Heb. 12:1-12, Despise Not the Lord’s Chastening

Pedagogy is the art of teaching, for the purpose of training and/or instruction.  This comes from the Greek paideia (n, 6x)/paideuō (v, 11x).  There are differing approaches to this art. What we need to get is God’s approach to pedagogy.

·       Eph 6:4 (n): Bring children up in the training and admonition of the Lord.

·       2 Tim 3:16 (n): Scripture is profitable for instruction in righteousness.      

·       Heb 12:5,6,7ab,8,10,11 (nvnvnvn): Despise not the chastening of Lord (from Prov. 3:11-12 & Job 5:17!). Chastening is evidence of the teacher’s  love for the learner (Rev. 3:19 has same quote: whom the Lord loves He chastens).  If you are under chastening God is dealing with you as sons; a father always chastens his son. If you're without chastening you are illegitimate children of God. Our earthly fathers chastened a short time as seemed best to them.  No chastening seems joyous now but painful, but it will eventually bear fruit of righteousness.

Before we move on, consider what we have so far.  We have three English translations: training, instruction and chastening.  Biblical pedagogy involves “training and admonition,” meaning positive and negative forms of teaching (building up, tearing down; putting off, putting on).  BP involves words, especially Scripture; the teacher communicates truth.  BP involves actions or life situations.  Information is taken in but must be used in life so that it moves to the heart, shaping the learner for his entire life.  The goal of Biblical pedagogy is righteousness.  The mind is renewed and the lifestyle changed.  Biblical pedagogy applies to training up of children in the home as well as to the development of the followers of Christ. 

·       Lk 23:16,22: Pilate wanted to chastise Jesus and let him go.  That’s what government does: seeks to change the behavior of the criminal.

·       Ac 7:22: Moses was learned in ways of Egypt.  The LORD used this learning, perhaps even in being the first to put Scripture in writing.  Yet, Moses needed 40 years in the desert as a shepherd where he learned the ways of God.  And he continued to learn and be changed in the last 40 years of his life.

·       Ac 22:3: Paul was taught according to the perfect manner of the law.  Like Moses, and all who are born again, there needed to be much learning to be the righteous man of God he came to be.

·       1 Cor 11:32: When we are judged by God we should not get offended because we are being chastened by Lord.

·       2 Cor 6:9: Paul as a minister had been chastened but not killed (cf. Pr. 23:13f).

·       2 Tim 1:20: Two men delivered to Satan so as to learn not to blaspheme.

·       2 Tim 2:25: Tim to instruct those that oppose, gently but firmly.

·       Tit 2:12: God's grace teaches us.  In other words, chastening is a grace thing.  (Note that Gal. 3:25 days that the paidagōgos, schoolmaster, refers to the law that is the teacher that turns us to Christ.)

Philippians 2:12-18, Let’s Dialogue! Or Not! (2)

·       Lk 3:15(v): people mused whether John was the Christ or not.  Again, we must say that this is a good discussion to have.  But the outcome will be determined by pride.  Later (Luke 7:29-30) it would be noted that those commonly called “sinners” (even the tax collectors) justified God by being baptized by John; the Pharisees and lawyers rejected the will of God and thus rejected John’s ministry.  And by the way, note the NKJV translation here, “muse.”  To me that refers to a dialogue that you might not consider essential to complete, on a subject not so important.  So we “muse” about it.  That’s a potential problem with dialogue.

·       Lk 5:22(n): Jesus asked the scribes, What do you reason in your hearts? (about the paralytic).  Revealer of hearts.  No secrets permitted.

·       Lk 9:46,47(nn): A dispute arose among the disciples about who was greatest (again). Jesus knowing their disputing used a child to illustrate humility.

·       Luke 12:17(v): The rich fool reasoned w/self about what to do w/crops.  Again, he needed to get outside of himself because his reasonings were faulty.

·       Lk 20:14(v): The people reasoned, "This is the heir; let's kill him ..."  Here’s one of those places where Jesus reveals hearts.  People who reject Christ might not say they want to kill Him, but actually that is what their thoughts mean. 

·       Lk 24:38(n): Jesus appeared in the upper room after His resurrection: "why do thoughts arise in your hearts?"  Having seen the risen Christ, there should be no dialogue about who Christ is and our response of worship!

We now move from the Gospels to the Epistles.  It’s all negative here.

·       Rom 1:21(n): The thoughts of the wicked became vain / futile.  Given the sinfulness of people, apart from the work of the Holy Spirit by God’s grace, their dialogues never come out good.  Sinful dialogue will often try to find a “third way” so to speak, a compromise or way out.  But since no man can serve two masters, the thoughts of those who suppress the truth in unrighteousness will always be empty, non-satisfying to the soul.

·       Rom 14:1(n): To the church in Rome Paul said, don't receive the weak in faith for purpose of quarrels about reasonings (arguments).

·       1 Cor 3:20(n): the Lord knows the thoughts of the wise that they are vain.  Again, it’s the thoughts of the natural man.

·       Phil 2:14(n): Do everything w/o complaining or arguing.  These dialogues have no place in the Church, Christ’s tool for building up believers.

·       1 Tim 2:8(n): Men are to lift up holy hands without anger or disputing.

·       Jas 2:4(n): Those partial against the poor have become judges with evil thoughts.

Interesting, isn’t it?  Once we come to Christ, and place ourselves under the authority of the word of God, dialogue is a problem. 

