Quality of Faith 3: Self-Control

All athletes are disciplined in their training. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize. (1 Corinthians 9:25 NLT)

In the Bible we read that Cain and Abel made an offering to the Lord. Cain offered crops; Abel offered firstborn of his sheep. The Lord was pleased with Abel’s offering, but not with Cain’s, who became very angry. The Lord said to Cain, “You will be accepted if you do what is right. But if you refuse to do what is right, then watch out! Sin is crouching at the door, eager to control you. But you must subdue it and be its master.” Instead of mastering sin, Cain killed his brother (Genesis 4:1–8 NLT).

What is self-control? The New Oxford American Dictionary says it is “the ability to control oneself, in particular one’s emotions and desires or the expression of them in one’s behavior, especially in difficult situations.” “Regulate” means to control based on a rule; adjust to a standard; cause to make something work accurately. We were created in the image of God; therefore, He expects us to function according to His standard of holiness (Genesis 1:26; Leviticus 19:2; Ephesians 1:3–4; 1 Peter 1:14–16).

How is this possible? Because true believers have been given everything needed for “life and godliness” (2 Peter 1:1–3). At our salvation, the Lord gave us the “flashlight and batteries”^[1]; it is our responsibility to turn on and use the light (2 Peter 1:5; Matthew 5:14–16). The Philippians were told to conduct themselves in a way that demonstrates they believe the gospel (Philippians 1:27). John the Baptist said, “Prove by the way you live that you have repented of your sins and turned to God” (Luke 3:8 NLT).

These are mandates to take control of ourselves in a way to prove we are saved. The apostle Paul said to “work out your own salvation … for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure (Philippians 2:12–13). That means we must put out the effort, the energy, determination, and the diligence to work out what the Lord has already put in us (Ephesians 2:8–10).

FOOTNOTES

1. 2 Peter 1:3: “The oil and flame are given wholly of grace by God, and “taken” by believers: their part henceforth is to “trim their lamps.” Excerpt from Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown’s Commentary on the Whole Bible. ↑