How do you surrender your life to God?
Introduction
The dictionary defines surrender as giving up or stopping resistance.
For instance, when the cops corner a criminal, the criminal will raise his hands and surrender.
Even though surrender may not be a trendy topic in the modern church, it is still one of the most critical spiritual disciplines.
In fact, the Christian life is all about surrender.
It starts by surrendering to God through confession of sins, and then you have to continue leaving a life of surrender to God and others.
Understanding surrender
There are four important things that you should know about surrendering to God.
First, God God is your creator.
Second, God will accomplish your surrender.
Third, God will accept your surrender.
Fourth, God will maintain your surrender, and lastly, God will bless you when you surrender.
Let’s examine each of these truths in more detail below.
God is your creator
The psalmist makes an interesting remark in Psalms 100 concerning the relationship between man and
God. He says: Know that the Lord is God. It is he who made us, and we are his – we are his people, the sheep of his pasture. Psalms 100:3
This is a recall that God is our creator, and we shouldn’t even be considering living a life that is contrary to what he created us for.
The psalmist makes it clear that you did not create yourself – God did. And since God created you, He expects your full surrender.
We have been living in a secular society for so long that some of the secular ideals have inevitably rubbed on us. But we should constantly check ourselves in the light of God’s word to ensure we live by the word standard and not the world’s standards.
For instance, it is not uncommon to hear new parents say, “We have made a baby.”
As adorable as that may sound, Christians need to acknowledge that “children are a gift from the Lord” (Psalms 127:3).
When you always recognize God as your creator, surrender becomes effortless.
God will accomplish your surrender
Surrender may look like a tall order – especially in a society that vilifies meekness. But the good news is that God is ready and willing to accomplish your surrender.
All it takes is for you to be willing to surrender, and then God will help you live a surrendered life.
In the words of scripture, “Draw nigh to God and he will draw nigh to you” (James 4:8).
One of the reasons surrender is not emphasized in the Bible is the notion that it is hard work or that it requires so much sacrifice.
Some even consider a life of surrender to be out of reach because of the discipline that it requires.
There is actually some truth in that, but that is only one side of the coin.
The other side of the coin is that you do not rely on your power to live a life of surrender.
God will accomplish your decision to surrender through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Apostle Paul reminds us, “It is God that worketh in us, both to will and to do of his good pleasure” (Phil. 2:13)
To put it simply, you can count on God’s help – He will accomplish your surrender.
God will accept your surrender
It will make no sense to surrender to God if he won’t accept it.
Sometimes, it may seem like an effort in futility to surrender – especially if you are overwhelmed with guilt and feelings of unworthiness. But we have to keep reminding ourselves that it is God who leads us to surrender, and He will, therefore, gladly accept it.
There are many examples from scripture of people who seemed unworthy of God’s acceptance. But when they surrendered to God, they were received willingly.
Jesus emphasized this spiritual truth through the parable of the prodigal son.
The son got fed up with his Father and demanded his inheritance.
Even though the Father didn’t want to lose the son, he obliged, and as the scripture records, the prodigal son went and wasted his wealth on riotous living (Luke 15:13).
Before long, he was so broke that he started living by taking care of pigs.
Then one day, he realized that it was better if he went back home to ask to be one of his dad’s servants – because his dad’s servants lived better than he was at the moment.
He knew he had messed up big time, and he didn’t qualify to be a son of his Father anymore, but he was ok to be called a servant henceforth.
To his utter surprise, his Father celebrated his return and restored him to his place of sonship.
This is how the heavenly Father operates. Do not allow the devil to cheat you out of the blessed relationship you might enjoy with God.
As Paul reminds us, there is, therefore, now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. (Romans 8:1)
You can, therefore, approach God in confidence, knowing that He will not condemn you but will readily accept your surrender.
God will maintain your surrender
Have you ever been to a church meeting that left you stirred up to lead a consecrated life?
Most people will agree that the feeling didn’t last too long.
Most people go back to their usual way of life a couple of days afterward. But the reason this happens is because most people do not make a serious commitment and also due to weak faith or lack thereof.
If you take God at his word and continue to live a life of surrender, God will not only accept but also maintain your surrender.
It was not easy for Paul to lead a life of surrender.
He kept away from the pleasures of the world to focus on preaching the Gospel.
He secluded himself from other people so that he could focus on seeking God’s will and purpose for his life.
His secret is his complete reliance on and trust in God. This is why he said, For this reason I also suffer these things; but I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that He can protect what I have entrusted to Him until that day. 2 Timothy 1:12
Simply put, Paul knew that the God he believed in would also maintain and sustain his commitment to lead a life of surrender.
God will bless you when you surrender
YOu drink water from a bottle because it is full. However, if you want to leave the house, you will refill your bottle. But assuming your water bottle was already full – would you need to refill it?
