discipline

What is the first thing you think about when you hear the word “discipline’? Personally, I go to one particular memory of childhood when my dad spanked Satan himself out of me. Yes, my parents were into spanking - my mom stopped being scary to me about age 9 or 10. But my dad, when he got angry I would fear for my life until I was… 23? The correction/discipline from my dad was rare because he was pretty laid back – but when he had HAD it? It was over.

Discipline is not a term that is very popular here in America – I mean, why is the first part of American Idol so funny? It’s because dumb people think they can sing – what makes them dumb? Singing isn’t a discipline for them – it is a fetish.

I fell that, early in my walk as a Christ follower, discipline is embraced. When I really enter this life and I get about 6 months – year into it, it’s like discipline takes a back seat. The discipline I am talking about is directly related to the holiness topic last week.

Discipline in my pursuit of God
• scripture,
• prayer,
• meditation

Discipline in my choices for life
• character,
• moral choices,
• Lifestyle

Discipline in personal struggles (how I respond to things that happen in life
• death,
• sickness,
• injustice

How we handle life is a direct product of how we live life. Let me illustrate it with a clip from the movie Miracle.

The team had two main issues at first:
1. They didn’t work during the game
2. They were all individuals

1. They didn’t work during the game
- You will be who you prepare yourself to be. If you don’t prepare by working, then you won’t work during the game – ok, I hate working, but if these guys don’t work hard at their skill continually, they will lose it. Their talent isn’t enough.

4-11In this all-out match against sin, others have suffered far worse than you, to say nothing of what Jesus went through—all that bloodshed! So don't feel sorry for yourselves. Or have you forgotten how good parents treat children, and that God regards you as his children?

My dear child, don't shrug off God's discipline,
but don't be crushed by it either.
It's the child he loves that he disciplines;
the child he embraces, he also corrects.
In this all-out match against sin, others have suffered far worse than you, to say nothing of what Jesus went through—all that bloodshed! So don't feel sorry for yourselves. Or have you forgotten how good parents treat children, and that God regards you as his children?

My dear child, don't shrug off God's discipline,
but don't be crushed by it either.
It's the child he loves that he disciplines;
the child he embraces, he also corrects.
God is educating you; that's why you must never drop out. He's treating you as dear children. This trouble you're in isn't punishment; it's training, the normal experience of children. Only irresponsible parents leave children to fend for themselves. Would you prefer an irresponsible God? We respect our own parents for training and not spoiling us, so why not embrace God's training so we can truly live? While we were children, our parents did what seemed best to them. But God is doing what is best for us, training us to live God's holy best. At the time, discipline isn't much fun. It always feels like it's going against the grain. Later, of course, it pays off handsomely, for it's the well-trained who find themselves mature in their relationship with God. 12-13So don't sit around on your hands! No more dragging your feet! Clear the path for long-distance runners so no one will trip and fall, so no one will step in a hole and sprain an ankle. Help each other out. And run for it!
Hebrews 12:4-13 (MSG)

If you sit around lazy with life you don’t become the President – or even the President’s landscaper – the writer of Hebrews illustrated this is verses 12-13. How do you treat your own life – right now – How do you prepare? Where do you want to be? It’s true for life as well as relationship – how do you protect your relationship with God? What disciplines do you currently use in your life?

Here’s a list of more historical disciplines:
2 Categories (Dallas Willard)

Abstinence Engagement
Solitude Study
Silence Worship
Fasting Celebration
Frugality (fasting $$ wants) Service
Chastity Prayer
Secrecy (in our good deeds) Fellowship
Sacrifice (risk – Abraham) Confession
Submission


That’s a big comprehensive list to work with, huh? One thing I can suggest that is very practical is to take that list and practice one discipline from each column every day. You can basically do everything in a week – and repeat.

Unless we practice and discipline our lives, the “game moment” will prove us as failures. I remember one time in college (story of ministering to the lady at Chili’s who had a miscarriage).

2. They were all individuals
Did you notice that the coach finally blew the whistle when one team member recognized what team he was on? You see, you’re on a large team – not by yourself. But, a lot of us fell that our lives with Christ is individual, don’t we? According to this scripture in Hebrews 12, and most of the New Testament, our lives with Christ are to be lived out in community.

“Help each other out” tends to indicate community – much like that team. The name on the front of the uniform is more important than the name on the back. Helping each other is more in tune with what the Creator desires than going into hiding and seclusion.

Challenge:

Take the card and live a discipline from each category this week – start with this tool to grow your discipline and personal holiness.

holiness?

I used to think holiness meant legalism. My family once went to a church that had these rules:
· No dancing of any kind to music.
· Women must wear skirts or dresses in the sight of God (I guess that's all the time?).
· Women must not wear makeup.
· Men must never have hair past their collar. · No movie theaters, etc.

