“Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time: casting all your care upon Him; for He careth for you.” 1 Peter 5:6
True surrender to the Lord Jesus Christ is never a partial one. There may be the surrender of certain things, but if we believe that He is God, and He is, and that as our sin-bearer, intermediary between us and God, the very One who presents us to the Father by His precious blood, surely we should see that to belong to Him is an all-inclusive matter. If one is to believe Paul’s words, “I am crucified with Christ…” Gal. 2:20), then one can surely see that crucifixion is an entire matter. Paul makes it clear when he adds, “…But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the World.” (6:14) Paul came to see the realization of Christ’s words, “…and take up his cross and follow Me.” (Matt. 16:24) To surrender to Christ as Lord and Savior, is to embrace the cross by faith. The effective realization of this cross bearing, or surrender, begins at conversion, when one repents of their sins to trust Christ alone, and by faith, for forgiveness and the receiving of His gift of righteousness. However, it must be said that at the moment of one’s new birth by the Spirit, Christ’s work on Calvary is applied to the believer. At that moment, the finished work of Christ on Calvary becomes true of the believer. Now, by virtue of his very real union with Christ, he is crucified with Him, has died with Him, is buried and raised to newness of life with Him, being seated with him at the right hand of the Father. It is thus very clear that to surrender wholly to God, is to embrace the work of Calvary, relying upon the living Christ by His Spirit, to dwell in the heart by faith. What does all of this have to do with Christ being our burden-bearer? It has all to do with Him, for to the believer, Christ has become his life, his power, his enablement, and his Sustainer in life.
In the Apostle Peter’s first letter, he writes concerning “cares,” which are burdens of preoccupations which, if addressed by our own petty resources, can never meet the need, whether visible or invisible. Only Christ in His power and wisdom, sovereignty and grace can meet these needs. To use the pathway that God has provided so that Christ will actually take our burdens, and the causes and effects of our cares, Peter very simply declares that the first thing to do is to “…humble” ourselves under the mighty hand of God.” (1 Peter 5:5) James the Apostle writes the same thing in a slightly different way: “Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He shall lift you up.” (4:10) The first thing is practically take that place of surrender to Christ, submitting fully to His authority, placing the government upon His shoulders. As Christ relieves the burden of sin from the believer’s heart, cleansing him from it entirely, so He takes the heavy object of care into His hands. He lifts it from the heart and soul of the believer, taking full charge of the situation, or need. How can He lift the burden entirely? He can because of a powerful promise. The Apostle Paul puts it another way: “Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passes all understanding shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” (Phil. 4:6-7) The Christ who has, “…born our griefs and carried our sorrows, …was wounded for our transgressions, and bruised for our iniquities,” and by whose “stripes we are healed,” is the same one who says to all: “Come unto Me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden (weighed down), and I will give you rest.”
Dear Father, Strengthen us to surrender every care. In Jesus’ name. Amen.