50 Days of Wisdom

In 1 Peter 1:13, Peter writes, "Gird your minds for action; keep sober in spirit." This is about having the fundamental Christian spiritual attitude of self-discipline. There are a number of very similar commands throughout the New Testament, and they're all calls for spiritual discipline. We must address the loose ends in our lives because the elements that sustain the church are specific spiritual attitudes, which are vital for its health. Self-discipline means pulling in all the loose ends in your life and establishing priorities and then living according to those priorities. That's what that term "keep sober" means—sober, not in the sense of drunkenness, but in the sense of not becoming intoxicated by all the allurements around you that pull you away from what is most essential and most important. We could sum it up by saying we're talking here about having clarity of mind, spiritual steadfastness, balanced priorities, self-control, moral decisiveness, and mental alertness, rather than a kind of whimsical, reckless meandering through life or careening through life, bouncing off of all kinds of emotional impulses and falling victim to a myriad of temptations. It's absolutely essential as Christians that we maintain inner self-discipline. Therefore, if you desire to be a spiritually self-disciplined person, there are some very important attitudes that you must maintain. Now, what are the components of that self-discipline? One is to remember who owns you. That is to say, you're not really in charge of your life, so you can't follow your own impulses, and you can't follow your own dreams and desires and wishes. All that you are and all that you do, the direction of your life, must come into submission to the purposes of God, which are unfolded in the Word of God and by the leading of the Spirit of God. Secondly, self-discipline comes when you look back to the covenant of your salvation. That is to say, when you remember that at the point of your salvation, you made a promise to submit to the Lord. You made a pledge at that time to be obedient to Christ. You confessed Him as Lord, and "Lord" means that He is above all. It's essential, then, as believers, to remember that we made a covenant of obedience when we confessed Jesus as Lord. We were saved unto obedience, which God had before ordained that we should walk, an obedience characterized by good works and obedience to God's Word. That pledge was inherent in salvation. God, at the time you came to Him for salvation, promised you forgiveness and eternal life and all the grace necessary to fulfill His will and the Holy Spirit, and you pledged obedience. Thirdly, you have to recognize all sin as a violation of a relationship. It's a very, very important matter for us to recognize that sin is primarily a violation of our relationship to God. It's a violation of the intimacy that we share with a loving Lord and a gracious Savior. Understanding sin in this way elevates it to a new level. You are not simply violating God's law; you're violating your relationship to Him. You're trading on His love. You're abusing His kindness, His mercy, His compassion, and His grace. He, who paid the infinite price of the death of His own Son for you, who did that in order that He might come into personal and intimate fellowship with you, is violated greatly by your sin. That violation not only wounds the Lord but also wounds you. So, essential to self-discipline is to remember who owns you and that you're not in charge of your own life, to remember the covenant of salvation, which was a covenant of obedience, and to keep that covenant, and to recognize that sin is primarily a violation of our relationship to God. Repent and believe! GTY.org (90-131) – Fundamental Christian Attitudes: Self-Discipline, Part 2

Today's Wisdom

Day: 946

June 14, 2026

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My name is Mark Paul from Wauchula, Florida, and like the Apostle Peter said in 2 Peter 1:14, "I know that the laying aside of my earthly dwelling is imminent." Consequently, my goal is to leave a legacy that will continue to advance the kingdom of God long after I have departed. In other words, bear fruit for eternity. And by simply reading and sharing my free eBooks, you too become contributors to the advancement of His kingdom. Thank you for partaking in this endeavor, and I look forward to greeting you on heaven's shore.

The Truth in Love,

Mark Paul - Servant of God

Now grant, O Lord, that when the souls who read these books cast their eyes upon these lines, their minds may be illuminated and their consciences convinced and awakened, that they may see with their eyes, hear with their ears, and be converted so that You may heal them. Amen