“Christ also loved the church, and gave Himself for it; that He might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, that He might present it to Himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.” Eph. 5:25-2725Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; 26That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, 27That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish. (Ephesians 5:25‑27).
While discipline includes judgment and punishment, it is a subject which brings in far more important considerations than those two. Instruction, tender care, correction, shepherding, teaching by word and example, circumstances and trials all work together to mold and perfect the moral character of a child of God.
The Spirit of God might occupy us with our ways, not to remind us of our wicked hearts, but to draw us away from them and engage our hearts with the eternal things and the Person and place to which we are going. God’s purpose is to remove all fears and give our hearts peace. “He is our peace.”
In Ephesians 5:2626That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, (Ephesians 5:26), “the washing of water by the word” is discipline, which is part of the preparation of each member of the body of Christ to live in the home of the Father in heaven, the home into which we shall soon be taken (John 14:22In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. (John 14:2)). “All the history of the saints is an exhibition of the hidden eternal counsels of the divine bosom to be revealed later” (JND).
As the Holy Spirit works, washing with water by the Word, lessons are learned and the heart is drawn to heaven with Christ as its Object. If we keep our eye upon Him, we are changed by being occupied with our Object, Christ. As heavenly scenes grow brighter, the things of earth become dim.
The character of each saint is molded as he passes through trials of many kinds —disappointments, loss of friends, death of loved ones, and the like. Anything in this world that the heart is set upon must be replaced by Christ. Only He will be the eternal Object of the heart.
Occupation with the Word of God, which brings Christ before us, corrects our ways as we look upon the perfect Man, whom we shall be like in every way. God uses this way to prepare us to feel at home and feel the warmth of our relationship as children before the Father, and only in this way does the cry, “Come, Lord Jesus,” take on breadth and depth in our souls.
In Song of Solomon 1:55I am black, but comely, O ye daughters of Jerusalem, as the tents of Kedar, as the curtains of Solomon. (Song of Solomon 1:5), the secret of the bride’s affections is being black, because it is coupled with the display of love of the Bridegroom. “A sense of constancy of affection lightens the burden of life, making the heart brave and enabling it to reach its objective.”
The heart (“a prisoner of hope”) knows well the power of that One who is its Object. The expectancy of His coming, our only hope, takes hold of our hearts as we in spirit are drawn nearer to heaven. “An easy yoke brings generous affections.”