Surrender: A devotional on desperation, humility, and giving over

 Don’t you know that when you offer yourselves to someone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one you obey—whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness? — Romans 6:16 Gracious Lord Jesus, my friend and my King, The Apostle Paul makes a clear distinction that when I offer myself as an obedient slave, I'm a slave of the one I choose to obey. Dr. Steve Schell writes that, "By sinning, I become the slave of sin. By my disobedience I hand over to sin the legal right to dominate me and, in time, for death to seize me." If I choose obedience, I am set free from sin and have become a slave to righteousness (vs. 18). Lord, thank you that I am no longer a slave to sin. I know this because my old self was crucified with you. My body once ruled by sin is gone. Romans 6:7 declares, "anyone who has died has been set free from sin." I am dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus" (vs. 11). Therefore, I offer m...

 Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. — Romans 5:3-4 Gracious Lord Jesus, my friend and my King, We glory in our sufferings. The word Paul uses here means to "glory in a thing", "to boast", "to rejoice." He's contrasting his previous thought that we boast or rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. We rejoice in our hope of God and  we rejoice in our sufferings. The picture forming in my mind is lifting hands, shouting with joy, as I rejoice in God and then doing the same thing in the midst of my suffering. Yeah. I don't do that. I don't rejoice when suffering comes. I do the opposite. I complain. I sulk. I moan. I am irritated. I am angry. I am resentful. But do I rejoice? No. Yet this is the very thing Paul says we are to do. And it's because of the incredible fruitfulness our suffering brings. Suffering produces perseverance....

 Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised. — Romans 4:20-21 Gracious Lord Jesus, my friend and my King, We are quick to call the enemy a thief who steals, kills, and destroys (John 10:10), but our own unbelief is an equal thief. Paul is writing about Abraham who "against all hope... in hope believed and so became the father of many nations" (vs. 18). His body was as good as dead and Sarah's womb was also dead, yet he did not waver in unbelief. He believed God's promise. He was fully persuaded that God was the One "Who gives life to the dead and speaks of the nonexistent things that [He has foretold and promised] as if they [already] existed." (Romans 4:17 AMP). Unbelief is a thief that steals the promises of God. Yet we use unbelief as a protective hedge against disappointment. We believe that we won't fa...

But because of your stubbornness and your unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of God’s wrath, when his righteous judgment will be revealed. — Romans 2:5 Gracious Lord Jesus, my friend and my King, What are the areas of my soul where I am most stubborn and where in my heart am I unrepentant? This verse really brings to mind the cry of the Psalmist who writes, "Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting." (Psalm 139:23-24). Lord, I invite you to inspect my heart. Where does stubbornness and unrepentance exist? This way of surrender and humility means regularly asking you to survey the condition of my heart and point out the areas where I am holding tightly to my own way and grasping self-righteously to my own desires.  Lord, forgive me for my stubbornness. Cleanse me of my thinking that my ways are right and I know the answers. Lord, for...

 I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong— that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith. — Romans 1:11-12 Gracious Lord Jesus, my friend and my King, Paul's longing to come to Rome to preach and disciple wasn't a one-sided transaction. He fully intended to receive something from the church in Rome. Even though an apostle, with all his experience, insight, and revelation, he anticipated being encouraged by their faith as much as he would encourage them. Lord, that is the mark of humility. May I never become so certain of what I can bring to others that I become prideful and unteachable and unable to receive from others. May I be encouraged by the faith of those I pastor. May I learn from those I am teaching. May we mutually encourage each other's faith. Gracious Lord, today I choose to stay humble, even when I could take pride in the position of experienced teacher. I choose to stay humble when someone s...

 This letter is from Paul, a slave of Christ Jesus, chosen by God to be an apostle and sent out to preach his Good News. Romans 1:1 NLT Gracious Lord Jesus, my friend and my King, Paul used the word "doulos" to describe his relationship to you. Doulos is translated to "slave, servant, bondservant." Although an adopted son into the family of God, Paul chose to make himself a slave. Dr. Steve Schell writes, "With these few words he tells us he has abandoned his rights and given over all control of his life in order to serve Jesus. He has fully surrendered himself—his self-protection, personal comfort, daily agenda, finances and more—to do everything in his power to spread the Gospel." This description of "doulos" shines a bright light on how much Paul willingly gave up to be set apart as an apostle for the Gospel. Moreover, it illuminates all that I value above the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Can I fully surrender my self-protection? Dropping my fists ...

