Last, but not certainly least, is the quality of
self-control (The 9th Fruit Of The Holy Spirit). This one is
huge, and I mean huge! Once you start to enter into a true
sanctification process with the Lord - expect the Holy
Spirit to move in on you very early with this specific
quality.
The reason for this is that we all have a certain amount of
character flaws operating in our personalities. There are
some bad and negative qualities that will have to go.
The Bible tells us that our spirits and our flesh will war
against each other in this life. Our flesh wants immediate
self-gratification at all costs and will stop at nothing to
try and get it. Our spirits know that some of our fleshly
desires are not right for us and as a result, there will be
a tug of war between the two - and sometimes it will be a
major tug of war. And the only thing that will be able to
curb and control some of the desires of our flesh is the
quality of self-control.
Since we all live in a very self-centred and materialistic
type world today, many people have very poor impulse
control. If they see something they immediately want, they
will do anything they can to try and get it. They will not
be denied until they get what they are going after.
These people are obviously very weak in the quality of
self-control. They are ruled by their own flesh rather than
by the Holy Spirit. That is why the Bible tells us that if
we learn how to really walk in the Holy Spirit, then we will
not fulfil the lusts of our flesh.
Due to our fallen and sinful natures, all of us are weak to
some degree in the quality of self-control (The 9th Fruit Of
The Holy Spirit). This is why God the Father made sure to
have this fruit listed as one of the 9 fruits of His Holy
Spirit. We all need God's self-control operating in our
lives and in our personalities if we are going to have any
hope in getting cleaned up and properly sanctified to the
degree that He would like to get us to in this life.
If you don't have God's self-control operating through you -
you will have very little victory over such things as bad
tempers, judgmental and critical spirits, an unforgiving
spirit, and vices such as smoking and the abuse of alcohol.
Once the Holy Spirit starts this sanctification process with
you - be prepared for some major battles and tug of wars
with Him once He starts coming after some of the negative
qualities operating in your personality.
But if you are willing to yield to Him and allow Him to
start to work all 9 of these fruits into your personality -
then you will find yourself starting to grow in ways and in
areas that you never thought were possible in this life. His
supernatural power in this area will blow you away once you
see how far He can really take you to become the person that
God would like you to become in Him in this lifetime.
Here are some of the definitions of what the quality of
self-control (The 9th Fruit Of The Holy Spirit) is all
about:
Temperance, rational restraint of natural impulses
Sober, temperate, calm and dispassionate approach to life,
having mastered personal desires and passions
Calls for a self-disciplined life following Christ's example
of being in the world but not of the world
Restraint or discipline exercised over one's behaviour
The above definitions perfectly describe what God is looking
for once He starts to work and transmit this quality up into
our personalities. This specific quality is one of the major
keys in being able to get any kind of victory over some of
the lusts and desires of our flesh.
About The Author:
Article written by Michael Bradley, you can get the complete
article on the fruit of the Spirit at
http://www.bible-knowledge.com - and get 20% off retail on
all Christian books at his online bookstore at
http://www.bibleknowledgebookstore.com
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