This was an “attempt” to keep us holy. Then, I went to a school with similar rules – belts, no facial hair, etc. So, you can see my problem with legalism. I have since embraced and been critical of the true and full definition of legalism:

“A slavish following of the law in the belief that one thereby earns merit; it also entails a refusal to go beyond the formal or literal requirements of the law” → moral code.

Legalism is very ineffective because it ignores the facts that I never outgrow the need for divine grace and that the underlying reason for the moral code is love – It reminds me of the “union worker” stereotype.

No, holiness is not legalism. I have to define this attribute of God better than that. So, what is holiness? Many will answer in different ways: being Christ like – making your faith a top priority - living a pure and sinless lifestyle – having a good attitude about people and life – focus → on God in life – living a moral lifestyle - accepting and believing and practicing Biblical truth. These are the most common answers to this question – but scripture says that holiness is an attribute of God. So, in order to refrain from allowing society, relative truth, or any person to define holiness, I went looking in scripture: Over and again the Old Testament talks of God being holy, and the Hebrew word used is - pronounced qadosh or qados – meaning “marked off, or withdrawn from common use – consecrated and sacred – absolute purity and goodness –

Your eyes are too pure to look on evil;
you cannot tolerate wrong.
Why then do you tolerate the treacherous?
Why are you silent while the wicked
swallow up those more righteous than themselves?
Habakkuk 1:13 (NIV)

indicates that this type of holiness can’t even look at injustice and sin. In Luke 5:8 (NIV), Peter feels this holiness and tells Jesus to go away. When we measure our holiness (and our definition of holiness), not against a standard of our self or someone else, but against God, the need for a complete change of moral and spiritual condition becomes apparent.

Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
Matthew 5:48 (NIV)

Jesus tells us in a sermon to “be perfect” – and we can’t be perfect. Sometimes we get confused with that statement. Yes, at our conversion to the Christ life we take on the holiness of God – a life change –

he saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit.
Titus 3:5 (NLT)

Those who have been born into God’s family do not make a practice of sinning, because God’s life is in them. So they can’t keep on sinning, because they are children of God. So now we can tell who are children of God and who are children of the devil. Anyone who does not live righteously and does not love other believers does not belong to God.
I John 3:9-10.

But there is this problem of humanity and a failure to live up to this holiness. We still have something we need to do for the rest of our mortal lives – live holy – grow in that life – it is an ongoing thing called sanctification. We can’t confuse our salvation (being saved and justified before God) and the ongoing process of sanctification.

Justified at Salvation Sanctification

Legal standing Internal condition
Once and for all Continuous through life
Entirely God’s work We cooperate
Perfect in this life Not perfect in this life
The same in all Christ followers Greater in some than in others

You see, sanctification is the process of making this body and human life holy – it takes time, will, and pain. It doesn’t end.

There is a life plan for sanctification:

Mindset and realization at conversion –
Those who have been born into God’s family do not make a practice of sinning, because God’s life is in them. So they can’t keep on sinning, because they are children of God. So now we can tell who are children of God and who are children of the devil. Anyone who does not live righteously and does not love other believers does not belong to God.
I John 3:9-10.

· I John 3:9-10

· Growing in holiness – life on earth – never ends

If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth.
I John 1:8 (NLT)

Do not let sin control the way you live; do not give in to sinful desires. Do not let any part of your body become an instrument of evil to serve sin. Instead, give yourselves completely to God, for you were dead, but now you have new life. So use your whole body as an instrument to do what is right for the glory of God. Sin is no longer your master, for you no longer live under the requirements of the law. Instead, you live under the freedom of God’s grace.
Romans 6:12-14 (NLT)

Not a single person on earth is always good and never sins.
Ecclesiastes 7:20

Even the Lord’s Prayer – forgive our sins – pray every day according to Jesus

· Perfect and complete – death –

Jesus Christ, who will transform our earthy bodies into glorious bodies like his own. He'll make us beautiful and whole with the same powerful skill by which he is putting everything as it should be, under and around him.
Philippians 3:21(MSG)

We will always have the battle with sin in this life, but we are actually supposed to win this battle. Personally, I don’t believe a person can reach full sanctification in this life. I find more of Paul’s teachings and New Testament passages that prove Christ’s return and new life with Him completes our holiness. Because of Christ, we are presented as holy – therefore, we can’t continue to live enslaved by sin – we are free, so we must live free – not enslaved or condemned.

I can see why groups of people take living the Christ life extreme with sanctification – but the problem is that a lot of times, judgment and attitudes become clouded with false righteousness. – It’s our job to be sanctified and balanced in our struggle – at the same time we have to life different if we don’t live different we are not being transformed: no change…we HAVE to change.

