Kneeling in the grass behind my house, I repented. And even though I was only eleven years old, I knew what I was doing. “Lord, You can have my life. I want to follow You.”
Many of us have prayed similar prayers. We’ve told God of our commitment, of our desire, of our surrender. But how will we finish what we’ve started? We don’t want to be like the man Jesus warned about in Luke 9:62, who put his hand to the plow and then looked back!
By God’s grace Life Action’s founder, Del Fehsenfeld Jr., finished his life well. Although he died young at the age of 42, he left a rich spiritual legacy. For perspective, I thought I’d turn to an excerpt from his book, Ablaze with His Glory, for our next step.
The Old Testament illustrates total commitment with the concept of a bondservant. Under the law, a master could not own a slave more than six years. In the seventh year, all slaves had to be released.
However, a special provision was made if a slaved loved his master and wished to make a voluntary, lifetime commitment to his service. This slave would express his desire to his master. In response, his master would use a sharp tool to pierce a permanent hole in the ear of his slave. That hole forever marked the man as a bondservant.
His was not an eight-hour-a-day job. He was on call twenty-four hours a day. He did not have a contract; he had no guaranteed income or benefits. The bondservant was totally at the mercy of his master to provide adequately for his needs. His only concern as a bondservant was to be available and obedient.
Of course, making this kind of deep, lifetime commitment to Jesus does not guarantee instant spiritual perfection. Our once-and-for-all surrender to God must be activated and appropriated daily. But it is the initial, total commitment that forms a basis for subsequent obedience.
Have you ever waved the white flag of surrender to the Lord Jesus? Are you building your life on the foundation of a non-negotiable commitment to the lordship of Christ and the authority of Scripture? If so, then every minute of your day, every dollar of your income, every ounce of your strength, mind, will, and emotions all belong to Him.
He makes all the decisions. Our responsibility and privilege is merely to let Him use us to carry out His desires. A complete, lifetime surrender to Jesus allows His full, abundant, supernatural life to be released in us, setting us free from the power of temptation, sin, and self.
The hymn writer expressed it well:
I have decided to follow Jesus;
no turning back.
Though none go with me,
still I will follow;
no turning back.
The world behind me,
the cross before me;
no turning back;
no turning back.