I’m pretty sure that prior to the beginning of the new year just a few weeks ago, many of us were thinking about those things that we could, and should, do away with, as well as those things that we should add to our lives, such as having a daily quiet time for Bible reading and prayer. Whether we are wanting to remove hinderances to our personal and spiritual growth or add valuable virtues to our lives, it will require a great deal of “self-control.” And that’s our focus in this blog.   

The Bible emphasizes “self-control” because it is essential in our battle against temptation and sin. If we are going to resist temptation and live godly lives, then having self-control is an essential disposition of the heart. The Apostle Paul identifies several “fruits of the Spirit” in his letter to the churches of Galatia and the ninth one on his list is “self-control” (Galatians 5:22). What Paul is saying is that if we learn to walk under the power and control of the Holy Spirit, self-control will be one of the many dispositions that is produced in our lives.

The Apostle Paul also provided an important theological truth to his young protégé and pastor, Timothy:

“For God did not give us a spirit of fear, but of power and love and self-control” (2 Timothy 1:7).

Here, Paul reassures Timothy (and all of us) that self-control is a gift from God, empowering us to resist fear and temptation.

And to another young pastor, Titus, Paul wrote:

“For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to life self-controlled, upright, and godly lives” (Titus 2:11).

While this disposition is essential for pastors and Christian leaders, it is also true for every member of the body of Christ. While God’s grace not only brings salvation to all people, it also “trains” us to reject ungodliness and worldly passions by living lives that are “self-controlled.”

But Paul is not the only Apostle who challenges us to have self-control, as Peter does so as well:

“. . . Make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love (2 Peter 1:5-7).

Among other godly qualities, Peter makes sure to list “self-control” as one of them. But let’s check out what he says next:

“For if these qualities^] are yours and increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins” (2 Peter 8-9). 

If you we want to be effective and fruitful in our walk with Christ, then we must all have “self-control?” In fact, Peter says that if we lack these qualities (including “self-control”) then we are blind and have forgotten our cleansing from our former sins. Wow! When it comes to exhibiting Christian virtues in our lives, we need to remember our cleansing from former sins as a spiritual incentive for us to exercise self-control.  

As an illustration, the Apostle Paul directs our attention to the Olympic games with these words:

“Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self-control in all things” (1 Corinthians 9:27).

If we think of ourselves as athletes running a race in order to win, then we need to discipline ourselves while we train, exercising “self-control” in all things.

So friends, we see that “self-control” is one of the foundation stones for living a godly life, a life that reflects Jesus and brings glory to God. If we have “self-control,” we will be able to control our selfish desires and the destructive temptations that often come our way. Let’s remember that without “self-control,” we can become slaves to our desires, instead of being overcomers! And let’s also remember the biblical examples of such overcomers as Joseph who resisted the advances of Potiphar’s wife, and Jesus who resisted the devil’s temptations in the wilderness.

If we want to live exemplary lives that honor Jesus Christ, then we need to exercise “self-control.” And we can do that by walking each day in the power of the Holy Spirit who is in us. I pray that “self-control” will become one of the vital dispositions in each of our hearts this year. Blessings to all.