The following student report was submitted by Ambassador League Agent Kelcey W. during the 2009-2010 League.
Mission: Research on Self-Government
By looking at things like honesty, integrity, and character one can learn much about self government and self control. These two are really the discipline to say to no your self and desires; to deny every evil thing from being present in your life. Jesus said, "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me." (Matthew 16:24) Now this does not mean that every Christian should start purposefully living in hard situations (like wearing sackcloth and eating bugs.) Self government is more of an internal disciple. It is controlling emotions and temptations that could be harmful to the Christan's testimony; these emotions or actions could include anger, gossip, selfishness, hatred, and frustration.
Self control comes from a heart that loves God and is upright, righteous, and blameless. It is rooted in good character, integrity, and honesty. These three are found throughout Bible in various accounts. Many instances in the book of Proverbs discuss right scales and justice, being honest, and not cheating neighbors or your boss.
One of the best examples of character being an important trait is found in the book of First Samuel. At this point, God had rejected Saul as king and sent His prophet Samuel to find another to take Saul's place. He guided Samuel to the house of Jesse in Bethlehem; there Jesse's sons all lined up and came before Samuel. When Samuel saw the first, Eliab, he said, "Surely the Lord's anointed is before him!" However, God said to Samuel, "Do not look at his appearance or physical stature, because I have refused him. For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart." Soon after this, all Jesse's sons passed before Samuel, but not one was chosen. Word came out that there was another son, the youngest, who was tending the sheep in the fields nearby. This boy, David, was summoned and soon anointed as the next king. God had looked into his heart and was pleased with the character there. Though he was not as striking as his brothers were, David was chosen because his heart sought after God and this pleased God. Character is not something that everyone always notices right away, but to God is it one of the most important things a person can possess, certainly above wealth, status, or physical beauty.
Honesty is also an important aspect of self government. Sometimes honesty takes the control to say, "I messed up," or "it was my fault." It is hard to be willing to take the responsibility for something that could be hidden with a lie or even by saying nothing. However, honesty is a key ingredient of having an inward character pleasing to God. It was dishonesty and disobedience that caused God to turn away from King Saul and reject him as king. In the account found in First Samuel chapter fifteen, God had told Saul to attack and punish the Amalekites for the way they had treated Israel. God's orders had been to spare nothing and no one, but Saul did not obey and instead spared livestock and the king and queen. When Samuel heard this, he was grieved and came to visit Saul. However, instead of owning up to what he did, Saul tried to cover his misdeed by saying he had kept the best animals to sacrifice to the Lord. Samuel saw through this and told Saul that God desired obedience more than sacrifice and that the Lord had rejected him as king. Because of Saul's disobedience, the queen escaped and later a descendant of the Amalakite King Agag, Haman, almost succeeded in wiping out the Jews entirely.
In summing up, self government is having the inward character to act in a way that would please God always. It is having the integrity to be honest and the discipline to do what is right even if it causes me hurt or wrong. This inward integrity is very lacking in today's society, and if we as Christians exhibit it, we will be set apart and noticed out of a crowd. Sometimes this is not always the desired effect; however, this is what God desires, and He will reward integrity. Proverbs says that He looks on dishonest scales as an abomination, but that He delights in just weights. Integrity guides the upright in their ways. We need to become the generation known for self government (integrity) in all our dealings, business and other.
