Love And Discipline_1 26082020
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Title: Love And Discipline Part 1
For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.
Hebrews 12:6 KJV
In the world where we live in, the role of love in enhancing effective relationship cannot be under-estimated. Everyone expects to be loved and made to feel loved just as everyone is expected to show love in dealing with another. Anyone being showed love will always have a greater feeling of well being as such a person feels very much appreciated. Within the family, among friends, within organizations, the gospel of love is being preached and lack of it is blamed for a lot of negative acts in the society.
The act of Love is actually a mix of emotions, behaviors, and beliefs associated with strong feelings of affection, protectiveness, warmth, and respect for another person. From that definition, one can appreciate why a lot of activities are associated with the act of love. With emotional and behavioral links, it will definitely have lots of effect on day to day activities of human beings and even lower animals. The beneficiary of love expects protection, affection and warmth at all times else he/she will begin to feel unloved. All these are desired irrespective of what the situation may be as its emotional or better put sentimental components come into play. It should be very easy for any one to put up this act especially towards somebody whom one is pleased with. That ease will also be there as long as the beneficiary of the act of love continues to put up acts that will deserve being shown the positive acts of love.
Unfortunately, this is not always the case as man is never perfect. At one stage of life or the other, the beneficiary of love will be involved in an act that will require correction or rebuke both of which are acts classified as disciplining an individual especially when done with positive intentions. This act of disciplining the beneficiary of love places stress on the relationship and threatens its continuation since most people will not consider the acts of disciplining someone as acts of love. All that the beneficiary of love expects is warmth and similar acts earlier mentioned.
Only the wise can accept the act of disciplining, more especially if it is intended at improving the personality of the beneficiary, as an act of love. To discipline someone is to train the person to obey set rules, a code of conduct or follow an acceptable behavioral pattern that will help to improve the person. There will never be a time that training will not be accompanied by some level of pain although to the wise, it should be considered as sweet pain.
There is no doubt about the love of God for us. The Bible says, His love is so much that he gave up His only son to die for our sins that we may not perish but have everlasting life – Jn. 3:16. There is also no doubt about the love of Christ for us also when the same Bible says that, when yet we were sinners, he died for our sins that we may live – Rom. 5:8. However it is the same Bible that informs us that the word of God is for teaching, rebuking and correcting that children of God may be perfected and furnished into all good works – 2Tim. 3:16-17. All these are acts that carry some level of pain, either physical or emotional along with them during their implementation, but the same Bible lets us know that the Almighty God disciplines only those He loves. Thus, love cannot be expressed only in all those positive and soothing ways earlier listed but should also be expressed in teaching, rebuking and correcting.
From the above, it is clear that all acts listed under love and discipline are important when it comes to sustaining a good relationship with disciplining being a not too comfortable approach to expressing love.
However there will be the need to know when to apply either and in what measure. This is very important because a right and timely application of either will help to achieve the intention of improving the love beneficiary and will also help the recipient of both acts to be able to accept both in the right spiritual manner. Wrong application in terms of time, manner and measure is the major reason why both acts produce negative results rather than the expected positives aside from lack of effective communication clarifying the basis for the applied disciplinary act of love.