 He proclaimed the kingdom of God and taught about the Lord Jesus Christ—with all boldness and without hindrance! — Acts 28:31 Gracious Lord Jesus, my friend and my King, These final words of Acts, spoken of the Apostle Paul, describe my goal. Lord, I desire to be a man who proclaims the kingdom of God. The word proclamation is derived from the Latin word meaning "shout out." Its definition is "a clear declaration of something." Proclaiming the kingdom of God really needs to take place outside the walls of the church for those who have never heard the Gospel. So Lord, open doors and lead me by your Spirit to proclaim the kingdom of God. Lord, I desire to teach about the Lord Jesus Christ. With every message I preach, I pray that I can point to you. May I ensure each sermon clearly articulates who you are and the way to you and to follow you. I'm uninterested in teaching that tickles ears or majors in the minors. I want to teach about the Lord Jesus Christ. Lord,...

 And now what are you waiting for? Get up, be baptized and wash your sins away, calling on his name.’ — Acts 22:16 Gracious Lord Jesus, my friend and my King, When Ananias met Paul, he prayed for him to receive his sight and then declared what Paul was called to do. Ananias said, "The God of our ancestors has chosen you to know his will and to see the Righteous One and to hear words from his mouth. You will be his witness to all people of what you have seen and heard." (v 14). And then Ananias said, "And now what are you waiting for?"  Once we know our calling and have that clarity, there is always an immediate next step. For Paul, it was to get up, be baptized and wash his sins away by calling on the name of the Lord Jesus. There was no waiting around. He knew what he needed to do. For me, I have greater clarity today than ever before, yet at times I still allow myself to languish and wait around, as if there's going to be more clarity if I sit and wait. But if...

 However, I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the good news of God’s grace. — Acts 20:24 Gracious Lord Jesus, my friend and my King, Paul considered his life worth nothing to him. Not because he believed his life held no value, but because he knew the purpose of his life was to give it away for the Gospel. He wasn't holding onto something that wasn't his—his life belonged to you, Lord Jesus. His only aim was to finish the race set before him and complete the task you had given him—the task of testifying to the good news of God's grace. He knew his purpose, his call, and his goal. His focus was singular, specific, and significant. Lord, how often do I want to cling to this life and the comfort I seek rather than give it away for you? What would my life be like if I had this kind of clarity knowing my life's purpose? How would I navigate hardship, adversity, a...

 One night the Lord spoke to Paul in a vision: “Do not be afraid; keep on speaking, do not be silent. For I am with you, and no one is going to attack and harm you, because I have many people in this city.” — Acts 18:9-10 Gracious Lord Jesus, my friend and my King, What a relief this must have been to Paul. To hear directly from you, at night through a vision, your reassurance and exhortation to not be afraid, to keep on speaking, to not be silent, and that you are with him. Moreover, that no one is going to attack Paul because you have many people in this city. Lord, your presence is always enough to quell my fears. "For I am with you" is the truth I rely on when I am shaking in my boots wondering if I can obey the call you have placed on my life. "For I am with you" is the reminder I need when the Holy Spirit nudges me to speak but I can't find the words to break the silence. "For I am with you" is the stake in the ground when I face opposition and a...

From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands. — Acts 17:26 Gracious Lord Jesus, my friend and my King, In the Apostle Paul's message in the meeting of the Areopagus, he is proclaiming who God is. He has found an altar with the inscription: TO AN UNKNOWN GOD and he is set on proclaiming who this God is. In the middle of his message, he makes this statement, " and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands." All the nations that you have made have their appointed times in history. You have marked that out since the beginning. You know when a nation will rise. You know when a nation will fall. You know the boundaries you have set for them. How those boundaries will expand or how they will contract. And if you know this for a nation, I suspect you know the appointed times in history for each person within that nation. Th...

 The jailer brought them into his house and set a meal before them; he was filled with joy because he had come to believe in God—he and his whole household. — Acts 16:34 Gracious Lord Jesus, my friend and my King, I sometimes forget that introducing people to you for the first time isn't only about their eternal life, it's also about their abundant life here and now. This jailer was filled with joy because he had come to believe in God. His joy was immediate and it was full. What's also striking is how his whole household also had come to believe in God. One person's decision to follow you resulted in an entire household coming to faith. Lord, that's what I pray to see. One person's salvation leading to an entire household following you. I have seen this. I can think of several families in our congregation where that is their story. One man chooses to come back to God and his wife, his kids, his in-laws, and his sister-in-law and brother-in-law all come to faith...

 They preached the gospel in that city and won a large number of disciples. Then they returned to Lystra, Iconium and Antioch, strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to the faith. “We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God,” they said. — Acts 14:21-22 Gracious Lord Jesus, my friend and my King, Acts 14:22 is a reminder that we are not promised a life of ease once we choose to follow you. Your words in John 16:33 say the same, "In this world  you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." Hardships, trials, persecution, and adversity are all part of the discipleship process. We don't get to skip those. Following you is no guarantee of a painfree life void of discomfort and challenge. On the contrary, Paul and Barnabas preached that we must go through many hardships to enter the Kingdom of God. Many hardships. Not exactly the encouraging word I wanted today. I'd prefer something along the lines of, "Y...