Discover two more elements necessary to completely surrender our lives to God, in part two of his three-part series “Surrendering to God.”
Sermon Notes
In part 1 we discussed the siege of Baylor, happened in 1898 - 1899 during the Spanish American war. It was a group of Spanish soldiers that were greatly outnumber by Filipino soldiers who were less equipped. The Filipino soldiers could not break through. The Spanish soldiers refused to surrender even though the war ended during the siege. The Spanish soldiers eventually believed the newspapers to be real and the siege was over.
From part 1, the two main points was letting go of self, and letting go of idols. There is another critical surrender what we must do.
Rom. 12:1 → Be renewed by transforming your mind.
Our bodies must be a living sacrifice, we must be an offering to God. Our offering to God is our very lives and our will.
Rom. 12:2
Two main elements
1.) Let go of your own will
Sometimes is can be easy, sometime it can be a huge sacrifice.
Mark 14:35-36 → Jesus submitted His will to the will of the Father.
a.) Commit to the calling that God has given to you.
God has given us an incredible blessing. God has called us to walk in that truth and into the body of Christ. He has given us spiritual protection. To truly walk in the truth, we must commit to do it. We cannot work with half measures.
1 Cor. 6:19-20 → Our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. We were bought with a price. We are to glorify God with our body and spirit. We must commit has Jesus did.
Psalm 37:1-5 → Trust in the Lord and do good.
The love towards God will lead us to commit to Him.
b.) We must be willing to sacrifice.
We must be willing to give up everything that stands in our way.
Luke 14:28 → Count the cost. Be willing to pick up your cross.
Phil. 3:8
Rom. 8:16 → Suffer with God and also be glorified with Him.
Our we willing to give up our own will.
c.) We must be obedient.
Phil. 2:5 → Let this mind be in you that was also in Christ Jesus. Christ had the mindset to obey God even when it was hard. Are we willing to follow His example.
Psalm 40:6-8
Christ had a delight in obeying God.
John 14:30
John 14:15 → If you love me, keep my Commandments.
Anyone who loves me, keep my word. We are connected to each other by the Holy Spirit and the bond of love. Love of God and obedience go hand in hand. We are to align our will to God’s will.
d.) Willing to serve even when it is difficult to do so.
Mark 10:45 → Jesus came to serve to the point of giving up His physical life.
John 13:34-35 → Love one another as I have loved you. We are to love one another and Jesus and the Father loved us. That love will lead you to serve others.
1 Pet. 4:8 -- Have fervent love for one another. Love covers a multitude of sins.
God has given us gifts and talents.
e.) Willing to forgive others.
Let go of your will if that is standing in your way.
Matt. 6:14 → If you forgive men of their trespasses, you father will forgive you. But if you don’t, our Father will not forgive us.
Col. 3:13 → We are to forgive against each other even if they sin against us.
2.) Allow God to transform you.
We must begin to think like God thinks to live like Him. The transformation can only come through the power of God. We must surrender time on a daily basis for prayer, meditation, bible study, and occasional fasting.
1 Cor. 2:9 → The spirit searches the deep things of God.
We must apply what we know in certain situations. We must come the point to where we rely on God.
a.) Allow God to transform your thinking.
What is in your mind.
2 Cor. 10:4-5
We need to cease negative, lustful, rebellious thoughts. God can help you let go of wrong thoughts through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Phil. 4:8 → Focus on these thoughts. We have the freewill to determine what to dwell on in our mind.
b.) Seek the cleansing of your mind.
Psalm 51: → David had to cleanse his mind due to sin.
Titus 3:4 → All things are possible through the power of God.
