SELF CONTROL, the second part of 1 Peter 1:13.
I’m sure you cringe at that word or maybe at least think of
areas in your life that may need a little more of that – eating, working out,
time management, TV, scripture reading, disciplining your kids, etc. This is
something that we continually wrestle with. Not only do we have difficulty in
our physical and relational lives but this is something that weighs heavy in
our spiritual lives as well.
Paul knew this very well and said in Romans 7 “I do what I
don’t want to do and don’t do what I want to do.” He is talking about the very
thing we all go through. But then he says, “But I’m thinking about this in a
new way otherwise I’ll never win; after all, I live in a death trap of a body.”
He reverts back to our lesson from last week, that it starts in our mind.
What’s the shift for us? Have you ever started a diet? A new
year’s resolution? And only experienced failure before too long? Maybe it is
not due to your lack of effort but brokenness in mentality. Any nutrition
expert or trainer will tell you that diets do not work because they are short
answers to deeper problems. What is necessary is a LIFESTYLE change or a
mentality shift. No longer is just losing weight or inches the end of your
thought, but wholeness of life.
The same is true in the spiritual sense. When we accept
Christ as our savior most of the time eternity is on our mind. We think of the
end result, which is great, but the problem is that it takes so long to get
here. What if instead we began to think of our relationship with Christ
effecting our daily life? What if it was no longer about dos and don’ts?
Because God is Holy and has given us his law, we will always fail to measure
up. God’s grace is what we need in order to be right with God.
And how does it come about? Through our relationship with
Christ it takes roots. Galatians 5:22-23 says that self control, among other
things, is a fruit produced by the Holy Spirit.
So as we prepare our minds for action we begin to be self
controlled.
Stop trying so hard and simply change the way you think –
accept God’s grace and live for Him.
No comments:
Post a Comment