The next part of being the light was about surrender. We had surrender as our word of the year for 2016 and it really helped us to think about how many different areas of our life we are holding on to. This was the part of my relationship with Jesus that I found really difficult. I had no problem surrendering some areas of my life but I really didn’t want to and still struggle to surrender all areas of my life. I really think surrendering is just telling Jesus that he is actually Lord of my life. He wants to be in charge of everything, not just what I decide is easy to let him have.
Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it.” Matthew 16:24-25
I don’t think Jesus is calling us to an easy life. This is a struggle for me because I like easy. I like my comfort zone. I don’t like being challenged and forced to move out of my comfort zone. Jesus is calling me to trust him to step out of my comfort zone.
I have thought of two ways that we can put surrender into practice:
- Be Doers of the Word
We can spend a lot of time and energy in the abide part of our relationship with Jesus. It is important to read the Bible, pray, and worship God. We can see our faith grow through abiding in Him. Eventually though, our faith will plateau off and we will no longer feel as close to God as we did at the beginning of our Bible reading and praying. The reason is because we need to start taking action and doing what we are reading about. We need to follow God’s instructions that we are hearing in prayer time. When we sit back and never do, our relationship with God won’t grow.
Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do. James 1:22-25
Matthew West has a song called “Do Something” that I think is the perfect example of surrendering. When God calls us to do something we need to submit to His will and just do it. We can talk ourselves out of doing a lot of God’s work when we sit around and wonder if God is telling us to. If what you are feeling you should do lines up with what the Bible is teaching, then you should absolutely do it!
One example of my life is that I like to get stuck in my routine. I will often get frustrated when people mess with my routine and I don’t always want to engage conversations or go out of my routine to do something new. I have felt God convicting me in the mornings to pray to Him and ask Him what he wants me to do with my day instead of how best I can follow my routine. I wonder how many parts of God’s plan I missed out on or people that needed encouragement that I passed by because I was so stuck on myself and my own routine. We should wake up in the morning yearning to help God with his Kingdom work!
Lastly with this part I don’t want anyone to think I am advocating that we earn Heaven by our good works. Jesus gave us our salvation with His work on the cross. There is nothing that we can do to earn it. Rather, our fruit is the evidence of our salvation, not the means by which we receive it.
- Allowing God’s Spirit to Work on Us
But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. John 14:26
God gave us the Holy Spirit after Jesus left the earth to hep us understand His Word, to convict us of sin, and to help us live life righteously. We shouldn’t be downcast when the Holy Spirit convicts us of sin. We should be happy that he is making us more like Jesus. We need to accept God’s discipline in our lives and we have to submit to His will. Neither one of these things is easy!
I love this verse out of John 15:1-5 talking about how God prunes us so that we can be more effective. It is not a pleasant process and doesn’t always feel good, but it is beneficial.
The Vine and the Branches
“I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.
“I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. John 15:1-5
After we abide in God’s Word, pray, and worship; we must be doers of the Word. We must follow God’s will for our lives and look for ways that we can increase His Kingdom! We are not doing this to earn salvation, but to glorify our God and Father. We also need to allow the Spirit to convict us of sin and repent when He does.
God has big plans to use all of us if we will get up and do something!