Isaiah 53 is the well known passage regarding the sufferings of Jesus being ” ….wounded for our transgressions.” Verse 5 proclaims “… the chastisement of our peace was upon Him.” Jesus took on the sin of the world at Calvary – the sin issue was settled there, but as sons/daughters of our Heavenly Father we have to come to terms with His chastening of us for the cause of our sin, that is what God is after. Sin in my life is a consequence of a greater issue that God is pin-pointing causing me to sin, which is my pride/self glory/ego………..it hides behind many masks.

Sin is like the cobweb, (consequence), whereas pride is the spider, (cause). I can dust the cobwebs away but until the spider, pride, is dealt with, the cobwebs of sin will continue to manifest in my life. The scriptures clearly point the way to get rid of pride – humble myself! 1 Peter 5:5 – 6, “….for God resists the proud and gives grace to the humble. Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time.” Once pride is dealt with the cobwebs of sin will not manifest. Where is the mighty hand pointing? It is an ongoing work.

Hebrews 12:6 – 11 “For whom the lord loves he chastens and scourges every son He receives. If you endure chastening,
God deals with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father does not chasten? But if you be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then you are bastards and not sons.

Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection to the Father of spirits and live? For they chastened us for a few days after their own pleasure, but He for our profit, that we might be partakers of His holiness.

Now no chastening for the present is joyous, but grievous, nevertheless afterwards it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to them which are exercised thereby.”

Under the Potter’s hand the Holy Spirit shows me the deeper issues of my heart as He leads me in the chastisement of my peace. If I humble, producing a tender heart, I can stay soft in my correction, for “His grace is sufficient.” I can still enjoy the peace of God amidst my chastening as it is independent of my circumstances but related to my relationship with the Lord. I don’t start at that place but I can come to it quickly when I recognise God working in my life. Or, I can murmur and drag my heels until I humble and find His peace again.

Hebrews 12:6 “For whom the Lord loves He chastens, and scourges every son He receives.” The “scourges” of God in His chastening of me are for my healing. His scourging redirects me back to the path of His purpose after losing my way.

Praise God for His continuing work with these lumps of clay, our earthen vessels that He is fashioning for His glory, conformed to the image of His dear Son. Through it all we are learning to lean on and trust in Him.

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At the end of our Gathering the Lord spoke these words through one of His chosen vessels:-

You look behind on the path you have taken and you see so many wrong footprints in the sand on so many wrong roads!
But look again! The hand of God has been at work. Now it is virgin sand, smooth, not one mistake – because He took it all and knitted it into another pattern for His glory and grace. All the things you thought were wrong, God took it all and made them to become blessings.

He has redeemed them!