How to discipline your children
What the Bible teaches
In Hebrew 12, the writer of Hebrews tells us:
- And have you completely forgotten this word of encouragement that addresses you as a father addresses his son? It says,
- “My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline,
- and do not lose heart when he rebukes you,
- because the Lord disciplines the one he loves,
- and he chastens everyone he accepts as his son.”
- Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. For what children are not disciplined by their father? 8 If you are not disciplined—and everyone undergoes discipline—then you are not legitimate, not true sons and daughters at all. 9 Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of spirits and live! 10 They disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness. 11 No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. [1]
Quotes of William Branham
78 I got a daughter. She's six years old. Let me ever catch her laid out like that; she'll get a son-tan. But it'll be Charlie Branham's son tanning her with a board just as hard as I can. I'll have her going home with a real tanning she won't forget about for a long time.
51-0729A - The Resurrection Of Lazarus
Walked down on the beach there and there laid them women professed to have the Holy Ghost, laying out there, stretched out before men in bathing suits. Hmm. Brother, this might make you vomit, but let me tell you something. I've got a girl coming on myself. I said, "What are you doing, lady." I said, "Isn't that—your father a minister?" Said, "Yes, sir." I said, "Well…" Said, "I'm getting a suntan." I said, "If my girl ever stretches herself out like that, she's going to get a sun tanning, but it is going to be Charlie Branham's son, give her a tan with a barrel slat and bring her home." That's right. I'd tan her. She'd… Well, she'd remember it a long time too.
51-1003 - Believest Thou This?
But I want to tell you something. You take one of them old mammys up there, might not know how to… all the mathematics and so forth, might—she might not have her name in the Who's Who here on earth. But I just imagine she's got her name in Who's Who up there. That's right. Let her daughter stay out all night and come in the next morning with her make-up all over her face and her hair twisted sideways, out drunk somewhere. You know what she would do? She would teach her a lesson with a barrel slat. That's right. 54-1204 - God Perfecting His Church
Listen, you new converts, now. We thank God for many every night. And look, first thing comes along is a trial. As soon as you come to Christ, something's going to happen. Every son that cometh to God must first be tried, scourged, whipped a little, but if you… Things happen, to really try you out. Child training, that's what it is. You believe in Scriptural trial—child training? The Bible speaks of training a child with tutors, and so forth, bringing him up, straightening him out, giving him what he belongs. 30
55-0223 - Job
Chastised, did you ever have any of it, child-training, bringing you up, giving you a little protoplasma stimulation once in a while by the Gospel, making you, correction…? My daddy was awful good at that. Yes, sir. He believed in the golden rule. It laid up over the door, had all the ten commandments out on it, a hickory stick about that long, brush on the end of it. I tell you, that made discipline in the Branham home. But we love him. What would we have been if he hadn't have did it? That's the way God is; He brings discipline to His children, trying them, whipping them when they're wrong. I'm happy that my heavenly Father gives whippings to those who are wrong, and corrects me when I'm wrong, gives me whippings, makes me straighten up, walk like you should walk. 37
55-1118 - The Faith Of Abraham Rev. William Marrion Branham http://table.branham.org
How He child trained him for twenty-five years. You know, God trains every child that comes to Him. And the Bible said, "Every son that cometh to God must be chastened of God." And if we cannot stand chastisement, then we're not children of God; we become illegitimate children. A real child of God doesn't mind the whipping rod, the chastisement, doesn't mind the disappointments; he wades right on just the same. God said so. It's in his heart and nothing can move it, he's just there to stay. And Abraham, that's the way he acted upon God's promise, and that's the way every child of Abraham acts tonight. You believe it down here in this pit tonight? 28
56-0428 - God's Covenant With Abraham Rev. William Marrion Branham http://table.branham.org
54 I went into a house here not long ago to visit a sick man, and a lady was laying—setting there. And a little old Oswald come in, hat setting on the side of his head, said, "Mammy, is dinner ready?" She said, "Honey, we haven't had time" said, "this morning to get any dinner." Said, "I'm fixing you a sandwich," said, "there's some oranges." He walked over and got a hold of an orange, looked at it, bit into it, throwed it up against the wall as hard as he could; the juice run down; said, "If that's all you got around this place, then I'll get out," like that. I thought, "O God, he ought to be mine for about five minutes." Boy, I'd jerk the hide off of him like he'd never knowed it was jerked off. But them lay there, pity and baby. What he needs is a good old fashion limb skinning. That's what we need, some old fashion homes again, and some preachers that'll stand behind the pulpit and preach the truth, and lay it down where it belongs to be led. Amen. That's true. Oh, my. 58 Little Mary stomp her little feet, and stick that little nose up, and turn them little bitty rose-colored lips (by Max Factor's stuff) up in the air, and stick her little head up, and walk out of the house, what a disgrace. How disobedient children are being. The Bible said they would be. The Scripture said they would be. How they would act, how they would do, and the things that's going on in the world today, is because they have grieved away the Holy Spirit. 56-0805 - The Church And Its Condition Rev. William Marrion Branham
