10 September 2007
Rhema Inspiration
Surrender Your Heart to God
I recently read about a great
spiritual leader who lived in the 1800s. He was very
much aware of when he experienced conversion, but he
was aware also that it was not until four years after
his salvation that he made the decision to surrender
his whole heart to God. When that took place, the
things of the world no longer had any hold on him. He
was free to be all that God wanted him to be. I am sure
that after his full surrender he went on to become an
inspiration to others as to what a true disciple of the
Lord Jesus Christ is.
The body of Christ has always
needed true and mature disciples to lead the way in
what the Lord God wants His Church to do and accomplish
on earth. In the beginning of the
New Covenant Church, Jesus Christ
needed disciples like Peter, James, John, Stephen,
Paul, Mary, Priscilla, and many others. They knew what
was required to be a disciple of the Lord, and they
accepted the standards and yielded to the Holy Spirit
to enable them to be true disciples. It is quite clear
in the Bible that they surrendered their hearts to the
Lord so that they could follow Him closely and fully
accomplish His will. They took seriously the prayer,
“Thy will be done.” They lived by being
true to “Not my will but Thy will, O Lord.”
They set the biblical pattern for what a disciple
should be and do.
It would profit us greatly if we
would study closely the lives of the early disciples to
learn from their examples and to be inspired by them.
If we would endeavor to follow Jesus with the same
devotion and commitment that we see in them, Christ
would be glorified, His Church would be built up, and
the number of true and dedicated disciples would be
multiplied.
Know and believe that it is
possible to be as faithful to our Lord and His Word as
they were. It will not be easy, but neither was it easy
for them. Take to heart, as they must have, such Old
Testament Scriptures as Deuteronomy 4:29. Take to heart
our Lord’s words found in Luke 9:23, Luke 14:27
and 33. I know that presently these Scriptures are not
often preached from present-day church pulpits, but I
know that they are still rich in truth and sharp as a
two-edged sword. Take them into your minds and hearts;
they will wash you, and they will divide asunder your
soul and your spirit. As you meditate on them and pray
their words, the Holy Spirit will begin to make them a
reality for you. He will use them to create great
hunger and thirst for God and His will within you. He
will lead you to the place of full surrender. When you
get there and it looks good but seems so hard and
nearly impossible, He will pull you through if you call
on Him with your whole heart and soul.
God bless you as you pursue Him
and seek Him with all of your heart and soul. You will
become a blessing, a witness, and an inspiration to
others in the body of Christ. Along with them, you will
be salt and light for Jesus Christ to the world.
Hallelujah! Praise be to the Lamb of God!
_____________________________
BIBLICAL APPLICATION:
Forgetting what is behind and
straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the
goal to win the prize for which God has called me
heavenward in Christ Jesus. All of us who are mature
should take such a view of things. And if on some point
you think differently, that too God will make clear to
you. Only let us live up to what we have already
attained. Join with others in following my example,
brothers, and take note of those who live according to
the pattern we gave you.
Philippians 3:13b-17 NIV
Pastor Wayne Wilson
New Covenant Church of Jesus
Christ
3147 Klondike Road, SW, Conyers,
GA 30094 USA
770-760-1101
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© 2007 New Covenant Church of
Jesus Christ, Conyers, GA USA
www.JesusAndHisWord.org
