The Lord's Chastening — Stephen Kaung

This morning. O our Father, as we think of what we were in ourselves before we trust in Thy Son, we were but rebels, sinners, far, far away from Thee, and yet through Thy Son our Lord Jesus Christ, Thou hast drawn us to Thee.

We are so near to Thee that it cannot be nearer because we are accepted in Thy beloved Son. O how we praise and thank Thee that today we are children of God. We are partakers of Thy divine nature. O our Father, our hearts do bow very low before Thee in worship and in praise.

Father, we ask Thee that this morning Thou will open our eyes once again to have a deeper insight into Thy way, into Thyself, that we may learn how to love Thee and follow Thee, that we may be delivered from misunderstanding, from murmuring against Thee, O that we may know Thy way.

We do commit this hour into Thy hands. We trust Thee for Thy Spirit's working without which nothing can be done. O Lord, we ask Thee that Thou will give us the spirit of wisdom and revelation. Thou will open the eyes of our understanding that we may know Him as we have never known before.

We ask in Thy precious name. I would like to draw your attention to a verse which is often overlooked. I do not know if you have ever read such a verse in the Bible. It is not a difficult place to find but it is in the Old Testament.

Jeremiah's Metaphor of Moab's Undisturbed Wine

Will you please turn to Jeremiah chapter 48. Jeremiah chapter 48. Jeremiah 48 verse 11. Jeremiah 48 verse 11. Moab hath been at ease from his youth, and hath settled on his lease. He hath not been emptied from vessel to vessel, neither hath he gone into captivity.

Therefore his taste hath remained in him, and his scent is not changed. Have you ever read this verse before? Let us repeat it. Jeremiah 48 verse 11. Moab hath been at ease from his youth, and hath settled on his lease.

He hath not been emptied from vessel to vessel, neither hath he gone into captivity. Therefore his taste hath remained in him, and his scent is not changed. Often encloses his deepest truth in the simplest metaphor.

And here you will find one of them. Go into this verse. I think we need to know a little bit about the background. We know that the prophet Jeremiah was called of God when he was very young. He prophesied to the nation of Judah during the time of the end, closing of that nation.

He had been very faithful in prophesying, in delivering the messages of God to his own people. Again, again, and again. We know that he was one of those who went into Egypt after the captivity of the nation to Babylon.

Here is the end of his prophecies. We find that he turned from the nation of Judah and Israel to the nations that surrounded Judah. It is as if, look around, try to see what about these nations that surrounded the nation of Judah.

So he was puzzled by one thing. He was a prophet to Judah, to the people of God. He had to deliver very strong messages to them. He told them, he forewarned them, that if they did not repent, they were entered into captivity.

Prophecies came true. The nation entered into captivity. And what was left went into Egypt. And we know that they perished there. After prophesying to the nation of Judah for such a long period, and after seeing what had happened to God's people, when he turned around to look at the surrounding nations, he was deeply troubled.

Why was it that God's people suffered so much, while these nations, which did not respect God, seemed to have a peaceful time? He could not understand. He said that in his prophecy concerning the surrounding nations, one of them being Noah, actually agonizing before God.

He could not solve it, which he did not understand. It was very simple. People suffered greatly. Nations that did not know God, seemed to have a prosperous time. A phenomenon. The Spirit of God inspired the prophet.

In that parable, God revealed to the prophet Jeremiah the answer. The answer to his question. The solution to his question. The answer to his and his parable in chapter 48 verse. We know that Moab came from Lot.

Israel came from Abraham, the friend of God. But Moab came from Lot. And Moab was born as a result of sin. The very word Moab means from his father. Moab was just a reproduction of his ancestor. As a nation, lived at the east of Israel.

On the other side of Jordan. Israel and Judah were in deep waters. Moab, the neighboring nation, a nation that did not respect God, a nation which was born out of sin, seemed to have a good time. And Israel were in trouble.

They were standing by and joking, mocking and laughing. And probably, they were putting them to get by, all right. While God stayed in Washington. And the prophet said, Moab had been at ease from his youth.

The ease of Moab is probable. He enjoyed ease just for a short period. He enjoyed ease. Even when he was young, he had a good time. And he continued to have good time. For a long period. From his youth.

