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Now we will consider the twelfth experience in our spiritual life — accepting the discipline of the Holy Spirit.
The discipline of the Holy Spirit that we are now considering does not refer to the inward discipline of the Holy Spirit, for that is the function of the Holy Spirit within us as the anointing. The discipline of the Holy Spirit refers to what the Holy Spirit is doing in our outward environment; it refers to His arranging of all people, things, and happenings, through which we are being disciplined.
The major work of God toward us through the Holy Spirit, aside from the Holy Spirit as the anointing, is in His outward discipline. These two aspects comprise almost the complete work of the Holy Spirit. For example, Romans 8, which speaks of the work of the Holy Spirit, first tells us that the Holy Spirit, which contains the law of life, is able to set us free from sin and that by Him we can put to death the practices of the body. This chapter also tells us that the Holy Spirit guides us so that we may live according to Him and finally, that He helps us in our weaknesses and prays for us. All these activities are the work of the Holy Spirit within us as the anointing. In the latter part of this chapter we read that “all things work together for good to those who love God” (v. 28). This speaks of the discipline of the Holy Spirit in our outward environment. The work of this outward discipline coordinates with His inward moving and leading. The Holy Spirit arranges and determines all that comes upon us according to the will of God. Although in many instances this causes temporal pain and trouble, in the end it is for the good of those who love God, that they may be conformed to the image of His Son. This arrangement is what we mean by the discipline of the Holy Spirit.
The work of the Holy Spirit within us requires the coordination of outward discipline because usually the inward working of the Holy Spirit alone is not sufficient. We can say that the inward working of the Holy Spirit is largely for the obedient ones, and the outward discipline of the Holy Spirit is largely for the stiff-necked ones. When the Holy Spirit moves and anoints within us and we obey the feeling that He imparts, God’s will is accomplished, and His attributes are increased within us. Therefore, the inward anointing of the Holy Spirit is to some extent sufficient for the obedient ones. However, if we are stubborn, if we do not obey the inner anointing and rebel time after time, the Holy Spirit is compelled to raise up an environment to chasten and discipline us, thereby causing us to submit. Therefore, the anointing of the Holy Spirit within us is a sweet act of God’s love toward us and is His original desire, while the outward discipline of the Holy Spirit is an act of God’s hand, an act that He is compelled to perform. It is something additional.
Hence, both in the original desire of God and in the New Testament teaching, the place of the discipline of the Holy Spirit is not as important as that of the anointing of the Holy Spirit. In God’s Word much is said about the Holy Spirit as the anointing, such as the leading of the Holy Spirit, the enlightening of the Holy Spirit, the strengthening of the Holy Spirit, and our need to live in the Holy Spirit, walk according to the Holy Spirit, and bear fruit through the Holy Spirit. However, the Bible says very little in a literal way about the discipline of the Holy Spirit; indeed, it contains no such phrase. This is because the discipline of the Holy Spirit is not a matter that is pleasant to God’s feeling. Such a condition may be likened to the fact that most fathers prepare good things for their children, not whips and rods. In many families the father is forced to resort to rebuking and whipping because of the children’s stubbornness and rebellion. In fact, to the feeling of the father, such chastenings are never pleasant. Likewise, that which God has prepared for us in the New Testament is always positive, but due to our obstinacy, stubbornness, lawlessness, and disobedience, God is forced to discipline us. In a normal situation among the saints in the church, the anointing of the Holy Spirit should always exceed the discipline of the Holy Spirit; there should not be the constant encountering of discipline. It is always abnormal if the children in a family are spanked every day.
Therefore, when we accept the discipline of the Holy Spirit, we should not deem it to be a pleasant thing. Some brothers and sisters seem to glory in testifying of their experience while being disciplined by the Holy Spirit. This should not be. No child is proud after being punished by his father. In the same manner, we should feel ashamed when we receive the discipline of the Holy Spirit. We should be aware of our own obstinacy, stubbornness, lawlessness, and disobedience, which cause punishment from God our Father. No doubt, He chastises me because He loves me, but when I speak of His chastisement, it is not my glory. It is because I am so rebellious and stubborn, even as a mule without understanding, that God is compelled to discipline me. This is my shame. Therefore, we should not boast in regard to the discipline we receive. All those who boast concerning the discipline of the Holy Spirit are those who do not know the nature of the discipline of the Holy Spirit.
