The Watchman Speaks

009 A Lack of Discipline

February 27, 2023 Lonnie Richardson Season 1 Episode 9
The Watchman Speaks
009 A Lack of Discipline
Show Notes Transcript

The week the Watchman discusses a lack of discipline in our homes, the church, and in our individual walks with God. A Lack of Discipline is at the root of the degradation of the nuclear family and one of the many sources of a nation's downfall.

The Old Watchman Website
The Old Watchman - Facebook
The Watchman Speaks - Facebook
The Old Watchman - Twitter

009 A Lack of Discipline

Welcome to The Watchman Speaks! I’m your host, Lonnie Richardson.

Today I’m going to discuss something that seems to have gotten a bum rap. It seems that it’s a taboo topic, even in the church, even though the Bible addresses it very plainly. It’s something that is seldom talked about, and I believe that it is one of the leading problems in the spiraling downfall that we see in our society. What could this topic possibly be?

Here it is. One word. Discipline. Or, perhaps I should say, lack of discipline. Well, that’s three words. Oh well. It doesn’t matter that I add a couple of words. But a lack of discipline, as it seems to me, is a major source of the chaos, confusion, and fear that I’m witnessing in the world today. I’m speaking of a lack of discipline in regard to parents disciplining their children, the church, and their members (and in some instances, their leadership), and a lack of discipline among individuals professing to be Christians. 

Surely I must be joking. No, I’m not joking. Not even a little bit.

Let me say this. I am a strong believer in the nuclear family. I believe that a nuclear family was God’s intended plan. What do I mean by nuclear family? That means one man and one woman join together in the holy bonds of matrimony, have children together and raise those children. I’m not talking about raising good kids. I’m talking about raising kids to become good, responsible adults. To accomplish this goal requires discipline on a personal and combined level as well as equal sacrifice between a husband and wife. 

Parents don’t discipline their children like parents did when I was growing up. If they did so in this day and age, they would likely be charged with child abuse or domestic violence. To discipline a child is not abuse. Child abuse is beating a child in anger or frustration to the extent that they are bruised and/or bloody. No need for that. However, to discipline a child to teach them right from wrong is biblical. 

Proverbs 13:24 reads:

“He who withholds his rod hates his son. But he who loves him disciplines him diligently.”

In other words, if you withhold the “rod” or the spanking, or whatever means is necessary to teach a child right from wrong and not do so diligently, the Bible says that your love is negligent.

And Proverbs 29:15 reads:

“The rod and reproof give wisdom. But a child who gets his own way brings shame to his mother.”

Discipline and correction builds wisdom in a child but when a child gets his own way long enough he/she will bring shame upon their mother. Having said that, it appears to me that some mothers in today’s society have no shame.

And finally, Proverbs 23:13-14 reads:

13. “Do not hold back discipline from the child, although you strike him with the rod he will not die.

14. You shall strike him with the rod and rescue his soul from Sheol.”

Now that’s a passage that my daddy took to heart. I could tell that it gave him no pleasure to discipline me, but when daddy handed out discipline, you stayed disciplined for a while. 

Now some of you may say, “Oh that’s horrible! Detestable!” No. I never hated or resented my daddy or his discipline. What he taught me was that when he told me to do something or told me not to do something, he meant what he said. He never once said, “If you don’t stop doing that,” or “If you don’t do what I told you to do.” No, he never said that. He would tell me what to do or not to do, then if I didn’t do as he told me, he would discipline me accordingly. There were no countdowns. There were no time outs. He told me what was expected of me, and I knew that he meant for me to live according to his expectations of me. Yes, meant yes. No meant no, today, tomorrow, and forever. He didn’t waiver. EVER!

You see, when I did something that he told me not to do, or didn’t do something that he told me to do, it was perceived as disrespect and rebellion. In other words, I had missed the mark or sinned in the eyes of my earthly father, and I was disciplined. Sometimes, that would mean a spanking. Sometimes that would mean a serious scolding. Depending of the offense, both were equally effective. I knew that if I was scolded for something, the next offense on my part would be….painful. 

But you know what? I’ve never been in jail. I’ve never harmed another person that didn’t intend me any harm. I’ve never totaled a vehicle. I never would consider drinking and driving. For the most part, I’ve been a law abiding citizen all my life, for the most part. Am I perfect? No. Never was and I doubt I ever will be. But I know what is right and just. I know wrong is and I know what is unjust. I never brought shame to my mother and my soul was rescued from Sheol by my daddy’s discipline.

When mamma or daddy said, “Be still,” or “Be quiet”. That’s what I did. If I didn’t, I knew that there were consequences that would have to be endured. If they said, “Go there, do that.” Then that’s what I did. If they said, “Don’t go there, don’t do that.” I knew better than to go there and do that because if they ever found out that I’d disobeyed them, then it was full game on. 

