Supply to Your Knowledge Self-Control – ??????

[Bible Speaks]

Supply to Your Knowledge Self-Control

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“Supply . . . to your knowledge self-control.”—2 PETER 1:5-8.

Self-control, which includes the ability to say no, is mentioned at 2 Peter 1:5-7 along with faith, virtue, knowledge, endurance, godly devotion, brotherly affection, and love. 

None of these other desirable qualities are wholly inborn. They must be cultivated. To manifest them in significant measure requires determination and effort. 

So should we expect self-control to be any easier? rue, millions of people may feel that they have no problem with self-control. 

They go about life doing as they please, knowingly or unknowingly conducting themselves in accord with the dictates of their imperfect flesh and giving little consideration to the consequences—to themselves or to others. 

The lack of ability and willingness to say no is more evident now than ever before. It is an indication that we are indeed living in “the last days” of which Paul spoke when he foretold: “Critical times hard to deal with will be here. For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, self-assuming, haughty, blasphemers, . . . without self-control.” 

Self-control is mentioned at Galatians 5:22, 23 as part of “the fruitage of the [holy] spirit.” If we manifest this quality along with “love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faith, [and] mildness,” we will be benefited greatly. Doing so will prevent us, as Peter explained, from becoming “either inactive or unfruitful” in our service to God.  

But we should not despair or condemn ourselves if we fail to display these qualities as rapidly and as fully as we would like. You have probably observed that in school one student learns more quickly than another. Or on the job one person learns a new task more quickly than fellow workers. Similarly, some learn to manifest Christian qualities more quickly than others. 

The important thing is to keep cultivating godly qualities in the best way we can. This we can do by taking full advantage of the help Jehovah provides through his Word and congregation. Speed in achieving our goal is less important than determined efforts to keep making progress. Despite being listed last in the qualities produced by the spirit, self-control is in no way less important than the others. Quite on the contrary. 

We should keep in mind that all “the works of the flesh” could be avoided if we had perfect self-control. 

Yet, imperfect humans are prone to give in to some form of “the works of the flesh . . . , fornication, uncleanness, loose conduct, idolatry, practice of spiritism, enmities, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, contentions, divisions, sects.”  We must therefore constantly put up a fight, being determined to root out negative tendencies from both heart and mind.

Lesson for today. (Gal 6:2, 5)

https://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/2003762#p5