“How trustworthy are you? At what price do you feel that you would deny Me? When would you deny My Word? Never, you say! You are doing it every day! Each time you place your own interests above Mine, you are opposing My Word. Stop and think of that truth. I have called you to be like Jesus in your world. He lived a life of sacrifice and service, owning nothing for Himself, and caring only for others. He gave up everything, so that you could be at peace eternally. Caring nothing about His own well-being, He hung on a cross so that you could be forgiven. Even though He was part of your creation process, He gave up total control of His life, so that you could learn obedience.
"That is the kind of attitude that I desire to be in you. You daily deny Me simply by attempting to be in control of your life in any way. It is the opposite of the character of Jesus. Why would your remaining in control of any area of your life not be a denial of My Word? I know that you don’t see it that way, but it is one of the main reasons that I can’t trust you. It is the very basis for all My dealings with sin. It is called rebellion.
"You need to turn from the ownership of your life and surrender fully to the understanding that you have been purchased at a very great price. You no longer own your life and anything that is associated with it. You need to consider obedience to My will to be your only reason for living. Surrender fully to Me now. Repent of your rebellion. Submit totally to My will. Become trustworthy, so that We can walk closely together. I desire to tell you the intimacies of My heart. I am waiting!”
1 Cor. 6:19b-20a NIV
19b) …You are not your own;
20) you were bought at a price…
1 John 2:6 AMP
Whoever says he abides in Him ought [as a personal debt] to walk and conduct himself in the same way in which He walked and conducted Himself.
Surrendering fully to the Lord is Christianity 101. Those of us who have walked with the Lord for many years sometimes feel that we have this walk pretty well figured out. In reality, most of us haven’t even left the starting gate.
Let’s say that we finally allow the Lord to work in our lives to the point that we learn obedience. Carrying that thought even further, let’s graduate to total obedience, understanding that our obedience is required if we are to be in line with God’s Word. Pretty cool, huh!
In reality, if we are obedient only because it is required, we are not even close to the heart of Jesus. Our obedience is still implemented so that things will go well with us. We will benefit from our obedience.
Jesus was obedient so that His Father would be glorified; and so that others would benefit, even at a great loss to Himself. He had given the ownership of His passions, desires, and every element of His life so completely, that even the remotest possibility of being disobedient was a horrible, unthinkable prospect. To do so would have harmed His Father and each of us. He would rather have died than have that happen. Oh, yeah! He did die instead of being disobedient, didn’t He?
Needing to drop my pride and go back to square one,
Jim Corbett