Now I don’t mean that their wrath would fall upon me. No, their discipline was deliberate and crystal clear. “Boy, didn’t I tell you not to do that?” Or, “Son, didn’t I tell you to go and do this?”

If I drew their discipline it was because I had disobeyed and rebelled, drawing that discipline upon myself. That was on me. I owned it.

Let’s talk about discipline in the church briefly. In Matthew 18:15-20

15. “If your brother sins, go and show him his fault in private; if he listens to you, you have won your brother.

16. But if he does not listen to you, take one or two more with you, so that by the mouth of two or three witnesses every fact may be confirmed.

17. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; an if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. 

18. Truly I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven.

19. Again I say to you, that if two or you agree on earth about anything that they may ask, it shall be done for them by my Father in heaven.

20. For where two or three have gathered together in My name, I am there in their midst.”

Now that is pretty plain and simple. I’ve seen it accomplished in that exact manner. I’ve seen extra marital affairs dissolved and addictions broken among the brethren. I’ve seen financial issues resolved among church leadership. I’ve also seen it not work where people would resign from the church, and fall away from the pew and the pulpit.

Now let’s address verse 19. It says,

“AGAIN, I say to you, that if two of you agree on earth about ANYTHING that they may ask, it shall be done for them by My Father in heaven.”

“AGAIN, I say to you.” When was the first time Jesus made mention of these things? Well, that would be in verse 18.

“Truly I say to you, that what ever you bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven.” Hmmmmm.

Could it be that which we do not tolerate within the church will not be tolerated in heaven? OR worse yet, what we tolerate in church will be tolerated in heaven? May it never be!

Tell you what you do. Get you a couple of friends together, in Jesus’ name, and ask for a shiny Ferrari by the end of the week for all three of you and see how quickly it shows up. This passage is talking about church discipline and the love of the saints for one another lifted in prayer.

I suppose that’s enough said about church discipline. Other than there is a need for church discipline to be brought back as much as there is need for parents to discipline their children.

But what about the individual, professing Christian?  What need do they have of discipline?

Well, the Bible covers that as well. Hebrews 12:5-11 reads:

5. My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor faint when you are reproved by Him.

6. For those whom the Lord loves He disciplines them. And He scourges (whips) every son whom He receives.

7. It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline?

8. But if you are without discipline, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate children and not sons.

9. Furthermore, we had earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them; shall we not much rather be subject to the Father of spirits, and live?

10. For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but He disciplines us for our good, so that we may share His holiness.

11. All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.

WOW!!! If I remember correctly, Proverbs 23: 13-14 and this passage in Hebrews 12 were the only passages underlined in my daddy’s Bible. He was thinking of God’s love for him as much as his love for me. Let’s look at that verse by verse and do some what the old folks called “cogitating”.

5. My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor faint when you are reproved by Him.

Do not lightly regard the discipline of the Lord? Don’t take it lightly. Believe me, I didn’t take my daddy’s discipline lightly. I don’t take the Lord’s discipline lightly either. Why? Because I have a greater reverential fear of God than I did for my daddy. I don’t take the Lord’s discipline lightly. I didn’t dare faint when my daddy administered discipline and I’m certainly not going to faint when my Heavenly Father administers His discipline. If I am disciplined, I brought that on myself. I own it.

6. For those whom the Lord loves He disciplines them. And He scourges (whips) every son whom He receives.

But notice, God loves those whom He disciplines. I know Mom and Dad loved me but I’d take my spankings because they loved me and they did not want to see me walk a wrong path that would lead to my ruination. Notice that God scourges or “whips” EVERY son whom He receives? Why? We’re getting to that.

 7. It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline?

Because we are children of God and God being our Heavenly Father, He deals with us as children. The question is asked, “What son is there whom his father does not discipline?” Judging from what I’ve seen over most of these last two generations, there are a lot of moms and dads who do not discipline their children. However, I’d bet my last gold monkey that God has not changed in His discipline.

8. But if you are without discipline, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate children and not sons.

If you are a Christian, then you must partake of the Lord’s discipline. If not, then you are not His Children. The King James, for those of you who are partial to the King James, would call a non-partaker of the Lord’s Discipline a bastard. Just sayin’.

9. Furthermore, we had earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them; shall we not much rather be subject to the Father of spirits, and live?

Yes, I had an earthly father who disciplined me, and I respected him because he demanded my respect and obedience.  Should I not submit to the discipline of God out of the same reverential fear, respect and obedience? 

10. For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but He disciplines us for our good, so that we may share His holiness.

I was thirty three years old when dad died. He disciplined me through all that time, even into adulthood. Not necessarily by imposing a spanking as he did in earlier years, but by trying to impart wisdom to the son he loved. He did so that I might live into adulthood, gain wisdom, prosper, and have a better future than his past. That’s love. God disciplines us for OUR good that we may SHARE IN HIS HOLINESS. Ever heard, “I am holy. You be holy.”

