Irvin Wasswa- Tylertown Campus Pastor LHBC

Luke 9:57-62
As they were going along the road, someone said to him, “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.” 59 To another he said, “Follow me.” But he said, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” 60 And Jesus[g] said to him, “Leave the dead to bury their own dead. But as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” 61 Yet another said, “I will follow you, Lord, but let me first say farewell to those at my home.” 62 Jesus said to him, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.”

When I was 14 years old I was invited to do some training for the Taekwondo Junior Olympics. I loved Taekwondo and enjoyed training, however the junior olympics was a different level of commitment. After the first training, the instructor gave me a ride home and shared with me the level of commitment it was going to take in order to achieve my goal. One of the commitments he was imploring me to make was to make some changes to my diet. He wanted me to give up junk food and focus on clean eating. Here was the problem with that, I was a 14 year old kid who LOVED junk food. I loved honey buns and french fries too much. I was fine with the hard practices, but the asking to give up junk food was too much of a commitment so I made the executive decision to quit training for the olympics. 

I would’ve liked to say that I was committed to taekwondo when I was around that age. I had trained hard and made it to black belt. I enjoyed competing in the tournaments as well and believed I was pretty good! However, the truth of the matter was that I was not all in. I was not willing to surrender my dietary ways in order to be the best competitor I could be. I chose what I wanted to be committed to and framed it as that I was all in, when in reality that was not the truth. 

If we were to be honest today, there are many who view the Christian life the same way. They may be willing to do a little bit of good stuff in Jesus’ name but are unwilling to be ALL in for Him. They are willing to give Him a little time on Sundays which is great, but choose to check Him out of their life Monday through Saturday. Jesus here shares the fact that Christianity is a call to be ALL in. The call to follow Jesus is one that is a call to Surrender. When you say yes to Him in relationship, you are saying yes to giving Him your life, you are saying yes to living open-handed, you are saying yes to letting Him lead you. 

Jesus in Luke 9 lays out what it looks like to follow Him and walk in this call to surrender in our lives. 

Firstly we have to choose to Surrender our comfort. Now comfort is not a bad thing. The problem comes when we choose to find our comfort in other items besides the Lord. We can all give testimony to the fact the Lord has so richly taken care of us. He has blessed us beyond measure. There is nothing wrong with having possessions, however the problem comes when those possessions have you. When your identity and security are wrapped in what you have, then naturally Jesus takes a backseat in your life. What we must do is choose to surrender our comfort to the Lord and realign our hearts to worship Him instead of what we may have. 

Secondly the call is for us to choose to surrender our control. The man in vs. 59-60 wanted to follow Jesus but he was about controlling his life. He had his own plans and though it would have been an admirable thing burying his dad at that moment, Jesus is letting him know that in order to follow Him, His plan and call must take first priority. It is a matter of surrendering control. What part of your life are you holding onto? Jesus calls for us to surrender control of our life. He doesn’t want just a room in the house, He wants the whole house. He doesn’t just want a piece of the pie, He wants the whole pie. When we relinquish control and rest in Him, we discover the John 10:10 abundant life He has called us to live. 

Thirdly and lastly we must choose to Surrender fully to the Cause of Christ. Jesus addresses the third man by giving an illustration of the use of a plow. The plows in the first century were ones in which you had to use both hands to use. You used all of your strength to push the plow forward in order to get the work you needed finished. In the same way Jesus shares that following Him is answering the call not just to sit on Sundays but choosing to serve Him and fellowship with others. Jesus shares that following Him is a call not just to be a passive participant in the mission to make disciples, but an active member, sharing the Gospel with others and inviting them to church!

This morning are you all in for Jesus? This call to surrender is more than just a one time decision we made when we got saved, it is a daily decision. Though it isn’t easy, listen, the Lord is so good. Following Him is oh so worth it! Reminds me of that ol’ hymn of the faith:

“All to Jesus I surrender

All to Him I freely give

I will ever love and trust Him

In His presence daily live

I Surrender All

I Surrender All

All to thee my Blessed Savior, I surrender All”.

PRAYER FOR TODAY:
Dear Lord, I give myself to You today. I surrender all to You today. Help me to see that choosing to surrender to You is where I find true life today. In Jesus’ name, Amen!

MEMORY VERSE OF THE WEEK:
James 4:10Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.