Dwelling in His presence

Titus 2:2 (NLT)

2 Teach the older men to exercise self-control, to be worthy of respect, and to live wisely. They must have sound faith and be filled with love and patience.

In writing to Titus, the apostle tells him that older men should exercise self-control in the things they do. For while the blood of Christ covers all sin, one should not take advantage of the grace and mercy given them, but instead be examples of wise living. Their faith should be sound and they should have the patience and love needed to encourage others.

Robert C. Roberts writes in The Reformed Journal (Feb 1987): The fruits of the Holy Spirit are, it seems to me, largely fruits of sustained interaction with God. Just as a child picks up traits more or less simply by dwelling in the presence of her parent, so the Christian develops tenderheartedness, compassion, humility, forgiveness, joy, and hope through "the fellowship of the Holy Spirit"--that is, by dwelling in the presence of God the Father and Jesus Christ his Son. And this means, to a very large extent, living in a community of serious believers.

In order to gain self-control, we must be willing to give up who we are and allow the Holy Spirit to mold us into the person God wants us to be. We can try practicing self-control on our own, but that task is a heavy burden. Many who attempt to control actions in their life eventually fail because they have held on so tight, for so long they finally let go. Jesus told us, “For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.”  We need to allow Jesus to help us carry our burdens by dwelling in the presence of God the Father and Jesus Christ his Son.