THE DISCIPLINED LIFE

Christ was sent in human form to carry out the will of the Father.   Being holy, sinless and perfect, He set the example for us to follow knowing that at the end of His mission He would have to suffer and die for us.   The way that He was treated He could have called 12 legions of angels to the rescue.   After all, He is the Son of God.   But He didn’t.   He could have aborted the mission at any time.   But He didn’t.   Our redemption was His sole objective and it took enormous restraint not to give up.   His self-control exhibits His desire not only to please God but to do what is good and beneficial for us.

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.”    (Galatians 5: 22-23)    As Christians, our responses to situations are guided by the Fruit of the Spirit just as Jesus did.   Self-control/temperance is often a matter of responding rather than reacting.   When we react we let our emotions take control.   We are more likely to become defensive and say hurtful things.   When we respond, it involves developing a thoughtful response that is guided by reason.   You tend to think logically, lovingly before you respond.

Temperance is the ability to pursue what is important rather than being impulsive or uncontrolled.   Self-control regulates our behavior to where we have dominion over our natural inclinations and appetites.   When we cannot control our actions and emotions, we are more likely to make poor choices and experience negative and harmful consequences.   The virtue of self-control, moderation and restraint is knowing when to indulge and when to refrain.   We all have personal desires and passions but excessive indulgence in any particular thing that keeps us unfruitful is harmful to our spirit.   “He that hath no rule over his own spirit is like a city that is broken down, and without walls.”   (Proverbs 25: 28)   Your spirit is vulnerable and defenseless leaving the devil open to attack.

One of our biggest problems in our Christian life is the lack of zeal.   It’s about having enthusiasm, passion, a strong desire to serve God to advance His Kingdom every possible way and to please Him wholeheartedly and willingly.   It is being motivated, unrelenting in service and devotion to God.   Being zealous inspires us to persevere through hard challenges.   It motivates us to achieve the goal of victory.   It also impels us to sacrifice some things to deny ourselves of certain things in order to work for the Kingdom and to honor our Father and Savior.   If we ever find ourselves in a situation similar to Paul and Silas, who were beaten and put into prison, let us pray and praise God until He answers us with power.   “And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them.   And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken:  and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one's bands were loosed.   And the keeper of the prison awaking out of his sleep, and seeing the prison doors open, he drew out his sword, and would have killed himself, supposing that the prisoners had been fled.  But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm:  for we are all here.   Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas,   And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved?   And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.”   (Acts 16: 25-31)

The story of David and Goliath is about a young zealous shepherd boy who defeats a Philistine giant through his faith in God.   What seemed impossible to Saul and the men at the battle was a huge victory to David because he had already slain a lion and a bear.   “And David said unto Saul, Thy servant kept his father's sheep, and there came a lion, and a bear, and took a lamb out of the flock:   And I went out after him, and smote him, and delivered it out of his mouth: and when he arose against me, I caught him by his beard, and smote him, and slew him.   Thy servant slew both the lion and the bear:  and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be as one of them, seeing he hath defied the armies of the living God.   David said moreover, The LORD that delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, he will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine.   And Saul said unto David, Go, and the LORD be with thee.”   (1 Samuel 17: 34-37)

David’s courage, bravery and reliance on God rather than on his own strength would prove that we can trust in God.   But ….. years later, David would lose his self-control, his discipline and look at a married woman, have an affair with her, cause her husband to be killed and to lose a baby to the disobedience of lack of control.   He didn’t discipline himself to resist the urge to look at a married woman.

