Self Control

We live in a day where it’s all about “me”, and one thing that comes along with that is flared tempers. We see more and more people fly off the handle whenever things don’t go just like they want it to. In the Scriptures, we can find an example of this happening in Esther 3 with Haman.

Haman was second in command of the kingdom of Persia. And there was a royal decree which stated whenever Haman came into the palace, everyone had to bow before him. And this exactly what happened, everyone bowed before him, except for one man, a Jew named Mordecai. Although we do not know why Mordecai refused to bow, his refusal caused Haman to lose his temper. You could say he flew off the handle. Because one man refused to give him what he wanted, he decided to kill all the Jews living in Persia. 

As Christians, God wants us not to follow the example of Haman. Not only should we not kill all the Jews in Persia, but we should also control our temper. The Bible talks a lot about controlling one’s temper, the term used is often temperance or self-control. Self-control is often spoken about by Paul as a requirement for Pastors and Elders, in 1 Timothy 3:2, and Titus 1:8. But when Peter spoke about it, he was speaking to all Christians.

2 Peter 1:5-9 - 5 For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, 6 and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, 7 and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. 8 For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins.

As Christians, we are called to be people of self-control. As Christians, we are to be pictures of self-control. When we see self-control here it’s speaking of course to self-control over all things, but most specifically it’s speaking to a control of our anger. As a child, my family had an interesting way of controlling our anger. We would all be in the car fighting and shouting in the car on the way to church, full of anger towards each other, then we would open that door to walk into church and everyone was all smiles. The thought was look, of course we can control our anger.

But that’s not what self-control is all about. Instead of being able to go in and out of our anger quickly, most of the time we shouldn’t even go in to it. Sure, we can control it when we are in front of people at school or at church, but do we have the ability to control our temper with our spouses, or our kid? Do we have the ability to control our temper with our neighbors? Do we have the ability to control our temper with people on the road when we get cut off, or with a waitress or cashier when they mess up our order for the third time? Do we truly have control of our temper?

Peter used some tough words when speaking of self-control. He says if we have these qualities, including self-control, then we will be effective and fruitful in our knowledge of Jesus Christ, but if we lack those qualities, including self-control, then we are short sighted and forgetting what God has done for us.

I guess the question though is not if we have perfect self-control or not, but if we are growing in these qualities. Remember, as we close our thoughts on self-control, that it is also a fruit of the spirit. That means if we have Christ in us, we should always be growing in self-control.

Galatians 5:22-23 - 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.

Are we a Hospital or a Museum

As Good as it Gets

It was a rough week this past week, as my church experienced we some vandalism on our church sign, although I didn’t see it, it was a four letter F – word against God and some pot propaganda. Beyond that, just down the street, they wrote that same 4 letter word on a handicap accessible van, belonging to a church member. It broke my heart, not only because they wrote on those awful things on my church, or the van; but because we live is a world where someone would want to write those things on a church, or someone would be ok to write those things in what is obviously a van for a disabled person.

It seems like things in this world just keep getting worse; and as my wife and I look to have child number 4 this winter, I have to wonder if we are even doing the right thing bringing more innocence into a world that is fallen, sinful, and rotting.

A few weeks back I preached on the topic of hope, and not the hope that we put into the things of this world, because I can’t say if things of this world will ever get any better. I hope they do, and I will continually fight for change to make to make a better world for my kids to grow up in. But to quote Jack Nicholson “What if this is as good as it gets?” This world may not get any better, but we can still put our hope into the future, because our hope is not found in this world.

This world gives us things like graffiti, it gives us hate, it gives us addictions. It gives us war and natural disasters, and the very best things we can get in this world are here today and gone tomorrow. Yet Peter tells us we do not have to put our hope into these things.

1 Peter 1:3 - Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead 4 To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you.

Peter tells us something all Christians need to remember:  even if this corrupted, sinful world is as good as it gets here on earth, something much better is waiting for us in heaven.  For us today if we are in Christ, then this is not as good as it gets!