God’s Discipline: A Masterpiece in Progress (Proverbs 3:11-12)
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Proverbs 3:11-12
My son, do not despise the Lord's discipline
or be weary of his reproof,
12 for the Lord reproves him whom he loves,
as a father the son in whom he delights.
You know, I can’t help but feel, as we’re on day 76 of Praying Through Proverbs, that we continue to find ourselves praying about some verse that talks about discipline.
And you know what? I’m glad that’s been the case. It’s quite natural in our world to despise discipline – it certainly has a negative connotation to it – but the Bible again and again, especially in Proverbs, reminds us, like we see today, not to despise discipline. Discipline is a really good thing, a thing to be welcomed, most welcomed when it comes from the Lord.
If you’ve been praying with us since the beginning, you’ll notice this passage wraps up a section in Proverbs 3 that’s been all about how we relate to God – trusting Him, honoring Him, fearing Him. And today? We’re called to submit to Him. If you have your Bible on you or near you, I’d encourage you to make note of those distinctions in there, because they’ve been super helpful for me.
“Submit to the LORD.” Welcome His discipline and correcting hand. Although discipline may be harsh, it is actually a sign of the LORD’s love, not of His wrath, for it concerns those “whom he loves.”
You know what that means? That means when we complain and moan over our sufferings and whatever it is the LORD may be using to correct us, we actually are asking God to love us less, not more. When we complain over His discipline, we’re essentially asking Him not to take us so seriously.
And when you put it that way, of course you don’t want that. But it’s not that easy in the moment, is it? It’s not like anyone’s waking up going, “God, I’d love a little more discipline today!”
But even so, I think that’s why we need to be reminded of this often – because discipline doesn’t always feel like love in the moment. But maybe this picture helps: C. S. Lewis once likened God’s discipline to a painter and his artwork.
A painter that truly cares about his artwork is not going to just paint carelessly and then leave it be. The best painters paint and then chip away some of that paint to then paint again, trying to correct and refine every last detail of their artwork so that it can BEST reflect the image they are trying to portray.
In the case of a painter, discipline and correction of the artwork shows that the painter cares! It shows the painter cares! And God with us is similar.
He corrects us because He cares about us. He is refining us because He wants us to reflect Him more and more.
That’s an artist I want to humble myself before. To let His brush move where it pleases. I want to submit to His design and authority for the painting that is my life.
So it raises these questions this morning:
Are you submitting to the LORD?
Do you welcome and invite the LORD’s discipline? Or are you resistant when it comes?
And what I mean by that is this. Do you ask for the LORD to discipline you? Do you want to see Him refine your character and make you more like Him? I think this is a verse that should encourage us to invite the LORD to discipline us wherever He sees fit so that we might be more like Him. Praying through this verse is such a great opportunity to humble ourselves before Him and submit to His authority.
Let’s pray.