Because the discipline of the Holy Spirit is such an unpleasant thing, God in His original thought put greater emphasis on the inner anointing, which is of a positive nature, than on the outward discipline, which is of a negative nature. But judging from our condition, the discipline of the Holy Spirit is most needful, because we are by nature rebellious, lawless, and disobedient. We often disregard and disobey the moving and enlightening of the Holy Spirit. It seems that His anointing alone, which is His sweet act, is not enough to accomplish His purpose, but that we need in addition the outward discipline as the coordinating factor to chastise us and deal with us in order that we may be subdued. Therefore, the discipline of the Holy Spirit must not be neglected in our experience.
The purpose of the discipline of the Holy Spirit toward us can be divided into three aspects: chastisement, education, and breaking.
Hebrews 12:10 tells us that the Father of spirits chastens us “for what is profitable that we might partake of His holiness.” The chastisement mentioned here is the first intention or the first category of the discipline of the Holy Spirit.
Chastisement means punishment that is necessary because of our rebellion, stubbornness, and disobedience. Many times in our experience the Holy Spirit has already spoken within us and has anointed us in order to make known the will of God, but due to our stubbornness, rebellion, or some other reason we have disregarded the voice of God and paid no attention to the feeling of the Holy Spirit. Therefore, God has arranged environmental situations through the Holy Spirit to cause us to feel afflicted, painful, suppressed, and miserable so that we may be punished and chastised.
For example, consider a brother who has gained his income in a dishonest manner and has been enlightened by the Holy Spirit to deal with the situation; yet, due to his pride and his concern for financial loss, he refuses to obey the will of God in this matter. Though the Holy Spirit repeatedly moves and urges him, he will not obey. At this time God has no other alternative but to use an outward environment to chastise him. It may be that he will be hit by an automobile. Though he does not die, nor is he critically injured, yet he suffers great pain. While he lies in the hospital, groaning in anguish, the Holy Spirit speaks to him again, reminding him of the former demand. He becomes humble and subdued and is willing now to deal with his behavior according to the will of God. Shortly after obeying and accepting the dealing, his wound is gradually healed. This is the environmental discipline arranged by the Holy Spirit according to the will of God and our need for chastisement. This is His dealing especially with our stubbornness and disobedience so that we may be disciplined.
The purpose of chastisement can be subdivided into two kinds. One kind deals with rebellion and consists purely of punishment for our rebellion. The other kind corrects our mistakes. This means that when we have gone astray and refuse to turn back at the teaching of the Holy Spirit, or when we are about to err, though the Holy Spirit has given us a certain sense, we proceed headlong into the error, then the Holy Spirit is forced to raise up an environment as a blow to us so that we might be warned and corrected from the mistake or kept from falling into the mistake. All these activities are counted as discipline.
The second purpose or category of the discipline of the Holy Spirit is education. Strictly speaking, the chastisement we have previously mentioned is also a form of education. However, the chastening education is a punishment due to our fault, while pure educational discipline has nothing to do with punishment or our fault, for though we may be faultless, we still must be educated. Therefore, in this aspect, the discipline of the Holy Spirit is necessary for every one of us.
The education given through the discipline of the Holy Spirit coordinates with the anointing work of the Holy Spirit within us in order to fulfill the goal of God’s mingling with man. We have often said that the purpose of the anointing of the Holy Spirit within us is to anoint God’s element into us. Nevertheless, there are many elements of self within us that replace the elements of God and are contrary to them; thus, this presents a great difficulty to God. Hence, the discipline of the Holy Spirit for education is given to purge us of the contrary elements through raising up the environment, in order that God’s element may be anointed into us. The chastening discipline deals only with our fault and is concerned with the problem of our outward behavior, whereas the educational discipline deals with our human element and is concerned with the problem of our inward nature. Regardless of whether our outward behavior is good or bad, our inward nature is always in opposition to God.
