We have Power, Love, and Self-Control

Fear often holds us back.  Holding back can be a good thing, like when it comes to not running out in the street or being afraid to touch a hot stove.  However, holding back is often not what God wants us to do.  Fear can have us not talk to people about Christ.  It can hinder what we do for Christ.  It even can have us doubting God on the choices we make.  The Israelites were afraid to go into the promised land and then afraid again when Goliath came against them.  Great leaders and authorities are not exempt from fear either.  It was fear that got to Peter after Jesus was arrested.  Moses had fear about how he spoke and so God appointed his brother to speak for him.  Abraham was fearful as he went into the land of Egypt and told everyone that his wife was his sister. 

I was studying in my Bible and I recently came across a verse we probably all know, but that I read and applied anew.  The verse was 2 Timothy 1:7 "For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, and love, and self-control." (Marshall Translation) This got me thinking again about the two sides in this verse.  One side is fear and the other side is things that overcome fear.  It also made me think about stories in the Bible.

How many times in the Bible has God used power, love, and self-control to accomplish His end?  David came with power and self-control against Goliath.  Nehemiah not afraid of the surrounding people, but came with power to accomplish God's plan.  Joseph had self-control with Potifer's wife.  David had self-control not to kill King Saul. 

I thought about the good fears and the bad fears we all have. I sat and pondered the fear that holds us back and the choices we make because of them.  I then returned to the Scriptures to see what God has given us to overcome that fear.  We have power, love, and self-control.  I found myself reading these over and over.  Do I really have power?  I know that the word of God is powerful, but this is talking about the power that God has given us.  We have power.  We see from the context that we have the power to do the will of God (through the use of our gifts) and the power to give a testimony of our Lord.  Power is an interesting thing, but my eyes moved on to love and self-control.  Love, I remembered that the Bible talks about love and fear together in another passage and they were opposites.  Two forces that opposed one another. The verse is 1 John 4:18 "There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love" (NASB) After reading this verse my first thought was, if I fear, I am looking at the bad things that could happen (punishments) instead of looking to my relationship with God (perfect love).

Finally we come to the last word in the verse: self-control.  We know that it takes self-control or discipline to live our life for God.  Self-control could go hand in hand with perseverance or endurance.  Self-control is mastering yourself and being able to control yourself even in the light of fear.  Self-control by definition has you controlling yourself not fear controlling you.   This is yet an other tool we can use to overcome fear that can hold us back.  We have power, love, and self-control; each of which can overcome fear, but together, provide a knock-out punch to our fears.  I hope you have learned and applied as much as I have.  God Bless.  Lean on Christ and search the Scripture to find out how we can be more like Him. 

VitaPastor,
Marshall


Copyright 2012 Marshall

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