THE ISSUE OF SURRENDER

“Quit quarreling with God! Agree with Him and you will have peace at last! His favor will surround you if you will only admit when you are wrong!”

Job 22:21 NLT

Everybody surrenders to something or someone in life. If not to God, we’ll surrender to popular opinion, to money, to resentment or fear, or perhaps to our own pride, lust, or ego. We were designed for worship, and when we fall to worship God, we create ‘gods’ (idols) to which we surrender ourselves. 20th Century preacher E. Stanley Jones said, “If you don’t surrender to Christ, you surrender to chaos!” We need to remember that we’re free to choose what we surrender to, but we’re not free from the consequences of that choice. The Apostle James’ counsel to us in this is, “So give yourselves completely to God.” (James 4:7) Surrender is not the best way to live, it is the only way to live. Nothing else works. All other approaches lead to frustration, disappointment and self-destruction. The King James Version call surrender “Your reasonable service.” The Contemporary English Version translates it, “The most sensible way to serve God!” (Roman 12:2). Surrendering our lives is not an emotional impulse but a rational intelligent act, the most responsible and sensible thing we can do with our lives. Our wisest moments will be those when we say ‘yes’ to God. The Bible is very clear about how we benefit when we worship God through surrender. Look again at the scripture above, “Agree with Him and you will have peace at last; His favor will surround you if only you will admit when you’re wrong.” In surrender we really begin to live the life that God intended. Why did God choose Mary, of all women, to be the mother of Jesus? It was because she was totally surrendered to god. When the angel explained God’s incredible plan, she humbly responded, “Be it unto me according to Your word!”

The songwriter wrote:

I surrender all

All to thee my blessed Savior

I surrender all

We need to keep singing that till the blessing of surrender becomes a reality for us not just some platitude or vague philosophy!

Mmmm…Think about it!!