Fruit of the spirit - Self-control

Self-Control… I’ve always loved looking at the Fruit of the Spirit and I think they are vitally important; however, I must admit that Self-Control is often the one I overlook/pay less attention too.  I’m not sure why. Maybe it’s because it’s the last one, or maybe it’s because it’s not as attractive or cool as Love or Joy.  Either way, Self-Control is just as essential as any other of the Fruit of the Spirit. But what exactly does it mean?
 
Well the dictionary defines self-control as “the ability to control oneself”, seems self-explanatory. However, I think we need to consider it slightly differently as children of God.
 
As humans in a fallen world, we LOVE control.  We love to feel like we are in control of situations, scenarios and in some cases even other people, and some of us are quite good at being in control in certain situations.
 
Despite not having the ability to control masses of people or the distribution of food across the world, we have been given the ability to control ourselves.  Sounds like an easy task – you’re probably reading this thinking “ummm, sorry but I wouldn’t describe it as easy now!”.
 
That’s true, it is extremely difficult.  We are constantly craving and desiring things that ultimately aren’t good for us.  Galatians 5:17 tells us that “…the flesh sets its desires against the spirit, and the spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another…”.  As humans our nature is to desire things that are the opposite to what God wants for us.
 
It’s hard.  But do you want to know something cool, God knows.  He knows it’s hard for us to choose the opposite of what our beings are desiring.  Even better, he didn’t just feel sorry for us, His love resulted in action.  He seen his fallen creation, our pain, our inability to be all he created us to be and what did he do about it?  John 1:14 tells us that he “…became flesh and made his home among us…”.  He saved us from ourselves.
 
So how does this relate to our self-control?
 
Well for those who belong to him it transforms the definition of what self-control is from “the ability to control one’s self” to “the ability to control one’s self through Christ and his Spirit”.
It turns what ultimately is impossible, to something that is more than possible.
 
That’s exciting!  Because now all the bad habits that we have and the desires of our hearts that aren’t pure – we can do something about them.  We don’t have to be controlled by the desires of our flesh anymore!
 
Christ didn’t only save us, but he also gave us his spirit, he says in John 14:16 “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you an advocate to help you and be with you forever”. And it’s through the Holy Spirit that we can exercise self-control and say ‘no’ to the harmful desires of our hearts.  In Jesus we have a source of self-control that is far more powerful than our own human weakness.
 
You might be asking now, “well why is self-control even important?”.  I love this illustration that I heard before which I think describes so well how important self-control is.  Proverbs 25:28 describes someone with no self-control as “a city that is broken into and without walls”. You see a city with no walls is vulnerable, it has no protection against attack.  Likewise, if we lack self-control, we are vulnerable to the enemies’ attacks which are very much all around us.
 
So, we know that self-control is the ability to control ourselves, we know this is made possible through Christ and the Holy Spirit, we know that it is an important quality to have.  But how do we actually do it?
 
There are 3 tips that I think will help you as you seek to develop the fruit of Self-Control in your life:
  1. Be alert and aware of the sinful things that are tempting you.  Chose to commit to practicing putting a stop to it as soon as you notice it.
  2. Use the word of God as your weapon (like Jesus did in the wilderness – Matthew 4:1-11)
  3. Rely on the strength of the Spirit and not your own strength – ask for God’s help, there is no need for you to do it alone when you have a Heavenly Father who is on your side and wants to help you.
 
Lastly, I want to remind you that it won’t happen overnight, it will take time. It is a journey, but it’s a journey that God wants you to go on with him.
 
So be encouraged because you no longer have to be under the control of sin because “we are more than conquerors through him who loves us”. (Romans 8:37)
 

Recent Articles

LOVE - Loving Ourselves

LOVE - Loving Community

LOVE - Loving Others