Self Control
May 7, 2017 17:05:27 GMT -6
Post by Gene Whitehurst on May 7, 2017 17:05:27 GMT -6
Charles Bridges writes:
“Certainly the noblest conquests are gained or lost over ourselves. Anyone who has no control over his own spirit is an easy prey to the invader. Anyone can irritate and torment him…”
Solomon writes:
Prov 25:28 “Whoever has no rule over his own spirit is like a city broken down, without walls.” [Failure to exercise self-control will allow the enemies to attack, enter, and disrupt your life!]
Prov 16:32 “He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, he who rules his [own] spirit than he who takes a city.” [In the eyes of God, the one who conquers his own spirit is greater than the one who conquers a city!]
In the Psalms we read:
“I have restrained my feet (and eyes, mouth, ears, tongue) from every evil way…” (Psa 19:14, 119:101, and more) [Restraining is part of self-control]
Peter writes:
2 Pet 1:5-8 “But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Paul writes:
1 Cor 9:25-27 “And everyone who competes for the prize is temperate (practices self-control) in all things. Now they do it to obtain a perishable crown, but we for an imperishable crown. Therefore I run thus: not with uncertainty. Thus I fight: not as one who beats the air. But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified.”
Gal 5:22-23 “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control…” The Spirit produces self-control. If we don’t have sufficient self-control for our spiritual age, then we MUST be suppressing His work in us.
Paul writes from prison:
“So that we are no longer children [spiritually immature], tossed back and forth [like ships on a stormy sea] and carried about by every wind of [shifting] doctrine, by the cunning and trickery of [unscrupulous] men, by the deceitful scheming of people ready to do anything [for personal profit]. But speaking the truth in love [in all things—both our speech and our lives expressing His truth], let us grow up in all things into Him [following His example] who is the Head—Christ.” (Eph 4:14-15 AMP)
Tennyson writes:
“…Our wills are ours to make them Thine.” [Self-control is to strive to be constant and voluntary in our submission to God and His will and not to be unsettled because of the actions or words or expectations of others. We should not react in the manner that we were ‘acted’ upon. We are to live on a higher plane and be the person that God would expect us.[…both our speech and our lives expressing His truth.
Gene says:
I am to exercise self-control…This is best done by knowing the qualities for a man/woman that Scripture teaches that I am to be, and then to live out these qualities in my life. We are not asked or expected to control others. We are expected to control ourselves and be conformed to the image of Christ.
There are ‘oughts’ and ‘ought nots’ that our Lord has made clear to us. Some are individual and some are universal. Take some quiet time and meditate on what God is expecting of you personally. Then do something about it.
-Gene Whitehurst
“Certainly the noblest conquests are gained or lost over ourselves. Anyone who has no control over his own spirit is an easy prey to the invader. Anyone can irritate and torment him…”
Solomon writes:
Prov 25:28 “Whoever has no rule over his own spirit is like a city broken down, without walls.” [Failure to exercise self-control will allow the enemies to attack, enter, and disrupt your life!]
Prov 16:32 “He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, he who rules his [own] spirit than he who takes a city.” [In the eyes of God, the one who conquers his own spirit is greater than the one who conquers a city!]
In the Psalms we read:
“I have restrained my feet (and eyes, mouth, ears, tongue) from every evil way…” (Psa 19:14, 119:101, and more) [Restraining is part of self-control]
Peter writes:
2 Pet 1:5-8 “But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Paul writes:
1 Cor 9:25-27 “And everyone who competes for the prize is temperate (practices self-control) in all things. Now they do it to obtain a perishable crown, but we for an imperishable crown. Therefore I run thus: not with uncertainty. Thus I fight: not as one who beats the air. But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified.”
Gal 5:22-23 “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control…” The Spirit produces self-control. If we don’t have sufficient self-control for our spiritual age, then we MUST be suppressing His work in us.
Paul writes from prison:
“So that we are no longer children [spiritually immature], tossed back and forth [like ships on a stormy sea] and carried about by every wind of [shifting] doctrine, by the cunning and trickery of [unscrupulous] men, by the deceitful scheming of people ready to do anything [for personal profit]. But speaking the truth in love [in all things—both our speech and our lives expressing His truth], let us grow up in all things into Him [following His example] who is the Head—Christ.” (Eph 4:14-15 AMP)
Tennyson writes:
“…Our wills are ours to make them Thine.” [Self-control is to strive to be constant and voluntary in our submission to God and His will and not to be unsettled because of the actions or words or expectations of others. We should not react in the manner that we were ‘acted’ upon. We are to live on a higher plane and be the person that God would expect us.[…both our speech and our lives expressing His truth.
Gene says:
I am to exercise self-control…This is best done by knowing the qualities for a man/woman that Scripture teaches that I am to be, and then to live out these qualities in my life. We are not asked or expected to control others. We are expected to control ourselves and be conformed to the image of Christ.
There are ‘oughts’ and ‘ought nots’ that our Lord has made clear to us. Some are individual and some are universal. Take some quiet time and meditate on what God is expecting of you personally. Then do something about it.
-Gene Whitehurst
