On correction
Harsh discipline is for him who forsakes the way, And he who hates correction will die.
Proverbs 15:10 NKJV
At first glance, this proverb seems a little harsh. But make no mistake, receiving correction really is a life or death thing.
Whoever loves instruction loves knowledge, But he who hates correction is stupid.
Proverbs 12:1 NKJV
Why is correction so important? Because without it, we are left to our own devices, our own thoughts, our own sinful nature.
Not always, but a lot of the time, the people that correct you, that tell you things that you may not want to hear, are the people who truly care about you. Red flags should come up if someone never tells you anything you don’t want to hear.
I personally feel like, out of all the attributes that a person could have, being teachable and willing to be corrected is at the top for admirable character traits.
There are few that have the humility and patience to be corrected and calmly consider the correction rather than instantly get angry or offended.
I admire those who humbly accept and calmly listen to correction and criticism. It is a hard thing for me to do.
Indeed, we see in our world that people continue to grow hostile towards any correction on a logical basis, let alone on a moral or Scriptural basis.
Rather than listen to the truth or reason, many try to stomp it out, calling it “hate” and unloving.
Despite how love is commonly defined, love is not giving you everything you want and never telling you something you don’t want to hear. Love tells you the truth and says “no” because it is for your benefit.
I was once sharing with a gentleman who had asked me some questions about the Bible and a young teenage girl overheard us talking. As we were talking, she suddenly stated that she didn’t believe in the Bible because her uncle told her the Bible says that the sin she was doing was morally wrong.
We resumed our conversation so sadly, I didn’t have the chance to talk to her. But then maybe it wasn’t Yahweh’s time to share the truth with her then. In any case, what she said stuck with me, and it grieves me to think about it.
She rejected the Bible simply because it gave correction to those doing a particular sin that she happened to be (happily) involved in.
Going back home that night, it grieved me.
All I could think about was, “Why didn’t she ever think to ask or try to understand WHY Yahweh says it is a sin?”
If she did (which I pray she has or does), she would see that it was out of love that Yahweh in the Bible says, “No, don’t do that.”
When we see Yahweh as the loving, caring father that He is, we see all that He has done and continues to do for us even though we don’t deserve it. Then, when we look at what He tells us in Scripture, it all makes sense.
He tells us “don’t do this” and “do this” because He has our best interest in mind.
He sees the beginning to the end, and knows what is best for us, just like a good father.
Even horrible things that happen to us because of our wrong decisions, He can use for good to accomplish His will in our lives in the end.
Unfortunately, many grow up in broken families and gain a mistrust of authority figures, particularly fathers.
I sympathize with those who have because it is harder to see Yahweh as a good heavenly father when it has not been modeled to them by their earthly father.
The solution is to let Yahushua take our burdens and be wiped clean from every stain, receive our heavenly father’s love and walk in the good way that He shows us in His word.
And yes, receive correction. :)
If you’ve noticed this is not the first time I’ve written about correction, you would be correct. It is a topic I study and think about a lot.