For example, we would find it rather difficult to apply an additional coat of paint to a small table that already has been painted with a thick layer of glossy paint. Such a surface simply cannot absorb the new paint. In other words, the original element becomes an opponent to the element that is to be added. Therefore, we must sand off the original paint so that the surface becomes rough and better able to absorb the new paint. Likewise, if we are filled with the element of self, the Holy Spirit finds it difficult to anoint us through His moving and anointing within. Hence, there is also the need for the Holy Spirit to raise up environments that act like sandpaper upon us. This kind of scraping is not to punish us for rebellion, neither is it to correct our mistakes, but to make us rougher, who otherwise would be shiny and glossy, untreated and hard, thereby enabling the Holy Spirit to anoint God’s element into us.
There are many brothers and sisters who are like glass, slippery and hard. Although the Holy Spirit often speaks to them, they will not listen. They have listened to many messages; indeed they have become an “old pro” at them. Regardless of what the message is, they know every point in the proper sequence; yet in fact they have not touched the reality of the message at all. This kind of person can only be dealt with by the Holy Spirit through various difficulties of the environment, cutting and scraping them here and there; then they will listen to the message in a serious manner. At this time the word of the Holy Spirit as well as the anointing and moving of the Holy Spirit will be effective. Therefore, the second purpose of the discipline of the Holy Spirit is to coordinate with the inner anointing of the Holy Spirit, thereby educating us so that we may be receptive to the working of the Holy Spirit.
To prepare a spiced egg, the shell must be cracked so that the spices can penetrate into the egg. When God desires to penetrate us by the Holy Spirit, we who are whole according to nature, like the shiny egg shell, need to be cracked as a coordinating process for the penetrating work of God. This is the educational purpose of the discipline of the Holy Spirit.
For the educational purpose, the discipline of the Holy Spirit is given not only to break us so that the element of God may mingle more with us but also to cook us, because we are so raw and wild by nature. When we cook rice, it is not because the rice is faulty and needs to be corrected. We put the rice in the pot and cook it with water over fire so that the rice, which is raw and hard, may become cooked and softened, savory and good for eating. Similarly, all of us, before being dealt with by God, are raw, wild, and hard. We need God’s discipline through the Holy Spirit and by the environment to burn and cook us. Such cooking will cause us to suffer and be afflicted, as though we had passed through fire and water, but it is done so that our raw and tough condition may become matured and softened, and we may obtain the fragrance of maturity and be able to supply and satisfy man’s need.
A raw person not only is wild and hard but also has a foul smell, like any uncooked fish or meat, regardless of how good the quality may be. A raw brother may have many natural virtues: he may be very gentle and meek; he may love the Lord, pursue the Lord, and even fervently serve the Lord. This is all good; yet, because he is still raw, uncooked, and of the natural, unresurrected life, all his virtues carry a foul, human smell rather than the fragrance of Christ. If you meet such a brother after he has been placed in difficulties for a certain length of time or has passed through serious illness, you will find that he is still gentle and meek, he still loves the Lord, pursues the Lord, and serves the Lord; yet you will sense that all these qualities are different: the raw and smelly odor has been greatly eliminated, and a sweet savor flows forth from him. If so, we must bow in worship to the Lord and say that this brother has really been educated by the discipline of the Holy Spirit.
The third purpose of the discipline of the Holy Spirit is the tearing down or breaking. We have repeatedly said that the work of God in us is for the central purpose of mingling and building His element into us. To achieve this goal we must first be torn down. The educational purpose of which we have spoken is trivial and minor when compared to this. The educational discipline causes us to have merely an opening or a crack, while the breaking smashes and demolishes us completely, to the end that all that is of the natural and old creation in us will completely disintegrate. Therefore, breaking is the most severe step as well as the final goal in the discipline of the Holy Spirit.
We regret to say that in our midst we have not seen many being disciplined by the Holy Spirit in such a severe manner; neither do many of us know the discipline of the Holy Spirit to such a degree. Contrariwise, we see some who, the more they are disciplined by the Holy Spirit, the tougher and more built up in their own beings they become. This is a wrong condition. Normally, the more a person is disciplined by the Holy Spirit, the more he is terminated. The end result of the discipline of the Holy Spirit is always that we may be torn down, broken, and reduced to nothing. It is through the discipline of the Holy Spirit that God completely tears down our old creation so that the element of His new creation may be built up in us.
