Self-Control

1 Pet 1:13-16 NLT - 13 So prepare your minds for action and exercise self-control. Put all your hope in the gracious salvation that will come to you when Jesus Christ is revealed to the world. 14 So you must live as God’s obedient children. Don’t slip back into your old ways of living to satisfy your own desires. You didn’t know any better then. 15 But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy. 16 For the Scriptures say, “You must be holy because I am holy.

We’ve been preaching a series on the fruit of the spirit from Gal 5:22-23. If you missed any of the sermons you can find them on our YouTube channel, Love Christian Center, Douglasville.

So the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, and temperance. Some translations translate that word temperance as self-control, such as the translation we’ll be using today. As we come to the conclusion of this series we come to the fruit of self-control.

To exercise self-control is to manage your desires, especially sensual desires. It means you are not given to any extremes in behavior; especially in terms of alcohol.

When you have self-control it means you don’t have uncontrolled outburst, fits of anger, or uncontrolled emotions. You don’t go around getting in brawls or arguments with other people. You don’t speak out of turn, you don’t say things to hurt people or exhibit road rage. And you don’t blame others for your lot in life and go on a shooting rampage. Just to name a few.

The Apostle Peter, on numerous occasions when he was with Jesus, failed to exercise self-control. And I can say with confidence, that at some time or another in our lives we have all had at least one instance, probably more, when we didn’t exercise self-control.

But like Peter, we all have the ability to be restored to the fold in the Kingdom of God. We have the opportunity to fix what we may have broken. We all have a chance to change.

Today’s text comes from the former king of impetuousness. The poster child for acting without thinking and saying whatever popped into his head.

But he’s also a representative and an example to everyone who has at any time acted in a way that was not representative of, nor pleasing to God.

• The Peter who cut off the soldier’s ear in the garden when they came to arrest Jesus

• The Peter who denied Christ not one, not two, but three times

• The Peter who cursed at the little girl who insisted he was one of those people who walked with Jesus…

• Is the same Peter who was the first one to the tomb upon hearing the news that Christ had risen from the dead.

• This is the same Peter Jesus asked three times, Peter do you love me?

• This is the same Peter who preached on the day of Pentecost and more than 3,000 souls were added to the Kingdom of God. And he didn’t stop there because Peter still speaks to us today.

The Apostle Peter wrote this letter to the Jew and Gentile believers who had been scattered to what is now the northern region of Turkey. They were 500-800 miles from the center of the Christian movement, from what was at that time, the main church.

Peter was writing to reassure them they were not forgotten and that they were not alone. His letter is also a reminder for us today, no matter what you do, no matter where you go, you are never alone, God is always with you.

I’ll just add a public service announce right here, you are also always welcome here at Love Christian Center whether you’re coming to visit, joining us in the work of the ministry, or coming back to the family. We’ll see you when you get here.

Peter begins his letter as many of the New Testament letters do, by introducing himself, then identifying the recipients of the letter, and then explaining why he’s writing the letter.

He assures them that God the Father not only knew them but he chose them long ago and it’s his spirit that made them holy.

Although this letter was written to the believers in that region, it was also written for today’s believer, to let you know God also chose you long ago.

In fact, Paul confirms that fact when he tells us in Ephesians 1:4 that, “He chose us in Christ [actually selected us for Himself as His own] before the foundation of the world, so that we would be holy [that is, consecrated, set apart for Him, purpose-driven] and blameless in His sight.”

If you understand nothing else, please get this, there was or is nothing you’ve done or will do that earns you the love of God or the salvation of God, because He has freely given it to you.

Paul continues in verse 7 of that same chapter saying, “In Him we have redemption [that is, our deliverance and salvation] through His blood, [which paid the penalty for our sin and resulted in] the forgiveness and complete pardon of our sin, in accordance with the riches of His grace 8 which He lavished on us.”

It was the sacrifice of Jesus that gave us the opportunity to be born again, to receive salvation, to have the chance for eternal life in Christ, the chance for eternal life in heaven.

Christ’s life, death, and resurrection provided us with an inheritance in heaven that is pure and undefiled.

• It will never change,

• it will never decay,

• and no one can ever take it away.

