DISCIPLINED / SELF-CONTROLLED

 

“Disciplined” means trained to be self-controlled.

“Self-control” is the ability to restrain or exercise control over one’s own impulses, desires, emotions, behavior, activities, or time.

 

1 Tim. 4:7, 8               For what purpose was Timothy to discipline/train himself?

 

Of what value/profit is physical/bodily discipline?

 

Of what value is godliness?

 

                        [Godliness holds promise of God’s blessings both for this life and the life to come.].

 

            What are some of these promises (Psa. 1:1, 3; 2 Cor. 5:10; Rev. 22:12; 1 Cor. 3:14)?

 

                        [Some other benefits/profitableness of being godly are: fellowship/harmonious relationship with God, a clear conscience, peace of mind, experiencing God’s love, good relations with other people, useful and fruitful to God – 1 Jn. 1:6; Psa. 103:17, 18; 24:3-6; 2 Pet. 1:5-8.].

 

            Are you experiencing these?                  If not, why?

 

            What are some other benefits of being godly?

 

Are you disciplining/training yourself for this purpose?                 How?

 

Since godliness is profitable, how determined, dedicated, and motivated are you to discipline yourself for the purpose of gaining godliness?

 

Are you reading, meditating upon, and memorizing God’s Word every day (Psa. 119:11, 97)?

Are you applying/obeying what the Bible teaches every day (Eph. 4:24; Phil. 2:12)?

Are you praying every day (Col. 4:2)?

Are you sharing your faith (witnessing) often (Matt. 28:19, 20)?

Are you building up and equipping spiritually other believers (Rom. 14:19; 1 Thes. 5:11; Eph. 4:11-13)?

Are you choosing as an act of your will to not give in to anger, lust, jealousy, lying, stealing, cheating, gossiping, being prideful, etc. (Rom. 13:14; 1 Thes. 5:22; Psa. 119:101)?

Are you setting specific goals for yourself in different areas so that you’re at least on the path to changing and working on things that need to be improved, such as being more: patient, loving, kind, generous, joyful, faithful, humble, selfless, etc. (Gal. 5:22, 23; 2 Tim. 2:22)?

What are your priorities in life, and are they the same ones as the Bible teaches, such as living a holy life (1 Pet. 1:15) and/or evangelizing the spiritually lost (Phil. 2:2 with 1:27)?

Do you have a daily, weekly, and monthly schedule with due dates as to when you want to both do and accomplish each goal (e.g., Jn. 17:4; 7:8; Psa. 90:12)?

Are you staying away from bad influences (1 Cor. 15:33) and surrounding yourself with good influences (2 Tim. 2:22)?

Are you choosing as an act of your will to be Spirit-filled/influenced, led and enabled by God’s Holy Spirit (Eph. 5:18)?

Are you accountable to a godly Christian to check up on you to see how you’re doing, so as to be encouraged or reproved by that person (Prov. 27:17)?

Or, are you being trained and taught by a godly Christian, so as to learn from and imitate that person, as Timothy did (2 Tim. 3:10) and others were told to do (Heb. 13:7; Phil. 3:17; 4:9)?

 

2 Tim. 1:7       The spirit or mind-set (or the Holy Spirit or our human spirit provided by the Holy Spirit) of what, did God give us Christians?

 

Are you utilizing (exercising, applying, putting into practice) the spirit or mind-set of self-discipline that God has given you as a Christian (through the Holy Spirit, Gal. 5:22, 23; 4:6)?

If so, how in each of the following areas:

Appetites

Moods

Time

Finances

Sex

Speech

Emotions

Attitudes

Motives

Physically

 

Gal. 5:22, 23               From where does the fruit/quality of self-control come?

 

Are you filled/controlled/influenced/led and enabled by the Holy Spirit (Eph. 5:18), so that you can have this quality of “self-control” available at any and all times to use in your life?

 

If not, will you ask God right now (1 Jn. 5:14, 15) to fill/control you with His Holy Spirit (Eph. 5:18)?

 

1 Cor. 9:24-27                        Who goes into strict training and exercises self-control (vs. 25)?

 

Why do they do that?

 

And why should we?

 

Are you exercising self-control over your bodily appetites for food (gluttony, Prov. 23:20, 21), alcohol (drunkenness, Eph. 5:18), illicit drugs (lusts of the flesh, 1 Jn. 2:15, 16), and illicit sex (immorality, Eph. 5:3), so as to not disqualify (vs. 27) yourself for the prize (rewards) in heaven?

 

If so, how are you going about doing so specifically?

 

One way of disciplining ourselves is by having self-control over our thoughts. How do we do that according to 2 Cor. 10:5?

Are you examining and discarding wrong thoughts?         If so, how?

And according to 1 Pet. 1:13?

[“sober in spirit” means to be free from the influence of toxicants (poisonous ideas, philosophies, attitudes, etc.), which can include alcohol, drugs, and/or worldly/anti-biblical: music, TV, movies, literature, education, etc.].

Are you disciplined in your thought life by being alert to the things you allow yourself to watch and listen to?

 

2 Pet. 1:5, 6, 8            Because Christians have been given the divine enablement (vss. 3, 4) at conversion of a new/divine nature to live virtuously, we are to make every effort to add to our faith, excellence/goodness, and knowledge, what?

 

Are you adding, as an act of your will, self-control to your Christian life/character?           If so, how?

 

And is this character trait increasing (vs. 8) progressively?          If so, how?

 

Titus 1:7, 8                 Self-control must be a quality that who possesses?

 

Why do you think this quality is required for overseers/elders to have consistent­ly?

 

How diligently are you going to make self-control a character trait in your life?

Why?

Do you respect people who are disciplined/self-controlled?                       Why?

 

Do you respect people who aren’t disciplined/self-controlled?                   Why?