Key Scripture. 1 Peter 5:6-7

Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.

Relevance

I've been meditating on that all-encompassing word 'Surrender' and what it means to different people, especially me. 

Christians are called to surrender all, just as the song says, 

 All to Jesus, I surrender

All to Him I freely give

I will ever love and trust Him 

In His presence, daily live.

The degree to which we live in God's presence is inversely proportional to the amount of surrendering we are prepared to offer Him.  

Some of us don't surrender much and wonder why our lives seem remote or disconnected, and we don't receive the fullness on offer. Others offer up all of themselves and, in return, live in the blessings and closeness of their Saviour.

The word Surrender means to yield—to give up one's self into the power of another.

Missionaries in some countries surrender due to violence, robbery and bloodshed but have already surrendered to the will of God prior to their posting. When we talk of surrendering wills, it's hard to go past the well-known Biblical missionary, the Apostle Paul.

2 Corinthians 11:24-27 lays out an abbreviated understanding of what Paul surrendered and how. In this historical record of religious discrimination and bitter hatred, he omits the countless hours of his own learning and instructing of others freely donated to the development of the Body of Christ.

24 Of the Jews five times received I forty stripes save one.

25 Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep;

26 In journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren;

27 In weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness.

In each of these instances, Paul's crime was simply to follow and preach Jesus, which begs the question, how much hatred can some people have for the truth? 

But he gained strength from Jesus' own experiences: If the world hates you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you. 

Five times, he was beaten by the Jews with a whip for 39 stripes each time, three times with a cane (Look up Singapore Rotan), and even stoned. Think for a second about what his body would have looked like each time and the physical cost.

Paul could have run and hid but knew there was no valour in surrendering to the will of man. He had already submitted to His Lord.

I've often imagined Paul, after every stripe or stone, silently praising and thanking His Saviour for the privilege of being worthy of the beatings. At stripe No. 12, "Strengthen me, O Father, only 27 to go! "

We might approach such trials with fear and trepidation, but for Paul, they were an honour. You see, each incident was brought on by his decision to love Jesus more than his own life. Paul's selfishness was zero. That clear commitment to confront and overcome all anxieties and concerns for self by the power of love and the Holy Spirit was his underlying force. 

What does surrendering mean to you? If you were to walk side-by-side with Paul through his circumstances, would you get there?

Prayer

Dear Lord, thank you for the love that commandeers our very lives for your sake, purposing us to give all we have for Jesus. The strength of purpose brought and bolstered by Your Holy Spirit empowers us to withstand defeat.  

Photo by Dan Meyers