You’re protected through your faith, by God’s power. That’s important to remember when you’re trying to exercise self-control. It’s important to know that God is in control whatever might be happening, whatever they might be saying, whatever your situation, whatever your circumstance may be, God is still in control.

You must remember that because you’re going to have trials, your faith will be tested. Do you truly have the fruit of the spirit? All the fruit? Or are you picking at it like cherries from a cherry tree?

Peter says you’re going to be tested as fire tests and purifies gold. The fire heats the gold bringing the impurities to the surface. It melts the gold, but it doesn’t destroy it, in fact, the fire’s job is to separate the dross leaving only the pure gold.

What impurities are the trials you’re being put through bringing out in you? What’s being brought to the surface so it can be identified and skimmed away?

When your faith stays strong through the trials, you’ll get much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world.

Believers today have much in common with this group of believers from long ago. You love Jesus even though you have never seen him and even though you don’t see him now, you trust him and you rejoice with a glorious, inexpressible joy. And because you do, this is your reward. Your reward is the salvation of your souls. What better reward could there be than salvation?

Even as the prophets prophesied, they wondered when what they were saying was going to happen. They wanted to know more about the soon coming Christ. Imagine God giving you something, a prophecy about what was to come for someone else. Don’t you think you’d have questions too? The prophets of old were just ordinary men, that God used to accomplish extraordinary things.

And so are we, if we allow him. Love Christian Center, if we follow God’s leading we can go from a small church, struggling to figure out how we’re going to carry out the mandate and mission God has given us, to being a supernatural church, composed of supernatural people doing supernatural things.

If we give ourselves over to him, if we give this church over to him

• he can take our ordinary and make it extraordinary.

• he can take our natural and make it supernatural

• he can take our maybe and make it a surely

• he can take our doubt and make it a certainty

When we trust God, he can multiply our efforts, he can multiply our finances, he can multiply our numbers and he can do great things, through us. Come and join us, let God turn your little into much.

The message God gave the prophets then were of the coming Messiah. God is still sending messages today through the apostles, and prophets, and evangelists, and pastors, and teachers who will sit at his feet. To those spending time with Him, time in meditation and study and prayer. Not just when it’s time to prepare a message, but daily devotion, talking and listening to God.

This brings us to our text and the conjunction so, bringing what I’ve already told you and what I’m about to tell you together, which is this…prepare your minds for action.

Get ready, get ready, get ready. It starts with a made up mind. You must put your mind in a state of ready to receive from God and ready to go into action for God. You must have a disciplined mind, one that is self-controlled, one that is focused, not going this way and that. You can’t be in and out. Here today and gone tomorrow. On fire for the Lord one minute, then when things don’t go your way be cool and aloof the next minute. A double-minded man or woman is unstable in all his or her ways.

Have you ever thought or told someone, make up your mind? Perhaps someone has said it to you. It’s very difficult to work with or for someone who can’t make up their mind. Those type of people cause a lot of time to be wasted.

Whether you are the person, or you’ve dealt with the person it’s important you exercise self-control. So what does that look like.

• Self-control is being calm in the face of chaos.

• It’s being prayed up at all times so when you receive an assignment you don’t have to go pray about it.

• It’s being prayed up at all times so when the unexpected happens, you don’t fall apart.

• It’s respecting the order God has set in the house. Your house and the church house. Understanding they may or may not be the same order.

• It’s staying in your proverbial lane. What has God assigned you to do in this place at this time? It can change according to the gifts and talents God sends to the house. You may be an usher today and hospitality next week.

• It may be just sitting for a cycle and being in prayer, recharging for the next season.

Too often we start at 80 mph and go up from there, never stopping to recover, recharge or receive our next assignment. Sit down! It’s not a punishment necessarily, it could be a reward.

• Self-control is knowing when to lead, when to follow and when to get out of the way. It is impossible to be a good leader if you are not a good follower.

The Old Testament prophets prophesied about the coming of Jesus Christ, but they didn’t know when that would be. Our hope, is in his second coming and no one knows the day nor the hour when the Son of Man will return, so be ready.

You could hear the trumpet sound, or you could meet him in the air. Live everyday as if it’s your last. Live every day as if Jesus is coming today and be found doing what he told you to do.

