Extreme Life Makeover – Galatians 5:22-25

“Self Control”

A mother was doing some memory work with her five year old daughter. They had been learning the fruits of the Spirit. The daughter began to recite, “love, joy, peace, patience kindness goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and remote control.” And she was doing so good... Likewise, we can seem to be doing so well, but if we stumble with self control, it can be devastating to our relationships and our own lives. This morning we are looking at the last of the fruits of the Spirit from Galatians 5 as keys to healthy relationships. Self control is the final fruit.

Galatians 5:22-25 – “But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things! Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there. Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives.”

Alexander the Great is considered to have been a genius. At 16 he was the ruler of Macedonia, a victorious general at 18, a king at 20 and conqueror of vast kingdoms. He was responsible for the proliferation of the Greek culture throughout the known world of that time. But he died at the age of 33, because he could not conquer himself. One night when celebrating with guests in Babylon, He drank to the health of each of the 20 people at the table. Then he called for the “Hercules Cup,” which had a huge capacity. Filling it, he drank it all, making a salute to a guest named Proteas. He filled the cup again and drank it once more and then fell almost instantly to the floor. He was fever stricken and a few days later died. Who knows what Alexander might have gone on to do had he exercised a little self control. Paul knew the need for self control even in those who seemed to have it all together. He wrote in

1 Corinthians 9:24-27 - “Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win. Everyone who competes in the games exercises self-control in all things They then do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. Therefore I run in such a way, as not without aim; I box in such a way, as not beating the air; but I discipline my body and make it my slave, so that, after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified.” (NASB)

He also warned in 2 Timothy 3, that in the last days, that difficult times would come. People would become more selfish, arrogant, ungrateful, unholy, haters of good, and among other things they would also be without self control. What about our own culture? Do we live in a culture of self control or self indulgence? We can't deny that there is a lot of self indulgence around, but there is an interesting sense in
which Americans try to live with at least some self control. Molly O'Neill, writing for the New York Times, says, “Non is more than a prefix. It has become a lifestyle ... nonfat ice cream; nondairy spread, non-caffeinated cola or coffee (also know to some coffee snobs as “why bother” [my addition]), nonalcoholic beer, nonsmoking, nondrinking, etc.” Though Americans might not be very good at self control generally speaking, they seem to at least sense

I also find that this fruit of the Spirit is deeply related to many of the others fruits we have looked at. It is related to love, because biblical or agape love means acting on another's behalf or interests. That means putting the brakes on my own desires. Peace demands self control. A peacemaker usually has to forgive rather than get even, and that takes a lot of self control. Patience takes self control obviously. Kindness - yeah. Goodness, or integrity requires self control when it seems I could get away with something but I resist for deeper reasons. Faithfulness certainly requires self control. Gentleness is almost a synonym for self control. Gentleness is having your power under God's control. So it's not surprising that self control is

named as the last fruit of the Spirit - the final character trait God wants to grow in your life that requires you to surrender to Him. After all, when we come to God through Christ, we are surrendering our lives to Him. But of course, we know all too well that when we make that living sacrifice, it has a tendency to crawl back off the altar for the temptation of something God says is off limits. We have to battle daily with whether or not we really surrender to God. That takes self control.

The biblical PICTURE of what self control is.

The word “self-control” in the Bible in the Greek language means this: holding oneself in. Exhibiting restraint and moderation. The idea of inner strength. In some of your bibles when you look up Galatians 5 and you read it, it doesn’t say “self control.” In some translations it says the word “temperance.” Temperance is this idea of retraining passions or appetites. So if you look at self control, that it’s holding oneself in, inner strength, it’s temperance or retraining passions and appetites, why does God want us to have it? A couple of things.

