Discipline

OPENING THOUGHT 

Tom Landry, legendary coach of the Dallas Cowboys, said, “My job is to get men to do what they don't want to do in order to achieve what they have always wanted to achieve.” His statement reveals two important points about discipline: 

• It’s hard. Discipline requires changing long-settled habits and comfortable ideas. 

• It’s goal-oriented. Discipline cannot occur unless one knows the end point. For Christians, the goal is maturity in Christ (Eph. 4:15; Heb. 6:1; 2 Pet. 3:18). 

EXPLORING GOD’S WORD 

1 Timothy 4:7-8 

• Discuss some modern-day equivalents to “irreverent, silly myths” (“old wives’ tales,” NIV). 

• “Train yourself” (“exercise yourself,” NKJV) comes from gymnazo from which we get “gymnasium.” The word 
  connotes two ideas. The first idea is repetitive training. What kind of repetition is needed in a Christian’s life? 

• The second idea is personal responsibility. If salvation is by grace, what is our responsibility with regard to spiritual growth? 

1 Corinthians 9:24-27 

• The word “discipline” in verse 27 is translated from a term meaning “to beat black and blue” and alludes to Paul’s boxing metaphor. 

• “Keep it under control” is literally “lead away into slavery.” 

• What does Paul’s language regarding self-control indicate about its difficulty? Was it hard for Paul? Will it be hard for us? 

Galatians 5:16-24 

• Where does the battle for self-control take place? 

• How can you tell who is winning in the battle of the flesh vs. the Spirit? 

• Who is responsible for deciding whether you will walk by the Spirit or gratify the desires of the flesh?

• What is usually the reason why we fail to resist a temptation? 

James 1:13-15 

• Is God to blame for temptation?

• How does James break down temptation?

• Does this definition of temptation suggest ways we might be able to face it successfully?