Of Course not!
Similarly, God will not “refill” a vessel that is already full.
When you surrender to God, you are emptying yourself and coming to him as an empty vessel. And that is the kind of vessel that God blesses.
The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, A broken and a contrite heart— These, O God, You will not despise. Psalms 51:17
A study of the people who enjoyed God’s blessing will reveal that they had to first pass the test of surrender.
A good example is Father Abraham. God called him to leave his country and journey to some unknown destination.
When Abraham surrendered to God, he became extremely wealthy and had great herds, silver, and gold (Genesis 13:2).
Not only that, but the descendants of Abraham continued enjoying the blessing of their Father.
Up to date, the Jewish people are still enjoying God’s blessing. And it all started from a man who was willing to surrender.
Demonstrating your surrender to God
Now that we have understand what it means to surrender to God. Let us examine a couple of ways in which you can demonstrate your surrender to God.
Surrender your life to God
Your life is the first thing you need to surrender to God.
As we have already established, God is our creator, and we are the sheep of his pasture.
If God created you, then you must surrender your life to him.
We know from the book of Isaiah, the prophet, that God created us for his glory (Isa. 43:6–7).
As long as you are living a life that is not surrendered to God, you are not glorifying God with your life, which is your ultimate purpose in life.
It’s amazing how much effort and resources humans spend in pursuit of purpose. However, the most important purpose that you should pursue is glorifying God with your life – which starts from surrender.
Even though God doesn’t force anyone to surrender, he wishes that all of us would.
He patiently waits and hopes that everyone will accept his love and repent of their sins. Here is a scripture that illustrates this:
The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead, he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. 2 Peter 3:9
God sent his son to die for us on the cross, which was the ultimate price for man’s sin.
This is the highest demonstration of love, and it is incumbent upon you to reciprocate by surrendering your life to Christ.
Surrender to God’s will
It is not just enough to surrender your life to Christ – you must also surrender to His will for your life.
Apostle Paul understood how important this was, and so he begged the Church in Rome to surrender to God’s will.
Here is the reference:
I beseech you, therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. Romans 12:1-2
There are so many Christians who are pursuing their own selfish goals and desires and have never given thought to God’s will for their life. Paul opines that the only way to know his will for your life is by living a life of total surrender.
Through surrender, you stop conforming to the standards of the world and start living by God’s standards.
When you do that, God makes his will clear to you.
Then, it will just be a matter of obeying his will.
Obeying God’s will shouldn’t be hard because you will already be living a life of surrender.
Surrender to God’s Leadership
In Pslams 23, the psalmist refers to the Lord as his Shepherd.
Jesus confirmed this analogy by referring to himself as the good shepherd.
If the Lord is the Shepherd and we are his sheep, then we must be ready and willing to surrender to his leadership.
See, as the Shepherd, knows what is best for us.
He knows which direction we should take in life.
He knows which pitfalls we should avoid.
He knows the dangerous corners that we should avoid – he is the good shepherd who has nothing but the best of intentions for his sheep.
But unlike most earthly shepherds, the Lord does not “lord it over” his sheep.
He will provide direction, but he will not force you to take it.
He will provide wisdom, but he will not force it on you.
He will offer life, but he will not force it upon anyone.
Check out his reassurance:
Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom. Luke 12:32
God’s leadership is two-fold.
On the one hand, he will lead you himself, but on the other hand, he will use his anointed servants to lead you.
He leads you through his voice, which is amplified in the scriptures.
In the words of Isaiah, whether you turn to the right or left, you will hear God’s voice telling you, “This is the way, walk in it” (Isaiah 30:21). It is then upon you to surrender to his voice and hearken to his leadership.
Sometimes, God will use his ministers to lead you.
This is why Paul admonishes us to hold God’s servants in high regard (1 Thess. 5:13).
As the scripture records, those who believe in God and in his prophets will prosper.
Every Christian must, therefore, be careful of God’s leadership that often comes via his anointed servants.
Final Thoughts
In summary, surrender may not be such a popular topic in the modern church, but it is nonetheless an important spiritual discipline.
Every Christian must desire to live a life of surrender because that is the only way to have a genuine relationship with God.
It is impossible to be a Christina if you are not surrendered to God.
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Bulgarea Anca is a devout Christian and the founder of Bible Wings, a comprehensive resource for Christians seeking to deepen their faith and understanding of the Bible. Raised within the Christian faith, Bulgarea Anca’s spirituality was nourished by her grandparents, who were cantors in their local church. Her Christian upbringing was further solidified by her education at a Christian school. Today, she uses her in-depth knowledge of the scripture to provide insightful and meaningful content through Bible Wings.