A Full Surrender!

Ac 21:13 Then Paul answered, "What

do you mean by weeping and breaking

my heart? For I am ready not only to be

bound, but also to die at Jerusalem for

the name of the Lord Jesus."

Ac 21:14 So when he would not be

persuaded, we ceased, saying, "The will

of the Lord be done."

What being a Christian is like!

▪ A runner in a race! (1 Cor.

9:24-27)

▪ A fighter in a fight! (1 Tim.

6:12; 2 Tim. 4:6-8

▪ A soldier in a war! (Eph.

6:10-18; 1 Tim. 1:18; 2 Tim.

2:3-4)

What Does It Mean To Surrender?

▪ Surrender = to stop resisting an opponent

and submit to their authority; give up;

abandon oneself entirely to another; to

cancel (Oxford Dict.)

▪ In the case of war, when one side sees

that they cannot win, they often lay down

their arms and surrender in hope of

preserving their life!

▪ Today we will be noting our need to “fully

surrender” our lives to Christ!

I. God’s Way Is Better Than Man’s!Throughout the Bible we find that mankind needs

direction!▪ Jer 10:23 O LORD, I know the way of man is

not in himself; It is not in man who walks to direct

his own steps.

▪ Pr 14:12 There is a way that seems right to a

man, But its end is the way of death.

▪ Isa 55:8-9 "For My thoughts are not your

thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways," says the

LORD. "For as the heavens are higher than the

earth, So are My ways higher than your ways,

And My thoughts than your thoughts.

Men often get it wrong, but God

always gets it right!▪ God’s Word is to be our lamp and our light!

▸Ps 119:105 Your word is a lamp to my feet And

a light to my path.

▸Pr 6:23 For the commandment is a lamp, And

the law a light; Reproofs of instruction are the way

of life,

– A lamp shows you where you are at!

– A light shows you where you are headed!

▪ When we come to understand that God’s way is

better than ours, we should surrender our way to

Him!

II. God’s Way Is Better Than Mine!

▪ For me it is easier to accept that others are

wrong, than it is to accept that I too am often

wrong!

▸Gen 3:11-13 And He said, "Who told you that

you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree

of which I commanded you that you should not

eat?" Then the man said, "The woman whom

You gave to be with me, she gave me of the

tree, and I ate." And the LORD God said to the

woman, "What is this you have done?" The

woman said, "The serpent deceived me, and I

ate."

The truth is that I am just a man and

that God is much great than me!▪ There are many in the world we ar ein that

think they know “better” than God!

▸Many want to change the church to suit

them, rather than allowing themselves to

change to suit God!

▸The truth is that we cannot improve upon

God, because God is far greater than we are!

(Cf. 1 Cor. 1:18-25)

▪ The children of God must learn to simply “let

go and let God!”

We must not only let God ride, but

rather let God drive!▪ Some years back I would often see bumper-

stickers and shirts that read “God is my co-

pilot” and that seems pretty good until I

realized, we need to switch seats!

▪ The truth is we are limited and God is infinite!

▸Ps 147:5 Great is our Lord, and mighty in

power; His understanding is infinite.

▸We see life in pieces, but God sees the

whole puzzle! (Cf. Rom. 8:28)

III. God’s Way Is Better Than Money!

▪ The subject of money/material wealth is found

throughout the Bible.

▸Some scholars have claimed to have found

over 2,350 verses addressing this!

▸There are 31,103 verse in the entire Bible, so

that is around 7.5%

▪ Now you may be thinking, “what does money

have to do with a full surrender?”

▸The answer is “everything!”

▸We have to learn to value the right things or

we will never surrender our lives to God!

The word of Jesus!▪ Mt 6:19-21, 24 "Do not lay up for yourselves

treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy

and where thieves break in and steal; "but lay up

for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither

moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not

break in and steal. "For where your treasure is,

there your heart will be also. 24 "No one can

serve two masters; for either he will hate the one

and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the

one and despise the other. You cannot serve God

and mammon.

Let’s notice how this works!▪ 1Ti 6:6-10 Now godliness with contentment is

great gain. For we brought nothing into this world,

and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And

having food and clothing, with these we shall be

content. But those who desire to be rich fall into

temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and

harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and

perdition. For the love of money is a root of all

kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the

faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves

through with many sorrows.

▪ 1Ti 6:17-18 Command those who are rich in this

present age not to be haughty, nor to trust in

uncertain riches but in the living God, who gives

us richly all things to enjoy. Let them do good,

that they be rich in good works, ready to give,

willing to share,

▸It is not wrong to have riches, it is wrong when

riches have you!

▪ Lk 21:3-4 So He said, "Truly I say to you that

this poor widow has put in more than all; "for all

these out of their abundance have put in offerings

for God, but she out of her poverty put in all the

livelihood that she had."

▪ We must learn to never put anyone or

anything before God! God must come first!

▪ All that we are and all that we have, is a

blessing given by God and is to be used for

His glory!

▪ Far too often we get catch up in

surrendering to the wrong things because we

have fail to see the value in surrendering to

God!

▪ Many will sacrifice all that they have in

hopes to get rich, but are not willing to truly

sacrifice in their service to God!

Conclusion:▪ Who have we been surrendering to in our lives?

▪ Being a Christian is all about learning to live a

life of full surrender!

▪ If you are here and not yet a Christian, then be

set free from sin, by the blood of Jesus! Learn to

trust Him with your life!

▪ Jas 4:7-8 Therefore submit to God. Resist the

devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God

and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your

hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you

double-minded.