They have never
translated that intellectual knowledge into true belief. That’s why I call it a
“chasm.” By definition a chasm is a “deep cleft in the ground or a yawning
fissure in the earth’s surface.” Picture the Grand Canyon. That is a chasm.
So, when I call it
the “18-inch Chasm,” basically, even though it’s physically only about
18-inches between your brain and your heart, the fact that you know something
to be true but don’t really believe it in your heart makes it a HUGE gap.
In fact, Jesus
even warns those who say they know Jesus but fail to do His will that He will
reject them! (Matthew 7:21-23)
So, how do we gain
self-control? First, you have to believe in your heart that Jesus is who He
says He is. Next, you have to accept Him as your Lord and Savior. Then, guess
what happens? You get this Helper inside of you called the Holy Spirit. The
Holy Spirit is the Third Person that God reveals Himself as and, when you
accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior and make that decision to follow Him, God
enters you as the Holy Spirit to help in those times of need.
Galatians 5:22
tells us that, “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience,
kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” So, you gain self-control through the Spirit of God
that is in you! Now, here’s the key: look at the order the fruit is listed. Do
you notice anything that sticks out?
Self-control is
listed last. You can’t have self-control until you have love for Jesus
first. The natural result of loving Jesus and knowing He loves you leads to joy
and that joy of knowing Jesus loves you leads to peace. And once you are at
peace, you become patient, which leads to kindness. When you are patient and
kind, it leads to goodness. Your goodness will lead to faithfulness to Jesus
and to others, which makes you gentle and humble. That gentleness eventually
leads to self-control. You can’t try and jump to self-control without
having the other fruit of the Spirit first. It’s impossible.
So, you have to
know God, not just intellectually, but in your heart. More importantly, you
have to love God with all your heart, your mind and your strength. Then, God,
in His power, will indwell you with the Holy Spirit and you will gain
self-control through the “Fruit of the Spirit.”
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