The rod trains a child to be under authority.  The fact there are certain consequences to disobedience teaches the importance of obedience.  He learns while still young that God has placed everyone under authority and that authority structures are a blessing. 

The rod demonstrates parental love and commitment.  Hebrews 12 makes it clear that the rod is an expression of love.  In verse 5, discipline is called a “word of encouragement that addresses us as sons.  The passage continues showing that discipline is a sign of sonship.  The parent who disciplines shows he loves his child.  He is not an uninterested party.  He is not ambivalent.  He is engaged and involved.  His commitment runs deep – deep enough to invest himself in careful discipline.  The rod yields a harvest of peace and righteousness.  In Hebrew 12:11, we read, “No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful.  Later, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.  Timely, careful, discipline, while unpleasant and painful at the time, yields happy, successful children, The rod bears wonderful fruit.  The rod gives the child the security of discipline.  The rod enables the child to gain self-control.  The rod helps the child to respect and love his mum and dad. 

The rod returns the child to the place of blessing.  Left to himself, he would continue to live a lust-driven life.  He would continue to seek comfort in being a slave to his desires and fears.  The rod of correction returns him to the place of submission to parents in which God has promised blessing. 

The rod promotes an atmosphere of closeness and openness between parent and child.  The parent who is engaging his child and refusing to ignore things that challenge the integrity of their relationship will experience intimacy with his child.  When a child is allowed to be sullen and disobedient., distance develops between the parent and child.  The parent who refuses to allow estrangement will enjoy a close and open relationship. 

The author advocates using both the rod and communication as a means of disciplining the child.  Communication and the rod are not standalone.  They are designed to work together.  This is the point of Hebrews 12:5-6: “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.” 

The child needs to be known and understood – thus rich communication is necessary.  The child needs authority.  They need limits that are clear and correction that is predictable — thus the rod is necessary. 

The use of the rod preserves biblically rooted, parental authority.  The emphasis on rich communication prohibits cold tyrannical discipline. 

The person who is comfortable with the rod falls into the distortion of being authoritarian.  A parent for whom communication is natural and easy may tend toward permissiveness.  Authoritarian parents tend to lack kindness.  Assess which distortion of biblical training you would tend toward.  Strive for greater balance.