“But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.”
(2 Corinthians 4:7)
What does it mean to be a Christian? It is to be “of God and not of us”. The theme of surrender – of dying to ourselves – runs throughout the Bible. God told the Hebrew patriarch Abraham to sacrifice his only son Isaac whom he loved. King David wrote numerous Psalms where he waited on God to deliver him, rather than save himself by his own hand. Jesus obeyed God the Father by going to the cross to die a sinner’s death. Jesus called us to take up our cross daily and follow him. “Surrender” is a common refrain.
When we acknowledge that “Jesus is Lord” and choose to follow Him, there is a turning point. Our old life – of doing what is pleasing in our eyes – goes away. Instead, we discover that in dying to self, we live. In surrender, we win. We become strong when we acknowledge before God that we are weak and trust that He will be our strength.
There are moments in our lives when we may feel overwhelmed. In those deep, dark, days, we may feel like experiencing death inside. (Paul knew how this felt too). But we learn what light looks like when we experience the dark. Similarly, we learn what life looks like when we experience death.
Therefore, let us be encouraged because God does not call us to die in order to be dead. He calls us to die in order that we might live through Jesus. Our story will not end in defeat, but victory. We do not end in despair, but hope. And we will not simply live for three score and ten years (70) but for eternity for “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life (John 3:36a). So we can say with Paul, we do not lose heart. Our God is trustworthy and faithful, and we can trust in Him!