I have finished the work which You have given Me to do. —John 17:4
True surrender is not simply surrender of our external life but surrender of our will— and once that is done, surrender is complete. The greatest crisis we ever face is the surrender of our will. Yet God never forces a person’s will into surrender, and He never begs. He patiently waits until that person willingly yields to Him. And once that battle has been fought, it never needs to be fought again.
Surrender for Deliverance. “Come to Me…and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28). It is only after we have begun to experience what salvation really means that we surrender our will to Jesus for rest. Whatever is causing us a sense of uncertainty is actually a call to our will— “Come to Me.” And it is a voluntary coming.
Surrender for Devotion. “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself…” (Matthew 16:24). The surrender here is of my self to Jesus, with His rest at the heart of my being. He says, “If you want to be My disciple, you must give up your right to yourself to Me.” And once this is done, the remainder of your life will exhibit nothing but the evidence of this surrender, and you never need to be concerned again with what the future may hold for you. Whatever your circumstances may be, Jesus is totally sufficient (see 2 Corinthians 12:9 and Philippians 4:19).
Surrender for Death. “…another will gird you…” (John 21:18; also see John 21:19). Have you learned what it means to be girded for death? Beware of some surrender that you make to God in an ecstatic moment in your life, because you are apt to take it back again. True surrender is a matter of being “united together [with Jesus] in the likeness of His death” (Romans 6:5) until nothing ever appeals to you that did not appeal to Him.
And after you surrender— then what? Your entire life should be characterized by an eagerness to maintain unbroken fellowship and oneness with God.
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Journal DJR
Good Morning Lord,
Today Chambers asks if we know what it means to be “girded for death.” I suppose getting this cancer diagnosis at least got me considering that question. Actually, I’ve been surprised… as I consider my mortality, I thought I would be more panicky. I don’t feel any of that. Maybe it hasn’t sunk in… Maybe I’m just committing my life to you, including the time of departure. Whatever the case, thank you for the peace, and the gift that this sabbatical time is being. I’m looking forward to diving deeper.
Neither JD nor I related to having a “once and done” surrender experience that lasted the rest of our lives as Chambers mentions. It seems to us that there may be a big surrender, but in our experience, that is followed by us picking up our lives again… our taking control with one of the big four (must look good, feel good, be right and be in control) so to speak… followed by surrender again, perhaps deeper this time, and on and on the cycle goes, until we get to the final surrender of death. Am I missing something here?
He only said you don’t have to worry…”once this is done, the remainder of your life will exhibit nothing but the evidence of this surrender, and you never need to be concerned again with what the future may hold for you. Whatever your circumstances may be, Jesus is totally sufficient” Isn’t that just what you were saying about the peace about your mortality?
OK, I see that part and I am beginning to worry less. Getting out of “dual thinking” where everything is either good or bad, for me or against me, leaving room for paradox and mystery and a third way…. that has been freeing and helped me relax and enjoy or walk together. Thank you for all the things you’ve shown us since we started this blog. When I go back to it’s beginning or think about our initial retreat at Shaver lake… I was a pretty uptight and self assured guy. Thanks for not giving up on me. What we went for, and didn’t receive…now we are receiving in spades. You are good.
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