Consecration

God's promise is, "You will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart." (1)

"The whole heart must be yielded to God, or the change can never be wrought in us by which we are to be restored to His likeness. By nature we are alienated from God. The Holy Spirit describes our condition in such words as these: 'Dead in trespasses and sins;' (2) 'The whole head is sick, and the whole heart faints. From the sole of the foot even to the head, there is no soundness in it' (3) We are held fast in the snare of Satan, 'taken captive by him to do his will.' (4) God desires to heal us, to set us free. But since this requires an entire transformation, a renewing of our whole nature, we must yield ourselves wholly to Him.

"The warfare against self is the greatest battle that was ever fought. The yielding of self, surrendering all to the will of God, requires a struggle; but the soul must submit to God before it can be renewed in His likeness.

"The government of God is not, as Satan would make it appear, founded on blind submission, an unreasoning control. It appeals to the intellect and the conscience. 'Come now, and let us reason together' (5) is the Creator's invitation to the beings He has made. God does not force the will of His creatures. He cannot accept an homage that is not willingly and intelligently given. A mere forced submission would prevent all real development of mind or character; it would make man a mere automaton. Such is not the purpose of the Creator. He desires that man, the crowning mark of His creative power, shall reach the highest possible development. He sets before us the height of blessing to which He desires to bring us through His grace. He invites us to give ourselves to Him, that He may work His will in us. It remains for us to choose whether we will be set free from the bondage of sin, to share the glorious liberty of the sons of God." (6)

In giving ourselves to God, we give up all that would separate us from Him. Hence the Saviour says, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets." (7) Is this too great a sacrifice to yield all to God? I believe not. After all, God gave His greatest gift possible, His Son who in turn gave His all for you and me, to make every provision possible for our salvation and to adopt us into His family. This is a choice that He shares with everyone in the human family.

What do we give up when we give our all to Christ and to God? Only our sin polluted heart for Jesus to purify and to cleanse by the blood that He shed in our behalf. God does not require us to give up anything that it is in our best interest to retain. In all that He does, He has our well-being at heart. Would that everyone realize that God and Christ united have something far better to offer than any of us could possibly seek for ourselves. We do the greatest injury and injustice to our own soul when we think and act contrary to the will of God.

The path of transgression is the path of misery and destruction. The desire to do good and what is right is good. But to stop there will accomplish little. "Many will be lost while hoping and desiring to be Christians. They do not come to the point of yielding the will to God. They do not choose to be Christians.

"Through the right exercise of the will, an entire change may be made in your life. By yielding up your will to Christ, you ally yourself with the power that is above all principalities and powers. You will have strength from above to hold you steadfast, and thus through constant surrender to God you will be enabled to live the new life, even the life of faith." (8)

1. Jeremiah 29:13.
2. Ephesians 2:1.
3. Isaiah 1:5, 6.
4. 2 Timothy 2:26.
5. Isaiah 1:18.
6. Steps to Christ, pp. 27, 28.
7. Matthew 22:37-39.
8. Steps to Christ p. 31.