Gtcotr/ws112917
Galatians 5 KJV
22 But the fruit of the
Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
23 Meekness, self control:
against such there is no law.
Seeds
of these 9 fruits of the Holy Spirit are resident in the life of every Born-Again
Believer in Jesus Christ and they can be cultivated for maximum growth. As with
any fruit, the purpose for growing it is so that the fruit may be consumed by
the grower or consumed by others. Although not finite, it has been suggested
that these fruits can be categorized into three groups depending on their
primary purpose, benefit and aim.
Perhaps
the first three: Love, Joy and Peace, are primarily grown to be consumed or
enjoyed by the grower. Maybe the second three: Longsuffering, Gentleness and
Goodness, are best aimed at blessing others around the grower; while often the
last tree: Faith; Meekness and Self Control are those fruits which the we offer
to God to please Him.
However
their multifaceted use and benefit may be seen, all nine of these fruits grow
on one tree, or one branch, if you will. In this scenario, Jesus likens Himself
to a tree and He calls us the branches. Apart from Him, we can grow nothing but
if we abide in Him, He says, we will grow much fruit.
This
evening we are going to focus on the Fruit of the Holy Spirit called: Self
Control … or … the God given grace available in the life of every Believer to
Control Themselves!
Self
Control, or temperance, as some Old English versions of the Bible translate it,
is a much needed commodity in our lives. Without self control we might fall
prey to living a life or facing situations that push us to being out of
control. We have all seen what people do when their lives are out of control.
Whether it is a person who can’t control their tongue, their spending, their
anger, appetites and/or their thoughts and imaginations. It is a terrible thing
to be out of control.
The
Greek word used by the Apostle Paul under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit to
describe this particular fruit of Self Control is the Greek word: egkrateia … It means: The virtues of
a person who masters his passions and desires and especially his sensual
appetites.
Self
Control, according to the original definition is not only a fruit but also
considered to be one of the virtues of life. The root word for this Greek word
“egkrateia” is the word: egkrates … This root word means to be strong and
robust so that one may exercise power over something and control it in order to
master, curb or even restrain it if need be.
In
this case, Paul is referring to us growing in the grace of God so that we will
have the power to curb, control and restrain our fleshly desires and our carnal
appetites if the need arises. Self Control is the power
to say no to our flesh, our thoughts, our fears and our feelings when they do
not represent the best we should offer of ourselves to God.
Self
Control … Temperance … Is one of the requirements to be in the leadership of a
Church.
Titus 1
7 For a bishop must be
blameless, as a steward of God, not self-willed, not quick-tempered, not given
to wine, not violent, not greedy for money,
8 but hospitable, a lover of
what is good, sober-minded, just, holy, self-controlled …
As
well, the Apostle Peter also held the virtues of self
control as essential to the growth and maturity of every Believer.
2 Peter 1
5 ¶ But also for this very
reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge,
6 to knowledge self-control,
to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness,
7 to godliness brotherly
kindness, and to brotherly kindness love.
8 For if these things are
yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the
knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
God
has offered each one of His children a great opportunity. This opportunity is
for us to grow as much fruit as we choose. God has provided the seeds and placed
them deep within the hearts and minds of every Born-Again Believer. If you are
saved by the blood of Jesus, the seeds of love, joy, peace, patience,
gentleness, goodness, humility and self control are inside you right now. You
are the only one who can make them grow.
Once
grown these Fruits of the Holy Spirit will serve to satisfy you, bless others
and become your daily joy-filled offering to God.
Something
is growing on your tree of life … Either you are consuming and serving others
from the works of your flesh, (Galatians 5:19-21), or from the fruits of the
spirit, (Galatians 5:22-23). Which is it? If it’s not God … you can begin to
change that right now.
1.
Repent to God for allowing the works of the flesh to grow in your
life.
2.
Renew your mind with God’s Word and take each thought and every
imagination captive to obey Christ.
3.
Cultivate the seeds of the Holy Spirit through prayer, Bible
reading, fellowship with other Christians and service to God through attendance
and involvement in His Church.
It’s
time to grow up and be fruitful … best of all you’ll love feeling and acting
more like Jesus.
