Galatians 5:22-23 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. We have laid the foundation with love, joy and peace. We began building with patience, kindness and goodness. We added faithfulness and gentleness and we are topping everything off with self-control. Having control of oneself is something we practice day by day, hour by hour, minute by minute and sometimes even second by second. It is interesting how self-control is listed as the last fruit of the Spirit - why do you think Paul listed it last? The other fruits build upon one another so as you are building those fruits in your life, you are also building the ability to practice self-control. Relying on self to totally gain control of oneself is impossible. It is only through Christ Jesus that we truly can gain control of ourselves. When we fail to gain control of ourselves, it is almost like a domino effect and we see the other fruits fall away one after the other. The amazing thing is that we can grow these fruits in our lives even after we have fallen down. They are there for us to continually grow and harvest in our lives through Christ Jesus. Titus 2:11-12 For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age It is only through God that we are able to live a self-controlled life - He gives us the ability and desire to say "no" to ungodliness and worldly passions. We cannot do it of ourselves, but only through His help and strength. To have self-control we need to yield to God and die to self. Lord God, we come to You with the desire to allow You to have complete control of our lives. Help us to submit to You and allow us to embrace the fruits You have given to us. Thank You for Your promises and the way You have allowed these fruits to grow in our lives. We commit ourselves to You. In Christ Jesus we pray - Amen The Reflections Team
Posted on: Thu, 01 Aug 2013 02:39:30 +0000
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