1 Samuel 24:1-12  (NIV)

¹ After Saul returned from pursuing the Philistines, he was told, “David is in the Desert of En Gedi.” ² So Saul took three thousand chosen men from all Israel and set out to look for David and his men near the Crags of the Wild Goats.

³ He came to the sheep pens along the way; a cave was there, and Saul went in to relieve himself.  David and his men were far back in the cave.  ⁴ The men said, “This is the day the Lord spoke of when he said to you, ‘I will give your enemy into your hands for you to deal with as you wish.’”  Then David crept up unnoticed and cut off a corner of Saul’s robe.

⁵ Afterward, David was conscience-stricken for having cut off a corner of his robe.  ⁶ He said to his men, “The Lord forbid that I should do such a thing to my master, the Lord’s anointed, or lift my hand against him; for he is the anointed of the Lord.”  ⁷ With these words David rebuked his men and did not allow them to attack Saul.  And Saul left the cave and went his way.

⁸ Then David went out of the cave and called out to Saul, “My lord the king!”  When Saul looked behind him, David bowed down and prostrated himself with his face to the ground.  ⁹ He said to Saul, “Why do you listen when men say, ‘David is bent on harming you’?  ¹⁰ This day you have seen with your own eyes how the Lord delivered you into my hands in the cave.  Some urged me to kill you, but I spared you; I said, ‘I will not lift my hand against my master, because he is the Lord’s anointed.’  ¹¹ See, my father, look at this piece of your robe in my hand!  I cut off the corner of your robe but did not kill you.  Now understand and recognize that I am not guilty of wrongdoing or rebellion.  I have not wronged you, but you are hunting me down to take my life.  ¹² May the Lord judge between you and me.  And may the Lord avenge the wrongs you have done to me, but my hand will not touch you.

I want to talk about self-control.  Today is the last day of the Fruit of the Spirit listed in Galatians.

Self-control feels like it is invisible to others.

Following Jesus helps us learn self-control, which protects others from our sin, Jesus helps us value others by helping us with control in our lives.

1 Corinthians 9:23-27 and 10:11-13 (NIV)

²³ I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings.  

²⁴ 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.  ²⁵ 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.  ²⁶ Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air.  ²⁷ No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.

^10:11 These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come.  ¹² So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall!  ¹³ No temptation has seized you except what is common to man.  And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear.  But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.

Paul writes to the Corinthians about everyone who competes in the games, goes into strict training.  That phrase is the same word as self-control.

Self-control in the Greek language means to be free, because you are not a slave to anything.

We humans have issues with self-control.  However, we have trouble controlling our tongues, thoughts, emotions, etcetera.

Paul wants his writing to demonstrate the extent of the problem poor self-control in the early church.

The Greeks believe the material world is bad and the spiritual world was good.  They believed the body was the source of emotions, while the mind was all logic.  Self-control was their example of mind over matter; emotions only get you into trouble.

We are not aligned with the Greek thought in regard to body or mind.

Another option to go in the other direction is self-discovery (get in touch with your feelings and feel free to express your discovered feelings.)

You are not supposed to suppress your feelings.  We are not aligned with Star Trek either.

Scripture is our compass for understanding self-control in how we apply it in our lives.

Self-control is about the order of our feelings, thinking, our freedom of thought, passions.

It is because we all have contradictory desires and feelings.

Saint Augustine said sin is disordered love.

Putting your love of career ahead of God is a disorder of a love relationship with God.

Saint Augustine says that if we order correctly, rightly our love, we will become more self-control over time.  We are to love the supreme object, “our relationship with Christ.”  We are to be dedicated to the most important love of our life, seeking a crown that will last forever.

What is the heavenly everlasting crown?  How can self-control blossom in our lives?

Salvation is a gift.

The heavenly crown is sharing the blessings you have received for your relationship with Christ.

People will see the gospel in action when they look at your Christ-influenced life.  Others will see peace and grace and beauty of the gospel at work shaping you into who God created you to become.

The importance of the Holy Spirit and faithfully living out the gospel, as was demonstrated in Acts.  God does not build His Church through gimmicks or programmatic cleverness.  The Church is not dependent on marketing strategies for success.  Our only hope is to see lives changed by the gospel is to faithfully proclaim God’s Words and then trust God’s spirit to make our proclamations effective.

“The goal is to reflect Jesus’ love, embody it.  Invite others into what we are experiencing.”

How do we get started developing self-control?

Paul says to run in such a way as to not get disqualified… Let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles and lets us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.  We do this by fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the Cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of God.

Self-control can flourish in our lives by 1) reading Scripture, 2) being part of a faith community, ask for help, and 3) our troubles will help us grow, asking Christ for faith and guidance.

1 Corinthians 10:13  No temptation has seized you except what is common to mankind.  And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear.  But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.

Each temptation is a test, but testing is what grows our faith.  God puts us in situations that will grow our self-control.

Charlotte Elliott “O Jesus make thyself to me a living, bright reality.  More present to faiths vision keen.”

You will grow in self-control.  God bless you in your journey this week.