“But Simon Peter answered Him, ‘Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life'” John 8:68
Where does the subject of surrender to Christ start? It begins with a knowledge of who Christ IS and evermore shall be. When the Lord Jesus came to the moment when many of His disciples “…went back and walked with Him no more,” He turned to the twelve, and asked: “Do you also want to go away?” There was in that question a purpose and at the same time a plea. The purpose was that it would be revealed who truly believed in Him, and those who did not. Scripture tells us that the Lord “…knew from the beginning who they were who did not believe and would betray Him.” So, it was imperative that everyone of His disciples realize and know what their true position of faith was. Those in whom the Spirit had worked to bring them to a total surrender, and devotion to Him, even though they did not understand everything Jesus said, were those who would stand firm like Peter. By the working of the Spirit in their hearts, they had come to the place of believing with their whole hearts that “…You have the words of eternal Life.” Surrender to Christ begins with a true knowledge of who Christ is as Lord and Savior. To grasp that Jesus has the words of eternal Life, and thus trust Him fully with this eternal matter, above all that men would ever declare and argue, is essential to true surrender to His authority.
There is another aspect to surrender that we discover in the words of Peter, as opposed to the complaints of those who did not believe because they could not fully understand, and it is found in Peter’s question: “To whom shall we go?” In asking this question Peter expresses a personal position of faith in his own heart concerning the Lord Jesus as opposed to that of all men everywhere, who were living and would live. Christ would be the overwhelming preference of the soul, to be trusted above all others, both believers and non-believers.
In the Old Testament the Lord speaks of Himself as the only true and living God, and that He did not know of another. God is singularly One, Unique, absolute and separate from all of His creation. And though the Lord Jesus did take upon Himself human flesh, to dwell among us, revealing the grace and truth of God, ultimately offering Himself as a total, perfect, and complete sacrifice for sins on the cross, He remained apart, separate in His perfection and sinlessness. Peter’s statement concerning the matter of eternal Life, and that there was but ONE who had the true words concerning it, was both remarkable and humanly impossible to believe without the Spirit of God. God the Father had given to Peter by the Lord Jesus, His Spirit to reveal to him the truth which leads to Eternal Life. Christ’s words were most certainly riveted into the souls of Peter, and the other eleven disciples, when He said: “It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life.” (Jn. 6:63)
So, we return to our question concerning surrender to Christ. How does one go from hearing the truth OF Christ, primarily through the preaching or teaching of the living objective word of Christ, to the point of committing oneself to Him for time and eternity, trusting in Him and Him alone for full salvation? Again, it is first and foremost by the Spirit’s working to awake the soul to the reality of God in Christ. Then, as one receives the increasing revelation of Christ to the heart, there arises a conviction of one’s need. This manifests itself by a thirst for eternal things, specifically in answer to conviction of sins. To the one who would see clearly, and respond fully, Christ is revealed by the Scriptures as the sole Savior of men, willing to eternally save.
Dear Father, Strengthen us to surrender. In Jesus’ name, Amen.