“My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and he chastens every he accepts as his son” (Hebrews 12:5-6).

Love.

What do you think of when you hear that word?

Discipline, rebuke, chastening.

Not on your list?

It’s not on the list for most modern day Americans either.

But God tells us that because he loves us, he disciplines us when we go astray. He rebukes us when we are wrong. He chastens us when we’re about to go astray.

Why does God discipline, rebuke, and chasten? Precisely because he loves us. He wants what’s best for us.

Our society lives under the illusion that God is a benign, soft-hearted, compassionate figure who just wants to do for us what we’d like to do for ourselves.

That’s insane. That’s not God. That’s a Genie. That’s a wish-giving ATM.

John Piper writes, “A child needs to feel profoundly secure, profoundly loved, cherished, and enjoyed, AND profoundly under authority. And those are not contradictory.”

What John Piper writes about children is also true for children of God.

We are, at the same time, profoundly loved, cherished, and enjoyed, AND profoundly under God’s authority and care because he loves us.

You can be absolutely secure in that.

“Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).

Sandyhook.

Uvalde.

How are we to make sense of such heinous acts?

The world says it’s mental illness. We need to invest more in the mental health of people.

It would be good if there was more resources available to deal with the mental health issues facing our country.

But that’s not the solution.

There is nothing human beings can do to fix what’s wrong with human beings.

Read that again.

There is nothing human beings can do to fix what’s wrong with human beings.

If there was a way that we could fix ourselves, we would have done it by now.

The solution is not a human solution.

That’s what the Bible has been trying to tell us for all of human history.

Mass killing of children in school. That’s not mental illness. That’s just plain evil. It is darkness. It is satanic.

There is only one solution to the problem of sin, evil, and darkness. His name is Jesus Christ. God sent his only Son to die on the cross, to descend into hell to destroy evil, sin, and darkness. He rose again from the dead on the third day having defeated death, sin, and evil.

The only hope for our world is the Savior of the world. His name is Jesus. “There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.”

“And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light” (2 Corinthians 11:14).

If only we saw sin for what it truly is.

If we could see that sin’s aim is to maim, kill, and destroy…no one would struggle with sin and temptation if sin showed up to declare, “I will you ruin you forever. I will destroy everything you hold dear. My sole desire and goal is to kill everything that is good.”

But that’s not how sin shows up. Sin never shows up in its hideous self. Sin always masquerades itself as an angel of light. Satan can’t ever be good, but he is a tremendous imitator. He deceives by mimicking and imitating the good.

If sin tasted, felt, and looked horrendous no one would give it a second glance. But that’s not how the devil works. Sin almost always initially tastes delicious, feels fantastic, and looks attractive.

But the end is always the same: death, destruction, and eternal damnation.

Be wise, saints. Trust God. Resist the devil by turning to God and running toward him. Keep your eyes on Christ.