Don't become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You'll be changed from the inside out.
Romans 12:1-2 (MSG)

This should be our prayer:

Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy Holy Spirit from me. Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit.” Psalm 51:10-12 (KJV)

the more you know: absolute truth

Seriously? Truth that never changes no matter the situation. Honestly, relativism is way more attractive. In the reality of my life, I find it more beneficial to hold to something as flexible as me. I know that I have been taught some ridiculous things as a kid.

• Hot stoves – yes, it’s hot but not necessarily evil.
• Strangers – yes, it’s a wise thing to be careful, but not every stranger wants to kill me and throw me in a river.
• Drugs – yes, drugs kill – but Rx drugs make me ok – so, not all drugs fry my brain – only the illegal ones. Wait, nicotine is legal but it can kill me – oh well.
• Movies – all rated R’s aren’t bad – Passion of the Christ? – no there are some great movie (Little Miss Sunshine) that are rated R. So no, rated R movies don’t send me to Hell. So Jesus, he’s my homeboy, but is it really necessary to be all Nazi and Republican about my faith? Jesus understands me – it wasn’t like he was mean – except to the religious people – so they must be bad.

The biggest problem with relativism is that it makes so much sense right now. But, when you look at the big picture of life, relativism can seem dumb and ignorant. In fact, at times it can seem down right evil.

⁶ In those days there was no king in Israel. People did whatever they felt like doing. Judges 17:6 (MSG)

²⁵ At that time there was no king in Israel. People did whatever they felt like doing. Judges 21:25 (MSG)

“At this time, there was no King in Israel. People did whatever they felt like doing.”

So basically pandemonium ensued and the most used phrase in Judges was created. “Again, the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord.” Judges 3,4,6,10,13

There is no way we can do no evil without the definition of evil – evil can’t change! Good can’t change! When we do what we feel like doing we end up doing “evil in the eyes of the Lord.” So what now?

Is there a list of don’ts & do’s? Ten Commandments – yeah right – and along with those the Old Testament tells us what to do if any man has a “nocturnal emission.” This gets outright ridiculously legalistic. So, no list for me – I can’t live up to it – and Christ knows that. He provided the way to eternal life and no lists. But if I am a Christ follower – where do I draw the line on what is forever true? How do I live now knowing and gaining wisdom that seems to constantly change my perspective on absolutes?

Is there absolute truth in the Christ life? There has to be because God’s nature demands it. I really believe there is more absolute truth then relative truth. However, I really do believe that truth and experience are related. Here’s what I mean: Let’s go to uptown to Bo A – you jump off – you scream to me all the way down that you are fine – but eventually, the pavement will become very close. We may continue to live on happily for hours and even days after a close person has, unknown to us, passed away, but attain the truth will come with a crushing effect on our experience. Since the meaning and truth of this Christ life will eventually have ultimate bearing on our experience, we must understand then (Millard Erickson). So, let’s make this personal here: there are several things we thinks are (some) arguable in scripture.

But this we KNOW is absolute: that when we enter the Christ life, we begin a new life that reflects God (we get holiness) and it is something that is a continuing work of God in our lives – I Peter 2:9; I Corinthians 1:2; Ephesians 4:1

^9-10But you are the ones chosen by God, chosen for the high calling of priestly work, chosen to be a holy people, God's instruments to do his work and speak out for him, to tell others of the night-and-day difference he made for you—from nothing to something, from rejected to accepted.

I Peter 2:9-10

²I send this letter to you in God's church at Corinth, believers cleaned up by Jesus and set apart for a God-filled life. I include in my greeting all who call out to Jesus, wherever they live. He's their Master as well as ours!

I Corinthians 1:2

³In light of all this, here's what I want you to do. While I'm locked up here, a prisoner for the Master, I want you to get out there and walk—better yet, run!—on the road God called you to travel. Ephesians 4:1

We are addressed in scripture as “saints” – we are far from saints

So, we live unchanged lives – we are made holy because of Christ (2 Timothy 1:9, NIV)

⁹who has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time,

We are to live the righteousness of Christ…that means my decision making process is directly influenced by my relationship with him. It means that I don’t do normal things that would please me, but that I would put on the mind of Christ. I could really spend a lot of time on personal holiness, but I’ll stick to absolute truth.

But we are far from complete and perfect – we struggle knowing how to live – we struggle with relativism and absolute truth, especially regarding what is sin and what is not. And in studying this, most resources (theology) are relativistic.

So here is my absolute statement regarding the Christ life: we are to live with the Holy Spirit discernment and with Christ motivation in our life. This statement seems simple, but it is really a difficult concept. Have the Holy Spirit discern – not me – and every decision motivated by Christ.

If we can just start living that way, relativism will start to be a dead issue (permanently)

“There always comes a time in history when the person who dares to say 2 + 2 = 4 must face death. And the question is not what reward or what punishment will be the result of that meaning. The question is simply whether or not 2+2 = 4.”

I know there is relative truth, but how I live will determine my belief in absolute truth.