surrendered

In A Circumcised Heart, we recognized that according to scripture, there exists a circumcision of the heart, which allows one to become partaker of The Word.  Simply put, a divine process in one’s life, in which one is provided access into His Presence.  And there receives for the soul, the Bread of life and Living Water.  

This process is often described as the presence of an inward spiritual hunger and thirst of the soul, in which only Christ (per scripture: the bread of life/living water) can truly satisfy.  Sadly, many will attempt and try to satisfy this hunger and thirst with everything but that which the scripture claims, truly satisfies.  

…forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water. (Jer 2:13 KJV)

 

Surprisingly, common throughout scripture, it was those that first came to the end of themselves, broken and counting their lives of no value, who became among the first to discover this bread of life and fountain of living water.  

The Samaritan women of John 4 immediately comes to mind, a woman of five husbands.  One to which if judged by all human and religious standards, would be the least likely candidate worthy of His presence.  Yet she is the woman that first personally heard the message of the living waters within. Jesus had given her a divine revelation of himself. She first received “a drink” and later led many others into His Presence.  

2 Kings 6-7 of the OT discloses another story of a group of discouraged and hopeless lepers of Samaria.  The city was sieged by the Syrians, causing a lockdown famine.  The lepers conversed amongst themselves and decided that their only hope was to venture surrendered into the enemy camp, lest they die. Obviously, the other inhabitants of the city would not take such daring chances. To their surprise, the Lord had caused the Syrians to flee, and left behind all their provisions.  They ate until they were full, and then decided it was selfish of them not to share the spoil with their starving homeland. They notified their king and the entire nation was fed and spared.  

 

You see, one of the conditions of discipleship is a wholly surrendered heart, otherwise a life partially centered around self and partially centered around Christ, is divided. 

If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple…

…In the same way, any one of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be My disciple. (Luke 14:26-33 KJV)

Christ made this alarming statement:

…the publicans and the harlots go into the kingdom of God before you…

 

Their battered and beaten lives has caused them to place very little value to it therefore they did not have to spend much time contemplating over the cost of it.  They had no difficulty meeting the requirements of an entirely surrendered heart.  The half-hearted Christian is equivalent to the luke-warm Christian outlined in the book of Revelations:

 

I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm--neither hot nor cold--I am about to spit you out of my mouth. You say, 'I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing. But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked.  (Rev 3:15-16 KJV)

Essentially, contrary to rational reasoning, Christ declares that being cold is ranked higher than lukewarm.  Also supportive to his above-mentioned statement: the publicans and the harlots enter God’s kingdom first.  

There is this common secular saying: the worst of all deceptions is self-deception, biblically, the category of the lukewarm.  

 

 

Supporting Texts

But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; (1 Cor 1:27 KJV)

 

 

Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and every city or house divided against itself shall not stand: (Matt: 12:25 KJV)

 The servant returned and reported all this to his master. Then the owner of the house became angry and said to this servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the city, and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame. (Luke 14:21 BSB)