Luke 4:1-14a
The fruit of the Spirit is self-control. After I announced last weekend that this would be the next issue we would focus on in our worship services, I had a good number of people come to me and say, “That’s going to be a convicting topic. I think most of us struggle with that piece of the Spirit’s fruit more than any other.” I’ve discovered, over my years of ministry, that many churchgoers start feeling some shame and guilt when we take up the matter of self-control, mainly because we know there are parts of our lives that are not under control. And, every genuine follower of Jesus, what Pastor Ray Ortlund used to call “the company of the committed”, hates to be stuck in a pattern of sin. So, as I begin today, I’m quite sure that there are many here today – maybe everyone at some level – who want to abstain from different temptations in your minds, speech and behavior – but, at the same time, something inside you wants to give in to them so much it hurts. We sometimes feel like the dog trained to keep a biscuit on its nose. It wants to obey its owner – but it desperately wants that biscuit! Is that what self-control is about?
Let me remind you of God’s declaration to you: The fruit of the Spirit is self-control. Through God’s presence and power at work in you, you can be sure that you are in a process of growth that God tells you he will work personally in you to complete. Someday, you will be free from sin. But it’s quite a journey!
What Self-control Is
I looked at a lot of dictionaries and decided that Vocabulary.com provides the most down to earth definition, i.e., “Self-control is the quality that allows you to stop yourself from doing things you want to do but that might not be in your best interest.” So, have you ever had a potato chip or two and pretty soon you’ve eaten the whole bag. You felt terrible and gained two pounds? You promised never to do that again. Then, the next day, you have another bag on your desk – and you want to eat it! Saying no to that bag of chips is an act of self-control. So, according to the dictionary, self-control is your ability to engage in better behavior by telling yourself no. No to the sugar donut in the break room. No to the sarcastic remark in the meeting you didn’t want to attend. No to the website that you shouldn’t visit. But how?
Of course, the term “self-control” is itself a problem. It seems to suggest that we have two selves, one that controls the self and the other that is controlled. And, even more importantly, in our study on the fruit of God’s Spirit in Gal 5:22-23, it is God’s work in us that sets us free us from the “works of the flesh” in 5:19-21. It is precisely “self” control and self-governance that leads to the bondage of sin addictions. This is the very thing that Paul testified to in Rom 7 when he said, “Those things I don’t want to do are the very things I do!” So, “self-control” isn’t the solution to our problems but the cause of them!
Let me try to explain the Bible’s idea of self-control to you. The word translated self-control, “egkrateia”, was usually used for athletes training for the Olympic games. A world-class athlete sets a goal of winning the winner’s prize of a wreath. That all-encompassing goal set the priorities for his/her entire life: He eats but only the right things. He sleeps but only with the right rhythms. Everything he does is carefully chosen with the goal in mind of winning the prize. Keeping his focus on that goal keeps him from distractions and motivates him to do what was in keeping with his convictions and priorities. That’s self-control, i.e., a life in which everything is prioritized by one over-arching goal.
The Apostle Paul said in 1 Cor. 9:24-25, that living a life that is honoring to God is like that:
Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.
So, that’s the idea you should have in your mind when you think of the term “self-control”. It’s having one all-consuming passion that provides guidance for every other part of your life. For the Olympic athlete, it was winning the Olympic prize. But, Paul says in 1 Cor 9:25 that even a great prize like that will not last. The Olympic crown was a wreath that would biodegrade and be no more.
What is our prize? The over-arching goal of a true Christian’s life is to become complete in Christ, to have every part of our lives, according to Rom 8:29, “conformed to the image of Christ”. These nine parts of the Spirit’s fruit are all parts of what a complete Christ-like, God-glorifying person looks like. Paul said, “That is your destiny. That is what the Spirit of God is going to produce in you.” I believe one reason why “self-control” is last in the list of the Spirit’s fruit is that it provides the goal and focus of a life in which each aspect of that fruit is mature and complete. Self-control always includes a longing to be free of the slavery of what the Bible calls the “works of the flesh”: “Walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh: sexual immorality, impurity, hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition… and the like. (from Gal 5:16-21).
Self-control is having one all-consuming passion, i.e., one life-directing destination, that orders every other part of your life. For the follower of Jesus, self-control is characterized by focusing on becoming the kind of person who is complete in Christ, a life increasingly marked by love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, and gentleness. That’s the priority that should direct the whole of your life and keep you on course. Do you long for that?
