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The Beauty of Self-Control
All of life should be beautiful. God is a God of beauty, and he never created anything that was not beautiful. When Paul names the qualities of character that every Christian should strive to attain, he includes “whatsoever things are lovely.” Nothing less than beautiful should be allowed into the life of any Christian. We should always strive to live beautifully. Marden points to the signs of a character in “when you are satisfied with mediocrity, when the commonplace does not trouble you, when scorned work no longer haunts you.”
Self-control is one of the most beautiful things in life. It is not a single trait of character but a force that touches every other trait, binding them all into one. In one of Paul's lists of the qualities of a noble character, he names love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, faithfulness, and gentleness, ending with self-control. Self-control is self-mastery. It is sovereignty over the whole of life. At the center of your being, you yourself sit enthroned, and your seat should be a throne. If you lack control, if there are rebellious forces within your nature that refuse to acknowledge your rule, then you are not the king you ought to be. Part of your kingdom is in revolt. The strength of your life is divided. The truly strong man is the one whose entire being answers to him.
Perfect self-control is the ideal life. Picture a man driving a team of spirited as long as he holds the reins and the horses obey his slightest touch, all goes well. But if the animals grow unruly, champ at the bit, and stop answering to his command, straying from his guidance, he has lost control. A man possesses true self-control when he sits firmly in his place, holding every rein of his life in his own hands. His self-control is genuine when he has complete mastery over his temper, his speech, his feelings, and his appetites—when he can remain calm under insult and injury, deeply wounded yet showing no trace of malice, patient and composed under harsh provocation, able to stand in the midst of temptation without giving in.
When insulted, a man may erupt in a fit of rage, becoming a “son of thunder” in the heat of his anger. But that is not strength. The truly strong man is the one who, when wronged, remains silent, offers no retort, his cheeks pale with restraint, showing no resentment while still holding love in his heart. As the Wise One put “He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city.”
Self-control is one of the most beautiful things in life. It is not a single trait of character but a force that touches every other trait, binding them all into one. In one of Paul's lists of the qualities of a noble character, he names love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, faithfulness, and gentleness, ending with self-control. Self-control is self-mastery. It is sovereignty over the whole of life. At the center of your being, you yourself sit enthroned, and your seat should be a throne. If you lack control, if there are rebellious forces within your nature that refuse to acknowledge your rule, then you are not the king you ought to be. Part of your kingdom is in revolt. The strength of your life is divided. The truly strong man is the one whose entire being answers to him.
Perfect self-control is the ideal life. Picture a man driving a team of spirited as long as he holds the reins and the horses obey his slightest touch, all goes well. But if the animals grow unruly, champ at the bit, and stop answering to his command, straying from his guidance, he has lost control. A man possesses true self-control when he sits firmly in his place, holding every rein of his life in his own hands. His self-control is genuine when he has complete mastery over his temper, his speech, his feelings, and his appetites—when he can remain calm under insult and injury, deeply wounded yet showing no trace of malice, patient and composed under harsh provocation, able to stand in the midst of temptation without giving in.
When insulted, a man may erupt in a fit of rage, becoming a “son of thunder” in the heat of his anger. But that is not strength. The truly strong man is the one who, when wronged, remains silent, offers no retort, his cheeks pale with restraint, showing no resentment while still holding love in his heart. As the Wise One put “He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city.”
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