HEBREWS: Abba, Father Will Fix All; "For we have had human fathers who corrected us, and we paid them respect. Shall we not much more readily be in subjection to the Father of spirits and live?"

The LORD has chastened me severely, But He has not given me over to death. (Psalm 118:18) But when we are judged, we are chastened by the Lord, that we may not be condemned with the world. (I Corinthians 11:32) "As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent." (Revelations 3:19)

Many people choose not to believe in God or the Word of God because they see it as foolishness.  But many others choose not to believe because they don't want to be picked on, criticized or mocked by their peers.  God tells us, ...do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. (Matthew 10:28) It does not matter what man says or does towards or against us, because nothing they can do can compare to what God will do to those who don't believe.  

We should all be encouraged to be bold and totally committed to God based on what Christ endured and overcame. For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls.  You have not yet resisted to bloodshed, striving against sin. And you have forgotten the exhortation which speaks to you as to sons:

“My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord,
Nor be discouraged when you are rebuked by Him;
For whom the Lord loves He chastens, and scourges every son whom He receives.” [Proverbs 3:11-12] (Hebrews 12:3-6) 

If you endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom a father does not chasten?  But if you are without chastening, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate and not sons. Furthermore, we have had human fathers who corrected us, and we paid them respect. Shall we not much more readily be in subjection to the Father of spirits and live? For they indeed for a few days chastened us as seemed best to them, but He for our profit, that we may be partakers of His holiness.  Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it. (Hebrews 12:7-11)

How true the final verses are.  No one likes to be disciplined, but it pays off in the end.  All of us have seen children who behave badly and their parents don't seem to care.  We've probably even said, "If that were my child, I'd...!"  We all realize there is a benefit to correcting problem behaviors early in life, because more than likely there will be less problems later in life.  That's what God does with us when we become Christians. We start out as "babes in Christ", But now, O LORD, You are our Father; We are the clay, and You our potter; And all we are the work of Your hand. (Isaiah 64:8) Therefore strengthen the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees, and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be dislocated, but rather be healed. Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord: looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled;  lest there be any fornicator or profane person like Esau, who for one morsel of food sold his birthright.  For you know that afterward, when he wanted to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no place for repentance, though he sought it diligently with tears. (Hebrews 12:12-17)  

We can not sell out our faith in God for anyone or anything!  We must stay true, no matter how difficult things may get or people may ridicule or even doubts may come into our mind.  We must maintain an "upright" posture, strengthen the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees, and make straight paths for your feet. The same God who saved us is the same God who will answer all our questions, if we just ask.  For you have not come to the mountain that may be touched and that burned with fire, and to blackness and darkness and tempest, and the sound of a trumpet and the voice of words, so that those who heard it begged that the word should not be spoken to them anymore.  (For they could not endure what was commanded: “And if so much as a beast touches the mountain, it shall be stoned or shot with an arrow.” [Exodus 19:12-13] And so terrifying was the sight that Moses said, “I am exceedingly afraid and trembling." [Deuteronomy 9:19]) BUT you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels,  to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are registered in heaven, to God the Judge of all, to the spirits of just men made perfect,  to Jesus the Mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling that speaks better things than that of Abel. (Hebrews 12:18-24)

See that you do not refuse Him who speaks. For if they did not escape who refused Him who spoke on earth, much more shall we not escape if we turn away from Him who speaks from heaven, whose voice then shook the earth; but now He has promised, saying, “Yet once more I shake not only the earth, but also heaven." [Haggai 2:6] Now this, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of those things that are being shaken, as of things that are made, that the things which cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear.  For our God is a consuming fire. (Hebrews 12:25-29) We can come to God about any and everything.  He already knows!  This just helps us to have confirmation, that He is real, that we are His and that we are in His Will.  We don't have to worry about being "consumed" by the world, because we know the only person we have to answer to is God, and we don't want to be consumed by His consuming fire!