What Gets Us Out of Sync
In Gal 5, Paul describes the life of becoming complete in Christ as a journey with God’s Spirit. We are to walk with the Spirit, keep in step with the Spirit, or (as we’ve put it in this series) having our lives synced by the Spirit. So, I want you now to think about your life as a long trip. When you travel, if you know you have a set destination, you first establish the best route to get there. And if you know you have a limited amount of time, you set a schedule. You know you have to make stops for food, fuel or even to fulfill some responsibilities you have accepted before the trip – like stopping by to visit a friend or family member. But, you make your plans accordingly and then head out for the destination.
But, sometimes, you are tempted to make stops you don’t need to make. When you do, once you get off the freeway, you sometimes find it hard to get back on. I remember the first time I flew into the Miami airport. I rented a car and began driving to my hotel but I saw some tennis courts along the way that I thought I wanted to check out. But, it was one of those Interstate exits that, once you get off, you cannot find the way back on. One-way streets. Detours. Unmarked roads. Soon, I found myself in one of the most dangerous areas of Miami with no idea how to get out. Our lives are often like that. We know how God would have us to live and we say we want to live for Him, but something comes along and gets us off course.
What kinds of wrong exit ramps might pull us away from a life synced by the Spirit?
Exit Ramp #1: “I Just Feel Like Doing It.” Pic of the many signs
Imagine a road sign on your trip for a doughnut shop or a casino. The world you live in tells you, “If you have a desire for that, who is anybody else to tell you it’s wrong to get off the highway.” So you get off course. But living our lives simply following our feelings and cravings always promises so much but delivers nothing. One of the biggest problems with living that way is that our feelings change – or we have feelings that often contradict one another. For example, at one moment, you crave ice cream but, at the next, you crave being thin.” Which do you follow? Or this: At one moment you deeply crave pleasure with that new person at the office. But, when you get home, you want a strong marriage and family! I could use countless examples here.
Let me tell you this: Live life driven by your feelings and you’ll end up being ripped apart. You’ll be tugged this way and that – and, at the end, Paul says you’ll be trapped. What we need is one all-directing passion under which to order all the others. In one of his many profound observations, St. Augustine said that sin is a matter of disordered loves. There will be many things in this world that you will have a desire for or a passion for. Those feelings will burn hot one day and diminish the next. Being a wise person requires the ability to recognize your own impulsiveness, pause before you make a snap moral decision, and ask, “How does this fit into the life that God would have me to lead?” Self-control means that we have the whole of our lives begin with a passion to please God – and then we follow his commands and priorities.
Our human feelings are messed up by sin and need to be synced by God’s Spirit. When your choices and priorities are ordered under a supreme desire to know and please God, you will begin to find yourself being set free from being blown here and there by every temptation.
Exit Ramp #2: “Just This Once.” Pic of the 7 mile detour
Another major threat against self-control is the whisper in your head that says “It’ll be OK just this time. This time and then never again.” Clay Christensen, a Harvard business professor and world-renowned innovation expert, addresses this brilliantly in his book How Will You Measure Your Life. He writes,
Many of us have convinced ourselves that we are able to break our own personal rules “just this once.” In our minds, we can justify these small choices. If you give in to “just this once,”… you’ll regret where you end up. It’s wiser to hold to your principles 100 percent of the time than it is to hold to them 98 percent of the time. The boundary—your personal moral line—is powerful because you don’t cross it; if you have justified doing it once, there’s nothing to stop you doing it again.
Decide what you stand for. And then stand for it all the time.
Almost each pattern of sin begins with a “just one time” act that we think we will not return to. The sin once engaged in often becomes an addiction. When we face the same temptation again, we fool ourselves into thinking, “Just one more time!” The more “just one more times” you engage in, the more difficult it becomes for you to break its trap.
Exit Ramp #3: “It’s the Way Everyone Is Living.” Pic of the 210 & 134
Sometimes, we get off course not so much by making an intentional decision to give in to temptation but simply by going along with what everyone else is doing. One of the first times I remember driving west along the 210, I was happily driving past the Lake Avenue exit headed on to La Canada only to find myself going past the Burbank exits instead. I didn’t realize that most of the lanes on the 210 turned into the 134. I was just going with the flow of traffic and listening to music and suddenly was on the wrong road.
So, I warn you: You must be alert to the ways of the world. The idea of “self-control” includes a carefulness about being “conformed to the pattern of the world (Rom 12:2)” and a mind consciously and intentionally seeking God’s wisdom and guidance.
