“Mom, I thought you loved me!” “I do love you, sweetheart!” “Then, why did you spank me? If you loved me, you wouldn’t spank me!” “I disciplined you because I love you! If I didn’t love you, I wouldn’t discipline you!”
How many parents have had a conversation like that? Discipline, to a child and some outsiders, seems so unfair and so unloving. But, “he who loves [his child] disciplines him promptly” (Prov. 13:24). The motivation of parental discipline is love. The goal of parental discipline is heaven, for prompt and proper discipline can “deliver his soul from hell” (Prov. 23:14).
Do you know that the discipline of God is for the very same reason? Some say, “If God is a loving God, why does He have such rigid rules? Why does He punish so harshly?” “For those whom the Lord loves He disciplines” (Heb. 12:6). The motivation of God’s discipline is love. The goal of God’s discipline is heaven. Let us respect Him and submit to Him (12:9)!