Deuteronomy 8:5 Know then in your heart that as a man disciplines his son, so the Lord your God disciplines you. (The Lord had earlier referred to His people as a son when He told Moses to demand that Pharaoh let God's son go so the people, His son, could worship Him. Then, after their escape from Egypt, after their desert travels, the Lord reminds His people that He had cared from them in very practical ways through their wilderness journey, that He had caused their clothing not to wear out and their feet not to grow swollen and tired from their difficult trek. Now, here, the Lord reminds them that the wilderness journey that He had imposed on them was done on their behalf, not to heartlessly punish them, but to grow and mature them. The Lord admonishes us to know, to discern, to ascertain by looking at what is before us and what we are experiencing, and to understand that the special relationship we have with Him makes Him our Father, One Who cares enough about us to correct us, to instruct us, to teach us His ways. As our good and wise Father, His discipline is about guidance and is done from His great and encompassing love for us. His discipline does not spring out of a desire to punish us or to make life hard on us or to see how much we can take, but comes out of His Father's heart of love and grace and mercy. The faint mirror image of an earthly father who loves and cares for his children and disciplines them to grow and develop good character is only a pale reflection of Him Who is our perfect Father and Who loves us beyond measure, so much so that He gave His only Son on our behalf and promises us that He will cause even the hardships we experience, even the difficult times and places of discipline, to work to our benefit. Only a God Who expresses such a Father God relationship to us, an invitation into son-ship that is beyond our comprehension, can love us that much and in that way.)
