Good morning everyone. And we're glad that you're here
this morning. I took a lesson out of the
archives and kind of reworked it a little bit and hopefully it
brings some things to mind this morning that will benefit us in
our in our daily Christian Living.
And Luke, the 9th chapter, we take our text for our lesson
this morning versus 57 through 62 and will comment more on
these and get more detailed into these later on in the lesson.
but, The story is here. Now it happened as they
journeyed on the road that someone said to him, Lord, I
will follow you wherever you go. And Jesus said to him, foxes
have holes. And birds of the air have nests,
but the son of man has nowhere to lay his head.
Then he said to another follow me, but he said, Lord, let me
first go and bury my father. Jesus said to him, let the dead
bury. The dead bury their own dead,
but you go and preach the kingdom of God.
And another also said, Lord, I will follow you, but let me go
first, go and bid them farewell, who are at my house.
But Jesus said to him, no one having put his hand to the plow
and looking back is fit for the kingdom of God.
These individuals still wanted to have their connections to
other things instead of surrendering to Jesus.
They wanted to make a commitment, but they didn't want
really to surrender. Their was conditions to what the
invitation was to them. So many of us want to have full
control in our lives, you know, it it just seems like when we
lose control of what's going on in our life, Things Fall Apart
and it's sometimes just turns into a wreck but we like to have
control of our lives and we like to be the ones in control and
sometimes some may even call you a control freak because you want
to have every little thing done in your life a certain little
way. And but some refused to
surrender too much of anything and especially to God.
But also many, who have been baptized into, Jesus refused to
surrender, to control to the control of Jesus in their lives
as well. A common phrase in the church
today is I'm going to make a commitment.
But they refused to surrender to the control of Jesus in their
lives. You've heard it said and we've
all maybe said it you know, that person needs to be more
committed to this or two that people need to be more committed
to their jobs, they need to become more committed to their
families. They need need to be more
committed to all different kinds of things.
But when you really look at the word committed, you'll find that
that word committed, doesn't really go far enough to what
we're talking about this morning committed is defined as a
promise to do or I give something a promise to be loyal
to someone or something. In other words, marriage, vows
the attitude of someone who works very hard to do or support
something committed to a certain cause there are all kinds of
commitments that we make these days.
You make, you may make a commitment you're willing to be
the one in control of this or that. and and a person can make
a commitment to pray more and to study their Bible, more maybe,
make their their house payment, or their car payment, whatever
you choose to do, we commit ourselves to doing it, but
surrendering is different if someone holds a gun to your
head, And you lift your hands up in the air and they tell you to
surrender, you've given up control, you're not in control
anymore, you're surrendering to them.
You can't just say, well, I'm committed to do what you tell me
to do. I'm going to make that
commitment to you. If they hold a gun up and tell
you to put your hands in the air, know what you're going to
do is surrender, you're giving up everything that you want to
do and now you're going to do what they I want you to do our
problem is that we still want to be the ones that maintain
control in our lives and continue to work and struggle at
serving. God, we keep trying to fight
against God for the control of our lives and we keep making a
mess out of everything. Always expecting a different
result. Each time surrender means that
we give up to God. No more fighting or conflict Why
is it that something that that they can keep doing the same
thing and expect a different result?
You know, that's the definition of insanity doing the same thing
over and over and over expecting a different result.
Thinking they will make a commitment after this time or
that time or, you know, I'm going to give this up next time.
The next time this happens then I'll do the right thing.
But never making the changes that result in a different
outcome. Never giving up the battle that
goes on in their lives. And what happens in their lives
is it just turns into an absolute train wreck Sometimes,
we counsel those people, we try to get them to understand.
You can't keep doing that but they want to make a commitment
if they can just eventually get it right, you see.
We have enough commitment in the church today.
What we need is surrender complete surrender to Jesus
Christ. It seems may be contradictory
for us to, for people to think that when we surrender that
we're actually doing the right thing.
