Self-Control is an outer sign of an inner change.

Bikers Church Cape Town

Self-Control is an outer sign of an inner change. (The True you always reveals what’s in you.) By Pastor George Lehman “Though we cannot see the heart, we can see the life” [David Kirkpatrick] Each of the different characteristics of the Fruit of the Spirit focuses on how we respond to God and how we treat other people. John 15:11 – That our joy may be full Joy and faithfulness are expressed vertically while peace, patience, kindness, goodness, and gentleness bear directly on how we interact with others. And, the juiciest fruit, which is at the centre of our spiritual fruit salad, is love, which has both a horizontal and vertical dimension. HOW TO LIVE A LIFE OF SELF-CONTROL IN A SOCIETY OUT OF CONTROL 2 Timothy 3:2-3 - “People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3 without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, When the Greeks wanted to illustrate self-control, they built a statue of a man or a woman in perfect proportion. To them, self-control was the proper ordering and balancing of the individual. Husband: “When I get mad, you remain calm and don’t react. How do you maintain your self-control? ”Wife: “I just go and clean the toilet.” Husband: “Really How does that help?” Wife: “I use your toothbrush.” Aristotle once said, “I count him braver who overcomes his desires than him who conquers his enemies; for the hardest victory is the victory over self.” The word translated “self-control” in the NIV is rendered “temperance” and in the King James Version. It comes from the word “strength” and means, “one who holds himself in.” To be self-controlled is to not live in bondage to the desires, passions, and appetites of the flesh. While “self-control” is a good translation of the Greek word, it’s a bit deceiving because we all know that we can’t control ourselves simply through our own willpower or self-determination. Self-control is more than just self-help. Paul speaks of our dilemma in Romans 7:18 - “I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good but I cannot carry it out.” We can get a fuller meaning of self-control from Paul’s extended discussion of his ministry in this passage, Paul contrasts exercising control over his body with running “aimlessly”. 1 Corinthians 9:25-27 - “25Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. 26 Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. 27 No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize. He argues that athletes exercise self-control because they have a clearly defined purpose or goal. They cannot afford to be distracted by every passion or desire that comes along. We can therefore define this final fruit of the Spirit as the “control of the self by the Spirit for the sake of the gospel.” What looks like self-control is actually the result of letting someone else take control. Self-control, biblically speaking, means walking by the Spirit, under the Lordship of Christ. It’s not by human effort or willpower – but by the supernatural work of the Holy Spirit. God will not give us His Spirit of self-control if it were not possible to control-self. In order to fully understand this fruit, it’s helpful to describe what the absence of self-control looks like. Proverbs 25:28 provides a dramatic description of the individual living out of control, “Like a city whose walls are broken down is a man who lacks self-control.” When the book of Proverbs was written, one of the main sources of strength and protection for a city consisted in the building and maintaining of walls. A wiped-out wall was considered a breach in security. A city with walls in disrepair was a city with a shameful reputation. That’s one of the reasons Nehemiah was so motivated to begin a building campaign in Nehemiah 1:3 - Those who lived in the capital were in “great trouble and disgrace” because the wall of Jerusalem was broken down.” It was open to attack and ultimate destruction. The man or woman who lacks self-restraint is like a city that has no effective defence. They are not able to resist those things that can destroy their lives and the lives of others. SELF-CONTROL or controlling self: Would you agree that most of the other fruit depend on this one. If the enemy is going to attack - this is always a very good target. How to Develop Self-Control #1 - Know God's word (Who God is, what He’s done for you, who are you in Him) The very first thing to enable us to cultivate self-control is knowing God's Word. 2 Timothy 3:16 - 16All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; 17so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work. And the only way to know God's will is to know his word, and the only way to know his word is to read it, and study it, and hear it often, and apply it. #2 - Be aware of the danger of the lack of self-control. Matthew 5:29-30 - “29If your right eye makes you stumble, tear it out and throw it from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. 30If your right hand makes you stumble, cut it off and throw it from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, than for your whole body to go into hell.” If anyone doubts that the Bible teaches of the reality of Hell, you have to realize that Jesus is the one that talks the most about Hell. And so, how to develop self-control, number two: be aware of the danger of the lack of self-control. #3 - Be prepared to suffer (You need to be willing to pay the price of following Jesus) Jesus says in Matthew 16:24 to his disciples, what should they do if they want to be his disciples? Well, he says, "They have to deny themselves and pick up their crosses and follow him. Most people who fail at gaining self-control over self. They fail because they think this should come without cost. I Corinthians 10:13 - “No temptation has overtaken you, but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it. #4 – Pray Jesus in keeping His human body under control required effort, just like the rest of us. How many times we say the Lord’s prayer? We say it by heart. "Lead us not into temptation..." Do we just think that's like a closing thing? Matthew 26:41 - “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” How desperate are you to allow God to help you to become more SELF-CONTROLED? Zechariah 4:6b (Amp) – Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit [of Whom the oil is a symbol], says the Lord of hosts.