Filled With the Fruit #9: Self-control
Laura Knowles
Read:
- Galatians 5:22 (NKJV) “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Against such there is no law.”
- John 17:20-22 (NKJV) “I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one with Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me. And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as we are one…”
Reflect:
- How would you define self-control?
- Why do you think it is the last fruit of the spirit written of in scripture?
- Can someone be self-controlled outside of a relationship with Jesus Christ? Why or why not?
Remember:
The moment we believe in Jesus Christ and make Him Lord of our lives we are filled with His Holy Spirit. The very characteristics of God are shown in our lives starting with an unconditional, self-sacrificing love that saved us in the first place. That love fills us with joy and peace that cannot be shaken. Peace in Him gives us longsuffering (patience) to steady our journey through life. Patience produces kindness to share with others. Becoming like Christ with kindness brings goodness in the renewing of our minds. The truth in the goodness of God reminds us constantly of His unending faithfulness. Humility in understanding who He is and what he has done for us teaches us to be gentle in all we do. Being filled with the first eight fruits of God’s Holy Spirit brings us to a place where we can be perfect and complete in him with self-control as we surrender fully to His will for our lives.
God does not want us to be in control of ourselves to become who we want to be. Jesus makes it very clear what His greatest desire for us as Christians is when He prayed just before being betrayed by Judas. In John 17:20-22 Jesus asks God to make us one with Him, just as He is One with His Father. It was the whole reason He came to die, so that we could “know Him and the power of His resurrection” (Philippians 3:10). When we know Him, we are filled with His Spirit and as we let go of our own sinful will, to do what we want, we are filled with His fruits and will be controlled by His Spirit. It takes full abandonment to the desires of this world and the desires of our flesh. It is giving up every dream, even if it seems like a good dream, if it’s not what God plan is for us. In this total surrender we don’t have self-control according to the world, but we have self-control according to the Spirit who lives in us. If we are filled with the fruit we will be surrendering our way and can trust Him to have His way in us. “And the glory (God’s essence) which You gave me I have given to them, that they may be one just as we are One” (John 17:22). We will never be perfect this side of heaven and we will always fight against our flesh, but if we strive to be filled with the fruit of the Spirit we can trust Him to be faithful to complete the good work He began in us (Philippians 1:6).