Mark 2:1-12, Let’s Dialogue! Or Not! (1)

The Greek term dialogizomai (v) / dialogismos (n) we should understand.  The act of dialogue and the subject of a dialogue is something we do a lot.  We dialogue about the weather, politics, what to have for dinner, the Dodgers, religion, philosophy, and much more.  By definition “dialogue” requires 2 sides (two people, or two viewpoints in my brain, etc.).  A review of Scripture will show us that dialogue often (usually?) had a negative side.  The verb is defined as to consider, ponder, reason; consider & discuss, argue; the noun refers to a thought, opinion, reasoning, design; doubt, dispute, argument.

·       Mt 15:19; Mk. 7:21(nn): From the heart comes evil thoughts, and other things.  The first potential problem is that our “reasonings” may be faulty, concluding that we should make choices that are evil.  Remember that when this word is translated “thoughts” these are thoughts that we have after some degree of back-and-forth consideration in our minds.  Our hearts are sinful, thus our reasonings will tend towards sinful conclusions.  We might, for example, make lists of the positives and negatives about an issue, but forget that the general pride that pervades the natural mind has torpedoed the whole dialogue from the start.

·       Matt 16:7f; Mk. 8:16f(vvvv): Jesus’ disciples reasoned among selves about the "leaven of the Pharisees, Sadducees"; Christ asks them why they reason about it.  Ah!  Here is a dialogue, among the disciples, that we sometimes call “pooling the ignorant.”  This happens often in discussions at “Bible” studies and Sunday School classes.  They were trying to figure out what Jesus was talking about without simply asking Jesus.  So Jesus entered the dialogue by Himself.

·       Matt: 21:25; Mk. 11:31(vv): Jesus asked the leaders about baptism of John, from "heaven or men"? They reasoned, "if we say this, etc, if we say that, etc."  Sometimes dialogue is faulty because we are limited to only two possible ideas.

·       Mark 2:6,8; Lk. 5:22(vvv): Jesus forgave the paralytic; some scribes reasoned among themselves how He could do this. Jesus perceived their reasoning.  This dialogue was good in the sense that it was prompted by Jesus, to get them to think.  It at least says they were listening and thinking. 

·       Mk 9:33(v): Jesus asked what His disciples had reasoned about (who is greatest).  Quite possibly this discussion was prompted by pride. 

·       Lk 2:35(n): Christ for falling and rising of many that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.  This is a critically important passage.  Jesus was the “revealer of hearts,” and one major purpose of His teaching was to make people dialogue (with themselves and among themselves).  As you read the Gospels you should keep this in mind.  He made people think, and the outcome of their thinking reveals what is actually in their hearts.

(We will need another post to conclude this.)

Matt. 6:16-26, Heavenly and Earthly Storage Units

A sign of our problem with worldly lusts is the widespread construction of storage units.  They are all over the place.  And I say “worldly lusts” because while they often hold things of value or potential usefulness, they usually hold some of our excess toys, and things we may never use but just can’t let go of.  One of the great cartoons I have seen lately is the aged father and his son standing in front of a two-car garage, doors open and packed to the gills with stuff, and the father telling the worried son: “some day all this will be yours.” 

The problem is not the storage unit but the one who owns it.  So what are you storing up?  And for what purpose?  “Thèsauros” is the noun, the place where something is kept or the thing that is being kept; “thèsaurizō” is the verb (to store up, gather or store; we will note the verb; the other uses are the noun).  By the way, in English a “thesaurus” is a reference book with words listed in groups.

·       Mt 2:11: The wise men open their treasures: gold, frankincense, myrrh.

·       Mt 6:19, 20,21: don't lay up (v) treasures on earth but treasures in heaven where no moth, rust, thief is a problem. For where your treasure is there is your heart.

·       Mt 12:35; Lk 6:45: A good man out of good treasure of his heart brings forth good, the evil man brings forth evil from the evil treasure of his heart.

·       Mt 13:44: Kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in field.

·       Mt 13:52: A teacher of the Kingdom of heaven is like a householder who brings out treasure, things new & old.  Ah, different kinds of treasure!

·       Mt 19:21; Mk 10:21; Lk 18:22: The rich ruler told to sell all, give to poor, have treasure in heaven (what he treasured on earth hindered him from loving God).

·       Lk 12:21: We’re rich fools if we lay up treasure (v) for self and aren’t rich toward God.

·       Lk 12:33,34: Seek a treasure in heaven that does not fail; for where treasure is, there is your heart also.

·       Ro. 2:5: Hard-hearted ones treasure up (v) wrath in the day of wrath, judgment.

·       1 Cor 16:2: Believers to give on 1st day from what was stored up.

·       2 Cor 4:7: We have this treasure (Christ, the Spirit, New Covenant blessings) in earthen vessels (our physical body).

·       2 Cor 12:14: Children don't lay up (v) for parents but parents for the children,

·       Col 2:3: In Christ are hidden all treasures of wisdom, knowledge.  Amen!!

·       Hb 11:25: For Moses, riches of Christ better than Egypt’s treasures.  Amen!!

·       Jas 5:3: To the rich, have you heaped up treasures in the latter days?

·       2 Pt 3:7: heaven and earth which are now preserved (v) by the same word, are reserved for fire until day of judgment.

We ought to check the earthly storage unit from time to time to see if it is consistent with our heavily storage unit.  Where is my heart?  What do I treasure?