Supernatural Living - Self-Control

Self-control is the ability to control our thoughts, emotions and actions.  But how do we exercise self-control?  And what is the role of the Holy Spirit and God's Word in this?  Find out in this message.

Transcript

01:00:01:04 - 01:00:22:07
Sean Harriott
Good morning, everyone. Great to be able to come and share with you today in the first service Kwame said, this is going to be amazing. It's going to be fantastic. High pressure puts pressure on me. So. So I feel a bit better now. So it's great to be able to share with you today and today's the last of the current series.

01:00:22:09 - 01:00:44:12
Sean Harriott
So before we got here and we were given the subject, Rosie and I were kind of tussling backwards and forwards about who was going to do which subject. And I was blessed with the subject of self-control, although I can't really say that I'm there yet. I'm still I'm still I'm on a journey. Don't judge me, I'm on a journey.

01:00:44:13 - 01:01:02:03
Sean Harriott
And so we were kind of backwards and forwards. And I think she definitely one of these two. So when you hear her, you'll I'm sure you'll, you'll think, yeah, definitely. She won. So I've got to say, I am not qualified to speak on self-control because I'm still on that journey and I'm sure many of us are on that journey.

01:01:02:05 - 01:01:22:00
Sean Harriott
But, you know, when I'm thinking about it and when I'm considering self-control, there's so much that's within that. And I want to try to unpack some of that today, and particularly when I'm at work and the cakes come out, you can see the lack of self-control coming over me. I, I often start with another I have a sliver, just a sliver, nothing more than that.

01:01:22:01 - 01:01:45:12
Sean Harriott
But it kind of ends up being a little bit like this. By the end of the day. I like cake. I like cake. You know, sometimes we we're in situations where we we want we're doing well and we think, yeah, self-control. I am doing well. This is fantastic. And at the end of the day, I think, you know, I was so good at today and I was really, really self-controlled and God was kind of really with me on this one.

01:01:45:12 - 01:02:04:11
Sean Harriott
And I could feel the fruit growing in me and working today and in other days. I kind of feel like what Paul was talking about in Romans 715, which says, I do not understand what I do for what I want to do, I do not do, but what I hate, I do anyone else with me on that one.

01:02:04:13 - 01:02:27:05
Sean Harriott
Yeah, it's not easy, is it? Not easy. But all along throughout the series you've been talking about this fruit and that the fruit grows and grows through the Holy Spirit. And so it's important to start that when we're looking at the idea of self-control, because actually when we're working at it continually trying to work at it in our own strength, we become frustrated.

01:02:27:07 - 01:03:02:14
Sean Harriott
It's difficult and actually it's God's Holy Spirit that grows this fruit within us as opposed to us just working, working, working in second. Timothy one seven, it says, for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power. And love and self-control. It's his Holy Spirit that puts that and grows that within us. And so today, as we look at self-control, I'm hoping that you kind of come on this journey with me and you'll see kind of where I'm going with it.

01:03:02:16 - 01:03:24:03
Sean Harriott
So what is self-control? Well, I guess it says it all this on the tin, really, isn't it? It's controlling your self. But here's a definition that I've got. It says self-control is the ability to control our thoughts, our emotions and our actions. However, I would ask this, I would argue this is probably one of most difficult areas or I've found in my Christian work.

01:03:24:05 - 01:03:50:16
Sean Harriott
So why is that? Well, let me ask you this question. Have a think. Who's the most difficult person that you've had to deal with during your Christian walk Might Difficult person. You've got one in mind? Yeah, well, I can tell you who the most difficult person has been for me. Not Rosey, it's me. I'm the most difficult person I've had to deal with as a Christian.

01:03:50:18 - 01:04:13:18
Sean Harriott
You see, I have to wake up with me. I have to do the day with me. I have to go home with me. I have to be with me when I'm dealing with other difficult people or difficult situations. You see, I honestly can say that I'm probably the most difficult person that I've had to deal with. The most troubled person you see, I have to contend with self-importance.

01:04:13:20 - 01:04:56:22
Sean Harriott
I have to contend with self reliance, self-centeredness, self-deception, self-pity. I'm dealing with all of that constantly, wherever I'm going, whatever I'm doing, those things, travel with me. So as we look at the the the definition, it's basically calling us out is saying that self-control is actually every moment of every waking day. It's every interaction, every reaction, every response, every discussion, every decision, every confrontation and every car trip, every rude word that's aimed at me and my response.

01:04:57:00 - 01:05:25:20
Sean Harriott
Every time you are out of time and you're trying to get somewhere and people around you are just on a ghostlike, it's a bit like shaking a bottle. And every time something happens in my own strength, I'm trying to get it done. I'm trying to make it work, I'm trying to do it and make sure I'm controlled. But actually and we're going to open this.

01:05:25:22 - 01:05:47:21
Sean Harriott
No, no, me neither. But in my own strength, it's going to explode. At some point. It's going to pop somewhere and I'm going to lose self-control because I'm trying to do it in my own strength rather than remember and recognizing that it's the fruit of the Spirit, the Holy Spirit that is going to grow this in us. I did that in the first sevens.

01:05:47:21 - 01:06:22:02
Sean Harriott
I said to Rosie, Do you think it's going to pop by the third service if I keep doing that? So it's not easy when we're trying to carry out these things in our own strength. But actually what I thought was that we could have a look at a perfect example of self-control. We can have a look at what happens and what we can do, the things that we can observe in our lives as self-control builds in our walk and so I wanted to focus on a story about Jesus perfect example, where he's tested in the wilderness, and this is in Matthew 412 11.

01:06:22:04 - 01:06:40:03
Sean Harriott
So I'm just going to read that you can follow it behind me on the screen. Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. After 40, after fasting 40 days and 40 nights, he was hungry. The tempter came to him and said, If you are the son of God, tell these stones to become bread.