So, how do we go about that. What do we learn from Jesus as he faced temptation in Luke 4?
Learning from Jesus: Self-control in the face of severe temptation (Luke 4:1-14a).
When we see how Jesus dealt with the subtle, yet powerful, temptations from the devil at the beginning of his ministry, we see how life in this temptation filled world is to be lived.
Lesson 1: The essential role of God’s Spirit. I simply want you to see that God’s Word tells us that first, Jesus was anointed by the Spirit, and only then did Jesus head out into ministry and the temptations that Satan used to try to get Jesus off the course the Father had given him. We can never fully grasp intellectually how the three persons of God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit act interact in their relationship as one God, but we can know this: If Jesus needed the anointing of the Holy Spirit, then we imperfect mortals certainly do. I tell you this: You are not alone in your battles against temptation. So, daily, wake up and acknowledge the presence of the Spirit and live each moment counting on his power.
Lesson 2: The inevitability of temptation. Many well-meaning churchgoers have told me that they believe that they cannot understand why they feel temptation so strongly even though they’ve been Christians for a long time. They somehow have gotten the idea that if they were stronger in their faith, they wouldn’t feel tugs toward sin. Let me tell you as clearly as I can that no one was more spiritually mature than Jesus and still he felt tempted. Jesus’ temptations were very real. How does Heb 4:15 put it? Jesus was “tempted in every way just as we are – but without sin.” Do not be discouraged simply because you are tempted. You are still a mortal human being and very susceptible to sin. The issue is not that you feel tempted. You and I will face temptation as long as we are in this fallen world. The issue is whether you will obey God or give in to the temptation.
Lesson 3: The power of Scripture. You cannot miss the fact that the devil knew the truth and power of Scripture and tried to use it to tempt Jesus – but used it by ripping it out of context and making it mean what it doesn’t mean. Jesus knew the Bible and used it to guide each decision he made. I want to encourage you to become the best student of the bible that you can be. Find a way to memorize Scripture. I like www.biblegateway.com. Each day, there is a new verse at the top of the site. I like to read it and memorize it. When temptation comes, you will find God’s Spirit bringing those verses back to your mind.
Lesson 4: The temptation of misplaced priorities. Have you ever noticed what the devil used to tempt Jesus? Bread. Security. Power. These are not bad things. In fact, they can be wonderful things. Satan knew the maturity of Jesus so he didn’t say, “Jesus, come with me. I know where some opium is.” Satan didn’t say, “I know where some good strips clubs are.” No, Satan used things that, rightly used, are good.
Bread – at a time when Jesus was in a time of committed fasting in honor to the Father. Security – that came not from being in the Father’s will but from some external source. Power – before the sins of the world were atoned for.
One of the most subtle temptations we face as we grow in our lives with God is the ongoing temptation to put good things before God. You might put your business in the wrong place in your life. Work is good – but not if it keeps you from worship and from your family. Sports are good but not if they trump your spiritual commitments. If something has become more important to you than God, then you will become a slave to that thing.
Final Thought: The Spirit’s work and our responsibility
I think one of the hardest things for us when we discuss this matter of self-control is that we know it must be the work of the Spirit in us. True self-control is a work of God, produced in and through us by the Holy Spirit. Until we own that it is received from outside ourselves, rather than whipped up from within, the effort we give to control our own selves will redound to our praise, rather than God’s. There is no hope for victory and growth without the presence and power of God’s Spirit who dwells in you.
At the same time, we clearly have a responsibility to use all the strength and energy God gives us to fight temptation. Listen to how strongly Paul puts it in Col 3:5 -- Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed. So, don’t be deceived into thinking that you can choose to dabble in sin -- and that you’re not responsible for that sin. James put it: “Do not be deceived. God is not mocked. Whatever seed you sow will also be reaped.”
I believe that the best way this matter of God’s work in and through you – and your own responsibility to resist temptation is what we read in Phil 2:12-13 – Bring to completion your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you both to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose.
This journey of life that you are on is to be synced by God’s Spirit. That syncing will always be in keeping with Scripture. Study God’s Word. Learn it. Use it as Jesus did. And that journey is directed by an all-consuming desire to know and become like Christ. Fix your eyes on him. The battle with temptation that Jesus faced was guided by the fact that he was tempted for you! He overcame sin so that he could die as the sinless one in your place – and then give you his Holy Spirit. I leave you will the vision and goal that led to Paul’s growth in self-control. It’s found in Philippians 3:12-14 –
It’s not that I have already obtained all this or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me… One thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.