Tag: discipline

Correction for Christ Followers

“For the Lord corrects those he loves,
just as a father corrects a child in whom he delights.”  

Prov. 3:12, NLT

Interesting.  Some people get a double-dip.  If you are a loved son/daughter you have the tremendous honor of being loved and also of being disciplined.  My own son is disciplined because I love him so much.  He’s my boy and I love him even more than my own life.  When I do need to correct him, it is that love that makes it possible.  If I didn’t really love him, I would let him do his thing without any discipline at all. It would be easier.

To be left alone, with no correction or discipline is to be in a difficult place.  It smacks of abandonment.  Or of being cast-off or sent away.  It can be worse then abuse.

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.”

Heb. 12:5-6

The connection between a loving and caring Father, and you will require you to cooperate with His correction.  The writer of Hebrews knew the frail nature of people.  The writer knew that people would be tempted to quit– it is so hard.  “Don’t give up” in verse 5.  That means we will be tempted do so, to walk away and quit.  People do it all the time. It is easy.

“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? 8 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. 9 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?”

Heb. 12:7-9

God loves you.  God loves you so much that He wants to change you.  Understanding that you are a son or a daughter in His family makes life worth living.

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ybic, Bryan

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Olympic Sized Hearts

 Seven rules for running the Christian race.

  1. Run to win: “Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize” (1 Corinthians 9:24-25).
  2. Observe strict discipline: “Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training… I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified” (1 Corinthians 9:25-27).
  3. Don’t look back: “Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:13-14).
  4. Get constant encouragement: “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us…run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart” (Hebrews 12:1-3).
  5. Throw off restraints: “Let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us” (Hebrews 12:1).
  6. Discount pain: “And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there. I only know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me that prison and hardships are facing me. However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me-the task of testifying to the gospel of God’s grace” (Acts 20:22-24).
  7. Don’t let up until you cross the line: “For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time has come for my departure. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day-and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing” (2 Timothy 4:6-8).                                                 Jim Elliff
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Welcoming His Judgement

To be judged by God is an awful thing.  It is always immutable and just.  He brings to us the inevitable awareness of the guilt and rebellion that we have secretly harbored for years.  We try to dodge His correction like a boxer does to the punches of his opponent.

We see judgement with a distinct clarity; as if it was to be avoided like the plague.  We fear Him, but like an eccentric guest at our special dinner party.  He is unpredictable, and sometimes will pull out the table cloth, in spite of the plates and dishes.  He does amazing tricks, but to us He seems a bit capricious and not at all in control of Himself.  We really don’t trust Him. Not really, anyway.

But the judgement of God is never punishment.  It is always corrective however, with a desire for us to find good and health in its presence.  We can contaminate our hearts with a wrong perspective.  But He is love, and our sin and iniquity won’t change that about Him.

He loves us so much, that He is obligated to correct us.  Some here have had great Dads.  The were active in our lives.  They were not perfect, but it didn’t matter; Dad loved us and that was all we needed.  Everything God does, comes out of this matrix of love.  When we truly grasp how much someone loves us, we can open up to anything they might say.

He does correct us, which can be harsh and difficult.  But God carefully weighs out the situation, just like a druggist weighs out to the milligram of the medicine we need.  He does discern, and gives no one more then they need.  He is definitely aware, and has no desire to destroy us.  Quite the opposite.

When we are judged for a particular sin or iniquity, we will know it.  But within that correction we will find no darkness or maliciousness.  Within our Father, there is nothing that would suggest evil or a desire to inflict pain.  He most definitely is not a sadist.  When we are corrected, we need to accept it, and receive it.  At the bottom of this, we will find that there is nothing but love.

A Question About Discernment and Discipline

Question: 

“What if the “desire to excel” isn’t the motivation in allowing sinners into the church? We invite our unsaved friends (worldlings) to church and hope they repent. Sometimes that takes a long time! Is this intervening or being missional? I understand your point that Believers aren’t to live in continual sin but am foggy about what we do with the sin saturated culture around us. Do we draw away or let them draw near?”

My Response:

“Great question/comment.  Jesus made it clear, with the salt & light analogy that we will be distinctive and visible. We need to learn to accentuate and use that distinctiveness, with talent and forethought. All available effort should be used.

The issue of believers in habitual, continual sin should be approached as ‘church discipline’. This falls on people who we call pastors and elders. 1 Cor. 5 gives this oversight a template to follow. It is a sticky thing to judge someone. When we have to, we don’t want to. (Unless the person is a ‘control freak’.)

The issue of sin in the church is interesting. To have water outside a boat is a good thing, but to have water in the boat is decidedly worse. We are to preserve our distinctiveness, without diminishing our witness. It’s like we are a flock of lambs living in a pigpen. By their very nature the are different. One has a sheep nature, the other a pig’s. There will be at times confusion. But the sheep don’t belong.

To sum it up, there is church discipline for believers, that really needs to be in place. But we are missional people. The world is very much like a pigpen. But I say, let them come in and let the Holy Spirit touch them.”

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This was a recent post and follow-up comment for “Through the Sheep Dip”, posted on September 28, 2010.  The link is located at:  https://brokenbelievers.com/2010/09/28/through-the-sheep-dip/