107 And there's nobody ever deliberately walked into sin without God warning them first. Something will tell you. Tonight there's a many a young girl out listening, and the wolf slipping up on her. You know, they got it, what they call the wolf whistle, they… the wolf whistle. And they'll whistle at these young girls. And they'll go out on the street and put on clothes that isn't becoming to a young lady. And shame on you mothers that'll let them do it. 108 Talk about the illiteracy of Kentucky where I come from: some of those old mammies up there, you let her girl go out and do that, she'd blister her from one side to the other with a barrel slat. That's right. But, oh, you think she's popular. You learn her how to tap dance, and do all these little things, and put the clothes on her like that, and then she comes up in disgrace, you are to blame. That's exactly right. 59-0613 - Thirsting For Life
17 Now, if your little boy or little girl was playing on the street where cars are running, and you knew sooner or later they're going to get hurt… Now, if he says, "Why, papa, I want to be out here." Would you say, "Bless your little heart, Junior, you just go right ahead and play in the street"? That's not a real daddy. If you have to jerk that little fellow up and give him a spanking, scold him, tie him up, anything else, keep him off that street, he'll get killed. Is that right? Well, that's the way you have to do with the Gospel. You have to shake and push, and—and—and try to do everything you can to keep the people lined up. And I hope everybody understands that that way. I—I'm just trusting that someday after it's all over and then when the veils are taken from before our face, we will understand then. 61-1231M - You Must Be Born Again
47 You're a father and mother, and you tell your children, "You go over there, I'll give you a whipping." If you love that child, and he transgresses your laws, you'll keep your word. That's right. But if you let him go on, "Well, that's all right." Do it again. See? That's what makes all these here little Melindas, and Rickys, and so forth around. That's what makes juvenile delinquency. Some of them talk about the ignorance of the people in the mountains of Tennessee and Kentucky. I tell you, some of them old mammies out there would teach some of these modern Jezebels how to raise a young'un. Right. Let one of their young'uns come in with their—woman, night, girl, with their clothes all twisted on her, being out with Ricky all night long somewhere, loved up in a car; and say, "Have a good time, dear?" She'd take a hickory limb off one of them trees, and she wouldn't get out of the house for another year. Certainly. Then say it's ignorance. They know more about it than… Oh, I better shut up there. All right. Go on.
62-0408 - Presuming
122 Now there's where people fail. Now, listen real close now, don't miss it. The Bible said, that "Every son that cometh to God must be chastened, chastised, whipped. And if we cannot stand the chastisement, we become bastard children, and not the children of God." It proves that our faith wasn't what we said it was, we haven't got what we professed to have. Now we're getting down in some real good Calvinism now, so we have to watch that. Now notice, "Every son that cometh to God must be chastened, chastised," the Word whip him and cut him to pieces, knock every creed out from under him; see, tried, and see if he is the son of God.
62-0707 - Jehovah-Jireh #3
Sometime in scolding in the Gospel (See?), and things like that, it isn't because that I'm not in love; I am in love. You know, it's not right to say little jokes, but… To change the thing… Like the little boy getting a whipping, you know, and his father said, "Son, this is going to hurt me worse than it does you." He said, "Daddy, I'm sure you won't do it then." So—so I… But Gospel whippings are different. It isn't very pleasant to do it, but yet, it's the things that we need. And we trust that God will richly bless you. I solicit your prayers now, and when overseas… 6
62-1125E - The Countdown Rev. William Marrion Branham http://table.branham.org
61 On my home they had the ten commandments hanging up over the door on a hickory stick about that long. And, brother, I had all ten of them across my back, and up and down my legs, pretty near every day. It done me good though. I'll tell you, Pop took me out behind the house, and I danced a little jig. But I knowed not to do it the next time, when he got through with me. There'd be a whole lot better life, if we had some more daddies to do that today. He never struck me one lick but what I honor him tonight for it. When I looked in the casket, and seen his gray hair on the side of his head, I stood there and tears dropped upon his face. I said, "Daddy, I helped put them there. God help me." That's right. I respected my daddy. He was a daddy that would make me do right. Yes, sir. We need more like that today. 62-0721 - Behold, A Greater Than Solomon Is Here
53 But to face up to responsibilities, sometimes it takes the very hide off of us, to do that. As a father, to face up the responsibility, to give your child a whipping. Them little fellows, you don't want to do that. But as a father or a mother, you've got to face the responsibility of raising that child, because the Bible said, "Spare the rod and you'll spoil your son." And that still stands good in the sight of every psychologist there is in the world. That still remains God's Truth. If there had been more of that practiced, we wouldn't have had so much juvenile delinquency and stuff, and the rot we got in the world today. But the old golden rule of the home has been broken, long time ago, and they let the kids do whatever they want to.
65-0217 - A Man Running From The Presence Of The Lord Rev. William Marrion Branham http://table.branham.org
Footnotes
- ↑ The New International Version (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2011), Heb 12:5–11.