Because, you know, when we think about surrendering, we think the
well, I lost The battle I've given up, you know, when we when
we think about surrendering, we think of countries in battles
against each other and when they wave the red, the white flag and
surrender there giving up. And now someone else is, can in
control. That's what happens.
But when we surrender Our Lives to God, when we surrender Our
Lives to Jesus Christ, we are the winners we're not giving up
anything. We give it over to God.
And to Jesus Christ, we are not the Sirs.
When we fully trust God, fully surrender.
Hint to him. We are the winners submission.
And surrender doesn't make us a prisoner.
In fact, it frees us from the bondage of sin notice.
Romans 8, and verse 24, the law of the spirit of life in Christ,
Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death surrender
is defined as to agree to stop fighting hiding resisting and so
on because you know that you will not win or succeed to give
oneself up into the power of another to yield.
Means we give up the fight, we're not fighting anymore.
Would give in to the control of someone else in our life.
You know. We don't like that people today,
we don't like giving up and giving in to someone else.
We find that this is a problem within within the marriage life
today, that one wants to win and the other one wants to win and
they just go head-to-head all the time.
And all it is is just a big mess, whereas if one would give
him or both would give in and see what to do with the benefit,
is for the other things would certainly work out.
Bedded better to acknowledge Jesus as Lord and Master Of Our
Lives to surrender. Her to him.
Gives us power. Power in our lives to let
someone else help us guide. Us lead us in the right way
accepting the authority of someone or something else.
There is power in surrender to God.
It's not accepting defeat to Center.
Surrender means to end the fight.
The struggles, there's no more argument, no more fighting God.
It's when we realize that his way is better than our way.
You know, I've had times and in our lives that we think that
we're right about something, and we just stand the ground with it
and then come to find out. We were wrong and it's somebody
else was right. Well, God is always right.
God is always right and we need to give in to that.
The opposite of surrender is to live in Rebellion.
Rebellion means opposition toward a person in Authority.
We see lot of rebellion today, don't we?
We see it in the news. We see it everywhere that people
don't like Authority. And that's part of the problem
with the world is, they don't want to turn the authority over
to God, they've taken God out of out of the schools, they taken
God out of the families, they've taken God out of All different
kinds of things. And then we wonder why there are
so many problems in the world. They don't like the authority of
God. And have not surrendered to God.
And when we Rebel on one thing, it's usually turns into many
things. And we see that happening today,
as well, whatever it is that you're holding onto.
That's keeping us from surrending, is not something
that's eternal. If there's something that's keep
you keeping you today from surrendering to Jesus and
surrendering to God, it's only a temporal thing.
It's things. And it's not eternal.
It's fleshly and it's worldliness.
Temporal, we must start doing things God's way the world we
live in and the people we are around put so much trust in our
own intelligence and education. Others think that trusting the
Lord is not. And and not our own
understanding is crazy. Why would you, why would you
turn your trust over to something that you can't see?
And they try to reason out all of these things if they can't
pick up, just any old book and read about it or or whatever and
prove it, false will why would you believe something like that?
Why would you have faith in God? Why would you have faith in
heaven? Why would you have faith?
That baptism saves your soul? And they think you're crazy.
But this is the center of what it means to surrender is
trusting in our God, and not our own understanding, or anyone
else is understanding, I hear and read of so many that are
worried and concerned of the things that are going on in this
world today and they find themselves struggling to cope
with what's going on today in life.
Because the way of the world is the way that the world is going
doesn't make sense to them. Well, it doesn't have to make
sense to us. When our trust is in God.
What goes on in this world doesn't make sense.
What goes on in life, doesn't make sense?
And is not fair and is not, right?
And is not trustworthy. And what men tell you and what
Rend reason with you about in this life doesn't make sense and
is not trustworthy. If we're putting all our trust
in the things of this world, it's in the wrong place.
A surrendered Christian acknowledges God at every step
living a life of total trust in his power, in his plan, in his
will in order to comprehend and experience.
