He paid for your sin. All you have to do is believe who He is, and trust what He did to save you can keep you.
He says in I John 5:13:
“These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life.”
If you have never trusted Jesus that way to get you to heaven, I exhort you to do that now.
Dr. Jerry Lloyd
Memory Verse
“And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him.” Hebrews 12:5
This passage refers to “chastening.” We, usually, think of chastening as being punished by God for some form of disobedience. However, it also includes teaching, and training as well.
This verse starts off drawing attention to the fact that it is a quote from the Old Testament. That demonstrates the fact that God deals the same way with His disobedient children in the New Testament as He did in the Old.
I have heard it said that God will not punish His children when they are disobedient. In this age of grace, He deals only by loving and extending grace. The problem with that erroneous statement is not simply that it contradicts Scripture and makes God out as a liar, but that God chastens us out of His love, and chastening comes from His grace, (Titus 2:11-12).
This verse points out two wrong responses to God’s chastening of His children. What are they?
My son, ___________ not thou the chastening of the Lord,
nor _______________ when thou art rebuked of him.”
To “despise” the chastening of the Lord means to rebel against Him. Many, when they are chastened of the Lord, become bitter toward the Lord, the church, or His instructions. This a dangerous situation, because it, usually, leads to more severe punishment. Some even go so far as to blame God for their problems which their own rebelliousness has brought upon them, and then they try to somehow “punish” God by doing harmful things and they might even stop believing in God.
To “faint” when we are rebuked of God means a person becomes discouraged, depressed, and maybe even give up on the Lord. While these are improper responses to God’s chastening, many, if not all Christians must struggle with these thoughts. Dr. Jerry Lloyd
Memory Verse
“For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.” Hebrews 12:6
What is God’s attitude toward His children when He chastens them?
“For whom the Lord _________________ He chasteneth.”
How does this verse say He chastens His children?
“________________ every son whim He receiveth.”
Which children of God receive God’s punishment?
“Scourgeth _____________ son whom he receiveth.”
Which children will God ultimately reject?
“ ______________ son … He ________________ .”
Memory Verse
“He that spareth his rod hateth his son: but he that loveth him chasteneth him betimes.” Proverb 13:24
What is the attitude of a parent that will not disciplne his child?
“He that spareth his rod _______________ his son.”
If a parent loves his disobedient child, what will he do?
“He that loveth him _________________ him betimes.”
When will a parent punish his disobedient child?
“He that loveth him chasteneth him _________________ .”
Memory Verse
“Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live?” Hebrews 12:9
We see a synonym for chastening in this verse. What is it?
“We have had fathers of our flesh which ___________ us.”
If we subject ourselves to the will of God, what will happen to us?
“Shall we not much rather be in subjection
unto the Father of spirits, and ________________ ?”
The “live” in this verse refers to “really living.” If you want to have a fruitful life of peace and profit, be obedient.
If you are disobedient, you may not continue to live. You are still saved, but you may go to heaven early.
Memory Verse
“The rod and reproof give wisdom: but a child left to himself bringeth his mother to shame.” Proverb 29:15
What makes a wise son?
“The ____________ and _______________ give wisdom.”
What does a child who is left to himself bring?
“Child left to himself bringeth his mother to ___________ .”
It seems to be the prevailing tendency to let a child make up his own mind, then the parent has to cover up or clean up after him. The idea that a child should follow his own heart is dangerous in view of the fact that the heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked according to Jeremiah 17:9 and Proverbs 22:15.
Memory Verse
“Foolishness is bound in the heart of a child; but the rod of correction shall drive it far from him.” Proverb 22:15
What is bound in the heart of a child?
“____________________ is bound in the heart of a child.”
What removes the foolishness from a child’s heart?
“The rod of _______________ shall drive it far from him.”
All people are born with a sin nature bent on foolishness. After we trust Christ to get us to heaven, our sin nature remains bent on the foolishness of sin.
There was a song the used to be popular not too long ago that lamented the fact, “I was born this way.” The Scriptures agree. We are born with the evil desires of the old nature, and if we yield to them we will become evil in action as well. What we need to do is say “No!” to those evil desires, and say, “Yes!” to the will of God.
Memory Verse
“If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not?” Hebrews 12:7
If we want God to deal with us as mature sons rather than children, we need do what?
“If ye ___________________ chastening,
God dealeth with you as with sons.”
“For they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but he (God) for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness.”
“Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby.” Hebrews 12:10-11