Fruit Of The Spirit: Self-Control

INTRO: I heard a story about a person caring for a potted succulent plant they got for a gift. They were loving it, being very careful to take care of it and keep it alive, watering it just right, getting the right sun. And 2 years of that went by, only to realize...it was plastic/fake succulent plant. Imagine the days thinking “oh it looks pretty good today” and “oh it’s looking a little thirsty”.

Funny to think about! BUT think about our last two years, how much have I really grown? Is the growth I think I see in myself really real, or imaginary? Am I a different person now than I was two years ago? Am I a better follower of Jesus today than a year or two ago? Am I a better father/husband/neighbor/son/etc., Do I have more knowledge, do I have more victories, have I gotten over some of my struggles? It’s easy to fool myself into thinking that I’m learning...but is my growth real or is it imaginary?

Have you taken a real honest evaluation in your life and looked for real signs of being rooted, signs of life, of growth, and fruit? Are you spiritually alive?

FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT STUDY RECAP:

NOT many by one fruit

The FRUIT of the spirit is singular - all or nothing.

You can’t pick and choose

Why? Because you’re either striving to be fully like Jesus or not at all, there’s no in between. We don’t get to pick the parts of Christianity of Jesus that we like and make up the rest or the rest.

Remember - we’re only as spiritually mature as our weakest trait in this list.

It’s a Reflection of God

It’s a complete change of life that reflects the character of God.

A Process

Additionally, we need to understand that it’s not instant. There’s a growth process.

Galatians 5:25 “If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk in step with the Spirit.” Literally this versus to keep moving along the guided path and keep conforming to. Ongoing!

Vital, not just “nice”

NOT basic/easy

A Choice not emotions

The fruit of the Spirit is not a feeling it’s a choice.

NOT Just for your benefit

So, the purpose of the fruit of the Spirit is not just about personal spiritual fulfillment. It’s meant to be IMPACTFUL and REPRESENTATIVE and USEFUL.

(PPT) Fruit Of The Spirit Word Count:

Love: Over 350x

Peace: about 100x

Joy: over 60x

Self Control: ...… only 3x in the NT.

Self Control = enkrateia

Derives from word kratos which means strength or temperance

ἐγκράτεια means the “dominion which one has over oneself or something” in the sense that one may or may not have it, that one can bear it, that one thus controls it

It means power over oneself or self mastery, mastery over passions and desires, a virtue that holds our appetites in check.

The Christian life with self-control brings yourself to the point of full potential for God.

Illustration:

Picture a lump of clay sitting on a potter’s wheel. Left alone, that clay will never shape itself into anything meaningful. It will just sit there — or worse, if it spins without guidance, it will fly apart into a mess.

The clay must yield to the hands of the potter if it’s going to become something beautiful and useful. But yielding doesn't mean the clay loses its identity — it means the clay finds its true purpose.

Self-control is the same. It’s not just about trying harder to hold yourself together. It’s about refusing to be a shapeless mess ruled by sin that flies apart to go after every passion and sinful appetite, and instead willingly placing yourself in God's hands to be molded. God doesn’t force us to be faithful, He waits for us to choose to surrender.

And when we do, self-control becomes the evidence that He is shaping us, transforming us into vessels of honor for His kingdom. 2 Timothy 2:21 “Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from these things, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified, useful to the Master, having been prepared for every good work.”

Paul’s World and Our World = OUT OF CONTROL!

Paul’s world:

Acts 24:24-25

Talking to Felix and his wife about faith and Jesus Christ (v.24).

Why talking to them about it? He’s had 3 marriages, he was out of control when it came to sexuality and marriage.

The world looked at it and didn’t think much about it. In the world, its a norm, nothing wrong to the world about it. But it was wrong to God.

Self control keeps us from doing the things the world does, what the world accepts as OK or as normal!

Our world is similar...

(PPT) Adult Content Addiction - 12% of the entire world wide web; the sites have more visitors than Netflix, amazon, and X (twitter) combined; every second over $3000 is spent on it which generates more revenue than the combined revenue of the NFL, NBA, an MLB....

(PPT) Gambling Addiction - 2.5 million Americans have severe gambling problems, about 8 million have moderate gambling problems.

(PPT) Phone Addiction - how many hours does your say you’ve been on it this week?

(PPT) Children ages 8-18 spend 7.5 hours a day in front of screens for entertainment alone. That’s 114 days per year.

What does this say about our culture? That there is no satisfying our appetites...we have more than any other nation and we have more addictions than any other nation.

OUR WORLD DOESNT TEACH SELF CONTROL, IT TRIES TO TEACH EVERYTHING IN MODERATION.

(PPT) What about my own “out of control life”?

Proverbs 25:28 “Like a city that is broken into and without a wall Is a man without restraint over his spirit.” — anyone else feel like that city?

Do I have a grip on my schedule? Are you running your life, or is your life and the world running you? We’re so busy, we’re too busy. We get to the point that we’re ready to drop from running so much. And we work so hard to have nice homes that we’re too busy to be at and then as soon as we can we take a vacation away from the homes we’re never at.....

Do I need a grip on my finances? Spending, spending...

My passions?

My speech?

All of us at some level struggle with self-control! We all know what self control is to some degree because we all lack it - we wish we had more of it!

The key to self control is giving up control...

SO, Who is the “self” that is in control?

Plato - “Isn’t the phrase self-mastery absurd? Anyone who is his own master is also his own slave, of course, and vice-versa, since it’s the same person who is the subject in all these expressions.”

When we think about self-control, we think about controlling ourselves for the sake of ourselves, to be in control to not do anything bad - “grit your teeth, be mentally tough, get it done, do better!”

