The last fruit of the Spirit is temperance. This daily devotional looks at the self-control and providence of temperance.
Nuggets
- Controlling our passions through moderation produces the order God requires.
- We must put the appropriate response on God’s provisions.
- Disciples can expect advantages for being temperate.
- While temperance shows spiritual maturity, regulation will be needed even for perfected disciples.
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Devotions in the Fruit of the Spirit from the Inside Out series
Here is that word again. We have had it before. Temperance is habitual moderation or self-control.
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Let’s look at it this time as a fruit of the Spirit.
Let's Put It into Context #1
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. The law is not against such things” (Gal. 5: 22-23 CSB)
Here is a running list of what we’ve discussed previously.
Let's Put It into Context #2
Manning grouped the last two fruits of the spirit together. He wrote, “Temperance or continence means most especially the repressing of passions — the passion of anger, the inclination to pleasure, to honour, to wealth; it is the transparent purity of the soul, and the custody Of the senses, because they are the avenues to the soul by which sin enters. Such, then, are the fruits of the Holy Spirit. Every soul that is in the grace of God has in it this fertility. It may not bear them all in equal measure, but it bears them all in some proportion.”
Resource
The Self-Control Part of Temperance
“It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age” (Ti. 1: 12 NIV)
Controlling our passions through moderation produces the order God requires.
There is a big difference between the world and God. The world thrives on chaos. It even promotes it, especially through splintering people into different divisions.
God, on the other hand, likes order. Murray explained that. He wrote, “Order has been called the first law of God. And order implies perfect control on the part of intelligence over all things within its domain.”
Resource
We’ve talked about self-controlled before. Self-control is the ability to withstand temptations by managing ourselves — our emotions, thoughts, and behaviors.
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Murray argued that the integrity of self-control is recognized when we acquire knowledge about it at the direction of God. We also see it when we dig deep into the interactions of nature and man.
Another term we use frequently is being sober. Sober is a character trait distinguished by self-control, genuineness, and sound moral judgment.
Glossary
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What do we have to have self-control over? Well, ourselves. If we don’t act with restraint and direction, we are out of control. Our behavior isn’t consistent, and we are ruled by our appetites and passions.
Sometimes, we think these appetites are purely sinful. Murray reminded us that they are natural — physical and mental.
Besides, we have to make the decision to sin. The saying, “the devil made me do it” really isn’t accurate.
It is our choice because we have free will. Free will is the ability within us to make decisions, which determine actions that produce character.
We may think the free will applies only to whether we are going to accept Hod or not. It also applies to whether we are going to commit that sin or not.
I like something else Murray said. He wrote, “Laws control the actions; but actions are only the results of emotional causes. And while the actions can be dictated to by law, can be checked — yet the emotional causes strike their roots deeper into the nature than the hand of law can reach.”
Resource
Murray’s statement has a lot of components to it. Let’s unpack it.
- We say we are governed by laws, but they aren’t always the deciding factor. If they were, there would be no murder — or speeding for that matter. Or lying.
- If emotions cause actions — and we know they do — anger and grief especially — laws do not always control actions.
- That means we need something higher than laws and emotions to help us with self-control.
- That is where God steps in.
Self-control is equated with self-mastery. I really liked the synonyms for mastery.
- Proficiency
- Capability
- Knowledge
- Comprehension
- Familiarity
- Grasp
It is not only the ability and the understanding needed for self-control. We have to have the command to do it. Command only comes through working on it.
You know, practice makes perfect.
Apply that to character. Many think that laws limit their happiness because they limit their freedom.
The opposite is the case. Lawlessness threatens their happiness.
The Providence Part of Temperance
We must put the appropriate response on God’s provisions.
Whoa! I hadn’t thought of it this way before.
Thornton wrote, “To be temperate we must use with moderation the common comforts that Providence bestows for the support of nature. The Christian must neither insult the God of providence by despising His gifts, nor provoke Him by wasting and abusing them.”
