Fruit of the Spirit: Self-control/Temperance
Galatians 5:22-25, “22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. 24 And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.”
Some translations use the word ‘temperance.’ The Greek word is egkrateia. It means the virtue of one who master’s their desires and passions, esp. their sensual appetites. Notice it says master our desires and passions, not barely hang on, not keeping your cool until you don’t have too anymore. We need to master our desires and passions.
Mastering Our Sensual Appetites
One of the quickest ways to know someone is mature, is when they can tell themselves ‘No.’ The Marshmallow test was done in 1970 by Walter Mischel a professor from Stanford. The setup - A child is left alone in a room with a single marshmallow and told they can eat it immediately, but if they wait for a short period, they will receive a second marshmallow when the experimenter returns. What it measures - The experiment assesses the child's ability to resist immediate temptation and wait for a larger reward later, demonstrating their level of self-control. Findings - Studies have shown that children who are able to wait for the second marshmallow tend to exhibit greater success in later life, including higher academic achievement and better coping skills.
Can you tell yourself no and stick with it? We all can discipline ourselves in many areas, but we all have weaknesses. My weakness is pastry, we all have that one thing that we cannot seem to be able to overcome.
1 Corinthians 9:24-27, “24 Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it. 25 And everyone who competes for the prize is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a perishable crown, but we for an imperishable crown. 26 Therefore I run thus: not with uncertainty. Thus, I fight: not as one who beats the air. 27 But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified.” (NKJV)
1 Corinthians 9:26-27, “26 Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. 27 No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.” (CJB)
There are two things I want you to see in this passage: There is a race to be had, and self-control helps us finish that race.
There is a race
There is a race! Finishing this race well is so important because it will determine how we live in the age to come. The ones who finish strong will get a crown of righteousness, but the one who barely makes it will get a gown of salvation (Isaiah 61:10). Our time here on earth is not just for having fun, it has huge implications on our eternity. Our time here on earth is very short but it carries a lot of weight on how our eternity will be spent.
2 Timothy 4:6-8, “6 For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure is at hand. 7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8 Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing.”
The time between 1 Corinthians and 2 Timothy is approximately 10 to 12 years. Paul was probably halfway through his ministry in 1st Corinthians. Halfway through his ministry, he reminded us that we are in a race. This is not a race against time, this is not a race to see who the best is, this is not a race to see who can accumulate the most stuff. This is a race to see who will look like Jesus. The race is not against your brother and sister, but it is against your flesh. Every single day we wake up, there is a question that is asked without our knowledge, ‘Will the flesh win today or will the spirit win today.’ That is the race and fight that every Christian faces, “Will I succumb to my flesh or will I walk in the Spirit.” Look at Paul’s testimony in verse 7.
v.7, “. 7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.”
Will this be your testimony? Will you on your death bed declare that you have fought the good fight, you have finished the race. We all need to be eternally focused. When we are eternally focused, we will always have our eyes on the prize. The prize is looking like Jesus.
Self-control helps us run our race
To run this race, we need to grow the fruit of self-control. Most people do not finish their race because of sexual sin, greed, lust, selfishness etc. If we do not master our sensual appetite, we will fall by the wayside.
Galatians 5:24-25, “24 And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.”
For the fruit of self-control to grow, we must crucify the flesh. The only way to crucify the flesh, is when we die to the flesh. The flesh is the pull that we all experience when we are tempted to sin. The flesh is the voice that convinces us to sin.
1 Corinthians 9:27, “27 No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.” (CJB)
He is not saying that he would physically hit his body, he is saying that he willed his body into submission to the will of God. The will of God in our lives is to look like Jesus, so anything that makes us not look like him, we say no to it. How do we look like Jesus? We look like Jesus when we walk in the fruit of the spirit. We look like Jesus when we walk in love. We look like Jesus when we walk in holiness and purity. We look like Jesus when we obey the leadings of Holy Spirit. We look like Jesus when we have a strong prayer life. We look like Jesus when we are constantly reading and studying the scriptures.
Let this be our testimony heading into 2025.
“I will fought the good fight, I will finished the race, I will keep the faith.”