(PPT) The result is that we view it as mind over matter, we equate it with will power, and mental toughness...but it can’t be just about that.

In Galatians 5 when Paul list the fruit of the Spirit, he wasn’t talking about controlling yourself for your own self gain and benefit - He’s talking about what is produced when God is in control of your life! That’s what fruit is, a result! He said in Galatians 5:16 “But I say, walk by the Spirit and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh.” When you keep in step with the Spirit, God transforms you and brings these results out in your life. If God is in control of your life, not sin and not your own self, then these things will be produced and seen and of benefit to others! You can EXPECT this if you really are striving to be growing.

It’s not just about suppressing emotions and behaviors, it’s giving management over to the perfect master. Self control isn’t just making up your mind to try harder and pulling yourself up by your bootstraps and its not about your grinding and hustling....its impossible without God.

Resolute and determination is essential, yes. But it’s not achieved by vowing to be more committed, its the product of being committed to God’s will and control in every aspect of my life. It’s replacing my wants with God’s wants — NO MATTER THE COST.

2 Peter 1:3–8

V.3-4

God has given us everything we need to live and learn and grow as His people! In Christ, its ours! SO THAT we can become partakers with Him now that we have ESCAPED sinful desires.

We struggle against sinful desires. That’s what causes corruption, that’s where our self-control failures are — longing after that which is forbidden. Those desires and passions we have to take something that doesn’t belong to us, to have we that we don’t need, to experience that we shouldn’t.

Anyone else feel like a phony, or a failure sometimes?...And whats the advice people usually give when you’re found to be struggling - “its OK, you just need to try harder!” And we know the things we should do and shouldn’t do, but we all have a desire at times for the wrong things of this world. And that’s the struggle. BUT will-power alone can’t develop this type of self-control, because so often our WON’T power is stronger than our will power.

But now with a life in Christ, I’m helped by the power of God to not indulge the desires of sin. Think of it this way - I couldn’t save myself to begin with, I needed saving. Why then do I think I can continually overcome sin by my own merit?

Self-Control isn’t from my will power, it’s developed by God’s power

V.5

Now in the conversation of not indulging the sinful desires, these verses come into more significance.

Choosing principles over passions, godly decisions over desires - “I decided this is the way I’m going to live, I’m going to be a faithful disciple of Christ! I’m not going to indulge desires, I know the best direction is following Him and keeping in step with the Spirit!”

(PPT) I have made the decision to give mastery of myself to God! I keep making that conscious intentional decision, daily I’m disciplined in that!

V.6-8

ALL these are the most of the things Paul also wrote for the fruit of the Spirit, and notice when they develop!....

(PPT) It comes after knowledge. Peter says you seek knowledge of God and His Will when you want deeper faith and more moral virtue. And from that desire and acquiring, the rest of these grow.

There is a tie to how I study and what I know of God and His word. You can’t have self-control and be Biblically ignorant! There are no short cuts.

V.9-10

If this isn’t you, you’re not growing in the fruit of the spirit — you’re a plastic plant.

So take an honest evaluation, BE SO SURE WITHOUT DOUBT, and if it’s not you, then move to where you ought to be.

Developing the life of self-control (and the other traits in the fruit of the Spirit for that matter):

Luke 11:24-26 — dumping the bad, replacing with good - not leaving it empty!

You must make sure you’re making progress is your studying of the word of God

The minimal to start: come to Bible class and get engaged there!

The # of people we have attending Bible class and Sunday PM or Wednesday PM Bible class is 50% of our Worship attendance. That’s better actually than most!...

But honestly, it’s not that’s good. How can we expect the Church to grow if we’re not here growing together? How can we make a difference out there if we let ourselves waste away in here?

That’s the MINIMAL fix to our need for Bible understanding.

Develop a plan to get in the Word.

Learn to DIG not just skim the top.

WHY? There is a essential tie between self-control and study of the Word of God.

Obey God with what is in front of us: have you thought about what you’re NOT doing as a Christian? I can do better here or here...and it leaves us feeling paralyzed.

It’s kind of like the advice from a guy in the military - if you want to get a great day started, make your bed soon as you get out of it. Start to take control of the day from the very beginning moments. It’s small, but impactful.

What is in front of you RIGHT NOW that you need to obey? What is it in YOUR life right now that you need to take care of NOW? —- do it, check it off, and then you can focus on the next.

Do what is AGAINST the norm of the culture. Go counter cultural, go AGAINST the flow.

We’re addicts...so do 1 hour a day where you turn off digital things.

Be silent. Go walk. Sit outside and watch God’s nature and handiwork. Just be silent.

It will change you, it will make you look different, feel different. RELAX and RECHARGE differently than the world. Enjoy your home and those within it WITHOUT having to go out to eat or go on a trip or go to a theater or some kind of entertainment. Be connected. And connect to God better together as well.

Self control isn’t about your ability to pull yourself up by your bootstraps, it’s not about your ability to grind and put mind over matter - in fact its not about YOU at all....

Its about giving up you, and giving you over to God’s control. Self-Control = Giving God Control.

Self Control is about FREEDOM and MASTERY. Freedom is only found in Jesus, and you’re a slave of either sin or you have God as a loving/forgiving/caring/healing/providing master..

Of all the traits that make up the fruit of the spirit, which is your weakest? We’re only as spiritually mature as our weakest one.

Don’t be a plastic plant with the appearance of life, but really dead.

Make the decision that you want to grow, that you want God to grow and transform you, that you want to be USEFUL for God. Jump in with both feet and give yourself over to that like you never have before!