Rooted in Surrender - Day 1
OPENING PRAYER:
Jesus, help me to have the same mindset as you. Help me be humble as I seek to grow closer to you this week.
READ:
“In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death—even death on a cross!” Philippians 2:5-8 (NIV)
REFLECT:
The word surrender carries great imagery. It can depict so many different things – from a General surrendering to his enemy on the battlefield to a person surrendering to the authorities after a lengthy stand-off. It is a vivid picture in whichever way you use it, and when we use it in the church, its imagery is even deeper and more meaningful.
Jesus, the Son of God, willingly surrendered his seat on the throne – his glorious view of his father’s creation – to present himself as a living sacrifice, humbled and broken in human form.
Usually, when we talk about surrender, we are discussing someone admitting that they have no power over their enemy and that they have lost. They hand themselves over in defeat.
In the case of Christ, we are talking about someone handing over their own power so that someone else could triumph over the enemy. He presented himself in surrender - not in defeat, but to gain victory for all.
APPLY:
Take time to reflect on what a fantastic sacrifice this was and how this is an example that surrender does not come strictly out of defeat but can be an outpouring of victory. As we will explore over the next few days, we can follow Christ’s example and surrender what we have because Jesus has shown us what it means to do so humbly and in a way that reflects God’s heart for his creation.
CLOSING PRAYER:
Lord, thank you for meeting me here today and for your sacrifice on our behalf.
WORSHIP: