Ｄ
There is governmental forgiveness—this relates to discipline:
１
This kind of forgiveness involves God's arrangement, sovereignty, discipline, and hand; God's government is His way of doing things; it is His administration.
２
God's governmental forgiveness is related to the way that God manages, rules over, and deals with us (Gal. 6:7).
３
When we sin against God, He will forgive us when we confess our sins to Him; our fellowship with Him can be restored, but He may change His way with us.
４
David confessed his sins and admitted his guilt in order to be forgiven by God (2 Sam. 12:13; Psa. 51), but God would cause the son born to Uriah's wife to die and the sword to not depart from David's house (2 Sam. 12:7-15).
５
When we are under God's governmental discipline, the only thing that we can do is learn to humble ourselves under His mighty hand (1 Pet. 5:5-7); the more we reject God's governmental hand, the more problems we will encounter.
６
After Moses struck the rock in Meribah (Num. 20:10-12, 24; 27:14), he fell under God's governmental hand:
ａ
In being angry when God was not angry, Moses did not represent God rightly in His holy nature, and in striking the rock twice, he did not keep God's word in His economy; thus, Moses offended both God's holy nature and His divine economy.
ｂ
Because of this, even though he was intimate with God and may be considered a companion of God (Exo. 33:11), Moses lost the right to enter into the good land.
ｃ
In all that we say and do concerning God's people, our attitude must be according to God's holy nature, and our actions must be according to His divine economy; this is to sanctify Him.
７
We must learn to be generous to others and learn always to forgive; if we criticize others lightly, condemn others easily, keep complaining about the conduct of others, and continue to count the ill-treatment that we receive from them, this will bring us under God's governmental hand; if we are severe toward others, God will also be severe toward us (Matt. 6:15; 18:23-35):
ａ
We have to learn to fear God, to revere God, to respect God, to honor God, to be in awe of God (Psa. 2:11-12; 86:11; 2 Cor. 5:10-11; Isa. 11:2).
ｂ
When others are in trouble, it is the time for us to help them, not the time for us to criticize them (cf. Gen. 14:14-16).
ｃ
There are many brothers who have fallen miserably today for one reason only— they have criticized others too severely in the past; many of their weaknesses today are the very weaknesses that they criticized in the past.
ｄ
We must be generous toward others if we want to avoid God's governmental hand; may we learn to love and forbear one another (Eph. 4:32).
Ｅ
There is kingdom forgiveness—this relates to administration:
１
If we treat people too harshly or have an unforgiving spirit in this age, we will be disciplined in the kingdom age (Luke 6:37-38; Matt. 18:33-35).
２
If we treat others in a mean way and criticize others mercilessly, God will deal with us in the same way in the future (7:1-2).
３
May the Lord grant us the grace to be those who show mercy to others, who do not deal with others in meanness, sharpness, or severity, so that we can obtain mercy from God in that day (5:7; cf. 2 Tim. 1:16, 18).
Morning Nourishment
Matt. 7:1-2 Do not judge, that you be not judged. For with what judgment you judge, you shall be judged;...with what measure you measure, it shall be measured to you.There is another kind of forgiveness in the Bible which we call governmental forgiveness....God's government is His way of doing things; it is His administration.
When we sin against God, God will forgive us when we confess our sins to Him. However, we cannot stop Him from using other methods to discipline us. God will forgive us, and our fellowship with Him can be restored, but He may change His way with us. A man must realize that God's governmental hand is not easily removed....God will remove His governmental hand only when He has full assurance that His children are doing the right things....Governmental forgiveness is absolutely different from eternal forgiveness, instrumental forgiveness, and forgiveness in fellowship. Governmental forgiveness is related to the way God manages, rules over, and deals with us. (CWWN, vol. 50, pp. 672-674)
Today's Reading
To understand the significance of governmental forgiveness,...consider the example of David...with Uriah's wife. David committed two sins: adultery and murder....David confessed his sins after his mistakes. He felt the shame, the defilement, and the offense that he had committed against God....His fellowship with God was restored after his confession in Psalm 51.God had already put away David's sins, but He would cause the son born to Uriah's wife to die and the sword not to depart from his house [2 Sam. 12:10-14]....In other words, sins may be forgiven but the discipline does not go away immediately.
Our God is a God of government. He will not move His governmental hand immediately away from those who have sinned against Him. Often, God does not do anything; He lets us go. But as soon as He stretches forth His governmental hand,...the only thing we can do is to learn to humble ourselves under His mighty hand. The more we humble ourselves under His mighty hand and give up all resistance, the easier it is for God to lift His governmental hand. The more we refuse to humble ourselves, and the more angry, vocal, or indignant we become, the more difficult it is for God to lift His governmental hand.
After Moses smote the rock in Meribah (Num. 20:10-12), both he and Aaron fell under God's governmental hand. (CWWN, vol. 50, “Messages for Building Up New Believers (3),” pp. 677-680)
In being angry when God was not angry, Moses did not represent God rightly in His holy nature, and in striking the rock twice, he did not keep God's word in His economy....Thus, Moses offended both God's holy nature and His divine economy. Because of this, even though he was intimate with God and may be considered a companion of God (Exo. 33:11), Moses lost the right to enter the good land.
In all that we say and do concerning God's people, our attitude must be according to God's holy nature, and our actions must be according to His divine economy. This is to sanctify Him. (Num. 20:12, footnote 1)
Learn to be generous to others and learn always to forgive. If you keep complaining about the conduct of others and continue to count the ill treatment you receive from them, please bear in mind that this will bring you into God's governmental hand....If you are severe toward others, God will also be severe toward you.
You must learn to be kind, loving, and generous to your brothers. Give others liberty in many things. Stop all idle talk and criticism. When others are in trouble, it is the time for us to help them, not the time for us to criticize them.
There are many brothers who have fallen miserably today for one reason only—they have criticized others too severely in the past. Many of their weaknesses today are the very weaknesses they criticized in the past....We must be generous toward others if we want to avoid God's governmental hand! May we learn to love and forbear one another. (CWWN, vol. 50, pp. 684-686)
Further Reading: CWWN, vol. 50, ch. 40