Mastering Money: The Power of Self-Control

Devotional

Day 1: Mastering Self-Control for Financial Freedom

Our self-control determines whether we control our money or it controls us. Financial pressure often stems from poor management rather than insufficient income. By exercising self-control, we can ensure that money serves us rather than masters us. Jesus spoke extensively about money, not because it is inherently evil, but because it often becomes the chief competitor for our hearts and devotion. He emphasized that money can add meaning to our lives, but it is not the meaning of life itself.

When we lack self-control, we may find ourselves in a cycle of financial stress and anxiety, constantly feeling like we never have enough. However, by practicing self-control, we can break free from this cycle and use our resources wisely. This not only alleviates financial pressure but also aligns our financial habits with our spiritual values. [03:48]

Proverbs 25:28 (ESV): "A man without self-control is like a city broken into and left without walls."

Reflection: In what areas of your financial life do you struggle with self-control? How can you take practical steps today to manage your resources better?

Day 2: Money as a Means, Not an End

Money can add meaning to our lives, but it is not the meaning of life. True meaning comes when we use money as a means to serve ends that are greater than ourselves. This perspective aligns our financial habits with our spiritual values. Jesus taught that our lives should not be centered around accumulating wealth but rather using it to further God's kingdom and serve others.

When we view money as a tool rather than an end goal, we can make more intentional decisions about how we spend and give. This shift in perspective helps us to prioritize what truly matters and to invest in things that have eternal significance. [02:15]

1 Timothy 6:17-19 (ESV): "As for the rich in this present age, charge them not to be haughty, nor to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy. They are to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, thus storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life."

Reflection: How can you use your financial resources to serve a purpose greater than yourself today? What specific actions can you take to align your spending with your spiritual values?

Day 3: Walking by the Spirit in Financial Matters

The Apostle Paul encourages us to walk by the Spirit, which leads to virtues like self-control. This spiritual discipline helps us manage our financial resources wisely and aligns our actions with God's will. Walking by the Spirit means allowing the Holy Spirit to guide our decisions, including how we handle money.

When we walk by the Spirit, we are more likely to exhibit the fruit of self-control, which is crucial for financial stewardship. This not only helps us to avoid the pitfalls of materialism but also enables us to use our resources in ways that honor God and benefit others. [06:07]

Galatians 5:22-23 (ESV): "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law."

Reflection: Are you allowing the Holy Spirit to guide your financial decisions? What changes can you make to ensure that your financial habits reflect the fruit of the Spirit?

Day 4: Seeking First the Kingdom of God

Jesus teaches us to prioritize God's kingdom and His righteousness over our own financial pursuits. This "others-first" mentality liberates us from the grip of materialism and leads to a more fulfilling and purposeful life. By seeking first the Kingdom of God, we align our priorities with God's will and trust that He will provide for our needs.

This teaching challenges us to shift our focus from accumulating wealth to serving others and advancing God's kingdom. It requires us to trust in God's provision and to believe that He will take care of us as we put His kingdom first. [17:56]

Matthew 6:33 (ESV): "But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you."

Reflection: What does it mean for you to seek first the Kingdom of God in your financial life? How can you prioritize God's kingdom over your own financial pursuits today?

Day 5: The Two-Month Challenge

By choosing a percentage of our income to give away first, we confront our internal resistances and discover what truly controls our hearts. This practice not only helps others but also deepens our faith and aligns our lives with God's kingdom. The challenge is designed to reveal the internal tensions and resistances we have towards giving, helping us understand what truly controls our hearts.

This exercise encourages us to trust in God's provision and to experience the joy of giving. It helps us to break free from the grip of materialism and to develop a more generous and faith-filled approach to our finances. [30:55]

2 Corinthians 9:7-8 (ESV): "Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work."

Reflection: Are you willing to take the two-month challenge and give away a percentage of your income first? What internal resistances do you feel towards this practice, and how can you address them with God's help?

Sermon Summary

### Summary

Today, we delved into the second part of our series, "Money Talks," focusing on the profound relationship between self-control and financial stewardship. The core message is that our self-control determines whether we control our money or it controls us. Jesus spoke extensively about money, not because it is inherently evil, but because it often becomes the chief competitor for our hearts and devotion. He emphasized that money can add meaning to our lives, but it is not the meaning of life itself.