Self control defends against temptation and destruction. That seems pretty clear. Proverbs 25:28 - “A person without self-control is like a city with broken-down walls.” In the Old Testament that word “walls” means “walls of protection.” You want to protect something. What do you want to protect? You want to protect something that has value. What has value? Your life, reputation, integrity.. You want to surround your life with walls. You want to fortify it. Why? Because when the walls come down is when the temptations begin to take over. When your life is destroyed and when your life is hurt, you know what you do? You also drag other people down with you. It hurts your relationships.

What else does the Bible have to say about self control? Self control leads to godliness and love.

2 Peter 1:5-8 – “In view of all this, make every effort to respond to God’s promises. Supplement your faith with a generous provision of moral excellence, and moral excellence with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with patient endurance, and patient endurance with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love for everyone. The more you grow like this, the more productive and useful you will be in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

In that cycle it says self control leads to godliness and love.

I want us to look at a couple of great examples of self control this morning, and then I want to remind us of the areas of our lives where we need to practice it.

1. He had never been closer to victory. One thrust of his sword and the kingdom would finally be his. One thrust of that sword and his days as a fugitive would be over. After all, God had promised him he would be king. The prophet Samuel had chosen Him and anointed him to be king over Israel. The last few years had made him weary though. His whole life seemed to be a battle to stay alive - to prevent King Saul from killing him. It was a moment he might never see again. Saul was in the middle of a campaign to hunt him down, but here he was in a dark cave where Saul had chosen to relieve himself and was totally unaware that David and some of his men were hiding there.

They were whispering to him to go and kill Saul with the sword. “This is your chance, man! Come on, what are you waiting for? How obvious does it have to be that God has given you this opportunity? This is it, man. Now you can become King of Israel.”

But David hesitated. He snuck over and cut a small piece of Saul's robe off, but wouldn't harm him. Even cutting the piece of his robe made his conscience twinge. David knew he had been given power over his enemies’ life. But should he exercise that power just because he possessed it? Did his life hinge on seizing this opportunity? Should he advance his own cause just because he could? Was the only way he could gain the throne to be to commit this sin? Perhaps his mind raced back to a familiar story of one of his ancestors - Abraham. Abraham too had been given a promise by God which seemed long in being fulfilled. Abraham would have a son through whom countless heirs would be born and through whom the nations of the earth would be blessed. Abraham was given an opportunity to seize that promise in his own timing when his barren wife prompted him to take her female servant and have a child by her but raised as Sarah's own. Abraham learned a bitter lesson that opportunity does not equal license. Self control was what Abraham should have exercised. David knew that he should wait for the Lord to grant the promise in His timing. So David turned to his men and said,, “The Lord forbid that I should do such a thing to my master, the Lord's anointed, or lift my hand against him; for he is the anointed of the Lord.” (2 Samuel 24:6) So Saul went his way, spared by the very man he was seeking so hard to kill. Why did David do this? What persuaded him to let this obvious opportunity slip through his fingers? David understood that opportunity does not equal license. Power was a trust from the Lord. You don't use power just because you have it. Do you overpower a child just because you are stronger? Do you bludgeon someone with words just because you have the intellect and wit to do so? Do you advance a rumor that ruins someone's reputation just because you find the listening ears in the right circles? Where is waiting on the Lord? Where is trusting God to provide in His own time in the right way if that is His will? David settled the issue in his mind. Opportunity does not equal God's will. If God wanted David to be king, David would trust that God would provide it in the right way at the right time,

2. In another kingdom years and miles away, a lovely lady who was a descendant of David named Esther also found herself in the place of power and opportunity. As queen of Persia, she had the occasion to remain silent about her Hebrew origin and continue to enjoy the luxuries, position and prestige unavailable to any other woman. All she had to do was keep quiet. Yes, her people, the Jews, would suffer, but not at her hand. She could simply stay out of the mess. She had the power to be silent and keep her good life. But she decided to speak. Like David, she surrendered the opportunity so near at hand to advance her own cause. At the peril of her own life, she humbled herself and pled for her people in front King Xerxes. As her mentor Mordecai told her, “Who knows but that you have come to royal position, for such a time as this?” (Esther 4:14). To remain silent ... when we could speak to our own advantage - To speak ... when we could remain silent to our own advantage. They both show the self control the Lord desires to cultivate in the hearts of His people. These are the moments when we know beyond all doubt what it means to be controlled by the Holy Spirit rather than our own impulses for preservation or advancement