Surrender to God, obedience to the gospel, is a requirement,
the Lost rebellious person, must have faith, Hebrews 11 and verse
6, but without faith, it is impossible to please him.
For he who comes to God, must believe that he is, and that he
is a rewarder. Order of those who diligently
seek him. If I'm going to surrendered
myself to Jesus. And to God, I must have faith in
God that he does he can and will do what he has promised.
He will do. Absolutely, we must repent of
Our Lives, Luke 13 over 3, I tell you no but unless you
repent you will all likewise perish.
A rebellious person must make the confession of faith in
Jesus. As the Son of God, Matthew 10
verse 32. Therefore, whoever confesses me
before men him. I will also confess before my
father, who is in heaven? And then the rebellious person
must repent of you baptized, and then be baptized for the
remission of his sins Acts 2 and verse 38, repent.
And let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus
Christ for the remission of sins and you shall receive the gift
of the Holy Spirit. This is the acceptance of a new
master. A lord, lord means master.
When we have a master we subject and we surrender to that Master,
we do his will we do his? We he is the one that is in
control. Luke 9 and verse 23.
And he said to them all if any man will come after me let him
deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.
I know this is a hard thing for us to do is to deny our self.
You know, we want, we live in a world, that is selfish.
I want this, I want that. I'm going to do this.
I'm going to do that. Not if the Lord is willing, but
we live in a selfish selfish world where everyone wants to do
what they want to. And that's a hard thing for them
to do, is to deny themselves to surrender to Jesus means that
there has to be room for Jesus. In their life.
If a person says that they're committed to Jesus, but has not
turned away from their old ways, there's no room for the
surrender and replacement of the old ways.
It's like trying to put 10 pounds of dirt in a 5-pound bag.
If there's, if it's already full of dirt, you can't put anything
in it. If there's no room in the in the
person's heart for Jesus, then you can't replace what is in
there. You have to take out the old
before you can put in the new And so it is with the Christian
Living, we have to die for from ourselves so that Christ can
live and work within us. If we're all stuck on ourselves
and we're all taking care of ourselves and all of our own
selfish desires all the time and that's all that controls our
life, there's no room for Jesus in our life, because it's all
about us. It's all about me.
There's no room for Jesus. The Bible teaches the Christian
has to put off the old ways, the way all old way of thinking and
speaking, and living, and doing, and make room for Christ.
Notice Galatians 5, and verse 24 and they that are Christ's have
crucified, the flesh with the affections and lusts.
That means those are gone, Romans 6, and 6 knowing this,
that our old man was crucified with him that the body of sin
might be done away with that. We should no longer be slaves of
sin. Trusting God, that his way is
best is the beginning of our surrender to him.
Notice proverbs, 31 verses 5 through 6, trust in the Lord,
with all your heart and lean not to your own understanding, in
all your ways acknowledge Him and He Shall direct your paths.
Be led. He has made the path.
He's leading us down that path. All we need to do is follow him.
Put our trust and faith in him. There have been people that I
have followed sometimes on roads and this and that and and you
wonder what in the world are they doing?
Where are they going? Some dark Road or some dark
Trail. I remember one time when we were
out deer hunting in Oregon. Late in the afternoon.
Got the truck stuck. Couldn't get out of there.
I knew where a house was about a mile away.
And we started off in the dark headed towards the house.
Neither one of us really knew where we were going.
But all of a sudden, we saw the light From that house.
I knew where I was going. Jesus is our light, Jesus is our
pathway. Jesus is our way unless our, we
surrender up over to him and let him lead us down this path.
We will be dead LED down a path of sin and write us living.
Getting back to our text, there are three things I would like to
notice about surrendering to Jesus.
As first, we must submit our life to Jesus.
We must neither this world and we must focus on the kingdom.
First, we must submit our life to Jesus and our text, Luke 9
and verse 57. Now it happened as they
journeyed on the road that someone said to him, Lord, I
will follow you wherever you go. And Jesus said to him, foxes
have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the son of
man has nowhere to lay his head. Now Jesus wasn't saying to this
man, you know, turning him away. He was explained to him the cost
of being a disciple He makes it clear that there was more to
following him than just simply going wherever he went.
