The Surrender Of Our Will
Something beautiful happens when an individual surrenders his will to Jesus Christ. Our Creator has a sovereign plan for each of our total lives, and that design is so spectacular and heavenly that nothing can compare. He has predestined us from the foundation of the world to His glory. His Word declares that He alone is the foundation on which we must build. After we surrender to this single foundation, then He begins the beautiful process of revealing the rest of His story plan to us. The Spirit said to the Ephesus church family, “Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself” (Ephesians 1:9). He cannot, and will not, reveal His will until we surrender our will to Him.
Jesus Christ was our perfect example. The Gospel of John reveals His absolute subordination to His Father. He never spoke of His own ideas or plans. In fact, He had no other plan but His Father’s. “Jesus answered them, and said, My doctrine is not mine, but his that sent me. If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself” (John 7:16-17). I love this divine statement. First, He said, “I have no will but the Father’s.” Then, He said, “If you will surrender to His will, then you will have the enlightenment of knowing in your heart that My doctrines are pure and divine.” Something supernatural happens in our very spirit and mind once we surrender our will to the Heavenly Father. The Son of God was plain-spoken. “If any man will do his will he shall ‘know’…”
This is divine revelation. Multitudes are asking, “How can I know the will of God?” Multiple books are being written on “finding God’s Will.” All of the searching and hand wringing could end quickly if each person would totally surrender their will to Him. No book but the Holy Bible can reveal the will of God for you. But the one addition to that Book is God’s readiness to apply the truth of that Book when you give up your own will. Only the Spirit of God can reveal in your heart all the plans for your life. Your profession, your partner of a wife or a husband, your time, and every aspect must be discerned as you are totally yielded and free of all your preconceived plans.
We live in a religious world that says you can bring all your talents, plans, decisions, etc., into your Christian walk. Some would even suggest that there are many different paths to serving God and God wants you to just be yourself. This concept is not only wrong, it is terrible. The eternal God knows your name, your abilities, your sins, and your thoughts. He has the perfect solution for all your needs and the perfect plan for all your life. He wants you to surrender your will totally and submit to His revelations for your life.
Our nature is depraved. The most eloquent and cultured person among us has a wicked heart that must be washed in the Blood. This is the greatest struggle in the present church world. Multitudes are willing to profess Jesus Christ as long as it is on their own terms. Salvation is not just the redeeming of the old nature but the renewing and transformation of that nature. It is the miracle of being “born again.” He does not sanctify my will but totally changes my will to His will at my surrender.
A man, who was born blind, was seated by the path where Jesus and His disciples ministered. His disciples ask Jesus, “Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind? Jesus answered, Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him” (John 9:2-3) Every situation of every individual soul on this earth has been allowed or designed for God to reveal Himself in that life. Your worst nightmare is an ordained opportunity for God to change your life. He is sovereign over His universe. Nothing that happens is meaningless. Whatever your situation or heartbreak, surrender your will to Him and He will begin the process of miracles.
When you give up all your will and great plans to the “Master Designer of Human Lives,” He will reveal His design and you will discover a glorious life. He awaits somewhere beside the path you are struggling to navigate. His plans may not always take you through a flower garden, but it will always end in one.