Would we be behaving better if we had been disciplined better as children? If our society were less tolerant compared to what it is? What do you think?
If you think so, then what do you think caused us to be more lax? Why are we allowed to be less disciplined today? Are we not seeing the benefits of discipline? Or is tolerance and being yourself so overly emphasised today? Maybe it is because we have a general tendency towards being ill-disciplined. What do you think?
Ilda blogged about the lack of discipline in the Philippine environment. She advocates the idea that Philippines would be a better country if people respected the laws better, if people were more obedient and less creative, if people would obey instructions without feeling victimised when told what to do. However, she sees that the present mindset has proliferated the present society, and people are unlikely to change overnight.
Given her thoughts, I think that every society should pull their socks up, and increase in our willingness to follow rules, instead of becoming more slack. Especially Godly rules.
Tim Keller analysed why same-sex acts got the death penalty in the Old Testament days but not today. Originally, it is because that form of union does not reflect God's glory and did not model holiness for society or the world. So for the sake of discipline, such acts were punished - as it still is in some parts of the world. Later on, though, we got into the New Testament era, where the message of grace became stronger than the message of judgement and punishment. So, as this message entered into modern culture, the message of forgiveness and tolerance influenced so many modern societies that we do not punish offenses against God as fiercely as what we used to.
Do you agree with Tim's view?
How do you think we should honour God? Is God a god of judgement or of forgiveness? How do we reconcile the two if God is both?
Why shouldn't we become more lax if God is gracious? Do you have more to add to this question besides what Ilda had written?
What is the way forward for our world?
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.
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