And walking around with him that there was going to be a cost.
Foxes. Have holes birds have nests, but
the son of man has nowhere to lay his head.
In other words, you understand what you're doing, when you make
this surrender to me, Many times we find people who get caught up
in the excitement and the emotion of hearing a lesson or
whatever, but they're not really willing to to surrender their
life over to Jesus. They just kind of get emotional
about things and they they want to get things fixed in their
life. They just want to get things
fixed but they don't want to surrender.
James and John surrendered to Jesus.
After after he called them Lotus.
Mark one in verses 19 and 20 when he had gone a little
farther from there. He saw James, the son of Zebedee
and John his brother who also were in the boat, mending their
Nets and immediately he can't, he called them, and they left
their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants and went
after him. Dropped what they were doing and
went. Jesus called James and John and
they surrendered their lives to him.
They left their home, their families, their job to follow
Christ. They left everything.
When Jesus calls us to come to him, we must submit to him.
And we are to live a life of complete surrender to our
Savior. All the apostles.
Did that they didn't go back to their fishing or they're they're
collecting taxes or whatever it was that they were doing.
They follow Jesus until the day, they died for Jesus.
And, you know, God requires things of us sometimes that we
just don't want to give up. In verse 59 and 60, or a text,
we see that that if we're going to completely surrender, then we
must deny this world. Verse 59, then he said to
another follow me. But he said, Lord, let me go and
bury my father. Jesus said to him, let the dead
bury their own dead, but you go and preach the kingdom of God.
Now, this first individual, we notice previously, made an offer
to Jesus. He says, I'll follow you
wherever you go. But Jesus now, invites this
person to follow him. He receives an offer from Jesus.
We have an opportunity to follow Jesus.
He said to this man, follow me. Jesus offers a man, the
opportunity to follow him an invitation to follow him, and
the same word, Jesus said to the Peter, and James, and John, and
Andrew, Matthew, Thomas, and others, he said to this man,
Jesus is still calling men today to follow him.
The last invitation in the Bible says in revelation. 22 verse 17
in the spirit and the bride say come and let him who hears say
come and let him who thirsts come on.
Whoever desires, let him take the Water of Life freely.
Jesus is Calling today. He's inviting everyone to come
follow him. There's still an opportunity.
But in this verse, we also see that we still put obstacles in
the way of following Jesus. Jesus gave this man an
invitation and the man wanted to accept it, but he had something
that was so important to him, that he needed to get taken care
of. He said, Lord, let me go bury my
father. And then I'm Yours.
Jesus is telling this man to let the spiritually dead bury the
dead. And what is it?
That hinders us. From surrendering to Jesus
today. there are three things, I believe that hinder us from
surrendering to Jesus day, personal desires, family
obligations social expectations, What about personal desires?
There are some things in this life that we just want to
accomplish, you know, there's nothing wrong with accomplishing
things in your life. Absolutely not.
There's nothing wrong with your children, accomplishing things.
There's nothing wrong with your spouse.
Accomplishing things in this life.
Absolutely not. But when those things hinder us
from surrendering to Jesus, when we let our own personal
aspirations get in our way, Then there's a problems.
There are places we want to go. Yeah, there are things that that
we want to see their goals that we want to reach their things
that we want to do and because of these things, sometimes we
refuse to surrender, everything to Jesus Christ because I need
to do that. I need to get that out of my
system or I want to accomplish that.
Well there's this going on over here to serve.
We need no no I got this. This other thing to do.
We like the idea of peace and joy and eternal life, but we
want to live this life for ourselves.
We've made our life here on Earth.
So comfortable for ourselves that, you know, I want to do
things my way for now. So we let our personal desires,
get in our way and we let our family obligations.
Get in our way and our social expectations, get in our way.
What about the family obligations?
We can understand their with where this man is coming from
this father with had passed away and he wanted to go bury him.
