his l1and is fel~ it is not felt humbly and submissively; Mt bowed to, but resisted. ( 4) When the design or end of correction is not laid to heact." 2. It should not be deemed intolerable. "Nor faint when thou art rebuked of him." We are not to sink under the reproofs and strokes of the Divine discipline, though they be severe. The fact that ?ur tnals are regulated by our Father's hand, that they are educational, that they are mlend~ ~nd adapted to vromote our spiritual and eternal well-being, should keep ua from srnkrng beneath their pressure. " The tears we shed are not in vo.in ; Nor worthless is the heavy strife s If, like the buried seed of grain, They rise to renovated life. It is through tears onr spirits grow; 'Tis in the tempest souls expand, If it but teaches us to go To him who holds it in his hand. Oh, welcome, then, the stormy blast I ' OJ,, welcome, then, the ocean's roar I Ye only drive more sure and fast Our trembling bark to heaven's bright shore." (T. C. Upho.m.) W.J. Ver. 11.-Discipline in its endurance and in its results. "Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous," etc. Two aspects of discipline, distinct yet vitally relatt,>d, are here set before us. I. DISOIPLTh"E IN ITS E1''DUBANCE. "All chastening seemeth for the present to be net joyous, but grievous." All life's discipline, while we are enduring it, is painful It is so even to sincere and saintly Christians, for: 1. The Christian is not insensible to pain. Christianity offers no encouragement to stoicism. It does not call upon us to repress or to blunt the natural susceptibilities of our nature. We are summoned in the Christian Scriptures to feel for others and with others. "Rejoice with them that rejoice; weep with them that weep." Insensibility is neither manly nor saintly, virtuous nor blessed. Our Saviour was deeply moved by the afflictions and griefs of othel'll (cf. Mark vii. 34; viii. 2; Luke xix. 41; John xi. 33, 35, 38). And he felt acutely the sorrows o.nd sufferings which fell to his own lot (John xii. 27; Matt-. xxvi. 38; Luke xxii. 4-4; Matt. x.xvii. 46; eh. v. 7, 8). 2. Pain or trial is an essential element of discipline. Our text speaks of discipline as "cho.stening," and that is painful. If we speak of it as correction, that is not easy to bear. It may be adminis- tered in various forms, but in every form it carries with it trial or suffering of some kind. 'l'ake away the trying element from the experience, and you take from it the character of discipline. 3. The endurance of discipline demands the strenuous t!fllrcue of spi.ritual powers. The writer speaks of those who have been exercised by the chastening. This exercise is not an amusement, but an arduous putting forth of mental and moral powers. Sufi'ering sorely tests our submission to the Divine will. Tribulation tries our patience and piety. Enigmas of providence and dark passages in our own experience test onr faith in the Divine Father. Remember how God's servant Job was" exercised." And St. Paul (2 Cor. iv. 8-12; xi. 23-30; xii. 7, 8), And the Christians in Smyrna (Rev. ii. 9, 10). If we did not feel the pain of the discipline, we could not derive any profit from it. H the chastening were Dot grievous for the present, it could not result in any blessing hereafter. II. DlSCIPLTh'E IN ITS FRUIT. "Yet afterward it yieldeth peaceable fruit unto them that have been exercised thereby, even the fruit of righteousness." It is a well-attested fact of human experience that trial borne in a right spirit, and sanctified by God, n::sul ta in rich benefits. But notice : 1. The condition of the fruit of discipline. " 1t yieldeth fruit uoto them that have been exercised thereby." The chastening must have been felt, aod recognized and accepted as discipline, in order to the reception of iLs fruits. Suffering is the condition of the deepest serenity. 'fbe pain of moral conflict must J,recede tLe glory of moral conquest. 2. Tl,e swson '!f the fruit of discipline. u Afl.erward it yieldeth," etc. Not wLile we are passing through the painful experiences 011. XII, 1-20.) 'l'HE EPISTLE TO 'l'HE HEBREWS. 377
do we reap the rich rcRult of them, but" afterward." Time is required for the fruit to form and to ripen. 'l'here are beautiful pictures which cannot be truly seen when we are near to them. So viewed, they appear to be inartistic and rou"h daubs. But, viewed from the right angle and from a suitable distance, their beauty captivntes the eye 11nd delights the soul. We must leave our disciplinary experiences and travel into the "11fterw11rd," before we can discover their true significance and their gracious uses. 3. Tlte character of the fruie of discipline. (1) '!'he frnit of righteou,mes,. Alford : "'fhe practical righteousness which springs from faitii." "Before I was affiicted I went astray," etc. (Pd. cxix. 67, 71). (2) The fruit of peace. "Peaceable fruit." Alford: "Thie fruit is called peaceable in contrast to the conflict by \vhich it is won.n Ebrard: "Exercise in hard bitter conflict brings peace as its fruit." Tholuck: "Fruit of righteousness to be enjoyed in peace after the conflict." Generally the deepest and most constant peace is possessed by those who have passed through the sharpest sufferings or the severest struggles. " Our afflictions are not for naught. They are the fruitful seed of future glories. They are blessings in disguise. They are meant for good, and are productive of good. They are like the early processes of the garden, when the soil is broken up and weeded, in order that fair flowers may at length adorn it. They are the quarrying and chiselling of the marble before the living statue can stand out in symmetrical proportions. They are the instruments, without which no harmony can be secured in the ultimate concert. They are the medicine of our con- valescence, the drudgery of our education, the spring pruning of our vine trees, without which we can never be healthy or happy, fit for heaven, or qualified to bring forth fruit whereby our Father may be glorified." In conclusion, our subject should encourage us to be : 1. Patient under our discipline. Discipline is like a tree; it requires time and seasonable influences to produce the ripened fruit of peace and righteousness. Wait patiently for the "hereafter." "Behold, the husbandman waiteth," etc. (Jas. v. 7). 2. Resigned '1/,nder our discipline. Let us not rebel against the suffering which is designed for our sanctification; but let us "be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live." 3. Hopeful under our discipline. The trial may be bitter, but it will be brief, and the fruit thereof will be blessed and eternal (cf. Rom. viii. 18; 2 Cor. iv. 17, 18).-W. J.