We are called today to give our everything to Jesus Christ — our heart, soul and mind, but then to give him everything else too.
Every area of our lives we are being called to give it up and surrender to Jesus Christ. To do so means to relieve ourselves of everything. And that is a good thing.
Sometimes, my community family, it is the hardest thing to do is surrender; but at the same time, it’s the easiest thing to do, as well. The word “surrender” means “to cease resistance to an enemy or opponent and submit to their authority.” Like as in war, one gives in or surrenders to the other. As in the case with the Civil War when Gen. Robert E. Lee surrendered his authority to Gen. Ulysses S. Grant in defeat in 1865.
In the spiritual realm, it means that a believer completely gives up his own will and subjects his thoughts, ideas and deeds to the will and teachings of a higher power. In this case, it is God almighty.
And here’s another definition that speaks to us today: “If you surrender, you stop fighting or resisting someone and agree that you have been beaten.” This speaks to all of us; to parents whose children are wayward and disobedient and you are struggling, being stressed, with headaches — and it’s taking a toll on you, but then you agree that this thing is beating you, it’s taking the life out of you, so you stop fighting and you surrender or yield the children to a higher power.
To the unchurched, the unsaved, it is when you are heavy ladened, sin has taken you further than you wanted to go, and it has kept you longer than you wanted to stay; it’s when your life is so miserable because sin has taken the very life out of you and you realize that you have tried it your way and it didn’t work — but then you turn to the Savior and you agree that you have been beaten, and you give yourself completely to him.
“Lord, I yield, I surrender!”
To the Christian believer, worried about how you are going to make ends meet, it is when you realize the words of Jesus when he said, “Take no thought for tomorrow, for tomorrow will take thought for the things of itself (Matt. 6:34)”…and that nobody can live two days at one time; you look at the birds in the air and say “the birds aren’t worried, God take care of them, and neither will I (Matt. 6:26)” and you surrender every concern, every problem, everything that is weighing you down — things that would otherwise rob you of your peace and you turn it over to Jesus, and say, “Lord, I yield all of this to you!”.
You release it to Him and instantly you feel a sense of relief.
My community friends, let me tell you something today … God did not save us for us to worry ourselves to death, about anything; He did not save you so that you can let things that you can’t control take over your life; He did not make our shoulders big enough to carry things beyond our control; God did not invest in you just so you would walk around burdened down and stressed out.
No, He saved you so that He could use you for his glory! And I do understand this morning, that there are some things beyond our control; such as certain sicknesses; diseases, this coronavirus, daily issues that we were thrust into due to no fault of our own; things whereby we didn’t do anything wrong yet we find ourselves in the middle of it.
Well, if we can’t do anything about it, then why are we worried and stressed over it? “Surrender it to the Lord!”
Friends, let me say this before I move on: When we pray about something, and things don’t change, maybe it’s because we have two hands too many on it — our hands and God’s hand, But our hand and God’s hand on something is not a good combination.
Take your hands off and leave it in God’s hand.
There maybe somebody reading today who is on the verge of committing suicide; the weight of the world has weighed you down; somebody in the midst of all that’s going in our country right now may be depressed. Understand that something drove you to that place. SURRENDER your life to Christ; you’ve tried the rest; now try the best! Acknowledge that you are a sinner; ask Jesus by faith to come into your heart; then confess Him as your personal savior, and He will come alive in you and give you a brand new life (2 Cor. 5:17) and a reason to live (Rom.10:9,10).
A rich, young ruler approached Jesus and asked him, “what did he need to do to inherit eternal life (Mark 10:17-22)?” Jesus told him about keeping the commandments … and the young man says, “I’ve kept them from my youth up.” Jesus tells him “that there is one thing that he lacked” … “go and sell all that he had and distribute to the poor”
The rich ruler is grieved, and he goes away sad. He did not want to SURRENDER everything.
Can we declare “I’m surrendering my heart, my soul and my mind … I surrender my health issues, my sicknesses … I surrender that diagnosis from the doctor … I surrender my worries and fears …I surrender my spouse, my marriage and my home; my children, my issues, my enemies.”
Can we all surrender Covid 19 — “Lord, it’s in your hand … I surrender all!“
The Rev. George Ellis is pastor for Union Grove Missionary Baptist Church.