Self-control is essential for living a godly, righteous life.   Self-control helps us to resist temptations and avoid conforming to the things of the world.   Passionate people seek for God’s will to be done.   They promote the things of God with daily habits of seeking His ways at all costs and forsaking all sin to gain the promises that God has given so freely.   “And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.  If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.”   (Galatians 5: 24-25)    The story of the Jericho wall emphasizes the importance of faith, trust and obedience to God’s commands in achieving victory.   They were to march around the wall quietly for a specific period, in a particular way for seven days.   Imagine the discipline it took to be quiet, knowing that on the seventh day they were going on to possess the city and the promised land.   “And ye shall compass the city, all ye men of war, and go round about the city once.  Thus shalt thou do six days.   And seven priests shall bear before the ark seven trumpets of rams' horns:  and the seventh day ye shall compass the city seven times, and the priests shall blow with the trumpets.   And it shall come to pass, that when they make a long blast with the ram's horn, and when ye hear the sound of the trumpet, all the people shall shout with a great shout; and the wall of the city shall fall down flat, and the people shall ascend up every man straight before him.   And Joshua had commanded the people, saying, Ye shall not shout, nor make any noise with your voice, neither shall any word proceed out of your mouth, until the day I bid you shout;  then shall ye shout.   And it came to pass on the seventh day, that they rose early about the dawning of the day, and compassed the city after the same manner seven times:  only on that day they compassed the city seven times.   And it came to pass at the seventh time, when the priests blew with the trumpets, Joshua said unto the people, Shout;  for the LORD hath given you the city.   So the people shouted when the priests blew with the trumpets:  and it came to pass, when the people heard the sound of the trumpet, and the people shouted with a great shout, that the wall fell down flat, so that the people went up into the city, every man straight before him, and they took the city.   And they utterly destroyed all that was in the city, both man and woman, young and old, and ox, and sheep, and ass, with the edge of the sword.”    (Joshua 6: 3-5, 10, 15-16 & 20-21)

We prepare for triggers that come to upset our peace and our zeal by managing our impulses and emotions.   God saves us from the penalty of sin and death by the blood of His beloved Son.   His Word teaches us, trains us, directly empowers and enables us to live godly lives.   “For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men,  Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world;  Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;  Who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto Himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.  These things speak, and exhort, and rebuke with all authority.   Let no man despise thee.”    (Titus 2: 11-15)     “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.”    (Ephesians 2: 10)  

We do the right things for the right reasons.   “He that is slow to wrath is of great understanding:  but he that is hasty of spirit exalteth folly.”   (Proverbs 14: 29)   We understand that sin has a penalty when we engage in it.   The sinful nature is what leads us to give in to the tempter, Satan himself.   Life isn’t what is given, it’s what you create, what you overcome and what you achieve in God.   It can be the most beautiful life or the most hectic.   We resist temptations, don’t succumb to it.   God is fair when He deals with us and He is gracious to those who obey and live to honor Him.   Everything is worked out, our needs are met, our heartaches eased and the provision is ready:  fully, completely, perfectly in Him, with Him, by Him.   Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, who refused to comply with the King’s decree to bow down and worship the golden image, would usher in none other than God Himself into their situation demonstrating that even in the fire God is there too.   They had the power of self-control to know that with God nothing shall be impossible.   “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, answered and said to the king, O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful to answer thee in this matter.    If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us out of thine hand, O king.   But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.  Therefore because the king's commandment was urgent, and the furnace exceeding hot, the flame of the fire slew those men that took up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego.   And these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, fell down bound into the midst of the burning fiery furnace.   Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was astonied, and rose up in haste, and spake, and said unto his counsellers, Did not we cast three men bound into the midst of the fire?  They answered and said unto the king, True, O king.   He answered and said, Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt;  and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God.”    (Daniel 3: 16-18 & 22-25)

“For God hath not given us the spirit of fear;  but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.”   (2 Timothy 1: 7)    A sound, disciplined mind is what Jonah needed when he chose to disobey God trying to flee from the presence of God which landed him inside the belly of a whale (translated great fish).   And David caused all kinds of heartache for not only himself but also for his family for his adulterous affair with Bathsheba.   Samson’s life was cut short due to his disobedience by getting involved with Delilah.   And, of course, Adam and Eve made the biggest mistake of them all.   They had each other.   Someone should have been sober to help the other one out.   Both were at fault, both were disobedient and both were punished.   They lacked self-discipline, the ability to control their thoughts, feelings and actions to follow the rules and adhere to the set of standards that God had set in place.   They made a conscious decision to eat of the forbidden fruit that they were warned about.   The instant gratification of the flesh is now regulated by negative influences, temptations, impulses and poor decisions.

