When Government Crosses God's Line

It's probably wise to be circumspect and I'm sure this little news item isn't giving us the whole story and I'm certainly curious about aspects that they didn't explain but merely touched on ... but on the face of it this story is seriously disturbing. Apparently a Texas mother was punished for spanking her daughter. It's disturbing because it's in Texas, one of the more conservative states, which suggests that the problem is worse in more liberal states. It's disturbing because there was apparently no real damage -- no bruising or cuts or scratches or broken bones -- but it landed her in front of a judge. The judge's ruling was disturbing when he told her, "You don't spank children today. In the old days, maybe we got spanked, but there was a different quarrel. You don't spank children. You understand?" It was disturbing because I would imagine that 80% of the audience in that courtroom thought, "Oh, man, I got spanked and I spanked my kids. Am I next?" It was disturbing most of all because it stands in sharp contradiction to clear biblical teaching.

We have this judge (and many other voices) warning us that corporal punishment is child abuse. (Note that this mother lost custody of her children.) We have the fact that it is in direct opposition to God's Word. And now you have to decide. "Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge" (Acts 4:19).

God isn't unclear on the topic. It's not like He stutters about it. There is no doubt that "The rod and reproof give wisdom, but a child who gets his own way brings shame to his mother" (Prov 29:15). (I mean, seriously, walk through any grocery store where mothers and young children are present.) Solomon assured us that "He who spares his rod hates his son, but he who loves him disciplines him diligently" (Prov 13:24). The command from the judge, apparently, is "Thou shalt hate thy children." When the Proverbs say, "Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child; the rod of discipline will remove it far from him" (Prov 22:15), it may sound cruel in modern perspective, but they also assure us "Do not hold back discipline from the child; although you beat him with the rod, he will not die. You shall beat him with the rod and deliver his soul from Sheol" (Prov 23:13-14).

The Bible is quite clear. "What son is there whom his father does not discipline? If you are left without discipline, in which all have participated, then you are illegitimate children and not sons" (Heb 12:7-8). Sure, "For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant" (Heb 12:11), but we need to keep a longer view. "Later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it." There is no question. The Bible indicates that parents who love their children will include corporal punishment in their disciplinary regimen.

So now we have the government warning us off. It is illegal to obey God here. Do not do it. And we must decide, do I follow God or do I follow the law? Perhaps most disturbing is when we find that we live in a country that makes it illegal to obey God. In the words of Taggart from Blazing Saddles, "I am depressed."