Now dear brothers and sisters, is it not something that we look for? Long that we may live a life, even from our very young days, a comfortable and easy life. And you know, some people have easy life when they are young, but have very difficult time when they are old.

Now I do not know, some people said, it is better to have a hard time when you are young, and have an easier time when you are old. I think there is psychological reason for it. What I hope for is, that from our very childhood, from our very youth, until the day of our old age, oh if only we may have a good time at ease and comfort.

This will certainly be the blessing. Many of God's people today are still thinking that if they believe in the Lord Jesus, surely they will be blessed of the Lord. And being blessed of the Lord means that they can live at ease and comfort.

God's people, God's blessing is still something physical and material. If you believe in the Lord Jesus, you will have a smooth time and prosperous day. Everybody will say, well, you are blessed of the Lord.

If you believe in the Lord Jesus, and you have very difficult days, you have problem after problem, trouble after trouble, other people are not saved, probably you will say to yourself, God's mentality, we always think, to be at ease is blessed of trouble, certainly it is not blessed.

Humanly speaking, that is correct. Moab has been at ease. This is a good sign of life. Prophet Jeremiah was troubled, but God became at ease. Moab has been at ease from his youth, settled on his land.

The Wine-Vat Process and the Danger of Remaining Unchanged

God used the metaphor of wine making, making wine. You know in the land of Palestine in the old days, wine and grain are the two main things of life. You have grapes. You gather grapes from the vine, and you put all these grapes in the wine press.

Now in the old times, in the old days, the wine press probably is made of stone, or maybe just dig a hole in the earth. But here you will find all these grapes in piles being gathered, and they are thrown into that vat.

And people will step into the vat, and tread these grapes with their feet. Now that is the old fashioned way. They treaded, they treaded the grapes until the grapes were crushed. And the juice, the fluid began to flow.

The juice will flow into a lower vat, maybe deeper, but lower vat. And all these juice will be collected in the lower vat. They were collected, they will be left in the vat to be fermented. Sometimes they will draw off the juice, and put into jars, and let it be fermented.

But anyway you will find that after you gather the juice, that the fermentation began. And in that kind of climate in Palestine, usually fermentation began on the very day. If you crush the grapes in the morning, fermentation will start in the evening.

In the very beginning you just see a little form on the surface of the juice. But then gradually you will find the fermentation began vigorous and stronger. And in about a week, the first fermentation was done.

You had to put these juice in the vat, or a jar, strong vessel. Why? Because if you put these juice that were in the process of fermentation, in a weaker vessel, it will burst once, about a week of fermentation.

Usually they will pour the juice, the fermented juice, into another jar, another vessel. But the heavier stuff, called the leaves, or the dregs, will be remained behind. And that in the second jar, in the second vat, the secondary fermentation will begin.

Another fermentation. And after 40 days, the wine, you got the wine. And usually again they will pour the wine into wine skin for transportation, or into jars for storage. So here you find the pattern.

Moab has been at ease from his youth, and has settled on his lease. Now what does that mean? It means that after Moab was crushed in the vat, instead of pouring it into another jar for fermentation, it was just left in the vat to be fermented.

Secondly, to ferment it, instead of emptying it into another jar for straining, it was still left in the vat. So the first fermentation, the second fermentation, went on in the same vat. The dregs, the leaves, were never taken out.

They were left at the bottom of the vat. At the top you got the pure juice, the wine. In the bottom, there was the dregs. There was the leaves. And it was just left there. It was never poured, from vessel to vessel.

It was just left in the original vat. And you know what will be the result? The result is, because the dreg was still there, therefore it will gradually decay, the wine. Spoiled. And in the land of Palestine, it is very easy that the wine will gradually be decayed, and become vinegar, instead of wine.

Moab has been at ease from his youth. Beginning, Moab, just stay there. Moab had a good time. Original position. Settled down on his leaves. Look at him. He looked like wine. But at the bottom was the dregs.

And the dreg and the wine were together and continually a deterioration, degeneration, a decaying, a spoiling, going on, fermentation going on. The result was, his taste has remained in him, and his scent is not changed.

