I surrender all

Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. Romans 12:1, 2 It is such a blessing to stand in church and sing the hymn “I surrender all.” Yet, it’s not just about the song that floods ones soul because the truth of that hymn should be the resolve of every believer. It is not so easy to obey when God asks you to hand over to Him what you love, to give up something you cherish, or to face mistreatment because of His grace. Yet God handed His only begotten Son over to suffering and death for us. “He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him.” (Isaiah 53:5) Jesus gave up His glory in heaven and came to earth to take our punishment. The humanity of Jesus comes through in His prayer in the garden. You sense His agony as the hour of His suffering and death approaches. In His prayer, He asks the Father if there is any other way for people to be saved. Yet, in His surrender to the Father’s will, He prayed, “Abba! Father! All things are possible for You; remove this cup from Me; yet not what I will, but what You will.” Christ had shown a great example that Christians should follow. Then he gave them a command that if they will be His disciples, disobedience is not an option. “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me” (Luke 9:23). How can you say you are a follower of Christ and refuse to surrender “all”? There will be times that you might prefer to sing about the blessings God gives you rather than what you are to give Him. Surrender can mean more than one thing: It can be renouncing control or possession and a willing submission to authority. When you begin to contemplate of God’s mercy, your response should be to surrender any rights you think you have. A sacrifice has no rights, no personal possessions, and means giving to someone’s control. A sacrifice submits to God’s authority and has surrendered all. Jesus’ expression of surrender was shown through His willingness to suffer at the cross. “Son though he was, he learned obedience from what he suffered” (Hebrews 5:8).

Blessings.