Self-Control
Biblical self-control is not about suppressing desire or relying on sheer willpower. It is the Spirit-formed ability to live with clarity, restraint, and freedom — choosing what leads to life rather than what merely satisfies in the moment.
As an outcome of following Jesus, self-control grows as the Spirit reshapes our desires and priorities. Over time, self-control becomes less about resisting temptation through effort and more about living in step with the Spirit, guided by truth and trust in God.
Self-Reflections
Use the reflections below not to judge yourself, but to notice what patterns may be shaping your self-control.
Signs of growing self-control may include:
- Greater awareness of your desires and responses
- Increased ability to pause before reacting or indulging
- Choosing what leads to life over what offers immediate relief
Self-control may be strained when:
- Impulses regularly override wisdom or conviction
- Stress or fatigue weakens resolve
- Freedom is confused with doing whatever feels right
Self-control is often counterfeited by:
- External rules without inward transformation
- Suppressing desire rather than reshaping it
- Prideful self-discipline disconnected from dependence on God
For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.
— 2 TIMOTHY 1:7
For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age.
— TITUS 2:11-12
Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable.
— 1 CORINTHIANS 9:25
A man without self-control is like a city broken into and left without walls.
— PROVERBS 25:28
Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry:
— COLOSSIANS 3:5
What Often Undermines Self-Control
What God Often Uses to Form Self-Control
Resources to Help With Self-Control
Self-Control (Part 1)
A Tim Keller message that introduces self-control as a Spirit-produced fruit, showing how God strengthens our will to align desire…
Self-Control (Part 2)
A follow-up message in the Self-Control series that explores how self-control grows through reliance on the Spirit rather than mere…
Self-Control (Part 3)
The 3rd/final message in the Self-Control series emphasizing practical ways the Spirit forms self-control, helping believers overcome patterns that distract…
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Sonrise Church
Service Times:
- Sunday : 9:00 AM (1st Service)
- Sunday : 10:40 AM (2nd Service)