Committing Fully
So A was “Admit” our sins, B was “Believe” God love us. C is for “Committing” our lives to him. This is what Josiah did.
“The king stood by his pillar and renewed the covenant in the presence of the LORD—to follow the LORD and keep his commands, statutes and decrees with all his heart and all his soul, and to obey the words of the covenant written in this book.” (2 Chronicles 34:31 NIV11)
More Than Forgiveness
This is what it means to make the covenant with God. It’s not just knowing you’re loved. It’s committing yourself to God in response! To follow him, and keep his ways with all your heart and soul.
I think there’s a tendency, in the church today, to stop at B. To say believe God loves you - that’s all that matters. Don’t worry about your sins, just ask for forgiveness, and carry on. God is love, don’t stress, it doesn’t matter what you do.
Oh friends, this is such a false gospel! It’s such an untrue way to try follow God. Because Jesus said “take up your cross and follow me.” Implying that even to death, we should follow his ways.
Set Free From Sin
Paul said to the Roman Christians: “But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you have come to obey from your heart the pattern of teaching that has now claimed your allegiance. You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness.” (Romans 6:17–18 NIV11)
Set free from sin! No longer slaves to sin! But free, holy, changed!
You don’t get that if you stop at B. You have to do C to get that. You have to make a commitment to God, and truly give yourself to him, holding nothing back.
I like these words by Keith Drury: “God is not asking for this or that area of our lives… He asks for everything. For all. One hundred percent…. Entire consecration is the act of giving Christ control of our total life. It’s a one-time dedication of our all to Jesus, holding nothing back. It’s unreserved surrender. It’s a covenant with the Lord to always obey his prompting. It’s a vow to submit to his will for our life and walk in obedience, not trusting our own energy, but his. It’s surrender.”
Josiah did that, that day. He stood and renewed the Covenant with God, and committed to follow the LORD and keep his commands, statutes and decrees with all his heart and all his soul, and to obey the words of the covenant.
Jesus’ Power to Transform
I want to tell you today, that:
The power of Jesus is not just to forgive. It’s to transform.
The power of Jesus was not just in dying on the cross for our sins… it was in rising from the grave for our victory!
Place your faith in him, not just to forgive you today, but to give you power over sin, and make you new! Commit to him and believe in him with all your heart and find a new life!
When you enter into a marriage or renew your marriage vows, you don’t say “I will honour you and be faithful to you… most of the time. I can’t promise anything, because I’m weak… But I’ll try, and hopefully I won’t fool around too much…”
NO! You say, forsaking all others… I will be faithful to you.
Commit it All
Today as we stand before God friends, know that this is possible, in faith! Know that if we commit our all to God, every breath, every step… we can be faithful. We can live lives of purity and goodness and holiness. We can keep from straying.
Sure, we will still have lots of growth to make. We won’t be perfect. But we can be free from the sins that pull us down if we are fully committed to this God who is fully committed to us.
Josiah was. In fact when we are first introduced to him, the Bible says this: “He did what was right in the eyes of the LORD and followed the ways of his father David, not turning aside to the right or to the left.”
We can do the same. If we commit to him with all we have.