If one considers the discipline of the Holy Spirit merely as a chastisement or spiritual education, then this kind of discipline will cause him to be built up and perfected. It will seem then that one who originally was incomplete has become complete through being disciplined by the Holy Spirit, or that one who originally was in a poor condition, after having been disciplined by the Holy Spirit, has shaped up. Notwithstanding, the discipline of the Holy Spirit was never intended for this. On the contrary, the discipline of the Holy Spirit is given to break and smash the one who is whole and to mess up the one who is in such perfect shape. The original intention of the discipline of the Holy Spirit is not to build us up but to tear us down. Therefore, if a person is always gentle, the Holy Spirit will trouble him to such an extent that he can no longer be gentle. If there is one who never contends with others, the Holy Spirit will trouble him to an extent that he is forced to contend. Never think that because a person is not gentle he is therefore being disciplined by the Holy Spirit. Some people are always gentle, yet the Holy Spirit raises up an environment to disturb them and compel them to stop being gentle, even causing them to lose their temper terribly. This terrible losing of their temper is a kind of breaking to them.
The reason God breaks us is that all our natural element has no place before God. The gentleness, obedience, and other good points of some people are of the natural constitution and are by virtue of birth. Some people are born with a good temper; therefore, they receive praises from man and esteem themselves praiseworthy, not knowing that such a natural, good trait is the greatest hindrance to the work of the Holy Spirit within them. Thus, their spiritual life is retarded. Therefore, the Holy Spirit will raise up environments again and again to irritate such a person and cause him to lose his temper. The day will come when he can no longer bear all the irritation; he will lose his temper in a terrible way. Then he will be discouraged, feeling that having lost his temper so badly, he can no longer serve the Lord, and his future will be terminated. He does not know that while he is afraid of being terminated, the Holy Spirit fears lest he will not be terminated. The reason the Holy Spirit continually irritates and pressures him is that he may be terminated. Such is the severe nature of the discipline of the Holy Spirit.
If we have experienced the Lord more, we must confess that the discipline given us by the Holy Spirit, whether it be chastisement or education, is for our breaking. Actually, there is neither chastisement nor education; all the discipline of the Holy Spirit is for the tearing down and breaking. Only when we define them can we categorize them into the three aspects of chastisement, education, and breaking. In fact, after all is said and done, the discipline of the Holy Spirit has only one purpose — to tear us down and break us.
Since the primary purpose of the discipline of the Holy Spirit is for breaking, it does not necessarily have to do with any mistake on our part. He disciplines us regardless of our mistakes. Of course, if we are disobedient, we will be dealt with; however, even though we are obedient, we will still be dealt with. His purpose is not only to correct us or to cause us to be more obedient but to break us. The basic purpose of His discipline is breaking. The more whole a person is, the more he needs to be torn down. It seems that those whose behavior is disorderly do not need His disciplinary breaking; since they are already full of wounds, they need only a deep repentance on the day that they are enlightened. Rather, he who has never done anything wrong or has never fallen, he who is so whole and well-behaved, such a one needs the striking, beating, dealing, and breaking of the Holy Spirit through the environment until he becomes totally smashed and terminated.
God’s salvation is very special. On one hand, He needs the goodness of man, while on the other hand, He breaks it. According to the human point of view, this is really contradictory. When a person disobeys, God wants him to obey, but when he is obedient, God smashes his obedience. If a person is not gentle, God wants him to be gentle, but when he becomes gentle, God smashes his gentleness. When we do not love Him fervently, He wants us to be fervent, and He will draw us to love Him; yet when we love Him fervently, He breaks us to pieces. In God’s leadings, the work of God always seems so contradictory. Yet this contradiction is exactly the breaking work of the discipline of the Holy Spirit in us.
