In order to unlock our spiritual potential, we must give it up. In order to grasp the intimate spirituality with God Christians desire, we must let it go. From the core of our very being we must surrender wholly and completely to God, and allow him to fill us with his Spirit. Surrendering to the Holy Spirit is dying to ourselves and handing control over to God. Paul wrote in Galatians 5:16, “So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.”
When we dig deeper than the surface, what Paul is talking about is much more than just sexual desires or lust, greed or the want of wealth, or even the aspirations of a comfortable life. He is elaborating on the words of Jesus, “For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” Mathew 16:25.
When we are young, we have dreams and aspirations, and we make plans and pursue them with fervency and passion. For some, life hands them bumps, bruises and failure for their efforts. Others succeed at the expense of family and friends and still others seem to hit the big time with apparent ease and favor.
Jesus said, “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” Mathew 6:33. Humbling oneself and allowing the Holy Spirit to take over your life is a decision some people avoid for years, thinking that somehow they must live an unfulfilling existence, yet it can be the most rewarding thing you will ever do.
Since I handed the reigns of my life over to Jesus Christ, he has accomplished great things through me that I never would have thought possible. I have written and published three books (and currently writing a fourth), created this website, have led many people to Christ and healed others from physical ailments in Jesus’s name. I have been provided with purpose, passion and fulfillment that I cannot even begin to describe and its all for God’s glory, not mine.
It’s not that the things I did before lacked meaning, but in reality they were only temporal and after a few years, they will be forgotten. If I have compelled one person to accept Jesus as their personal savior and be welcomed into the family of God, then I have accomplished something that will resonate throughout eternity! Jesus said, “I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.” Luke 15:7.
By surrendering my life to the Holy Spirit I am bringing joy to heaven and pleasing God in ways I cannot even comprehend. When Jesus said, “So the last will be first and the first will be last.” (Mathew 20:16), he was not only talking about material wealth or poverty, but he was implying that if you humble yourself to the role of a servant, your rewards in heaven will be great. When you give up your life to serve him, he will exalt you before our Father in heaven.
As a humble servant of the Most High God you are more valuable than gold. “In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith – of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire – may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.” 1 Peter 1:6-7.
Empty yourself of pride and you will open the door to unexpected honor. Paul wrote, “Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited.” Romans 12:16. And in Galatians he wrote, If anyone thinks they are something they are not, they deceive themselves.” Galatians 6:3. Even King David, who had stature and influence wrote, “My heart is not proud, Lord, my eyes are not haughty; I do not concern myself with great matters or things too wonderful for me.” Psalms 131:1.
The Bible says Christians ought to be filled with the Spirit, “And do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit.” Ephesians 5:18. Dr. Bill Bright writes in The Spirit Filled Life, “You can appropriate the filling of the Holy Spirit if you:
- Sincerely desire to be directed and empowered by the Holy Spirit (Mathew 5:6; John 7:37-39)
- Confess your sins. By faith thank God that he has forgiven all of your sins – past, present and future – because Christ died for you (Colossians 2:13-15; 1 John 2:1-3; Hebrews 10:1-17)
- Present every area of your life to God (Romans 12:1-2).
- By faith claim the fullness of the Holy Spirit according the Bible.
God will always answer when we pray according to his will. “And the confidence which we have before him, that, if we ask for anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests which we have asked him.” (1 John 5:14-15).”
Charles Spurgeon put it this way, “Prayer without the Spirit is as a bird without wings or an arrow without a bow. As well to hope see a dead man sit up in his coffin and plead a case in a court of law as hope to see a man prevail in prayer who is a stranger to the Holy Ghost. You will leave your prayer closet unrefreshed if you have been in it without the Spirit. Even the desire to pray is not with us unless the Holy Ghost has wrought it in the soul.”
Humans were created in God’s image and that includes body, soul and spirit. When we invite God’s Spirit to displace our spirit we will transform from a spiritually dead person into a spiritually alive person. In his first letter to the church at Corinth, Paul wrote, “Brothers and sisters, I could not address you as people who live by the Spirit but as people who are still worldly – mere infants in Christ.” 1 Corinthians 3:1.
When we surrender to God, and allow the Spirit to take control of us, we stop focusing on the things that are of worldly importance and instead focus on things that are of heavenly relevance. We grow in our faith and mature in our Christian walk. To the Ephesians Paul warned, “Be careful, then, how you live – not as unwise, but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is. Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another with Psalms, hymns, and songs of the Spirit.” Ephesians 5:15-19.
Ultimately, the most basic premise of Christianity is the surrender of self for the glory of God. The night before he was crucified, Jesus prayed in the garden of Gethsemane in anticipation of the horrors of the coming day. “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but your will be done.” Luke 22:42. Without the submission of Christ to God’s will, he never would have conquered death.
We were all designed for fellowship with God. Our spiritual desire is to draw near to our creator and when we do, we align our will with his will and amazing things happen. We will realize the purpose that God has for us in his kingdom, that was written before the creation of the earth. That is when we will discover true happiness and the peace that transcends all understanding (Philippians 4:7), and we will finally be where we were designed to be.
