City Life Starter

Written by Megan Meier

The Word

“9 Besides this, we have had earthly fathers who disciplined us and we respected them. Shall we not much more be subject to the Father of spirits and live? 10 For they disciplined us for a short time as it seemed best to them, but he disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness. 11 For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.”

Hebrews 12:9-11 ESV

Reflection

According to my good friend Merrium-Webster, discipline is:

1 : to punish or penalize for the sake of enforcing obedience and perfecting moral character

2: to train or develop by instruction and exercise especially in self-control

3: a: to bring (a group) under control, b: to impose order upon

4: orderly or prescribed conduct or pattern of behavior, self-control

The word discipline has multiple meanings: punishment, training, and self-control. We’ve experienced all three with our parents and/or guardians, and God does the same for us.

When bad things happen, does that mean God is punishing us? Not necessarily. When God disciplines His children in this way, He lets them see what life without Him is like, such as when the Israelites worshipped idols and God gave them over to their sin and let their enemies overtake them (this happened multiple times in the Book of Judges). The point of this form of discipline is for God to let the offender know they did wrong and motivate them never to do it again so they will develop self-control. But what if you’ve done nothing wrong? Job experienced plenty of hardships and He was a godly man. Job wasn’t being punished, he knew he was being tested (Job 23:10). The early Christ-followers were persecuted relentlessly, but God wasn’t punishing them, in fact, they are rewarded in Heaven (Matthew 5:11-12). I could go on with who suffered what and didn’t deserve it, but let’s get back to the devo.

What about discipline as training? God gave the Israelites this in the form of the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:1-17). The Israelites recited the Shema (Deuteronomy 6:4-9) to love the Lord with all one’s being and to remember (in Hebrew the word “remember” is zakar, which means to keep in mind and act on their behalf) the Lord always, whether at home or inside or outside of their community. Jesus summed up the Ten Commandments with the Shema (Mark 12:29-31). Part of the Shema requires parents to teach their children about the Lord and His Commandments (Deuteronomy 6:7).

Application

What’s the point of these two forms of discipline? Both of them become the best form of discipline: self-discipline, or self-control. The motto of Jocko Willink, a retired Navy SEAL, is “discipline equals freedom.” If a person has the discipline to get up early, it gives them the freedom to read the Bible and pray. If a person has discipline to follow God’s commands, to remember the Lord and always act on His behalf, they are free from the worldly influence of sin. Spiritual discipline leads to spiritual freedom and leads to spiritual peace.

Prayer

Dear Lord, help me develop great spiritual discipline so I can share in Your holiness and obtain the peaceful fruit of righteousness. In Jesus’ name I pray, amen.