Deuteronomy 28:63 (ESV)
And as the LORD took delight in doing you good and multiplying you, so the LORD will take delight in bringing ruin upon you and destroying you. And you shall be plucked off the land that you are entering to take possession of it.
The above verse is in the middle of a long sermon by Moses to the nation of Israel. Moses is dying and, soon, Joshua will bring the nation into the promise land. In this section, Moses is giving to the nation God’s blessings and cursing. The nation will be blessed if they obey God’s word. The nation will be cursed if they disobey God’s word. That is the simple formula for all ages of believers. In the above verse we read something amazing about God’s character. The verse is stating that God delights in giving us grace in our times of obedience and God delights in giving us discipline in the times of our disobedience. We do know that we are to delight in God’s discipline:
Hebrews 12:5-6 (ESV)
And have you forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons?
“My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord,
nor be weary when reproved by him.
For the Lord disciplines the one he loves,
and chastises every son whom he receives.”
That last part of that Hebrews’ text gives us a clue as to why God delights in disciplining us. God disciplines those He loves. A father does not typically discipline another families’ children. A father disciplines his own children. He loves them and corrects them. God is our Father and because He loves us He delights in giving us blessings via His grace and giving us discipline through that same grace. Through our faith in Christ we have escaped His wrath:
Romans 8:1 (ESV)
There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
But we have not escaped His discipline, nor should we desire to be free from His divine correction. God corrects those who He loves. God delights in either blessing us or disciplining us because He only does that to who He loves. This is the character of God.
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