Children are wont to misbehaviour and disobedience. Parents should therefore, be wont to discipline and correction. Our Heavenly Father God is perfectly and steadfastly wont to the job in the lives of His willful children. We can see this also in God's dealings with the Israelites time and again. Through the wilderness wanderings and then in the Promised Land, God was with them; leading, guiding and correcting.
Through the wilderness wanderings and then in the Promised Land, God was with them. At times these children of Israel were obedient but at times they were not. In fact, they eventually became increasingly disobedient and turned away from God who was with them and loved them and cared for them. What was this heavenly Father to do with such wayward children?
Discipline.
The nation of Israel, after the reign of King Solomon split into two and became known as the house of Israel or the Northern Kingdom and the House of Judah, aka the Southern Kingdom. This was because King Solomon had turned to other gods instead of being steadfast with the one true God who was the God of Israel.
As the years went along, the Northern Kingdom was so corrupt and wicked, there seemed no remedy to be found for their restoration. Another nation came and removed them from Israel and as we've learned earlier, were scattered and dispersed among the conquering empire. To this day these people cannot be found; although there have been claims of various people groups to be some of the Lost Tribes. This was actually NOT discipline but judgment. Restoration was not to be found. Of course, in the end God will ferret the descendants out as we read in Scripture that the 12 apostles will reign over the 12 tribes of Israel (Revelation 21:12; Matthew 19:28, Luke 22:30; James 1:1 and Ezra 6:17). We see that God still has these ones in His mind.
In the Southern Kingdom's case, they had the ups and downs of worshiping God with good kings interspersed with bad kings that led their hearts away from their Yahweh. There was that slide though in the end despite the faithfulness of the prophets Isaiah and Jeremiah's constant proclaiming the warnings of coming punishment and the consequences for no repentance. The people continued in their disobedience, rebellion and idolatry and the overwhelming injustices dished out to the poor, needy, widows and the fatherless.
God's discipline came in stages. First King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon took away the king and nobles and some of the articles of the temple worship. This echelon of those who could rule and keep the nation somewhat stable in order that the plebians could go about their daily routine and businesses and evil without much of a care in the world.
Did this make those who remained in the land stop and take note as God had given opportunity? As you read through Kings and Chronicles you'll see it didn't. No repentance.
King Nebuchadnezzazar came again and removed another level - craftsmen and the like. Businesses and commerce ground to a halt. Still, Father God looked for repentance from those who remained. Notta chance.
The third and final time King Nebuchadnezzar swooped in, he killed all those false teachers and prophets who sat in the gates. Then he took all the rest of the people except the poorest of the poor back to Babylon. Would these people ever learn their lesson that serving God is better than any other supposed god?
These steps of discipline were meant to hurt to the point of waking the children up to their misdeeds. The seventy years of exile taught them this. They learned. Then they would be restored in their hearts, and to their Promised Land, to the rebuilding of the Temple and the walls of Jerusalem out of the rubble and ruin to once again engage in true worship of their one true God.
It is helpful to see how God disciplines. As parents we can see how to discipline our own children. Steps of discipline as the 'heat' its turned up - not to destroy our children but to discipline them towards obedience and other desirable behavior that pleases the Lord and subsequently, the parents.
When our offspring learn to obey us, the parents, they will learn to obey the Lord, His Word and the Holy Spirit's nudging more willingly from the heart. They will learn that their actions have reactions or consequences whether for good or bad.
We cannot forget though to restore the relationship - also in stages as the trust is built up. Privileges restored as obedience is evidenced. The Lord, being the same yesterday and today and forever, deals with us His children in very similar fashion today. May we be willing to live under the protection of His authority and will in our lives. Draw near to God beause He is near to us.
Accept His discipline even when He may take what is dearest to us away for a time, such as a beloved, loved one, our business, money, job and so on. Turn to Him, lean on Him and His Word. Trust in Him come what may.
It is so very interesting to note that God restored Judah to their land and in Ezra 6:17 we note something of note. Israel as the Northern Kingdom, because of their judgment for unrepentant hearts, did not get to come back. However, we see that Ezra and the Southern Kingdom returnees offered sacrifices for all the 12 tribes when they dedicated the new house of God;
"twelve male goats one for each of the tribes of Israel."
Isn't that a wonder!?
I like it that even James, in James 1:1 is thinking of these tribes - inclusive of all twelve. They had not been forgotten all those years later. James wrote his missive to,
"... the twelve tribes scattered among the nations."
Somewhere, out there, may these words get out to those "lost" ones and turn and seek the Lord.
We may have a child who has wandered away from us as did the prodigal son. Thankfully the prodigal son repented and humbly returned home. However, we know that some sons or daughters have drifted away from us or maybe because of "tough love," parental discipline that had to ask the child to remove themselves from the home, which is exceedingly painful and sorrowful enough but there is the heartache and break of those who refuse repentance, to return and have restoration. We still pray and hope for this anyway.
God still knows where they are and has His eye on them. He's the one who knows the depths of our hearts. He's the one who can bring our children back to Him and us when the hearts are willing. Pray for that because while there's life there's hope. Only God knows, so I can't give 100% guarantee of a child's return but let us put our hope, trust and faith in our Heavenly Father, the One who cares for you and me and "the lost ones".
He wants restoration between Him and us, between parents and children; between leaders and church members and between husbands and wives and so many other relationships. May God's discipline and the dynamic power of the Holy Spirit in our lives bring forth what our Heavenly Father desires in the children. May His will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Amen.
~ERC February 2022~
Based on 2 Kings 24:8-17; 2 Chrsonicles 36:11-21 and Stephen Armstrong's verse by verse talk on Restoring God's People series, Talk #2.
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