Remained. He was warm. Now dear brothers and sisters, does that explain something of God's way? Children of God, we are often puzzled by one question. Why is it that those who are most people in the world, seem to have a good time?

The children of God are passing through problems, difficulties. What can God give us? Days of ease. Is it not our problem? May I put it in another way. The universe is a luxury of eating. We, Moab, do not bother with you.

God does not have time. He does not care whether you become vinegar or wine. But if you are Israel, He cares too much for you. He does not allow you to settle on your leaves. He has to empty you from vessel to vessel.

He has to change your taste through the work of transformation. And the work of transformation is by emptying, is by pouring from vessel. To live a life of ease. Do you know the words? You are left alone by God.

Oh very often, in our desperation, in our misunderstanding. Oh how often we murmured against God and said, now leave me alone. Don't bother with me. You just leave me alone. If God should answer your prayer, because you will be Moab, instead of Israel.

The Necessity of the Lord's Chastening

Dear brothers and sisters, there is something in the Bible which is called the chastening of the Lord is a mystery. It is a necessity. We think that to be at ease is a necessity. It is a luxury. If you do, you will settle down on your leaves.

The chastening of the Lord is a necessity. You have believed in the Lord Jesus. Have you ever experienced this chastening of the Lord? In the way of being poured from vessel? Do you know when the wine is poured from vessel to vessel?

It purifies. It is purified from its dregs. It is reduced. That can satisfy thirsty and hungry souls. After you have believed in the Lord Jesus, you have to be dealt with. Why God does not leave you alone?

God does not allow you to settle down on yourself? Your natural life? Your natural energy? Your natural temperament? What is yourself must be poured and poured until it is purified? Do you understand why God does all these things?

Do you know that He is aiming at good wine? If only you know that. What a difference! If you should believe in the Lord Jesus, say, for ten years or twenty years, and yet the Lord does not seem to deal with him once.

If he is a child of God, certainly the Heavenly Father will look to him. You are a bastard. You are not a son. The Father would take care of you. But dear brothers and sisters, who here is a Christian?

Who has been a Christian for ten or twenty years? Never once he was put before. Never once he was chastened. Is it possible? Has the Father forgotten him? Not at all. The Father has not forgotten him.

But when the chastening of the Lord comes to him, he either rebels... So you remember these precious verses in the book of Hebrews chapter twelve? Probably we'll look at it. Hebrews chapter twelve. We'll read from verse five.

Hebrews chapter twelve verse five. And ye have quite forgotten the exhortation which speaks to you as to sons. My son despised not the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when reproved by him. For whom the Lord loves, he chastens, and scourges every son whom he receives.

Ye endure for chastening? God conducts himself towards you as to a son. For who is the son that the Father chastens not? But if ye are without chastening, of which all have been made partakers, then are ye bastards and not sons.

Moreover, we have had the fathers of all flesh as chasteners, and we reverence them. Shall we not much rather be in subjection to the Father of spirits and live? For they indeed chasten for a few days, as seemed good to them, but he for profit, in order to the partaking of his holiness.

But no chastening at a time seems to be a matter of joy, but of grief, but afterwards yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those exercised. Chastening of the Lord comes. Very often we take a wrong attitude.

Sometimes we despise the chastening of the Lord. It means that you look down upon it. It doesn't have any meaning in it. It just happens. You neglect it. You just let it come and go. You do not go to the Lord and ask the Lord for your lesson.

You are despising chastening. Now, very often, even in earthly families, you find sometimes the parents are chastening the children, and you know some children just despise the chastening. You beat me.

It doesn't matter. Now, when a child should take such an attitude, the whole meaning of chastening is lost. You despise the chastening. You will never learn the lesson. Very often, when God begins to chasten us, He does.

He always does. He will not give you the luxury of ease, but when He starts to chasten you, you just despise. You know, by despising the chastening of God, you despise God. You do not take Him seriously.

So doing, the chastening is lost. You may be a Christian for 10 or 20 years, and it seems as if there has never been any chastening. Not because there hasn't been any, but because you have despised. Now, that's one attitude.

Some people adopt the opposite attitude. They take it seriously. When God begins to chasten you, you faint. Are you so hard? Do you really love me? Do you want to put me to death? You just faint. His chastening.

