The Discipline of our Heavenly Father

I love being a dad. It comes with such joy yet so much responsibility. I understand that God has entrusted Jodi and I with the care and upbringing of our children. He gave them to us to produce children who will grow up to know, love, and serve God. I understand for my wife and I to fail in that area is a serious thing. “Didn’t the Lord make you one with your wife? In body and spirit you are his. And what does he want? Godly children form your union.” (Malachi 2:15) Regardless of what many people think, children don’t come out of the womb “little angels”. Although they are cute and cudly they are born with a sin nature. To fail in training them to obey us as parents and disciplining them when they don’t, we as parents allow that sin nature to dominate them. If they can’t learn to obey their earthly parents how will they learn to obey their Heavenly Father? They can’t and won’t. Wow-big responsibility here but I’m up for the challenge! I believe my wife and I are transitional in our family and our girls will grow up to see a biblically functioning family. All of this I realize can only happen with God’s help, grace, mercy, and power in our lives. Without it we will fail miserably! We are very new at this. My oldest daughter just turned three and our youngest is only four months. However, we are striving with everything within us to do our very best. With God’s word directing us, others mentoring us, and friends who are striving for the same goals I believe it we can see this generation grow up to love the Lord.

So where does discipline come into play? Discipline is a word that isn’t very popular anymore in our society. What is discipline? Discipline is:

1. training to act in accordance with rules
2. activity, exercise, or a regimen that develops or improves a skill; training
3. punishment inflicted by way of correction and training.

Read some of these powerful scriptures from God’s word on training and disciplining:

“Direct (or train up) your children onto the right path (or the way they should go), and when they are older, they will not leave it (depart from it).” (Proverbs 22:6)

They won’t know what to follow or obey unless they are trained to do so.

“Those who spare the rod of discipline hate their children. Those who love their children care enough to discipline them.” (Proverbs 13:24)

Man! The word of God says that if we do not discipline our children we actually hate them! Not spanking our kids doesn’t make us good parents-it makes us bad parents.

“Discipline your children while there is hope. Otherwise you will ruin their lives.” (Proverbs 19:18)

We have a window of opportunity when our kids are young! Their little character is being formed! A little child will soon be an adult. We understand that while our kids are young there is still hope for them! The word of God says we ruin their lives when we fail to discipline them.

“A youngster’s heart is filled with foolishness, but physical discipline with drive it far away.” (Proverbs 22:15)

The word of God even tells us that a young person’s heart is filled with foolishness but not just discipline-but physical discipline with drive it away.

“Don’t fail to discipline your children. They won’t die if you spank them. Phycial discipline may well save them from death.” (Proverbs 23:13-14)

Again, the word of God tells us that physical discipline may save their lives!

“Discipline your children and they will give you peace of mind and will make your heart glad.” (Proverbs 29:17)

Now let me try and bring this all together. If the word of God is very clear for us as earthly parents to discipline our children don’t you think our Heavenly Father will discipline his? (Christians). When we are disobedient will we escape the discipline of our Father? I can assure you although we as earthly parents may “hit and miss” sometimes in our discipline God NEVER does! You can be sure that every act of disobedience will be disciplined.

Read these powerful passages below:

“And have you forgotten the encouraging words God spoke to you as his children? He said, “My child, don’t make light of the Lord’s discipline, and don’t give up when he corrects you. For the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes each one he accepts as his child.” As you endure this divine discipline, remember that God is treating you as his own children. Who ever heard of a child who is never disciplined by its father? If God doesn’t discipline you as he does all of his children, it means that you are illegitimate and are not really his children at all. Since we respected our earthly fathers who disciplined us, shouldn’t we submit even more to the discipline of the Father of our spirits, and live forever? For our earthly fathers disciplined us for a few years, doing the best they knew how. But God’s discipline is always good for us, so that we might share in his holiness. No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening-it’s painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way.” (Hebrews 12:5-11)

“I am not sorry that I sent that severe letter to you, though I was sorry at first, for I know it was painful to you for a little while. Now I am glad I sent it, not because it hurt you, but because the pain caused you to repent and change your ways. It was the kind of sorrow God wants his people to have, so you were not harmed by us in any way. For the kind of sorrow God wants us to experience leads us away from sin and results in salvation. There’s no regret for that kind of sorrow. But worldly sorrow, which lacks repentance, results in spiritual death.” (II. Corinthians 7:8-10)

I had to discipline Gracen for something this morning. Most of the time when I get through spanking her, speaking to her, then praying with her she immediately wants to climb in my arms and hug me. This makes my heart glad. To see my daughter say, “I sorry Daddy” then turns from her mistakes makes my heart glad. Why? Because Godly sorrow leads to repentance. How much more must it make God’s heart glad when we disobey, Him discipline us, then we turn to Him in Godly sorrow.

So my question this morning is “How do we respond to God’s discipline?”