Surrender

Interestingly, the word surrender does not appear in the New Testament, depending on your translation. Yet the concept of surrender is throughout scripture. Peter and James both write about humbling ourselves before the Lord so that God will exalt us. Jesus talked about denying ourselves to follow him. Even Paul wrote about offering our bodies as a living sacrifice.

Following Jesus means surrendering our way of doing things to live in his better way. Make no mistake, God’s way will mess with our flesh. If following God is entirely comfortable, there is a good chance it is more like a religion and less like the radical life of freedom, glory, and mission that God calls his people to.

One of the best verses about surrender comes from the Gospel of John. In John 3:30 ESV, John the Baptist (not the writer of John) says, “He must increase, but I must decrease.”

Surrender cannot be a moment in time where we draw a line in the sand. Those moments are important, but true surrender to Christ is an ongoing journey of giving up ourselves to see more of him. What would happen if we began every day by praying the words of John 3:30? How would that shape our posture toward the Lord? How would that position us in humility and poise us to see the glory of God all around us?

I believe that we fail to see God’s glory because we are fixated on our glory.

We fail to see God’s power because we are obsessed with our power.

We fail to accomplish God’s mission because we are stubborn in our mission.

In that case, no amount of passion, zeal, or work can make up for a misplaced vision. If we are campaigning for ourselves, we are deceived into thinking we are glorifying God when we are really just preserving our own life and making room for our own glory.

I’m not trying to be too intense or dramatic today, but while this message is heavy, it is also simple. The Kingdom of God fails to advance when God’s people are more interested in their agendas. I’m not pointing fingers at anyone specifically, but I am saying that it is easier than we think to fall into this trap.

None of us can dismiss this message and assume that we are immune to the temptation to self-glorify. Maybe it scares you to think about living in a posture of humility like this, but it scares me even more to think about believers (or leaders) who never get this humble.

Today’s invitation is to examine our hearts before the Lord. I will be doing this as well. Ask God to point out any pride or resistance that is in you. Look for the root of why you are unable to surrender. In Christ, humility is a privilege and surrender always leaders to greater freedom and satisfaction.

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