Well, if you do, God cannot chasten you the second time, because you may die. Brothers and sisters, escape the chastening of the Lord. So far, as God's children. If you are not God's children, God will not bother about you.

Moab has been at ease from his youth. Let him settle down on his knees. But if you are a child of God, He has to take you in His hands. He has to chasten you. He has to discipline you. He has to train you.

But if you want to escape His chastening, there are two ways. One is, despite the chastening of the Lord, you escape it. Because it becomes meaningless. Or you just faint. Every time you faint. From the chastening.

Submission to God's Vessels and Circumstances

If you know, if you know God and His Word. Dear brothers and sisters, being at ease. He has settled. Not being emptied from vessel to vessel. You know, dear brothers and sisters, as believers, as children of God, our life is a continuous emptying.

It's a continuous pouring. God will never allow us to settle down on our times. God allows you to settle. Settle down and the drags are separated. God says, now it's time. You are just being poured from vessel to vessel.

But you know, God begins to pour us from vessel to vessel. We begin to quarrel with these vessels. We quarrel with our environment. We quarrel with people. We quarrel with events. With things. Now remember, think in themselves.

Think in just your environment. God provides for you the people, orders the event, to you and around you, are just vessels, just God's instruments. They are nothing in themselves. God is using these to purify you.

But you know, when we are being poured from one vessel to another, we quarrel. We become very unhappy with our environment. We fight against our circumstances. So we begin to strive with people. Why do you treat me like this?

Why is it that you have such a bad attitude towards me? Why do you say such a thing to me? Why, why, why? And in quarreling with these vessels, we miss the whole thing. It is not the vessel. The vessel has nothing to do with it.

I remember how Brother Nee once used an illustration. What will be your reaction? Suppose a stranger comes, without any reason, out of the blue sky, to beat you or even scold you. What will be your reaction?

Your reaction, natural will be, you will fight back? You feel the whole thing is so unreasonable? You just cannot. What is that person that comes to scold you and to beat you, is your father. Can you fight back and scold back?

If you are a child of God, if you are a child of the Father, you cannot do that. You cannot just treat him as a stranger. The only thing you can do is to submit. Submit to him. Dear brothers and sisters, do you see that in our Christian life, there is a Heavenly Father, who is ordering all our vessels.

Father who is pulling us from one vessel to another. You know, it is very strange. God does not allow you to stay in one environment all your life. God will change your environment from time to time. God does not even allow you to have the same people all the time.

Change the people around you from time to time. Meet with the same event all the time. Events changes from one vessel to another. When one vessel has done its work, God will pour you into another vessel.

Now, if that vessel hasn't done its work, probably you will have to stay there longer. Father who is pouring and emptying you from vessel to vessel. If this is the case, can you? There is nothing to quarrel about.

All you can do is to submit yourself. Consider these facts. There is a great difference between chastened. You know, very often we think that God is punishing. When you meet with some unpleasant event, when you have gone through some sad experience, naturally you will think that God is punishing.

God is punishing. You know, this concept of punishment is very strong in us. Very strong. We always think that God is punishing us. Difference between punishing and chastening. Punishing is just to punish your sin or your fault.

In other words, it deals with the past and nothing more. But chastening deals with your past fault with a bright future. Positive and educational value in it. Punishment has no educational value in it.

All you know. So far as the law of the land is concerned. You know, if a man commits a crime, you will punish him. Put him in a jail. Imprison him. Punish him. But people begin to realize that there is no educational value.

Or if there is educational value, it is just to make a mess. Chastening is different. Chastening has an educational value in it. The very word chastening means child training. God is training you as a child to make you a son, a grown-up, a mature person.

There is a positive value in chastening. And do you realize, dear brothers and sisters, that the Heavenly Father is chastening you? If you are not under the chastening of the Lord, you are in a most dangerous state.

Why? Because you may never become grown-up. You remain just children. God has given you up. There is no more hope in you. But if today you are still under the chastening hand of your really Lord, God believes in you.

God believes that there is something that He can still make out of you. God believes that He can transform you into sons, into grown-ups. What should be our attitude when we are being chastened, when we are pulled from vessel to vessel?