Therefore, in experiencing this lesson we must pay special attention to the aspect of breaking. We need to see that although the discipline of the Holy Spirit has the twofold purpose of chastisement and education, nevertheless the ultimate purpose is the breaking. To put it simply, all the discipline of the Holy Spirit is for our breaking. He breaks us whether we are right or wrong. He breaks us whether we are obedient or disobedient. He breaks us whether we are rebellious or not. Before God, our evil is worth nothing, and so also is our good; our being wrong is worth nothing, and so is our being right; both our disobedience and obedience are worth nothing; both our rebelliousness and our submissiveness are worth nothing. These all need to be broken. The discipline of the Holy Spirit is entirely for the breaking of man.
The position of the discipline of the Holy Spirit in the entire work of God is first outward, not inward. Although the discipline of the Holy Spirit deals with things within us, the discipline itself is in our outward environment. The Holy Spirit uses all kinds of environments outside of us to discipline us and break us.
Second, the discipline of the Holy Spirit is negative, not positive. We have said that the positive work of God through the Holy Spirit includes the inner anointing, guidance, enlightening, and strengthening. The Bible speaks much about these aspects, which are all glorious, sweet, and of chief importance in the eyes of God. However, within us there are many natural elements that must be removed; therefore, in the work of God there is an accessory part, which is the environmental dealing or discipline. According to our experience, these dealings and disciplines are extremely vital; however, they are painful and shameful, and in God’s eyes, are not of chief importance; thus, they are negative.
Furthermore, the positive work of the Holy Spirit within us is always accomplished through the Spirit of God, whereas the negative discipline of the Holy Spirit in our environment is brought about by the deeds of Satan. All the people, things, and happenings used in the discipline of the Holy Spirit are of Satan’s manipulation. For example, if someone is opposing us and causing us trouble, this opposition or trouble is definitely not directly of God but directly from Satan. Again, a thief who steals our clothing, or a fire that burns our house, is definitely not sent directly by God but by Satan. If someone is obstinate, rebellious, and sins against God, and as a result becomes seriously ill, this sickness is not sent directly from God but from Satan. Therefore, all the people, things, and happenings involved in the discipline of the Holy Spirit are measured to us by God according to our need. But the one who is acting behind the people, things, and happenings in order to harm us is Satan. Therefore, this is another major reason why we say that the discipline of the Holy Spirit is not sweet.
Since the position of the discipline of the Holy Spirit is outward and negative, we should not consider it more important than the positive anointing of the Holy Spirit within. The purpose of our experiencing the discipline of the Holy Spirit is that we may experience the anointing of the Holy Spirit. If there were only the discipline of the Holy Spirit but not the anointing of the Holy Spirit, it would be meaningless.
There are two characteristics of the discipline of the Holy Spirit: one is temporal; the other is of long duration. The temporal discipline is only for a short period of time and usually comes suddenly and passes quickly. Take for example someone who is hit by an automobile and is seriously injured but who does not die. After two weeks in the hospital he recovers, and the discipline is ended. This is temporal discipline.
The discipline of long duration is of a longer period of time, the least lasting several years, and the longest following us throughout our entire life. Thus, the pain is great and the breaking severe. Suppose, for example, that God gives a brother a quarrelsome wife or that He gives a sister a most unreasonable husband, causing them to suffer daily, perhaps unbearably. Since, as Christians, they cannot be divorced, the wife becomes the lifelong discipline to the husband, and, likewise, the husband to the wife.
The disciplines of long duration are mostly in an environment that we contact regularly, such as our family, job, church, or relatives. Among these, the family discipline is of the longest duration and is the most severe. Many in China say that a family is a cangue. (A wooden collar three or four feet square used in Oriental countries for confining the neck and sometimes also the hands for punishment.) This is very meaningful. The people of this world take marriage as an enjoyment, but practically speaking, when we marry, we receive a painful dealing, and we must prepare to carry the cangue and wear a lock. There is nothing that binds people so much as the family. He who has a family is one who receives a bondage and discipline from God. The husband is a lifelong discipline to the wife, and the wife to the husband.