11. All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.

Here it is. All discipline seems sorrowful. We’re not getting our way. That’s in regard to our parents discipline as well as our Heavenly Father’s discipline. But the rewards of our parent’s discipline is to grow into responsible, respectable adults. The reward of our Heavenly Father’s discipline is the peaceful fruit of righteousness. Notice it doesn’t say that the reward is righteousness. It’s the peaceful FRUIT of righteousness. That’s the payoff!

What does that even mean? What does that look like?

Phillipians 1:9-11

9. And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in real knowledge and all discernment,

10. so that you may approve the things that are excellent (justified discipline plays a part in that), in order to be sincere and blameless until the day of Christ;

11. having been filled with the fruit of righteousness which comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.

Now some might say that the fruits of righteousness are the same as the fruits of the Spirit. But here, Paul describes something different. He mentions abounding love, knowledge, discernment, approval of what is excellent, being sincere and blameless continuously, being filled by the fruit of righteousness which come through Jesus Christ, Not Holy Spirit. That our thoughts, words, and actions bring glory and praise to God. 

 Are you still not convinced that this world and the church are suffering from a lack of discipline? Okay, then I’ve done a poor job. I’ll pray about it some more and revisit this at a later time. But before I depart, I want to revisit the Old Testament Book of Psalms and a passage that I’m certain that we are all familiar with. 

Psalm 23:4

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and your staff, they comfort me. 

Whether you realize it or not, this one verse has a lot to unpack. It took me a little while to get the jist of it all but here’s something that I wish that you’d think about.

Consider, “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,” for a moment. My daddy’s discipline was often invoked because I had been disobedient. My disobedience would lead me into an area in which I could have been seriously injured, injured someone else, or cause damage that would cost money that we didn’t have. I was walking “through the valley of the shadow of death” so to speak and his discipline was to remove me from that valley and out of that shadow. Our Heavenly Father watches over us in a like manner. Because He does, I fear no evil. How can I do that? Because my dad disciplined me so that I could live long enough to acquire the wisdom so that I can trust God. “You are with me.” God is with us and when we stray off the path, He disciplines us to bring us back onto the path. 

Now, pay close attention to, “Your rod and your staff, they comfort me.”

In terms of shepherding, (Psalm 23:1 The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want.) the rod and the staff are two different things. They may be the same implement or tool, but the rod is for correction. The staff is for direction. Do make the mistake of confusing punishment for correction or wandering for direction. The Hebrew word for “rod” here in Psalms 23 is the same as for “rod” that we found earlier in Proverbs. The “rod” was for discipline. The “staff” was for direction.

Here's the clicker. “Your rod and your staff, they comfort me.” We can fear no evil because we have the discipline of the Lord through the “rod” and his guidance and direction through His Spirit. In both we are comforted, or we should be. 

I look around and I see a nation falling. Why? Because of a lack of discipline, undermining  the nuclear family, the church, in ourselves. 

Let me share a story briefly with you. I have a hobby that I get to enjoy for oh, maybe sixty to eighty hours a year. I enjoy wood working. Not with power tools mind you. I go out and find old hand tools and restore them to their intended use. Hand planes, hand saws, Brace and bits, and so on. I go out to my little shop and take a rough sawn piece of maple or walnut and plane it by hand until it’s smoother than sandpaper. So smooth in fact, that I have to roughen it a little bit with sandpaper just so that it’ll take a finish. I disciplined myself to take very precise measurements and make very accurate saw cuts. Nothing I build has a nail or screw holding anything together unless there is a metal hinge involved.  I take the time to shape and mold pieces of wood to fit together to make something useful that meets my intended purpose for the piece. That takes discipline, and lots of it. It is truly old world craftsmanship. It’s old School.

That’s how I discipline myself in my walk with God. I pray and read His word every day. I meet with Him every day, without fail. Not because I have to. But because I want to! It brings me joy to be in His presence! This self discipline wasn’t easy at first. Sometimes, I didn’t want to meet with Him because there were other things that I wanted or thought that I needed to do. It took a hot few years to realize that I needed God to get all those things that I thought I needed to do done. But now I can’t wait to meet with Him. I’ve learned to establish my priorities.

Does God discipline His children? I hope so for our benefit. Have I been disciplined? Yes, I’ve spent my time in the woodshed with God. Here’s the thing about God’s discipline. Sometimes the discipline comes in the form of a quiet whisper in your spirit, convicting your heart to repent of something. At other times it seems that God kicks the door off the hinges to get your attention. I’ve heard the whisper in the past. I’ve also had my doors kicked off the hinges a few times.

I recommend listening for the whispers.

 I am The Old Watchman, Ezekiel. A lack of discipline has invaded our land. You have been warned.

 

The Old Watchman
FaceBook - The Old Watchman
Twitter - The Old Watchman
YouTube - The Old Watchman