Now to those who read this history without the spiritual significance, it doesn’t make us feel all warm and fuzzy inside. 
If anything, whenever we think of the word surrender or the position of surrendered, it feels more negative than positive, and it’s not a place or position that we’re eager to go to. Reading this story without the ink of grace casts a dark cloud on its outcome. It is only by reading it with our spiritual senses that we can recognize its true significance.
If anything, whenever we think of the word surrender or the position of surrendered, it feels more negative than positive, and it’s not a place or position that we’re eager to go to. Reading this story without the ink of grace casts a dark cloud on its outcome. It is only by reading it with our spiritual senses that we can recognize its true significance.I know for me, surrender was like a sign of weakness which stemmed from watching my mom get the sense beat out of her by my step-dad when I was a little girl. I vowed to myself that I wouldn’t be weak and let others be stronger over me, and every time my step-dad or my mom would “over-spank” me, that philosophy got beaten into me even deeper. That took some undoing, let me tell you. The crazy thing I’ve learned about being surrendered is there is more strength found in that mindset, in that position than there is in self-sufficiency, thinking I have to be strong all on my own.
So let’s look up the definition of surrender(ed) and see what we find:
To relinquish possession or control of to another; to give up or abandon; restoration of an estate – hmmmm, that one’s interesting. Now let’s check out the Hebrew and Greek concordance and see what they have to say about surrender and then we can put it all together.
Interesting, the word surrender is actually not in the Word, so I looked up its synonym and it’s “submit.” Now that’s in there for sure. Okay. In the Old Testament, it means to humble one’s self. Let’s check out the New Testament, the Greek definition: A voluntary attitude of giving in, cooperating, assuming responsibility, to be under obedience. Wow, that’s a mouthful.
How ironic that I’ve been reading a book by Andrew Murray on humility. I’m thinking He’s really wanting me to get this so let me share a few things with you about humility, the root in which grace can grow!
So what does it mean to humble one’s self? The first step of that is realizing that true humility doesn’t just happen with the snap of our fingers. No, it must become the object of priority, a special desire, if you will.
It takes prayer for sure, and then it needs to be practiced. This same position of surrender that we read about Mephibosheth being in, our Redeemer has also been in, not for Himself, but for us. If we really want to humble ourselves, we must study the character of Christ so our souls will be filled with love and admiration for His own surrendering and submission to serving us. It is then that we will understand that He came to bring humility back to earth so we could become partakers of it.
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