Wise Parenting
“A Proverbs-Driven Life accepts the calling to raise children as a task delegated and directed by God.” “Folly is bound up in the heart of a child, but the rod of discipline drives it far from him.” Proverbs 22:15, ESV
“I used to be an expert on raising and disciplining children. I possessed deep, biblical insights into all the rich dynamics and subtle intricacies of parent-child interactions. I saw clearly how God’s Word can speak into every situation, illuminating each childrearing moment with perfect clarity and providing the ideal course of action. Then something unprecedented happened, something that put all my neat, tidy theories under severe strain. For the first time, I became a father.” Anyone else have this experience? :)
“What is Biblical Discipline?”
“discipline of children is a major focus of Proverbs. But let’s be clear that when Proverbs speaks of “discipline” it has in view quite a range of activities. In Proverbs, “discipline” includes instruction, teaching, training and correction. Stated very briefly, instruction and teaching involve imparting knowledge; training involves all sorts of coaching and preparation; and correction involves identifying errors and urging their removal. In other words, biblical discipline is fundamentally about passing along and reinforcing wisdom and truth in a variety of ways; it’s about education. In that sense, the entire Book of Proverbs involves discipline of the young! ”
Why Discipline?
1. For Our Children’s Sake
“Whoever spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him is diligent to discipline him.” Proverbs 13:24, ESV The book of Proverbs tells us that the primary motivation for disciplining our children is love. This motivation is most clearly articulated in Proverbs 13:24, above. Bruce Waltke explains the teaching of this proverb: Loving parents seek to correct the faults of their children because ... their children’s lives, favor, protection, healing, dignity and prosperity are at stake. Unloving parents turn their backs on them and hand them over to death, social ruin, public exposure, calamity, and shameful poverty.”
2. For Our Neighbors’ Sake
“Let a man meet a she-bear robbed of her cubs rather than a fool in his folly.” Proverbs 17:12, ESV When a foolish, undisciplined child grows into a foolish, undisciplined adult, the circle of trouble widens. Such adults often go through life towing havoc behind them, and are incapable of influencing society in the direction of anything except shallowness and corruption. Raise a fool, send him or her out into the world, and you have harmed more than your child. You have incrementally damaged your entire culture. Therefore, a second motivation for faithfully disciplining our children is to help fulfill the command to love my neighbor as I love myself (Luke 10:27).”
3. For Our Own Sake
Discipline your son, and he will give you peace; he will bring delight to your soul. Proverbs 29:17
A third motivation for applying biblical discipline is that we might experience the rewards of having well-behaved children. Godly children are a source of great joy to their parents, as affirmed in Proverbs 29:17, above. To see a child increasingly learn to control his
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