We explored the idea that financial pressure is less about how much we earn and more about how we manage what we have. Jesus' teachings align with this, urging us to prioritize self-control and to view money as a means to an end that is greater than ourselves. The Apostle Paul also highlighted this tension, encouraging us to walk by the Spirit, which leads to the fruit of self-control among other virtues.

Jesus' teachings challenge us to seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness. This means prioritizing God's kingdom and others over our own desires and financial pursuits. He illustrated this through His own life, serving others and ultimately giving His life as a ransom for many. This "others-first" mentality is the key to breaking free from the grip of materialism and financial anxiety.

To put this into practice, I issued a two-month challenge: choose a percentage of your income and give it away first, before spending on anything else. This exercise is designed to reveal the internal tensions and resistances we have towards giving, helping us understand what truly controls our hearts. By doing this, we can experience a deeper, richer faith and a more meaningful life, aligned with God's kingdom.

###

Key Takeaways

1. Control and Financial Freedom**: Our self-control determines whether we control our money or it controls us. Financial pressure often stems from poor management rather than insufficient income. By exercising self-control, we can ensure that money serves us rather than masters us. [03:48]
2. Money as a Means, Not an End: Money can add meaning to our lives, but it is not the meaning of life. True meaning comes when we use money as a means to serve ends that are greater than ourselves. This perspective aligns our financial habits with our spiritual values.

3. Walking by the Spirit: The Apostle Paul encourages us to walk by the Spirit, which leads to virtues like self-control. This spiritual discipline helps us manage our financial resources wisely and aligns our actions with God's will.

4. Seek First the Kingdom of God: Jesus teaches us to prioritize God's kingdom and His righteousness over our own financial pursuits. This "others-first" mentality liberates us from the grip of materialism and leads to a more fulfilling and purposeful life.

5. The Two-Month Challenge: By choosing a percentage of our income to give away first, we confront our internal resistances and discover what truly controls our hearts. This practice not only helps others but also deepens our faith and aligns our lives with God's kingdom.

### [03:48]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[00:33] - Introduction to Money Talks Part 2
[01:00] - The Challenge of Financial Self-Control
[01:39] - Jesus' Teachings on Money
[02:15] - Money as a Means to an End
[02:49] - To What Ends Do You Want Your Life to Be a Means?
[03:18] - Self-Control Determines Control
[03:48] - Financial Pressure and Self-Control
[05:00] - Money as a Servant, Not a Master
[06:07] - Walking by the Spirit
[07:09] - The Fruit of the Spirit
[09:20] - No One Can Serve Two Masters
[11:17] - Money as the Chief Competitor for Our Hearts
[17:56] - Seek First the Kingdom of God
[20:40] - Jesus' Example of Service
[23:09] - Washing the Disciples' Feet
[24:54] - All These Things Will Be Given to You
[30:55] - The Two-Month Challenge
[36:44] - Conclusion and Next Week's Preview

Bible Study Guide

Observation Questions

According to Matthew 6:24, what are the two masters that Jesus says we cannot serve simultaneously?
In Galatians 5:22-23, what are the fruits of the Spirit listed by Paul, and which one is highlighted in the sermon as particularly relevant to financial stewardship? [07:09]
What does Jesus instruct us to seek first in Matthew 6:33, and what is promised to follow if we do so?

Interpretation Questions

Why does Jesus emphasize that we cannot serve both God and money? How does this relate to the idea of money being a chief competitor for our hearts? [11:17]
How does the fruit of the Spirit, particularly self-control, help us manage our financial resources wisely according to the sermon? [06:07]
What does it mean to "seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness" in the context of financial decisions and priorities? [17:56]

Application Questions

Reflect on your current financial habits. Do you feel that money is serving you, or are you serving money? What changes can you make to ensure that money is a servant rather than a master in your life? [05:00]
The sermon challenges us to choose a percentage of our income to give away first. What percentage feels both challenging and manageable for you? How can you implement this practice in the next two months? [30:55]
Think about a recent financial decision you made. Did it align with the principle of seeking first the kingdom of God? How might you approach similar decisions differently in the future? [17:56]
Identify an area in your life where you struggle with self-control. How can you invite the Holy Spirit to help you grow in this area, particularly in relation to your finances? [07:09]
Jesus modeled an "others-first" mentality by serving others and giving His life as a ransom for many. How can you incorporate this "others-first" approach in your financial planning and daily life? [21:43]
Reflect on the internal tensions and resistances you feel towards giving. What do these feelings reveal about what truly controls your heart? How can you address these resistances to align more closely with God's kingdom? [31:57]
How can you practically prioritize God's kingdom in your financial decisions this week? Identify one specific action you can take to put this into practice. [17:56]

