What we need to understand about the issue of self-discipline …

It’s simple to understand that if we’re either ignorant, uninformed, or misinformed about something, we’ll not understand it or will misunderstand it.

But we’re also very good at twisting what we understand but don’t like.

Whatever the reason, there’s great misunderstanding when it comes to issue of self-discipline.

Like many things among those who profess to follow Jesus, we tend to be on one end of extremes when it comes to this very important subject of self-discipline. There are those who misunderstand self-discipline to think anything accomplished in themselves and in life can only be done through radical exertion of self-discipline.

That’s an easy bubble of untruth to burst, which I’ll do in a minute.

The other end of the spectrum are the “hyper grace” types who say God has to do everything, so there’s no reason to exert yourself.

Also grossly untrue.

Here’s the deal: the issue of self-discipline isn’t so hard to understand.

When it comes to issues such as salvation or transformation, scripture is clear there’s nothing we can do to save ourselves from sin or to transform ourselves from sinner to saint and fix your broken relationship with God. There’s no level of self-discipline that can accomplish those things, only God can do that work in our lives.

But scripture also makes very clear that our lives are a partnership with God. He has no interest or intention in thinking for us, or turning us into robots to force specific behavior from us. But He offers to save us by reconciling us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and to transform us into the likeness of His Son. But while He does that, He expects us to cooperate and partner with Him by contributing to the change He wants to see happen in our lives. To enable us to make our contribution, God has gifted us with some power and the ability to apply self-discipline to be used from the motivation of love:

“For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline,” 2 Timothy 1:7.

So let’s connect the dots here so we can understand something very important about the subject of self-discipline, with this insight:

There’s no level of self-discipline that is satisfactory, but there’s definitely such a thing as too little self-discipline.

There’s no level of self-discipline that is satisfactory because the greatest exertion of self-discipline cannot achieve in our lives the standard God requires of us (to be like Jesus). But with that said, there’s certainly such a thing as too little self-discipline, which is to fail to do our part to daily walk with God in the footsteps of Jesus.

We can do that. God has enabled us to be able to do our part.

Read the New Testament and you’ll see everyone from Jesus to the writers of the New Testament epistles telling us to change this, do that, stop doing something, take on, put off, etc. — things that we CAN (and should) do because God hasn’t given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.

Living life was always intended to be a partnership with God. His part is what we rely on, He holds our very lives in His hands and we are utterly, fully dependent on Him. But He wants and expects us to contribute to our lives by exercising self-discipline in choosing to be faithful and obedient to His will and way for us.

When you come to understand that there’s no level of self-discipline that is satisfactory, but there certainly is such a thing as too little self-discipline, then you’ll be able to understand not everything relies on you (you don’t have that kind of power), but God isn’t going to do everything for you, you’ve got effort to exert, decisions to make, and a life to live.

You’ll do it best by a consistent exercise of self-discipline.

Scotty