But learn from vessel what is in vessel. The result is the original taste, the original taste. All that is in vessel with the dress. And here comes with a new flavor. Dear brothers and sisters, this is what God is doing with us today.

From vessel to vessel. He is chastening us. And in doing that, He purifies us from our original taste and scent. And transforms us into the Savior. Have you ever met that man? That man was your Savior.

You met him. After 10 years, you meet the same person. The impression he gives you, the impression is his taste remains the same. His scent is just the same. Or sometimes you hear people say, Bootsworth, I haven't changed.

I'm still what I was. Absolutely. They're natural for the taste. The outward form may change, but the scent doesn't change. You know, these are two things that is very difficult to cover. You may change the color.

You may change the appearance. But there is a taste. If people try to taste it, oh, feel that taste. Or you smell it, feel that scent. You know, especially scent is very intangible. It's something intangible, and yet it's something that cannot be changed.

You cannot be changed. Your natural mind, your natural energy, oh, if you are very clever, your cleverness remains. If you are very stubborn, your stubbornness remains. If you're strong-minded, your strong-minded remains.

What you were in yourself remains with you and becomes the impression you gave to people even after 30 years. Oh, brothers and sisters, if this should happen, it shows that you lack the discipline of the list.

You lack the taste of the list. You are still what you were. You taste just the thing. You smell just the thing. How can our sense in the process of emptying the transformation take place? So after you have been poured from vessel to vessel, the result is the taste.

This is what is meant by the Bible. We are being made partakers of the discipline. This is what is meant. Chastening brings us to faith. That is to say, we are set apart. It is God who is incorporated.

Do you want to be made out? If you know God's mind and God's will, you would rather be Israel than Moab. You would rather be one who is being emptied from vessel to vessel. Because the urgency that applies to me, it is God's way, that we must be poured from vessel to vessel in order to be good wine, new wine.

Corporate Refining and the Church's Witness

But you know, in this very verse, it applies also to Moses. Because Moab here is not an individual. Moab here is an individual. So brothers and sisters, not only individually, God has to change the life, bring us through vessel after vessel, in order to make us new wine, but constantly, as a church, as a church, to do the same thing.

Do you realize that in the making of the church, there is this continuous pouring from vessel to vessel? We long to settle down. Oh, if we can just settle down. Be happy with what God has already. If we would just go on happily like this, oh, how good it will be.

But dear brothers and sisters, God cannot afford to give us such luxury. Do not think that to be at ease so far as the church is concerned is a good thing. The luxury of ease is not ours. God has to bring the whole church into crisis after crisis.

God has to empty the church from vessel to vessel. God has to allow us to meet new people. God has to allow us to enter into new environments. God has to allow new events to come. God has to allow us to enter into all these things.

For what purpose? Because if we get settled on our lease, the taste and the scent will be ours. The church must give the taste of Christ. The church must give the scent of Christ. And the only way that this transformation may happen to a people of God is by pouring from vessel to vessel.

Sometimes we just fight. Often we fight. We do not know how to submit ourselves under the mighty hand of every vessel. How important it is to make the church that can not only satisfy the thirsting soul.

Brothers and sisters, does that explain a little bit of what God has allowed His people to go through? Sometimes, you know, you admire. You admire peace. You admire that peaceful, restful. God loves you too much to allow you to have such.

We have to get up. If we are not poured from vessel to vessel on our lease, what will be the result? Temptation will continue beyond and the result will become vinegar. Have you drunk vinegar? Have you tasted vinegar?

Have you smelled vinegar? It is not sweet. It is sour. How many Christians today in the church, the reason they try to keep instead of allowing God, So may the Lord be with you. May this metaphor be a warning.

Moab has been at ease and he has settled. He has not been torn. He has not gone into captivity. Therefore, oh Heavenly Father, we pray that Thou will show Thy way. We pray that we may see what Thou art seeing with us as individuals and with us.

We pray that we may not admire that light of peace to the extent that we will not allow You to take it. But we pray that we may humble ourselves under Thy mightiness that we may view You. For we ask Thee that Thou would take away from us our original faith and give to us the faith.

Make us faithful.