01:06:40:05 - 01:07:08:00
Sean Harriott
Jesus answered. It is written Man shall not live by bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God. Then the devil took him to the Holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. If you are the son of God, he said, throw yourself down for it is written. He will command his angels concerning you and they will lift you up in there in their hands so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.

01:07:08:02 - 01:07:28:13
Sean Harriott
Jesus answered him. It is also written. Do you not put the Lord your God to the test again? The devil took him to a high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. All this I will give you, he said, If you bow down and worship me, Jesus said to him, away from me, Satan, for it is written.

01:07:28:13 - 01:07:51:10
Sean Harriott
Worship the Lord your God and have Him Only then the devil left him and the angels came to attend to him. So I want to kind of look at that really, and kind of take some points from that in terms of our our life in self-control. So the first one is about filling our lives with truth and God's word.

01:07:51:12 - 01:08:18:14
Sean Harriott
You see, Jesus was there after 40 days and 40 nights. He was hungry, not spiritually hungry. He was physically hungry. He hadn't eaten. And that's where Satan comes and starts. They're at his weak point. He's hungry. You know, sometimes that's where we struggle with our self-control the most. That's how weakest point all the areas of our lives that are the weakness.

01:08:18:16 - 01:08:39:08
Sean Harriott
But actually, as we look, Jesus referred back to his father's word every time. And as we struggle and as we kind of try and deal with our self-control, maybe you go along the journey farther than I am or maybe you're not as far. But as we go, it's about recognizing that God's Word is the one that is going to sustain us.

01:08:39:10 - 01:09:01:01
Sean Harriott
It's going to lead us. It's going to help us. And we need to fill our lives with that truth and God's word. You see, it covers everything. There is nothing and there's nothing that we are going to go through that is not covered in the Bible already. It talks about controlling our tongues. It talks about our attitude, it talks about our spending.

01:09:01:03 - 01:09:21:07
Sean Harriott
You hear likes to spend a lot of money. It talks about our eating, it talks about everything. And so when we fill our lives with God's Word, that is how we can see that self-control build, because we can refer to it if we don't know it, what we we're referring to. And so we need to fill our lives with that.

01:09:21:07 - 01:09:51:19
Sean Harriott
It says in Psalms 119, your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path. God's word guides us. It helps us. It creates a spotlight for us. A second point is let's take us our eyes of self and look to Jesus as Satan was attempting and pointing and prompting Jesus every time. Refer to his Father every single time of himself, back to the Father in every challenge.

01:09:51:21 - 01:10:14:03
Sean Harriott
He will try and make it look itself. I said you before about all the things that we struggle with self important self-indulgence, all those things about self. But actually when we take our eyes off self and we look to God and it changed the dynamics and I'm not talking about self-help books, kind of getting those books to kind of how can we make ourselves better?

01:10:14:03 - 01:10:33:10
Sean Harriott
No, I'm talking about looking to father in all in every situation. We can't look and rely on self. I don't know about you, but do you know if true North is not reliant on myself? Because depending on what day I'm where I'm facing that day and what I'm doing that day, north will be different. And in the same way actually, where we want the truth.

01:10:33:16 - 01:11:02:02
Sean Harriott
And when we're focusing on Christ or on on God, God's Word, then it will create that true North for us. So at every moment we should be calling when Jesus is seeking him in the ways that we need to go. And when we're struggling with that self-control, when it's call out in Proverbs 3526, it says this Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding in all your ways.

01:11:02:04 - 01:11:26:17
Sean Harriott
Submit to him and he will make your path straight. My third point is practicing obedience. So Jesus didn't only know his father's way, he didn't only just point to it, but he was obedient to it. And he tells Satan to leave. He says, I'm not going to do that. I'm not going to do this. I'm not going to turn this stone into bread.

01:11:26:18 - 01:11:54:10
Sean Harriott
I remember Jesus was hungry. He'd done 40 days and he was hungry and he quite easily could have told that stone to turn to bread, but he didn't. He was obedient in Galatians five 1617, he says. So I say, walk by the spirit and you will not glory. You will not gratify the desires of the flesh, for the flesh desires, what it what is contrary to the spirit and the spirit, What is contrary to the flesh?

01:11:54:12 - 01:12:20:12
Sean Harriott
They are in conflict with each other so that you are not to do whatever you want. When we're walking by the spirit, he will guide us. You will find us away. He will lead us. And actually, that conflict that's inside with our sinful flesh. And I think nature versus God's spirit, actually that fruit will grow when we listen and we're obedient to it.

01:12:20:13 - 01:12:39:18
Sean Harriott
That prompting, we get promptings. I don't know about you, but I get promptings and I know when I'm not doing when I'm not being right and I know when it's not going the way that it's supposed to go. We need to follow that spirit, that prompting, hear it and do as it says. So let me finish with this.

01:12:39:18 - 01:13:08:20
Sean Harriott
Proverbs 25:28, It says, Like a city with whose walls are broken through is a person who lacks self control. You see self-control is like a wall against temptation. It doesn't make the temptation go away, but it helps us to resist until the temptation passes. It's like that wall is that barrier, gives us a bit of room, gives us some breathing space, and sometimes that's all we need.

01:13:08:22 - 01:13:41:04
Sean Harriott
That breathing space before we walk into whatever we're going to walk in to see. God has placed fruits in our lives so that through the Holy Spirit, He changes us into the people that He designed us to be. And as we walk and we commune and we spend the time with God in His Word, we're obedient and we're looking to Him who seemed sin, find that those fruits in our lives will grow and develop and build.

01:13:41:06 - 01:13:43:22
Sean Harriott
Amen. Amen. Thank you.