How many times has God forgiven us?   His Word must be strongly fixed in our hearts and minds that it become the dominant influence in our thoughts, attitudes and actions.   Our godly character is an outward reflection of an inward connection.   Perfect example:  Joseph!   God was with him and had blessed him to be prosperous in so much that his master took notice.   “And his master saw that the LORD was with him, and that the LORD made all that he did to prosper in his hand.   And Joseph found grace in his sight, and he served him:  and he made him overseer over his house, and all that he had he put into his hand.   And he left all that he had in Joseph's hand; and he knew not ought he had, save the bread which he did eat.   And Joseph was a goodly person, and well favoured.”   (Genesis 39: 3, 4 & 6)   But everywhere we go we have demons to contend with, including Joseph.   “And it came to pass after these things, that his master's wife cast her eyes upon Joseph;  and she said, Lie with me.   But he refused, and said unto his master's wife, Behold, my master wotteth (knoweth) not what is with me in the house, and he hath committed all that he hath to my hand;  There is none greater in this house than I;  neither hath he kept back any thing from me but thee, because thou art his wife:  how then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?   (Genesis 39: 7-9)    Day by day she was in hot pursuit of Joseph and daily his heart and focus remained on God.   He disciplined himself to not adhere to her advances.   His strong will to please God outweighed the pleasure of sin for a season.   But she had a plan that would get him put into prison for a while.  But God!   Joseph went through hard trials but God favored him.   He overcame everything sent to distract and destroy him.   But God blessed him.   His zeal to please God landed him as ruler over all the land of Egypt.   It was designed by God all for His people who trusted in Him. 

Life will not always be comfortable or easy but we have been warned to be watchful and to anticipate obstacles and hardships.   God’s constant presence, His faithful support and knowing that His Word is true and His rewards are certain will help us to persevere and come out victoriously.

God is always near us.   “The eyes of the LORD are upon the righteous, and His ears are open unto their cry.  The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.”   (Psalm 34: 18 & 18)    He is in the blessings, miracles and our answered prayers.   When He is silent He is even in our waiting, the seeking, asking, hard times, valleys, lonely times and in our surrendering to Him.   He is faithful to answer our prayers.   Sometimes His answer is a much desired “YES” or a merciful “NO”.   It could be a faith-building “NOT YET” and sometimes when an answer cannot be found His answer is simply “TRUST ME”.   Prophetic word that God speaks to us are weapons of warfare to actually help us come into the promise that God has given us so that we don’t become discouraged by the longevity of the time it takes for the manifestation of that word.   So in our waiting, Lord help us to be glad and cheerful in spirit.   When things don’t go our way, give us the courage to do whatever it takes to be done in the waiting period.    

There is coming a separating between the genuine and the counterfeit.   The Lord calls us to separate ourselves from the distractions of the world and submit to His will.   He is examining our hearts and intentions.   This separation process will bring a distinction between those who walk in the flesh or in the Spirit.   Authentic sons and daughters will be revealed.

Our days are filled with so many challenges and trials to overcome.   It is vitally important to discipline the flesh and spend time with God.   Discipline yourself to: 

(1)  Prayer, praise and worship;   

(2)  Systematic reading of scripture from Genesis to Revelation over and over.   

(3)  In the company you keep. 

(4)  In your speech and how you talk.  

(5)  Committing yourself to His service when you rise up and when you go to bed.

This is war!   Playtime is over!   You win in Jesus or you lose to Satan and everything he has waiting for you.   You were created for a special purpose with a perfect plan of salvation.   Earnestly seek God to do your part through prayer.   Whatever you do, do it with love with the best of your ability and for the glory of God.   And as you discipline yourself, God will do His part to guide you on the best pathway of your life.

This life is about Jesus.   For us humans it’s an everyday battle against the world, the flesh and the devil.   It’s about submitting to the Creator.   He knows about our struggles and how our trials feel like hell on earth.   But faith isn’t proven like gold until it has been through the fire.   He knows when there are days when a praise comes out easy and there are days when it takes all the strength you’ve got.   But still we press and say God is good.

So we thank Him for all He has permitted, prevented, withdrawn, withheld and forgiven us of and delivered us from.   With each new day we receive new grace, new favor and new blessings.   With all of that we should have a new mindset, new focus, new intentions with new and better results.

Lord, let my thoughts exalt You, my words please You, my life honor You and my heart worship You because You are so incredibly good to us.   God, You have been patient and gracious, faithful whatever I’m feeling or facing.   IT IS WELL!  HALLELUJAH!