ResurrenderSample

THE PROMISE OF RESURRENDER: VICTORY

RESURRENDER. To yield anew.

In the eyes of the world, the idea of surrender has always been associated with defeat. If you were to close your eyes and think about the word "surrender," what comes to mind?

When I hear the word surrender, the picture that I see is a war-torn land. Spot fires are scattered throughout an open field, trenches that are filled with mud and debris remain desolate and abandoned, and a thick haze of smoke billows up from the earth. In the middle of this horrific scene, I see a soldier slowly raising a white flag that glides and flickers through the air, all to signal the end of a war.

For many of us today, we know the white flag as a symbol of weakness, a symbol of losing hope, and a symbol of failure. In the sport of boxing, to throw in the white towel means to give up the fight–to concede, to bow, and to yield. The truth is, there is nothing about a white flag that looks appealing at all. So why does God desire surrender?

To the world, surrender means defeat. But in the kingdom, surrender means VICTORY.

God’s kingdom has often been referred to as an upside-down kingdom–where the "rules" are in reverse, and the values are counter cultural. In God’s kingdom to lead means to serve, to gain means to give, to live means to die, and to conquer means to surrender.

In Matthew 16, Jesus reminds us that whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me (Jesus) will find it. This is the confronting reality of the call of discipleship. It’s important to understand that this verse is not asking you to take your life, but it is asking you to give your life. This passage is all about one thing–surrender. To be a disciple is to surrender. To follow Jesus is to surrender. And to be a Christian means to surrender. Jesus is saying if you want life, real life, eternal life, then you need to be willing to surrender the current life you have now, to step into the real life God has for you.

When you choose to surrender your life to God, you position yourself for victory. Surrender says that you are choosing to trust God, you are choosing to give over control, and you are choosing to release the outcome to Him. Romans 8 reminds us that because God is for you, then no-one can stand against you, that you are more than conquerors through Christ who loved you. When we become aware of this, we start to learn that we don’t need to fight our battles on our own, that God fights our battles for us. Over and over throughout scripture we see God fighting for His people, protecting them, vindicating them, and promoting them. This tells us that God’s job is the outcome, and our job is "surrender."

In this upside-down kingdom, becoming a disciple is not about self-interest but denying self; it’s not about taking up a title but taking up a cross; it’s not about the multitudes that follow you but about you following Him. In the same way, victory is not found in our strategy but in our surrender.

QUESTIONS:

1. What are some of the areas in your life you are believing to see victory in?
2. What area/s of your life is God calling you to surrender to Him? What does that practically look like?