Selfless Surrender

Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it. What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?” Matthew 16:24-26 | NIV84

To seek the Lord is to deny oneself, to lay down your own personal desires, and to follow after the One and Only true Way, that is, Jesus Christ. No matter where the Lord has placed you or what responsibilities He has bestowed upon you, remember to keep a humble, servant-oriented heart before Him. Remember, after all, you are serving the King of Kings and such things should not be taken lightly. When one serves the Lord God, they become almost completely invisible because God ends up shining through them and people are drawn to the Lord and not the person who is serving the Lord. Granted, there will be those who will seek after the servant instead of the King, and it is there within where temptation lies for both the seeker and the servant.

A good leader will always place the attention onto the Lord God and point people to Scripture for wisdom. Be wary of those leaders who like to stir up emotional feelings and who like to entertain you because if the attention is not placed upon the Lord, what’s the purpose of whatever it is they are doing? Ponder that question for a moment or two, seriously.

For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. 2 Timothy 4:3-4 | NIV84

Please also consider that you must be diligent in your own private spiritual walk. Such things like reading and studying Scripture on your own is vital to gaining revelation. Praying, fasting, and listening to the direction of the Holy Spirit in the privacy of your own home. It’s important to build yourself up in the Faith with the Word of God so that you may test and approve those who teach Scripture, and also, so that you may test and approve what you believe. Do you know why you believe what you believe? Can you confirm those beliefs with Scripture? Does that particular belief align itself up with the whole of Scripture? If not, such beliefs must be re-examined. Spiritual growth can happen quickly, but it also happens very slowly and often it is when time has passed before God begins to reveal the errors of your own heart or any misunderstandings you may have gained within Scripture. However, the only way to ever get past being spiritually immature, that is, only knowing the simple truths, is to spend time seeking God and putting aside those things that do not build oneself up spiritually. Sometimes it is good to stop being so busy serving here and there and return to your First Love. It is always better to sit at the feet of the Teacher than to be so distracted trying to please Him by performing empty tasks for all to see.

Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity. Joel 2:13 | NIV84

Fill your mind with Scripture not to build a foundation of Doctrine, but rather to build a foundation of humility and love. When one draws nearer to God, it is hardly ever a time of boasting, but rather a time of reflection. It is often a time where you discover who you really are and how wonderful God really is. Words are not suitable for the proper description of what transpires when you humble yourself before the LORD and come willingly to learn. It is both marvelous and breath-taking all in one.

Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is–his good, pleasing and perfect will. Romans 12:2 | NIV84

Consider that Moses, outside of Jesus, was the closest a man ever got to God. Moses spent the majority of his life in the presence of the LORD and do you know what Scripture says of him?

(Now Moses was a very humble man, more humble than anyone else on the face of the earth.) Numbers 12:3 | NIV84

Now I find it rather interesting that this Scripture is noted in parentheses. Parentheses are often used for clarification inside of another explanation. In another words, it’s not the main attraction. In this particular chapter, Aaron and Miriam (Moses’ siblings) were questioning Moses’ authority and laying claim that they themselves had equal authority. In short, they were indirectly questioning God’s wisdom and in a round-about sort of way elevating themselves above the authority of God. A big no-no, but that’s for another discussion. The point here is to show that the more one-on-one time Moses spent with God, the more humble he became.

If you find someone boasting about their relationship with God, consider Moses. The closer you draw to Him, the greater your understanding of who God really is becomes. To glorify yourself is to take glory from God, or to elevate yourself and such behavior is the opposite of God’s character. Remember that Jesus, who is God, humbled Himself even to the point of death on a cross, which you know was the most disgraceful way to die at that time. Jesus never took glory, and likewise, neither should we. God’s perfect love practically prohibits such behavior if one is truly seeking Him. God is absolute perfect Love, and although such Love is nearly impossible to resist, it also shines its light upon every impurity within your soul. His love invites you in, draws you near and you can’t help, but come in complete humility. His Grace and Mercy covers you so you can commune with Him and His Spirit opens the eyes of your heart so that you may gain a greater, spiritual understanding of everything around you.

Lay aside those things that do not draw you nearer to the Holy precious presence of the LORD. Throw them away, and come to Him. Just you, alone, come. Then sit, wait and be ready with an open heart. His Spirit will transform you entirely.