The problem is not that he wanted to bury his father.
The problems that he was giving Jesus a postponed commitment
instead of complete surrender. I'll go follow you.
But I'll serve you, but I need to do this.
I need to do that. I want to do this.
I want to do that. What how does that happen in our
lives? I know I need to serve you Lord
but any time that word, but comes in there's a problem.
Why don't we just serve? Instead of do always doing what
we want to do first. So many people put their family
in front of Jesus. They can't serve or honor the
responsibilities in the church because their children have so
much going on, they can't do the work of the Lord, because they
put their relationships to their spouse before the relationship
with Jesus. Jesus makes it clear that if
you're going to be his disciple, you cannot.
Let family come between you and him.
Luke 14:26. If anyone comes to me and does
not hate his father, and mother wife and children, brothers, and
sit, brothers and sisters. Yes, and his own life also, he
cannot be my disciple. Now we've heard it said time and
time again that doesn't mean that we hate our family.
That means that we love them less than we love God. so he
says, if you're doing things to where your family is getting, in
the way of your service to God, You can't be my disciple,
sometimes this causes a whole lot of pain and a lot of trouble
and problems in the family. when one individual wants to
surrender to God or to Jesus and the other doesn't We have
attachment attachments with our families but which sometimes
make a decision to surrender to Jesus very painful then there
are the social expectations. I wonder if this man thought to
himself. What will my friends and
neighbors? Think if I don't bury my father,
you know, two people, too many people, I've seen people get
concerned about what their spouse is going to think if they
turn the life over to God, and to Jesus, They worry about their
friends, how it's going to impact their friendship with
others. Listen to what the Apostle John
says had to say. In first, John, 2 and verse 15,
do not love the world or the things in the world.
If any man loves the world, the love of the father is not in him
for all that is in the world. The lust of the flesh, the lust
of the eyes and the pride of life is not of the father, but
is of the world and the world is passing away and the less of it.
And he who does the will of God abides forever.
So if you desire complete surrender, you must deny this
world and the things that are in it.
And focus on things above. And that's the next part of our
text to focus on the kingdom of God.
And he said, and another also said, Lord, I will follow you,
but let me first go and bid them farewell, who are at my house.
But Jesus said to him, no one having put his hand to the plow
and looking back is fit for the kingdom of God.
After submitting to the Lord and 9 the world, then our lives will
be Christ and not ours. You know, we didn't we don't
necessarily like that statement that when I when I give my life
to God and give my life to Jesus and I'm baptized into Christ for
the remission of my sins that my life is not mine anymore.
It's someone else we don't like that, do we?
We don't like giving ourself in our Wills over to someone else.
We think we're giving up, we're losing know, we're winning.
We're winning. Our life is not our own anymore.
You know what Jesus died on the cross for us so that we could
have the hope of Eternal salvation.
The least I can do is serve him. How selfish of me to want the
blessing. Of Salvation and not serve.
How selfish of us? We are to be a Living Sacrifice,
Romans, 12, and verse 1. I beseech you therefore Brethren
by the mercies of God, that you present, your bodies, a Living
Sacrifice, holy acceptable to God, which is your reasonable
service. Our life is not ours anymore.
If we want the blessing of our sins being washed away, it is
not our life anymore. We are bought with the price of
the blood of Christ. It is not our life anymore, and
if we are not willing to give our life and surrender to Jesus
Christ, then we don't get the blessing.
And must be a surrender. It must be giving up, our will
to serve him and to focus on the kingdom of God for 61 says,
Lord, I will follow you. But let me first go and bury go
and bid them farewell, who are at my house, it involves finding
and fixing those things that our priorities in our life.
That Jesus and God is the priority of our Life.
You see this man wanted to serve but he had conditions, he said,
but let me go do this first. I will follow you.
After I tell everyone, goodbye. He wanted to set his Affairs in
order and this man had too much attachment to the things that
are in the world. And this is a common issue in
the lives of many today misplaced priorities when they
feel the time is right. When they finished sowing their
Wild Oats, excuse me, what I do. Yeah.
