Two Aspect of God’s Love – Blessing and Chastening – Prov 3:9-12
What does it mean to be blessed of the Lord and loved by the Lord. If images of prosperity fill your mind, you may be right. Proverbs 3:9-10 tells us that those who honour the Lord with their income will be greatly blessed.
But the next two verses show us another side of God’s love. Proverbs 3:11-12 tell us that those who are loved by the Lord and delighted in will also be chastened and corrected.
We all want the love of the Lord that brings filled barns and bursting presses, but few of us enjoy His love when it is expressed through chastening and correction. Yet both types of love are genuine love. Both types should be embraced and welcomed, because both types of love are what we need. As Job says, ‘…shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil?’ (Job 2:10).
So, whether God has blessed you by filling your metaphorical barns to the brim or corrected and chastened you, know that God loves you. He delights in You. He is growing You and maturing You, and He is working in You to make You more like Jesus. Don’t despise His chastening. Don’t be weary of His correction. Embrace it and worship the God who loves you so much.