LEARNING DAILY

 

Proverb 25:28, Whoever has no rule over his own spirit is like a city with broken down walls.

 

Ouch! Dr. Ed Newton mentioned this proverb in his message the past weekend. I wish I had not heard; I wish I had not written it down in my notes because it has been on my mind. It describes so much of my life. Oh, I used to tell my student athletes to be disciplined in both their studies and on the court or playing field. Discipline yourself! I was pretty good at pointing that finger but forgot I had several pointing right back at me. If I had been more disciplined to say no to myself when temptation showed its ugly head, I would have been a whole lot better in my walk on the narrow way.

 

The walls of a city were an essential part of the defense of that city. Strong walls, several feet thick would be a strong defense against an enemy. Enemies would lay siege to the city, use battering rams and many other devices built to break down the wall to gain access to the city.

This proverb refers to not only a city that has broken down walls but a city that has walls that are broken through. Don’t you know that a city with broken down walls is vulnerable to attack by all sorts of enemies. You have seen the movies that show the enemies breaking into the city and begins to kill, destroy and do whatever it wants to the city. That is exactly what happens to the person who lacks self-control. The enemy of our soul, sin and worldly “stuff” is constantly looking for breaks in every Christian to break into their life and create havoc with their walk on the narrow way. When that happens, the person can be controlled by their sinful nature or the old self (the person one was before accepting Jesus Christ as their Savior).

 

Self-control is a fruit of the Spirit. Like other fruit, self-control does not come by saying one is going to have self-control and then just get it. It comes from doing our best to walk following the Holy Spirit’s guidance and keeping our eyes focused on Jesus. You remember what happened to Peter when he got out of the boat but took his eyes off Jesus! John 15:3 tells us to abide in Jesus as a branch must abide in the vine. That is a fundamental truth of being a Christian – be connected to Jesus all of the time.  By the way, all of the fruits of the Spirit are produced in this way!

 

Strong leaders planned for the attacks of their enemies. They knew that even with their efforts to protect themselves, they knew the attacks would come. Stronger enemies would continue their attacks for a great length of time. They would either be successful in their attempts to breakdown, break through the walls; if unsuccessful or if they were defeated, they would leave. Jerusalem was often attacked by enemies until God brought them defeat or caused them to leave according to His plan. The key is God was with them when the king turned to Him for strength and help (often repenting of sins first).

 

I am finally learning to strengthen my resolve to mature in saying no and to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit when He says don’t go there or don’t do that. To not do so, is to lack self-control and to fall to temptation. Just as the city who built strong walls does not make an enemy leave, building self-control (as a wall) does not guarantee temptation will leave me alone. But it does help me resist temptation until it passes or is forced to leave. You must remember that the enemy, Satan, will attack us at our weakest points. That may or may not be different for each of us. 1 Peter 5:8 reminds us that the devil is an adversary who is always looking for someone to devour. To combat the temptation(s) he sends our ways each of us must discipline ourselves and keep ourselves under control; we do that by self-disciple (1 Corinthians 9:27).

 

Self-control is something we all deal with. Be honest. It is not something we really want to discuss but it is a matter of choosing to follow God’s standard of walking on the narrow way to eternal life with Him in His kingdom. We can live the way He desires by diligently desiring to follow Him and seeking His help to do so.