A Word on Self-Control
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. (Galatians 5:22-23)
Where does the fight for self-control take place in your life? It is important for all of us to answer this and constantly evaluate this. Other questions we must ask that can help us assess our self control are these:
Are you prone to gossip and do you excuse it and say, "I didn't start it! I am just passing it on."
Are you looking at things you should not look at and excuse it by saying, "hey I am just looking."
How do you react to others? Are your sentences sharp and abrupt?
Has anyone left a conversation with you recently where their thought may have been, " You know....he/she did not seem so concerned as a friend for me but more concerned about themselves and getting out all their opinions without restraint...."
It takes fight to put sin to death. It is costly to even have small victories much less larger ones. So what should we focus on? Think of Joseph who resisted the sin of sleeping with Potipher's wife (Genesis 39:6-12). Joseph suffered an unjust accusation and imprisonment even though he resisted sin and even though he had a wonderful victory over sin. What led him to this this godly self-control? In Genesis 39:8-9 the Lord tells us of Joseph who was pressured by his master's wife to sleep with her: "But he refused and said to his master’s wife, “Behold, with me here, my master does not concern himself with anything in the house, and he has put all that he owns in my charge.There is no one greater in this house than I, and he has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do this great evil and sin against God?”
We must focus on God. The goodness of God and the great evil of sin. We can praise God for the good news of Jesus Christ that declares unjust sinners like us forgiven and cleansed in Christ. If you have given in to sin-which we all have-- you are not alone and you must know there is full forgiveness found in Christ alone. And yet we also can affirm this: Self-control is not the gospel but it is a mark of someone truly shaped by and who truly believes the gospel. Self-control is a command. Jesus our Lord and Savior expects it of us. So we should be praying, "God in the power of your Holy Spirit, I ask you today to help to do_____________(insert obedience to God''s Word)" or perhaps we could pray, "God in the power of your Holy Spirit, I ask you today to help me to not do____________(insert sins).
Kevin DeYoung said, "Growth in godliness requires exertion in the life of the Christian."
Are you exerting effort against sin and towards godliness?
Thomas Watson said, "We should spill the heartblood of every sin." Are you making war on your every sin eager to spill its blood? Don't think Jesus does not know this intensity. He knows. He can sympathize. May we look to Him--our savior and high priest in our time of needing self-control:
Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. 15 For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin.16 Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. (Hebrews 4:14-16)
