Gospel-Positive Correction

  When your child sins, can you correct him in a positive manner? Can you rebuke his actions in a way that  affirms him in Christ?   Of course, there is nothing fun about disciplining and correcting our children. But we can use it as a tool to communicate God’s truth, and even to encourage our children. Let me give you an example . . .   Let’s say you had a child who refused to share a toy with friends. (Of course, this wouldn’t be my child. They’re perfect angels, right?) And the toy wasn’t even his toy; it belonged to an after school program. (Of course, this wouldn’t be our after school program.)   And let’s say this child struggled to share this toy twice in ten minutes. We would be pretty clear that this wasn’t a little slip up. This was a case of the indwelling sin of selfishness and pride.   The easy (and unbiblical) thing to do would be to tell the child to share, and make the child give it back. And we could chastise and shame the child into obedience, without ever connecting this incident to the gospel.   But could a parent correct in a positive way? Sure.   This is what I said would say,   “Let’s be clear. You are more important than toys, because you are made in God’s image. And your friend is also made in God’s image, and is therefore more valuable than any toy. But when you love these toys more than you love others, you are saying that those toys are more important than other people. And that means that you are making yourself to be more important that your friends. But we are all made in God’s image, and we are all (you included!) equally valuable in His eyes. That is why we need to show love to each other. “   It seems like our years of disciplining and correcting will never end. (At least for me.) Therefore, we must use these opportunities as a chance to reaffirm God’s truth, and to reaffirm our child’s value.   “So God created human beings in his own image. In the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.”  Genesis 1:27 “Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.”  I John 4:11