Living under grace as believers means we are God’s children. As our heavenly Father, He loves us
enough to chasten and correct us as needed. It is painful while we are going through it, but it is not
punishment; chastening is a sign that we are God’s son or daughter. It is God’s way of dealing with
our sins, but doing so in love. Just like the purification process gold goes through to burn out all
impurities, God uses the chastening process to remove everything in us displeasing to Him—
including self-dependence. This type of impurity includes all self-centeredness, all self-will, and all
tendencies to take the glory and the credit for ourselves for God’s blessings, without acknowledging
Him. We are unlike the unsaved world that does not know Jesus and therefore does not undergo the
chastening process; we therefore can rejoice when we un
