Give God What Is His

God is not looking for men but for a man, said J. Oswald Sanders in the classic Spiritual Leadership.  He seeks one person to fully surrender to the work of the Holy Spirit within his regenerated heart.  Are you willing to pay the price to be the man upon whom God shows Himself strong?  Sanders wrote, "But not all who aspire to leadership are willing to pay so exacting a price.  However, God's conditions must be complied with in secret before He will honour a man in public." (Sanders, J. Oswald. Spiritual Leadership. Rev. ed. Chicago: Moody, 1980. 21-22. Print.)  If we desire to lead others in following Jesus, it is important we take those necessary baby steps when the camera is not rolling and no one is cheering.

Last night during the discipleship course at Calvary Chapel Sydney, I was reminded how tempting it is to offer God sacrifices over simple obedience.  The Holy Spirit is persistent, and His conviction is not ignored without internal strife and miserable discomfort.  Do you know God desires more than our obedience and allegiance?  He wants you!  One occasion stands out in my mind during my pilgrimage with Jesus.  God showed me my vinyl record collection needed to be purged from my life.  This was a feeling I had experienced over many other things, and frankly I was tired of it.  As I dumped my prized collection into the rubbish bin, I started thinking about all the other things I had pitched - admittedly with a twinge of resentment.  "How much more of my life do I have to give up?" I asked God in exasperation.  His answer was shockingly simple:  "All of it."

That was all He said.  It struck me as brilliant and true.  I had been selfishly looking at things all wrong.  I was focused on physical items and behaviour, but God went straight to the heart.  When I was born again through faith I had agreed to be purchased and redeemed with the precious blood of Jesus.  God desired me to give myself into His control - not just my stuff or what I did with my time.  Because I was His, everything else concerning my life belonged to Him already.  I was familiar with the passage, but I had not put the essence of 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 into practice:  "Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? ²⁰ For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's."  I am still learning to do this, to joyfully grant God full access to my life He has purchased for His own righteous use.  If you desire to be a man upon whom God looks and shows Himself strong, you will need to learn this lesson too!  What is impossible with men is possible with God.  Praise God for the truth of Philippians 2:13:  "...for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure."  God will always do His part, and God help me to be responsible to do mine!