The children in the family are also a means of discipline. Those who are childless always wish to have children, but in spite of their wish, some remain childless. Others, who have many children, do not want any more, yet the more they do not desire them, the more they have. A certain sister may wish to have a child as gentle as Jacob, but unfortunately the child is as wild as Esau and creates much trouble in the home every day. She is made to feel that her home is like a kiln. Servants can be dismissed, but children must be kept whether she likes them or not. They follow her all through her life and serve as discipline of long duration to her.
The church is also a place where man is severely disciplined. God ordains that we cannot be isolated Christians; we must be in the church and in the Body, serving the Lord and being coordinated with the brothers and sisters. However, God also arranges some very peculiar brothers and sisters to be with us. They love the Lord and are consecrated, but they have such peculiar dispositions. They always conflict with us and make us suffer. This also is the Holy Spirit’s discipline of long duration.
Throughout our lifetime there are many instances of this kind of discipline. Some, like Paul, live continually with a thorn in the body — it may be weakness of the physical body or a certain disablement. This is a discipline of long duration. Temporal discipline lasts only for a short period of time, so we may hope for deliverance; but the discipline of long duration is of a long period of time and does not leave or change its flavor; it always remains the same. Therefore, when the discipline of long duration comes upon us, we should not hope for its passing; rather, we must give up all hope and be willing to accept it all through our life. Actually, the discipline of long duration is the most precious; it alone can give us lengthy and severe breaking. Good lessons are learned by going through the discipline of long duration. Therefore, we should pay attention not only to temporal discipline but even more to the discipline of long duration.
The scope of the discipline of the Holy Spirit is universal. Its dimensions are equal to those of the universe. All that is in the universe is included in this scope. Therefore, everything that comes to us, including people, things, and happenings, either great or small, is the discipline of the Holy Spirit. We must believe that nothing a Christian encounters is what the people of the world call coincidence or luck, but the arrangement and discipline of the Holy Spirit. It is not that certain aspects, certain kinds of things, or certain matters are the discipline and arrangement of the Holy Spirit, and all others are not. We must admit that in all our living, every matter is the discipline of the Holy Spirit. The reason you have such a job opportunity is due to the discipline of the Holy Spirit. The reason you meet brothers and sisters is also due to the discipline of the Holy Spirit. You wish you were healthy, but unfortunately you are weak; this is the discipline of the Holy Spirit. You expect your work to expand so that you can render good service to the Lord, but unfortunately you encounter so many problems that you are unable to move at all; this also is the discipline of the Holy Spirit. Whether you can have a virtuous and prudent wife or marry the husband of your desire depends on the discipline of the Holy Spirit. Whether or not you have a perfect home life depends also on the discipline of the Holy Spirit. You may not care to have many children, yet your children are especially numerous; this is the discipline of the Holy Spirit. Or, you wish you had children, but unfortunately you have none; this is the discipline of the Holy Spirit. Even the loss of property, mismanagement of affairs, or failure in spiritual matters is the discipline of the Holy Spirit. We must apply the discipline of the Holy Spirit to all our living, to all our environment. We must especially admit that all those circumstances that are neither pleasant nor agreeable are within the scope of the discipline of the Holy Spirit. Thus, we will learn this lesson in a thorough way.
To accept the discipline of the Holy Spirit we must take note of the following points.
Acknowledgment precedes acceptance. When we receive the Lord as our Savior, we must first acknowledge that He is the Savior. Likewise, in accepting the discipline of the Holy Spirit, we must first acknowledge that all we encounter is the discipline of the Holy Spirit. In other words, whenever we encounter something, we must realize that it is of the Holy Spirit and acknowledge it as the discipline of the Holy Spirit.
We have previously referred to Romans 8:28, which says that all things work together for our good. Matthew 10:29-30 says, “Are not two sparrows sold for an assarion? And not one of them will fall to the earth apart from your Father. But even the hairs of your head are all numbered.” These passages show that all things that come to us, even such a trivial matter as the falling of hair, have been permitted and measured by God to work together for our spiritual benefit. Therefore, with regard to all things, we must admit that they are the discipline of the Holy Spirit.
