Galatians 2:20 (ESV)
²⁰ I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

C.S. Lewis once said, “Until you have given up yourself to Him you will not have a real self.” He was speaking of surrendering oneself to Jesus Christ. If there was one word that could capture the essence of true discipleship, it would be the word surrender. To surrender means to yield or relinquish. It means to give oneself up to the power and control of another. We sometimes sing the song, “I Surrender All.” The question is, when we sing that song, are we singing the truth or are we singing a lie? What the church needs today is a renewed commitment to surrender to Christ.

This is the primary teaching of Galatians 2:20. It has rightfully been called the surrender passage because that is exactly what Paul is encouraging us to do. I know that doing so is not easy. Giving ourselves over to the control of another is a challenge for all of us, yet, that is what being a real disciple of Christ demands—complete surrender to our Savior. The fact that doing so is not easy is seen by how Paul illustrates it. He compares our surrendering to Jesus as a crucifixion. Two things that are always present when one is crucified are pain and death. When we crucify self for Christ, there is going to some pain because it involves sacrificing a real part of us. It is the selfish part of us, but a part of us that we have grown to love. It is the old man that has been corrupted by sin. It is our fleshly nature that always has to have its way and get what it wants. Ultimately, that part of us has to die. Paul knew that he could never be a genuine Christian while that old man was alive and well, so he put him to death. Thus, Paul could say, “I have been crucified with Christ.”

If you haven’t crucified self, everything is just a charade and, sooner or later, the “true you” will come to the surface and be exposed. Until you crucify the flesh, the “true you” will always rise up and say, “me first and God second.” It is the “true you” that ask question like, “What do I want to do?” “What do I want to say?” “What do I want to feel?” That is the “true you,” and as long as it is alive within you, it will always get its way in the end. However, when you crucify self, the question is no longer “what do I want?” but “what does Jesus want?” This is the only path that leads to pleasing God consistently?” In order to truly surrender all, we have to replace self as the dominate force in our lives with God. When it is all said and done; when all the arguments have been answered, and all the excuses have been removed, Christianity just gets down to this: who is in control of your life? The fact is, if you have not crucified self, then self will always be your answer. Oh, Jesus might have a say in your life. You will get a little input from God when it is time to make a decision. However, self will always have the final word. How you live will be determined by self. Where you go and what you do will be determined by self. How you talk, the way you dress, even what you think about regularly, will all be determined by what self wants. What kind of parent you are, what kind of husband or wife you are, what kind of church member you are, will all be determined, not by what God wants or what God says, but by what self wants.

I hope the picture is clear. There is only one way for us to truly surrender to God and be what we ought to be—we must crucify self. Yes, this takes a great deal of faith in our Savior. Paul said, “the life that I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God.” Do you have enough faith in Jesus to give Him the reigns of your life? I hope we all do. Heaven depends on it.

As you wind down for the night, think on these things.