Discipline

June 15

I Kings 15-16

Psalm 72:8-11

Proverbs 15:31-33

Acts 11

Discipline

“He whose ear listens to the life-giving reproof will lodge among the wise.  He who neglects discipline despises his soul, but he who listens to reproof acquires a heart of wisdom.  The fear of Yahweh is the discipline leading to wisdom, and before glory comes humility.” 

Proverbs 15:31-33 LSB

No one likes to receive reproof and correction or to be disciplined.  It is part of our innate sinful nature that we don’t want anyone to point out that we are wrong and deserve to be punished. I am reminded of this as I watch my granddaughter pitch a fit when she is told “no” and put in time-out.  From the moment we are able to make willful decisions to disobey, we have the natural aversion to admitting wrong-doing and accepting discipline for it. We want to do what we want, when we want and how we want and we don’t want anyone telling us we can’t do it.  Generally when we think of discipline, we think of punishment.  But it needs to be noted that there is another definition of discipline.  Discipline is being able to use self-control and restraint in your actions.  The goal of discipline should be to develop a person who is self-controlled and disciplined without being forced by someone else.   As parents or those in authority the first step is to help them understand the rules to prevent misbehavior.  Then we reinforce good behaviors and help them start to exhibit self-control.  And when necessary we have to use punishment when they fail to follow the rules we have clearly laid out.  We understand the importance of this when we are raising children.  Undisciplined children are unpleasant to be around when they are small, bad influences on others as they get older and ultimately unable to function well in society as adults because they lack the self-control and restraint necessary to hold down a job and maintain relationships with others.  We don’t have to look far to see this at work in the world around us.

The principle found in these verses applies to everyone whether you are a believer in Jesus or someone who wants nothing to do with God.  Self-control and restraint are necessary qualities to develop in order to accomplish any goals and to become successful in life.  The wise person listens to reproof and evaluates how they can use the information and apply it to their lives.  Verse 33 goes on to explain that the fear of God is what leads to true wisdom and that humility is necessary to being able to apply discipline.  Pride is a major factor in our aversion to discipline.  Pride leads to denying and deflecting responsibility, making excuses, and lying about our conduct.  Pride creates an attitude of “who do you think you are telling me what to do,” instead of “what can I learn from what they are telling me.”  Coming from an attitude of humility creates a situation where we can learn and grow from reproof and correction.  Wise people listen to correction and learn from it.