Satan Exposed: Defeating the Powers of Darkness by Larry Richards

Author:Larry Richards
Language: eng
Format: azw3
Tags: Christian life, Spiritual warfare--Biblical teaching, REL012000, REL067010, REL099000
ISBN: 9781441228994
Publisher: Baker Publishing Group
Published: 2015-09-28T23:00:00+00:00

10

The Gift of God’s Discipline

What does it mean that God disciplines us as His children? For one thing it means God has as much love for us as we do for our own families. Perhaps more importantly, it means that as a loving parent corrects and disciplines his or her own brood, so God is committed to correct and discipline us. And for a wonderful purpose. But what does it mean for God to discipline us?

If we look at the Bible’s book of Proverbs as a model of childrearing, most of us find the familiar depictions about discipline to be a bit harsh. Is this how God views His relationship toward us—by not “sparing” the rod?

“Folly [a stubborn penchant for doing wrong] is bound up in the heart of a child,” one proverb claims, “but the rod of discipline will drive it far from him” (Proverb 22:15). The case for using the rod is stated even more strongly in Proverbs 23:13–14. There the writer advises: “Do not withhold discipline from a child; if you punish him with the rod, he will not die. Punish him with the rod and save his soul from death.” Another proverb states: “He who spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him is careful to discipline him” (Proverb 13:24).

Now, it is true that the book of Proverbs does not present itself as rules or promises. Rather, Proverbs records general principles for living in harmony with others that were developed over the centuries by God’s people. In a sense we could call Proverbs a handbook on living in community. The proverbs suggest what contributes to building the kind of community God outlines in the Law, and describe what hinders. Still, it is not surprising that when our eyes fall on these words about using “the rod” on children (a supple switch, by the way, not a club!), many of us tend to look away.

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