Self-Control with Blair Linne
On today’s episode, we’re wrapping up our series on the fruit of the Spirit! We hope you’ve found yourself convicted, challenged, and encouraged all the way through! These episodes on love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, and faithfulness have laid out how the fruit of the Spirit passage in Galatians 5 really summaries true, gospel-living. Today is no different! We’re chatting with Blair Linne on the topic of self-control, in which we find ourselves pointed back to the cross yet again. Blair Linne is a wife and mom of three. She is a Spoken Word poet, Bible teacher, and author. She is the Director of Women’s Ministries at her church, Risen Christ Fellowship, in Philadelphia, where her husband is one of the founding pastors.
Can you tell us a little about who you are and what you do?
What is self-control? What is the purpose of it?
Why on earth is this such a struggle for us?
What are some particular ways Scripture says we might be wrestling with this? Where else do we see Scripture admonishing us to practice self-control?
What's a girl to do when she feels like she's continually failing in this area?
For those of us who struggle--which, if we're honest, is every single one of us--what hope do we have?
Who is it that enables us to be self-controlled?
How does this particular fruit work together with the other fruit of the Spirit that we see in this passage?
Do you think there's any particular reason Paul ends this famous list of the fruit of the Spirit with this particular attribute?
As we move on from this series, how can we discern the difference between keeping in step with the Spirit’s work in our lives and laboring in our own strengths and abilities?
THREE QUESTIONS I ASK EVERY GUEST
What 3 resources would you recommend for someone who wants to learn more about self-control, the fruit of the Spirit in general, or the book of Galatians?
What are your 3 simple joys?
Who has had the greatest impact on your own journey with Jesus?
NOTEWORTHY QUOTES
“When I think of self-control I think of self-restraint, but even more it’s when the Spirit of God constrains our flesh so that we are able to walk in the Spirit with this habitual moderation. That translates into our thoughts, our actions, our words, and our feelings. It’s telling our sinful passions ‘no’ while telling the Holy Spirit ‘yes.’”
“The purpose of self-control is Christlikeness. It’s walking in reality of our union with Christ. Galatians 2:20 where Paul says ‘I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.’ The gospel is there. It’s no longer us who lives, but it’s Christ who lives in us. At one time, that wasn’t the case. At one time, we had no self-control, we were dead in our sins and transgressions.”
“Jesus Christ lived a perfectly self-controlled life.”
“We are now able to live a new life. Part of that is bearing fruit, bearing the fruit of a self-controlled, Spirit-filled life. The very concept of self-control tells us there is a battle happening between the flesh and the Spirit.”
“Areas we might wrestle with self-control: gluttony, drunkenness, thoughts and our emotions.”
“Self-control should define us. There should be a distinction in us because we have the Holy Spirit inside of us.”
“Pray and ask the Lord for help [when you feel like you’re failing]. He understands and knows what we are going through.”
“Ask the Lord to give you a heart to confess your sin, wherever it is. Ask the Lord to give you a heart of repentance. I can be quick to confess, but not quick to repent.”
“The fact that we are filled with the Spirit, we are walking in the Spirit, we are able to bear fruit in line with the Spirit. It’s not these individual things. When I’m lacking in self-control, you see evidence of crumbling throughout my life. It’s not just one little area.”
“Our hope is in God. In the gospel, we can be honest, we don’t have to hide. He called us while we were yet sinners. He knew we would struggle with sin, so we don’t have to hide. We can go to him with all of our burdens and all of our cares. Because he loves us, he hears us. He started the work, and he will complete the work.”
“God is going to finish the work he started in us. We should not be discouraged.”
“We’ve been adopted into his family. Keep going back to your father and ask for what you need.”
“God’s grace is sufficient for us.”
“God is working in us to allow us to be self-controlled. From the moment the father chose us, Jesus redeemed us, and the Holy Spirit has in-dwelt us. Because of our faith in God, we are able to be fruitful.”
“We can’t run after the virtues, we have to run after God.”
“God is our aim, he is our goal, not just these virtues. As a result of getting God, we receive the fruit as a result.”
“We all should be bearing all of the fruit.”
“What our aim is, what our motive is for why we are doing what we are doing. I think it makes all the difference. The challenge is we don’t even know what’s happening in our hearts. We have to go to God to even see what is happening in our hearts.”
“Freedom comes in Christ and in the gospel.”
RESOURCES
God is the Gospel by John Piper
Your Future Self Will Thank You by Drew Dyck
Refresh by Shona and David Murray
His Testimonies, My Heritage: Women of Color on the Word of God
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
What is self-control?
What is the object of your faith? What do you find yourself seeking?
Where are you struggling with self-control?
What would it look like to confess, repent, and run to God for forgiveness?
What will abiding in Christ look like for you this week?
SCRIPTURE MEMORY
“I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” Galatians 2:20
IMPORTANT NOTE
Journeywomen interviews are intended to serve as a springboard for continued study in the context of your local church. While we carefully select guests each week, interviews do not imply Journeywomen's endorsement of all writings and positions of the interviewee or any other resources mentioned.
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