So where might you find yourself in life where these actions would be called for? Where might you find yourself saying, “but I have my rights” when God is saying, “lay your rights down.” Where might you find yourself saying, “But I deserve to be happy” when God is saying, “I want you to obey Me and trust Me?”

Let me suggest several places quickly where God calls us to exercise self control, to lay down our rights.

1. The right to take revenge. Romans 12:19 – “Dear friends, never take revenge. Leave that to the righteous anger of God. For the Scriptures say, ‘I will take revenge; I will pay them back,’  says the Lord.”

2. The right to have a comfortable, secure home. Luke 9:57-58 – “As they were walking along, someone said to Jesus, ‘I will follow you wherever you go.’ But Jesus replied, ‘Foxes have dens to live in, and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place even to lay his head.’”

3. The right to a good reputation. Matthew 5:11 – “God blesses you when people mock you and persecute you and lie about you and say all sorts of evil things against you because you are my followers.”

4. The right to spend money however we please. Matthew 6:19-21 – “Don’t store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.”

5. The right to hate an enemy. Matthew 5:43-45 – “You have heard the law that says, ‘Love your neighbor’ and hate your enemy. But I say, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you! In that way, you will be acting as true children of your Father in heaven.”

6. The right to understand God's plan before we obey. Hebrews 11:8 – “It was by faith that Abraham obeyed when God called him to leave home and go to another land that God would give him as his inheritance. He went without knowing where he was going.”

7. The right to hold a grudge. Colossians 3:13 – “Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others.”

8. The right to "fit in " in society. Romans 12:2 – “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think.”

9. The right to do whatever feels good. Galatians 5:16 – “So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves.” 1 Peter 4:2 – “You won’t spend the rest of your lives chasing your own desires, but you will be anxious to do the will of God.”

10. The right to complain. Philippians 2:14 – “Do everything without complaining and arguing,”

11. The right to rebel against authority. 1 Peter 2:13 – “For the Lord’s sake, respect all human authority”

12. The right to say hurtful words. Ephesians 4:29 – “Don’t use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them.”

These and many other areas of life are opportunities the world tells us to seize, but the Lord tells us to resist.

Conclusion: There is a mountain called Mount Taurus on the Mediterranean coast in Turkey, where there are hundreds of eagles who live to feast on vulnerable cranes as they fly by. Cranes are prone to cackle and make noise particularly while they are flying. The sound of their voices arouses the eagles who quickly make the cranes pay dearly for their loud noises. But the older and more experienced cranes, sensible of the peril their cackling exposes them to, take care before they venture near the area. Before taking flight, the older cranes pick up a stone large enough to fill the cavity of their mouths, making it impossible to make their noises as they fly despite the urge to do so. Wonderful self control.

There is a stone we are to pick up, or better said, there is a cross we are to carry with us in this world which brings upon us self control. It is the cross of Jesus. You see, He is the epitome of self control. Philippians 2:5-11 tell us this very plainly. Jesus, the very Son of God, being in His very nature God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be held onto, but He emptied Himself, taking on the form of a man, and being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself to the point of death, even the death on a cross. God, therefore. highly exalted Him, giving Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus, every knee should bow ... and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord." Jesus calls us to be like Him. He doesn't ask us to do anything He didn't exemplify for us first. But to be like Him you have to give your life in faith to Him. He provided peace with God the Father for us through the blood of His cross. Will you accept that peace with God and give your life to Jesus? Will you allow God to grow in you the fruits of His Spirit, including self control?