Since we acknowledge that whatever comes to us is the discipline of the Holy Spirit, we must discover what the purpose of the discipline is. For example, someone hit by an automobile cannot ignorantly think that since this is the discipline of the Holy Spirit, it is good enough to just praise the Lord; if so, he cannot reap the benefit. He must ask, Why was I hit by the automobile? What is the purpose of the Holy Spirit in giving me such discipline? Is it for chastisement, education, or breaking? He must have a longing heart and a prayerful spirit; he must be quiet before the Lord, seeking Him until he is clear that it is a particular problem or need that caused him to be disciplined by the Holy Spirit. In this way he can learn the spiritual lesson and obtain practical benefit.
Once we ascertain that the purpose of the discipline of the Holy Spirit in dealing with us is a certain problem, we should confess it seriously before the Lord with regard to that particular problem. Were it not for that problem and difficulty, we would have no need for the discipline of the Holy Spirit. Since the Holy Spirit arranges the environment to discipline us concerning a specific point, we must realize that it is in that specific point that we have a problem before God, either because we are stubborn or proud, stiff-necked or disobedient, not willing to pay the price, or not willing to deny self; it is either one thing or the other that must be removed or broken, dealt with or torn down. At any rate, there exists a problem. We must remember that the discipline of the Holy Spirit never causes us to suffer without a reason; rather, it is always because there are areas within us that require dealing. The Holy Spirit had already anointed us many times, perhaps, yet we disobeyed; therefore, He has arranged such a discipline to assist His inward anointing. Hence, once we discover the purpose of the discipline of the Holy Spirit, we should have a thorough confession regarding the point in view.
After we confess our sin, we must submit through the Holy Spirit. This submission implies acceptance. After we see that the purpose of this discipline is to deal with a specific point, we must submit ourselves in that particular point. It is only then that we accept the discipline of the Holy Spirit.
After we accept the discipline of the Holy Spirit, we need to worship God. Worship is the highest form of gratitude. We have to worship God for His work in us and His way regarding us. For His dealing with us, for His way in our life, and for breaking us in such a way, we should not only give thanks before Him but also worship Him.
The clearest picture in the Bible of man worshipping God is seen in Jacob. When he was dying, he worshipped God, leaning upon the top of his staff. This staff, which he carried throughout his lifetime, depicts on one hand the whole experience of his life, and on the other hand his life as a sojourner. We place more emphasis upon the aspect of his entire life’s experience, because it includes his life of sojourning. Therefore, when Jacob worshipped God by leaning on the top of his staff, it means that he worshipped God according to his experience. When a person has the experience of being led by God, he is then able to render worship before Him. However, if one has never had the experience of being dealt with by God, it is difficult for him to render worship before God. All the worship of man to God is based upon man’s experience before God. Therefore, after being disciplined before God, we need to have a very clear, sure, and solemn worship. At this time we are really accepting the discipline from God in a solid way.
Sometimes it seems that we have accepted a discipline before God, yet we have neither confessed to Him thoroughly nor accepted the discipline and worshipped Him solemnly. It seems that we have accepted the discipline, but we have not accepted it fully; therefore, that acceptance is not solid. Henceforth, when we accept the discipline of the Holy Spirit, may we first discover the purpose thereof, acknowledge our shortcomings and weaknesses, submit from within, and, finally, worship God. In this way our acceptance is very solid.
Application means a continuous acceptance. If the nature of the discipline is temporal, it passes away after we have accepted it. However, if the nature of the discipline is of an extended and long duration, we need not only to accept it but to know how to apply it.
Take for example the illustration we gave earlier concerning the automobile accident. That was a temporal discipline. While the brother who was hit was on the hospital bed, he realized the cause of being disciplined and submitted. Soon after, he was healed, and thus the discipline passed away. However, when God prepares a wife, a husband, or a co-worker for us, one who is daily at our side, this kind of discipline is not merely to be accepted once but to be applied continuously. To apply the discipline means that we cooperate with the Holy Spirit and help Him to discipline and deal with us. When little children take medicine, they sometimes need an adult to squeeze their nose and force the medicine down their throat. It is not so when adults take the medicine. Although the medicine is bitter, they still take it by themselves. Therefore, in applying the discipline of the Holy Spirit, we must not be like little children taking medicine, having to be forced by God to accept it; we must rather voluntarily and willingly accept and apply it.
