biblical verses on self control

Biblical Verses On Self Control

Biblical Verses On Self Control

Self-control and self-discipline are critical factors for any success you want in life, without self-discipline, it will be tough for you to achieve something of lasting value.

The apostle Paul realized this when he wrote in 1 Corinthians 9:25, “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.”

Olympic athletes train for years with the sole objective of achieving a moment of glory, but the race that we are running is more important than any athletic event, so self-control is not optional for Christians.

Self control Bible verses

Proverbs 25:28 (NIV)

Like a city whose walls are broken through is a person who lacks self-control.

2 Timothy 1: 7 (NRSV)

Because God has not given us a spirit of cowardice, but of power, love and self-control.

Proverbs 16:32 (NIV)

Better a patient person than a warrior, one with self-control than one who takes a city.

Proverbs 18:21 (NIV)

Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and whoever loves it will eat its fruits.

Galatians 5: 22-23 (KJV60)

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance; against such things, there is no law.

2 Peter 1: 5-7 (NRSV)

You too, doing all diligence for this very reason, add virtue to your faith; to virtue, knowledge; to knowledge, self-control; to self-control, patience; to patience, mercy; to piety, brotherly affection; and to brotherly affection, love.

Biblical texts of exhortation

1 Thessalonians 5: 16-18 (KJV60)

16 Rejoice always. 17 Pray without ceasing. 18 Give thanks in everything, because this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

2 Timothy 3:16 (NRSV) 

All Scripture is divinely inspired and useful to teach, to reprove, to correct, to institute in righteousness

1 John 2:18 (KJV60)

Little children, it is the last time: and as you have heard that the antichrist is to come, so also at present many antichrists have begun to be. Therefore we know that it is the last time.

1 John 1: 9 (NRSV)

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins and cleanse us from all evil.

Matthew 4: 4 (KJV60)

But he answering said, It is written: Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.

Examples of self-control in the Bible

1 Thessalonians 5: 6 (NRSV)

Therefore, we do not sleep like the others, but we watch, and we are sober.

James 1:19 (NRSV)

For this, my beloved brothers, every man is quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger.

1 Corinthians 10:13 (NRSV)

No temptation has overtaken you that is not human; But faithful is God, who will not allow you to be tempted more than you can resist, but will also give way together with temptation, so that you can endure.

Romans 12: 2 (KJV60)

Do not conform to this century, but transform yourself through the renewal of your understanding, so that you may verify what the goodwill of God, pleasant and perfect is.

1 Corinthians 9:27 (NRSV)

Rather, I strike my body, and put it in bondage, lest having been a herald for others, I myself come to be eliminated.

These verses of a Bible speak about self-control; without a doubt, it is God through his Son and the Holy Spirit who wants to see you dominating the desires of the flesh and the emotions. Take heart; this process does not happen overnight, it takes time, but in the Name of Christ, you will succeed.

What is Temperance in the Bible?

Temperance is the quality that enables someone to exercise self-control. Being temperate is the same as having self-control. Next, we will study what temperance is and what it means in the Bible.

What does temperance mean

The word temperance means “moderation”, “restraint” or “self-control”. Temperance and self-control are words that generally translate the Greek term enkrateia, which conveys the meaning of “the power to control oneself.”

This Greek term appears in at least three verses in the New Testament. There is also the occurrence of the corresponding adjective enkrates, and the verb enkrateuomai, both positively and negatively, that is, in the feeling of intemperance.

The Greek term nephalios, which has a similar meaning, is also applied in the New Testament and is usually translated as “temperate” (1 Tim 3: 2,11; Tit 2: 2).

The word temperance in the Bible

In the Septuagint, the Greek version of the Old Testament, the verb enkrateuomai appears for the first time to refer to Joseph’s emotional control in Egypt towards his brothers in Genesis 43:31, as well as to describe the false dominion of Saul and Haman (1Sm 13:12; Et 5:10).

Although the word temperance did not initially appear in the Old Testament, the general meaning of its meaning was already taught, especially in the proverbs written by King Solomon, where he advises on moderation (21:17; 23: 1,2; 25:16 ).

It is true that the word temperance is also related, primarily, to the aspect of sobriety, in the sense of rejecting and condemning drunkenness and gluttony. However, its meaning cannot only be summed up in this sense, but it also transmits the sense of vigilance and submission to the control of the Holy Spirit, as the biblical texts themselves make clear.

In Acts 24:25, Paul mentioned temperance in association with justice and future judgment when he argued with Felix. When he wrote to Timothy and Titus, the apostle spoke of the need for temperance as one of the characteristics that Church leaders must have, and also recommended it to older men (1 Tim 3: 2,3; Tit 1: 7,8; 2: 2).

Obviously, one of the best-known applications of temperance (or self-control) in biblical texts is found in the passage on the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5:22, where temperance is cited as the last quality in the list of virtues produced by the Holy Spirit in the lives of true Christians.

In the context in which it is applied by the apostle in the biblical passage, temperance is not just a direct opposite to the vices of carnal works, such as immorality, impurity, lust, idolatry, the most diverse forms of rivalry in personal relationships from each other, or even intoxication and gluttony itself. Temperance goes further and reveals the quality of someone in being completely submissive and obedient to Christ (cf. 2Co 10: 5).

The apostle Peter in his second epistle points to temperance as a virtue that should be actively pursued by Christians, so that, as Paul wrote the church in Corinth, it constitutes an essential quality for the Christian career, and can be seen in zeal that the redeemed demonstrate towards the work of Christ, controlling themselves, in order to achieve a more excellent and higher objective (1Co 9: 25-27; cf. 1Co 7: 9).

With all this, we can understand that true temperance, in fact, does not come from human nature, but, rather, is produced by the Holy Spirit in regenerated man, enabling him to self-crucifixion, that is, the power to contain himself same.

For the genuine Christian, temperance, or self-control, is much more than self-denial or superficial control, but it is full submission to the control of the Spirit. Those who walk according to the Holy Spirit are naturally temperate.

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