Punished by God?

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Sat, 2006-06-03 09:31
#1
somertyme
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Punished by God?

Just wanting to get some thoughts on this ... It's been on my mind lately.

 

Obviously God does send punishments to individuals/nations at certain times.  My questions are:

Does He punish His children or just His enemies and those who have rejected Him?

What is the purpose of His punishment (i.e. to teach, to get revenge, or simply because justice demands it, etc.)?

In what ways does He punish (both past and present)?

Are the bad/painful things that happen to God's people today, punishments sent from Him,  or simply the results of living in a sinful world?  If both are possible, how can we know the difference, and how should that effect our response?

 

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Tue, 2006-06-06 20:51
#2
NoBlesseOblige
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Hmmmm.....

Punished by God, heavy subject. In the Bible, punished is used rather loosely. Jesus was "punished" to be "perfected". Paul talks about God punishing His CHILDREN & not those Who have chosen to turn away from Him. Paul says that that kind of punishment is a privilege because it shows God cares about who we are becoming. We're his proteges & He wants to make us just like Him! yeah, sometimes God's timing isn't quite like ours. Perhaps same with "punishment" too. Like some wise parent once said, "if you didn't do anything now to deserve this spanking, you did at sometime" or something to that extent. No, I don't think God's got late books that follow us up with a big wham 'cause we did something (or didn't do something) 3 months ago. But all life's happenings, good & bad, He uses to bring us to Himself. So even the "punishment" isn't to drive us away, make us feel guilty, a indication for increased self-flagellation, but a call to come even closer to Him to discern His purpose in tough times, to perhaps open our minds and hearts to new horizons, an invitation to intimacy through sharing in His sufferings. This, His sufferings, is really how we come closest to the heart of God.

Rebel thoughts; kind of goes against the grain, but if you've been there, you kinda know what it means...

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Wed, 2006-06-07 08:16
(Reply to #2) #3
somertyme
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I agree that we come close

I agree that we come close to the heart of God as we share in His sufferings.  Suffering often does bring growth and new understanding. And God certainly uses the hardships of this life to teach us and to help us grow.  I guess I'm wondering though, if he is sending us these things to "punish" for our sin, or whether He simply allows them to happen in order to strengthen us.  For example:  If my child goes outside without a coat on, I may allow the natural result, i.e. allow them to get cold, so that they can learn to dress more warmly.  That doesn't mean I sent the cold or made them cold just to make them uncomfortable.  

Even Jesus went through great trials and hardships in His life.  Yet He had not sinned in any way deserving of punishment.  And His final suffering was to take the results of our sin, i.e. our punishment--death.

There is often talk in the Bible of God sending punishment to His enemies. However, with His children, He only seems to send it when there is a clear purpose that is needed for Him to accomplish, not just so the person will feel bad, or not just to make them pay for what they did wrong.  Think of Ananias & Sapphira.  They had commited a grievous sin against God & the Holy Spirit.  They were struck down.  I believe that God did this mostly for the sake of protecting the young church from their influence, and showing what a serious thing had been done.  Obviously it didn't teach A & S very much ...

When I sin, I like to think that God is not going to send me a punishment (though I may deserve it), but instead He will speak to my heart and draw me back to Him. Is there need for punishment when one is repentant?  Jesus took the punishment for my sin (Praise God for that!), so that I don't have to.  That doesn't mean that I won't have to live with the earthly results of sin, or that God will keep all suffering away.  But I can know that my sins are forgiven. And God's response to my sin is one of compassion and love (as was Jesus' toward the woman caught in adultery) as He leads me to repentence. 

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Tue, 2006-06-13 05:39
#4
rww
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Punishment for sins
Jesus Heals a Man Born Blind

1As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. 2His disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?"

3"Neither this man nor his parents sinned," said Jesus, "but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life. 4As long as it is day, we must do the work of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work. 5While I am in the world, I am the light of the world."

6Having said this, he spit on the ground, made some mud with the saliva, and put it on the man's eyes. 7"Go," he told him, "wash in the Pool of Siloam" (this word means Sent). So the man went and washed, and came home seeing.

Are the bad things that happen to us punishment for our sins sent from God? I believe the above passage illustrates that God uses our misfortunes to open our eyes.

I think it is interesting that the disciples thought that the man's blindness was a punishment from God. "Neither this man nor his parents sinned," said Jesus, "but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life."

Also Job's problems were not punishment from God although his friends thought so. We  should not assume that someone's misfortune (or our own) is a result of some sin that they commited. (like the disciples did)

Having said that, I do believe that God may punish unbelievers, perhaps to help them see.

I would like to hear what you all think about this.

Also see Hebrews 12:6-11

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. Rom. 8:28

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Sat, 2006-06-17 14:09
(Reply to #4) #5
christopher
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punishment or penalty

I read your suggested reading...

I see that there are two kinds of punishment:

  1. Chastisement or punishment to build up the punished

  2. Punishment to gratify the anger of the punisher

God does the #1 not #2. I believe that it is important to God that we realize that he is always and only chastening us to build us up.

I believe it is the work of the Holy Spirit to “punish” us or convict us of the sin in our lives and lead to transformation. I believe it is this that Hebrews 12 is talking about and it is not different from the process of sanctification.

Psalms 51:10 says, “Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.” This is sanctification and can involve discomfort as Hebrews 12:11 suggests. This sanctification rightly comes after justification. “Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.” Psalms 51:7.

In this sense, God does punish his children, but never to hurt them; God punishes his children to heal them.

It is the word “punish” that introduces this difficulty; it has been tarnished by selfishness.

Punishment and penalty are not the same. Receiving punishment cannot pay for sin; punishment is the process of being made aware of sin. Praise God that Christ paid the penalty of my sin!

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