We should believe that all the environment we are confronted with is not just a temporal, accidental arrangement of the Holy Spirit, but that it has been prearranged by the Holy Spirit in the eternal plan of God. Before we were saved, and even before we were born, God has already prearranged our parents, husband or wife, children, church, or co-worker. In the whole universe God has exercised His wisdom greatly to look for all these wonderful disciplinary measures in order to deal with us. Hence, we should not always desire that God would change the opposite party or the environment. We must continue to accept and apply His discipline until we are torn down and broken.
When we accept the discipline of the Holy Spirit, we need to look back after a certain period of time and examine how much result we have obtained from this discipline. Some people have been disciplined continually, yet there is no result whatsoever. A certain brother may have passed through ten or twenty years of discipline and tasted all sorts of troubles, such as being jobless, poverty stricken, sick, in distress, and other bitternesses of life; yet with him there is no indication of any crack, wound, or breaking. He is just like an unbreakable iron shell. No matter how many dealings he has passed through, he remains sealed and untouched, without any result from the discipline. This is indeed regrettable!
Do not think that we have no wound because there has not been any discipline. Actually, all of us have been disciplined. Our God never errs; His hand can be seen in all that we encounter. As a rule, each of us should be broken and show the result of having been disciplined. The longer a brother has been in the church, the more brokenness he should have. To be broken is to be torn down. By breaking after breaking, our natural constitution is terminated. However, if we pass through discipline, yet have not been broken, neither do we show any scar of having been struck or torn down, it proves our lack of accepting and especially our lack of applying the discipline of the Holy Spirit. We have simply submitted everything to fate and allowed the environment to pass meaninglessly by us as time goes on.
Therefore, each one of us should always look back and examine the result obtained from the discipline. The result will show whether our spiritual condition is rich or poor. The more we accept the discipline of the Holy Spirit, the greater will be the result and the richer the spiritual condition. However, if we accept little discipline, the result will accordingly be small and our spiritual condition poor.
The discipline of the Holy Spirit is not only given to deal with us or to break us but also to test us.
Some people have been in painful trials, but after a certain period their sufferings have passed away, and their life has become easy. There is no criticism given them, but praise; no suppression, but exaltation; everything goes well. Such a prosperous environment tests where we are.
Therefore, the discipline of the Holy Spirit consists not only of trials of sufferings but also of tests of prosperity. Some brothers and sisters can endure the trials of poverty but cannot pass the tests of being rich. Some can endure criticism and attack but cannot pass the test of being praised or exalted. Some who have never been exposed to riches claim that they do not love money. That is not dependable. Not until gold and silver are within their grasp will it be proved whether they really love money or not. Some say that they would love their wife, but that is because they do not have a wife; once they have a wife for them to love, it will be proved whether they love their wife or not. In order to expose our inner condition, we not only need the Holy Spirit to use a trial through a painful environment, but we often need the Holy Spirit to put us in a favorable environment to test us. Therefore, the discipline of the Holy Spirit works through both trials and tests simultaneously. But normally, the discipline of the Holy Spirit through trials by suffering is always more frequent than through tests of prosperity.
The discipline of the Holy Spirit is an important lesson to the saints. There are many positive lessons for the saints, but this is the only negative one. Although there are other lessons of dealings that have to do with the negative aspects, all these require the coordination of the discipline of the Holy Spirit. The forefathers in the Bible and all the overcomers in the way of life as recorded in church history have had rich and definite experiences along this line. Although they did not necessarily use this term, the discipline of the Holy Spirit, it is abundantly evident that they experienced various environments confronting them as trials and tests. The apostle Paul in Philippians 4 tells us that he knew how to be abased and how to abound; this is because he learned the lessons of the discipline of the Holy Spirit amidst all circumstances. Much more should we who seek the growth of life pay full attention to this lesson, not only to know the points fully but to accept the dealings thoroughly. Then we will allow the hand of the Potter to mold and shape us, the pieces of clay, so that we may become a fit vessel, filled with the glorious image of His Son.
