There is considerable misunderstanding about what it means when God chastens us. He does this as
a loving Father to correct and guide us, not to punish us. His chastening helps direct us toward
righteousness, godliness, and complete dependence on Him. Punishment, which involves fear, does
not figure into the covenant of grace, because it is not God’s nature to punish. Punishment is a
consequence of wrongdoing; however, Jesus took all the punishment we deserved when He went to
the cross. We are guaranteed to encounter adversity and painful circumstances in life; God uses
those things not because He is angry with us, but to grow and mature us. The next time we run into
trouble, we can be thankful and joyful knowing that God loves us and cares enough about us to
discipline us for our own good.
