SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 6/15/2025 8:33 AM
My Worship Time Focus:
PT-2“The Correcting Scripture”
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference: 2 Timothy
3:16d
Message of the verse: “for correction”
I want to continue looking at the subject of this Spiritual Diary by once again quoting from John MacArthur’s commentary. “Shortly before His arrest and crucifixion, Jesus told the disciples, ‘I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit, He prunes it, that it may bear more fruit’ (John 15:1-2). In order to make His people obedient, useful, and effective in His service, the Lord has to trim away not only things that are sinful but also things that are useless. He may take away things that are perfectly good in themselves, even things that seem necessary but which He knows are a hindrance to our spiritual growth and service. They can sap time, attention, and effort from the work He has for us to do. Like His discipline, this process sometimes ‘for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful,’ but also like discipline, ‘to those who have been trained by it’ the Lord’s wise and gracious cropping of superfluous branches ‘afterwards…yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness’ (Heb. 12:11).
“As with reproof, godly believers, especially pastors and teachers, are often the channel through which the Word brings correction. Earlier in this letter, Paul reminded Timothy that ‘the Lord’s bondservant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth’ (2 Tim. 2:25), emphasis added). In his letter to believers at Colossae, the apostle gives similar counsel: ‘Brethren, even if a man is caught in any trespass, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness; each one looking to yourself, let you too be tempted’ (Gal. 6:1). Despite the dreadful calamities with which God allowed him to be afflicted, Job affirmed to his friend Eliphaz that ‘he who has clean hands shall grow stronger and stronger’ (Job. 17:9).
6/15/2025 8:49 AM
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