If you make a compromise with surrender, you can remain interested in the abundant life, all the riches of freedom, love, and peace, but it is the same as looking at a display in a shop window. You look through the window but do not go in and buy. You will not pay the price—surrender.
~E. Stanley Jones (1884-1973)
~E. Stanley Jones (1884-1973)
and no longer lend your faculties as unrighteous weapons for Sin to use. On the contrary surrender your very selves to God as living men who have risen from the dead, and surrender your several faculties to God, to be used as weapons to maintain the right.
~ Romans 6:13 (Weymouth)
Beloved, we are ever in danger of reaping corruption in our walk with Him. The problem is not that we sometimes fail by yielding to some fleshly desire. Scripture is clear that G_d has and does provide copious grace and mercy for that desperate need we all have. We who have trusted Christ are already forgiven, and we are cleansed by Him as we turn to Him and live in agreement with Him that we have sinned.
There is, however, a deeper problem. It is that we often hold, to some degree, the actual right to fail. We present our bodies for the law of sin to use. We do it, and we know we do it. This is a problem. Passages like Hebrews 6 says some pretty extreme things about the end of a path like this:
For it is impossible, in the case of those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, and have shared in the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come, and then have fallen away, to restore them again to repentance, since they are crucifying once again the Son of God to their own harm and holding him up to contempt.
~ Hebrews 6:4-6
Maybe this writer is the only one! But, he guesses this is not true. Are there not many of us that – at least sometimes – look back toward the Wicket Gate and think we can bring just a tiny bit of our old lives along with us? Might i suggest that as soon as that thought presents itself in our minds (AND IT WILL), that we take that one captive (can anyone say REALLY fast?)!
Do we think we can take that extra glance at that beautiful woman (man)? Do we think we can safely just stop by the bar just to “visit some friends?” Do we think we can just spend a little more on that credit card and stay out of trouble? Do we think we can hold onto just that little bit of anger or self-righteousness or bitterness or whatever?
Well, maybe we can hold onto it. G_d’s grace is really humongous. However, the question before us is more like: Why would we want to do that?
For me, the distraction is often persons of the fairer gender. And while He is teaching me how precious all His children are, and that these women are His beautiful daughters to be honored and protected – i am sometimes sidetracked for a moment. OK. So perhaps we find ourselves sidetracked, or even WAY off the road. What now? Do we say, “well, i am already here, might as well stick around and see how it goes.” Or do we say, “HELP ME G_d! I am really about to (or already have) made a mess here. Get me out of here!” Hopefully, the answer is obvious.
To whom are we presenting ourselves and for what purpose? We (hopefully!) get the point that, if we present ourselves to sin, we are going to hurt ourselves and others – perhaps in horrible ways! However, there is a huge upside here. When we present ourselves as weapons for G_d to use in His kingdom, all sorts of wonderful things begin to happen. We start to actually, by His Spirit, feel and pour out things like Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Gentleness, Faithfulness, Goodness, and even (imagine this) Self-Control.
Many readers of this blog hold to views of Christianity that identify with themes of Victory and overcoming sin in our lives right now. i am one of them! Regardless, there is an important question that any victorious Christian life theology must answer. The question is, “Why live the victorious Christian life?”
It seems to me that the answer is multi-faceted. Obviously, one answer is that G_d’s Word says that we have been freed from sin. Another answer is vital: living in victory glorifies G_d. Another (one of my favorite) answers: The victorious Christian life is fun!
But have we ever considered this one?
Living the victorious Christian life (surrendering our several faculties to God, to be used as weapons to maintain the right) creates tremendous opportunity for others to get saved from their own sins and brought into the kingdom. Our lives become the seed, that having fallen into the ground and died, now grows into a plant that yields bunches of fruit bearing huge portions of new seed for new life.
And, on the other side of the coin, we could just live our regular life of defeat. Oh yeah, we may get to heaven (G_d’s grace IS ginormous) – but don’t we then miss out on the opportunity to participate in the great commission Jesus left with us at His departure from this planet?
Do we really just want to get to heaven on our own? Or would we like to barrel into His presence with a few dozen (or hundred, or thousand, or million, or…) in our company? Surely, we can’t save even one of them (that is Jesus job!), but He can wield us as a weapon to bring about His purposes!
Would that we might ever be instruments to be played by Him. Would that we might ever be weapons of His righteousness!
Make me a captive, Lord,
And then I shall be free;
Force me to render up my sword,
And I shall conqueror be.
I sink in life’s alarms
When by myself I stand;
Imprison me within thine arms,
And strong shall be my hand.
~George Matheson (1842-1906)
See http://blog.ps1611.org/p/why-gd.html