SELF-CONTROL – Fruit of the Spirit
Galatians 5:23 NKJV
But the fruit of the Spirit … self-control.
Self-control is an important quality that should be part of the character of any human being. The Greek word for self-control is “egkrateia”, which means having command or “mastery over” , or possession of, “one’s own behavior.”
Without self-control, people give in to all sorts of temptations from the devil and become easily led to act more out of feeling and emotion rather than to act according to the word of God.
The Holy Spirit is able to teach us and help us to have self-control is our daily lives. Sometimes we need to control our anger; our attitude; our thoughts; our emotions and our actions on a daily basis.
We must understand that we are responsible for our own actions.
2 Timothy 3:1-6
But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away!
Paul writes that in the last days people will be “without self-control”. Clearly a person who does not have self-control is a person who does not submit to rules and to the authority of God. For without self-control, chaos reigns in the life of a person.
The self-control that is the fruit of the Holy Spirit has the following attributes
- This kind of self-control comes from the Holy Spirit and is dependent on the Spirit of God
- This kind of self-control recognizes that God is in authority and submits to the will and word of God
- This kind of self-control has actions and reactions that glorify God. It is not self-centred.
- This kind of self-control does not only rely on emotions and feelings alone.
- This kind of self-control allows the Holy Spirit to control every area of a person’s life from the mental, spiritual to their physical state.
2 Peter 1:5-7 NKJV
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.
Clearly for a person to grow spiritually, one of the virtues that a person must have is self-control. Many great men have fallen because they lacked self-control. Perhaps they committed adultery or they could not control their temper.
TODAY. Pray for the Holy Spirit to teach you to exercise self-control.