Live as God’s obedient children. Obedient children:

• Keep their minds focused on God

• They pray without ceasing

• They put the needs of others ahead of their own

• They are good stewards over that which God has given them. Whether it be time, talent, money, or resources.

• They put their hand to the plow and always look forward.

• They don’t slip back into their old habits.

• They don’t go back to the places they used to go, those places that don’t honor God.

• They don’t commit the sins they used to commit, nor do they make excuses for the sin that is brought to their attention.

• They don’t say things to hurt others. The person that made the rhyme, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never harm me”, missed the boat on that one. Words hurt in ways that are sometimes very difficult to heal. Even to the point where only God can heal the hurt caused by careless whispers.

• They don’t do things to wound others. A careless action, an infidelity in conversation or deed can break a trust or bond in a relationship.

For the believer, there was a time when you didn’t know any better, but now; now that you know better, you ought to do better.

But now that you know better, you must be holy in everything you do. Now you are striving to be like God. You are doing your level best to live a life that is pleasing to God,

• One that honors him.

• One that represents him well.

• One that causes people to see your good works and glorify the Father in heaven.

• One that makes others want what you have.

• One that is filled with love and understanding and compassion.

When you profess Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior, when he is your master, when you live for him, when you place your life in his hands, you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy.

Jesus is the model for a life of holiness. If we spent every day trying to do one thing Jesus did in the three years of his ministry, there wouldn’t be enough days in our lives. Because here’s the thing…

• There is always someone who needs help.

• There is always something that needs to be done.

• There is always an act of kindness that you can render.

• There is always a prayer that needs to be prayed.

• There is always something you can give.

As a believer you are to be holy in everything you do.

• Does it mean you’ll always get it right? No. But it does mean that that’s your goal.

• Does it mean you’ll never make a mistake? No. But it does mean when you do, you’ll do your best to fix it.

• Does it mean you’ll never hurt anyone? No. But it does mean when you do, you’ll be quick to apologize and a real apology is followed by a period, not a but, not an explanation, not a reason.

Why is it so important to be holy? Because, “… the Scriptures say, ‘You must be holy because I am holy.’”

God is not asking us to do what he does not and has not done. He knows we are imperfect beings, but here’s the thing. If we focus on our shortcomings and failures, if we continually make excuses for why we didn’t, if we don’t strive for perfection we’ll never make it to perfection.

The athlete trying to lift 400 pounds, had to start with 50 and work their way up. If they never got comfortable with lifting 50, to lift 400 would be impossible.

If we never strive to live holy, one day, one action at a time, we’ll continue to fall short in the same areas of our lives. Our faith will never grow and without faith it is impossible to please God. Another one of the fruit of the spirit.

I must be honest with you about this Christian walk. Making the decision to give your life to Christ doesn’t mean you’ll never have heartache or pain. You must be realistic about what you’ll face at times. There are days that won’t be without its troubles, but when they come you’ll be ready for them. God told you they’re coming and he’ll be with you through it all.

Wake up each morning with a praise on your lips and thanksgiving in your heart, you made it to another day. Say a prayer that you can exercise self-control no matter what comes your way and be ready for the test.

The fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, and temperance. Is your basket full or are there holes? Start filling your basket today.

It starts with a confession and a request.

Lord I am a sinner, please forgive me. Jesus I need you to come into my heart, I give you control of my life, In your name I pray, Amen.

If you prayed that prayer for the first time, the second or just again, let us know of your wonderful decision. And know this,

It matters not how many times you begin,

the important thing is that you reach the end.

Knowing Christ will be there to welcome you home

With a well done, good servant and a mansion abode

God’s given some fruit for you to claim

Start with a prayer in Jesus’ name

Pick up your love, joy, and peace like gold

Let patience, kindness, and goodness unfold

Top it off with faith, to please the Father above

And be wise as a serpent, yet gentle as a dove

Finally, beloved let temperance rule

And you’ll never be known as court jester or fool

Yes all that’s left is for you to begin

So in heaven my dear we will all meet again

If you’d like any information on the ministry of Love Christian Center please go to our website at www.lovechristianctr.org.

If you live in the Douglas County, GA area, we’d love to see you here at 3500 Hwy 5, Ste 101, Douglasville, GA

God bless you.

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