Submit to God’s Correction

‘I … reprove and chasten.’
Rev 3:19

God’s correction humbles us in ways we need to be humbled. And when He does it, we have three options: 1) Rebel against Him. 2) Rationalise and make excuses. 3) Receive His correction and get back on track. But lasting change can’t even begin until you accept that God loves you unconditionally and just as you are. Without that, you’ll keep trying to change yourself in a vain attempt to earn His love and acceptance. The truth is, you already have it - you just don’t know it! Many of us think that by accepting ourselves we’re excusing all the things that are wrong with us. Not so! You can’t properly receive God’s correction until you’ve a clear understanding of how much He loves you. Without that you’ll interpret His correction as rejection and see His disapproval of your behaviour as disapproval of you. To grow spiritually you must believe that God is committed to you, especially when He deals with you correctively and leads you in ways you don’t understand. During such times you must have an unshakeable trust in His love for you. The apostle Paul was convinced that nothing could separate him from God’s love (see Romans 8:39). In Revelation chapter three God is speaking to each of us when He says, ‘Those whom I [dearly and tenderly] love, I tell their faults … convict and convince … reprove and chasten.’ One of the strongest evidences of God’s love and acceptance, is His correction. Indeed, you should be concerned about the absence of it! So if God’s correcting you right now, take heart and rejoice! It means He has good things in store for you.

Jer 6-8, 2 Thess 1