Sermon Clips

1. "If our money could actually talk and our money began to give us financial advice, none of us, for the most part, would be shocked about the advice that our money would give us. The shocking thing is the parallel between what our money would say if it could talk and what Jesus did say when he said, he did talk. As we talked about last time, Jesus said more about money and possessions than he did about heaven." [01:00] (25 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)

2. "I can add meaning to your life, but I'm not the meaning of life. I can add meaning to life, to your life, but I'm not the actual meaning. That money becomes most meaningful when you begin to view it and you begin to use it as a means to an end that isn't you." [02:15] (19 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)

3. "Your self-control determines which one of us or which of us gets control. Your money would tell you, you know, by the way, this isn't about how much you have, this is about what you do with it. Your self-control is actually gonna determine which one of us gets control." [03:18] (14 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)

4. "If you were to sit down with over half the world's population and explain how much money you make and how much pressure you feel, they would look at you like you are crazy because in the context of what happens in the rest of the world, we are so ridiculously well-off, and so ridiculously wealthy, but because we have no margin, we feel financial pressure that half the world will look at us and say, if I made that much money, I wouldn't feel any pressure." [04:24] (28 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)

5. "The fruit of the spirit, that is the outcome of saying yes to that internal nudge is actually things that you want your sister-in-law to have more of, your brother-in-law to have more of, your children to have more of, your fiance to have more of, your boyfriend, your girlfriend, your husband, your wife to have more of, and your heavenly father would like for you to have more of it too. The fruit of the spirit is this, it's love. It's joy, it's peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness. And then here's our phrase, our compound word, and self-control." [07:09] (30 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)

6. "Isn't it amazing how quickly, how easy it is to take our sorrows to God and give our sorrows to God. In fact, most of you probably like me at some point in your life, you gave your entire eternity to God. You prayed a prayer that went something like this. Dear heavenly father, thank you for this day. Cause that seems like we have to say thank you for this day, but anyway, let's get down to business. Okay. I don't, I want to go to heaven and I've been told that if I don't even have to sign anything, I just have to read this. Dear heavenly father, I asked Jesus to come into my heart and forgive me of my sins." [15:00] (29 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)

7. "If you haven't surrendered what you have, you haven't really surrendered. If, if, if you haven't, given him access to what you have, he doesn't have access to you. You have opted for the lesser master. And Jesus addresses this. I mean, Jesus addresses this, this head on. He addresses this, this tension between that. Some of you are feeling right now that some of us are feeling right now. And he does. So it's so cool because he's so smart and he's so practical." [16:24] (32 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)

8. "Seek ye first the kingdom of God. Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness. And by the way, I love you. And all these things that you worry about, all these things that you fret about, all these things that have to get done, all these things that have to be paid for, all these things that are crucial to being able to survive in whatever century we live in, for us, the 21st century. He said, they're going to be given to you as well. This isn't either or. This is one. And two, this is first and second, because somebody's kingdom has to come first." [24:54] (37 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)

9. "If Matthew was correct, if Mark was correct, if Luke was correct, if John was correct, if Peter was correct, if James, Jesus' brother who decided his brother was his Lord is correct, then the wisest thing you could do, the smartest thing you could do, the most thoughtful thing you could do is to flip this script. So it's seek ye first living, that you give first. You save for your kingdom second, and then you live on whatever is left over." [27:47] (43 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)

10. "The litmus test of our devotion to God is our willingness to put him or others first in the arena of our money and our possessions. Not include them, not include them or factor them in to put them first in the arena of our money and our possessions. So if you're not already doing this, I want to issue you a two-month challenge. And I want to issue this to those of you who are Christians. If you're a Jesus follower, I mean, you're obligated. I mean, not because I'm telling you, but because of what Jesus said." [30:55] (33 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)

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