After they've taken care of certain things and after they
cleaned themselves up when it's more convenient for them, so
many Christians fail to give their all because it's not
really a priority. They want to serve God on their
terms. and this is the world we live in today that Mill sir.
But why do I get out of it? Well, you get a home in heaven.
That's what he's promised us for serving.
We get a home in heaven. Do we get all the pain of this
life taken away? No.
We get all the disappointment of this life taken away.
No. Do we get to enjoy ourselves in
this life? Yes.
Does our life have to be miserable in this world?
No it's as miserable as you want to make it.
You can live a sinful life and you can be it just absolutely
make yourself totally miserable. But serving God, we get a home
in heaven, if we surrender ourselves to him.
So what is our priority? Our focus on the kingdom of all,
is a clear perception of where we're going.
We're 62, and Jesus said to him. No, man.
Having put his hand to the plow and looking back is fit for the
kingdom of God. When plowing a farmer has to
keep his eyes on on the work at hand, he has to keep his eye on
the end of the row. and when he looks away instantly stray off
course, And those who look back at their life, their old life.
And not focus on the Kingdom of Heaven, they run off track.
And, you know, when we're, when we do that as well, we're not,
we're not able to help others to stay on track as well, either.
there, we've seen so many people that put their hand to the plow
and then they turn and look back at the old life and start living
that again as well. Or they went back the cell.
This lesson is Illustrated so well in the him.
I surrender all that is so familiar to us.
All to Jesus. I Surrender humbly At His Feet.
I bow worldly pleasures, all forsaken, take me.
Jesus, Take Me Now All to Jesus. I Surrender, Lord, I give myself
to thee. Fill me with thy love and power.
Let thy blessing fall on me. I surrender all, I surrender.
All, all to thee. My blessed savior, I surrender,
all That's not some. that's not when that's not if that's just a
surrender. I surrender all my time.
All my my life, all my Pleasures.
I give up all my wishes, I give up all my desires, I give up my
family, I give up, I give it all to you.
And I Surrender my life to you in service to you. so, the
Christian have we truly surrendered surrendered?
All to God and to the Lost? What is hindering you from
surrendering to Jesus today? Give up your will in complete
submission to God. Quit fighting God, give up to
him. You'll never be happy until you
deny yourself. We can enjoy our walk with the
father until we stop being in opposition to him.
Notice first John, one of her seven, but if we walk in the
light, as he is in the light, we have Fellowship one with another
and the blood of Jesus Christ, his son cleanses us from all
sin. Let me mention a couple quotes
one by aw, Tau Tozer, the reason why many are still troubled,
still seeking still making little forward progress is
because they haven't yet come to the end of themselves.
We're still trying to give give orders and interfere with God's
work within us. And also Rick Warren.
You cannot fulfill God's purpose for your life while focusing on
your own plans. Other words, there's no room for
God. I've had people tell me that
they're, they're worried about their soul.
They seem sometimes feel like they've made no Headway.
They're not making any progress in their life.
They've been thinking about it a lot worrying about it a lot
they've been may be searching the scriptures and and praying
about it receiving Council about it.
But they're still struggling. To correct the things in their
life and get it right? It's very possible that the
reason that they haven't made any progress is because they
haven't just given it over to God, haven't surrendered.
They made a commitment but they didn't surrender to God.
Can we make the statement in conclusion?
This morning, Jeremiah 26 and verse 14.
As for me here I am in your hand do with me as seems good and
right. Let me serve you God.
Let me serve you. Let me surrender my life to you.
The lesson is yours. We thank you for listening to
our podcast, put on by the Church of Christ at 22:15 plans.
Road in Bakersfield, if you would like any additional
information or you would like to receive a free Bible
correspondence, course by mail. Please email us at info at
search of Christ. Bakersfield.com, our service
times are on Sundays at 10:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. and Wednesdays
at 7:30 p.m. Please make plans to join us.
We would love for you to be our honored guest.