Resource
Providence is God’s acts of meeting the needs of His creation. We know that providence is one of His attributes. God’s Providence is His care of us because of His loving nature to provide.
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But don’t we say so many times, “God, don’t give me that job to do for Your kingdom.” We don’t feel qualified to do it. We don’t think we would like it.
We can have a whole laundry list of excuses why we can’t do what God wants us to do.
Hamilton said it boiled down to love. He wrote, “Temperance is love taking exercise, love enduring hardness, love seeking to become healthful and athletic, love striving for the mastery in all things, and bringing the body under.”
Resource
Hmmm. Wasn’t love the first fruit of the Spirit? Did it just come full circle on us?
Well, isn’t “… the greatest of these is love”? (I Cor. 13: 13 CSB). Isn’t the two greatest commandments based on love?
Advantages of Temperance
Disciples can expect advantages for being temperate.
There are many advantages of having temperance.
- We no longer are ruled by the curse and power of sin.
- We gain control of our sinful nature.
- We benefit others by focusing more on benevolence than supplying our our wants.
- We learn to fulfill our duties to God.
Resource
What Makes Temperance the Last Fruit?
While temperance shows spiritual maturity, regulation will be needed even for perfected disciples.
There was a reason Paul put temperance last in the list of fruits of the Spirit. Newbolt gave us a good reason. He wrote that, if we look at is as even a perfect person needs regulating and discriminating power, it would be “… as if each sense, each feeling, each power, when it has aroused its dormant energies, were moving amidst fresh possibilities of wealth and satisfaction, which needed regulating.”
That throws an interesting twist to perfection doesn’t it?
- The perfected state indicates maturity has been reached because the combination of the spiritual graces, when all are present, form spiritual wholeness or completeness.
- Spiritual graces are worldly morals that have been submitted to God to further His kingdom instead of enhancing this world.
- Perfection means we have become holy, sanctified, and righteous.
Glossary
Do we sometimes think that we won’t need this regulation once we hit the pearly gates? We think the “… we will all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye …” (I Cor. 15: 51-52 CSB) is going to take away the need for regulation.
Well, we are not only getting a new body, but a new heart. I thought that was going to take care of the imperfections and rebellion known in these bodies.
Maybe Newbolt is just talking about navigating the Sanctification Road. We are immediately perfect after conversion. We have to grow into it.
Sanctification is the transformation of mind, body, and soul, which begins with regeneration, gradually changes our nature and morals through the promptings of the Holy Spirit, and ends with perfected state of spiritual wholeness or completeness.
- Regeneration is being changed from spiritually dead to spiritually alive and the internal requickening in us that God brings about through the work of the Holy Spirit to give us new character.
- Spiritual death is the separation from God that occurred as a consequence of Adam and Eve’s original sin. The spiritually alive are those who have ABCDed, so they are no longer separated from God.
The ABCDs of Salvation
If you have not become a believer in Christ, please read through the
Plan of Salvation and prayerfully consider what God is asking you to do.
A – admit our sins
B – believe His Son Jesus is our Redeemer
C – confess God as Sovereign Lord
D – demonstrate that commitment by making any changes needed in our lives to
live the way in which God has called us
The Disciple’s Job Description
Glossary
Making the Connections
Shipley said that temperance was all about self-mastery. He said it wasn’t about when things were hitting the mountaintop experience. He said in all circumstances.
Resource
That is logical for the last fruit. If we are looking at the fruits in terms of progression, the last one will be right before the perfection kicks in. It is when we are the closest to imitating God.
All of the self’s are included.
- Self-control
- Self-mastery
- Self-regulation
- Self-restraint
- Self-denial
How Do We Apply This?
- Maintain a pure heart.
- Focus on God, not the chaos of the world.
- Watch the company we keep.
- Use and improve our talents.
- Focus on realizing spiritual and divine blessings.
- Follow the Holy Spirit even more.
Resource
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What do you think?
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