Sweet Surrender Page 1 | 23 “Uncle” When I was a kid, we enjoyed wrestling with each other. The goal was to get the other person to say “uncle.” I’m not sure why “uncle” was the code word; I guess it sounded better than “I surrender.” But, surrender was the object. As we got a little older and stronger it came down to how much pain we could endure. We tried to get each other into a hold that produced pain and then the other person had to say “uncle” to spare themselves more pain. It was always humiliating to get pinned – to have to say “uncle.” The winner would always poke fun at the loser. It was always bruising to the ego. I know, because I had to say it often. Right across the street from our house in Massachusetts was a tennis court. In the winter they would take down the nets and flood it to make a skating rink. We had lots of fun over there. One day when I was there by myself practicing some hockey moves, a classmate of mine – Eddie – came in and made a bee-line towards me. I tried to get away, but he caught me, punched me, and threw me to the ice and then proceeded to put me in a choke hold. I had no choice but to say “uncle.” When I did, he stood up and raise his arms in victory shouting to someone across the field, “I did it, I beat him up!” How humiliating! Growing up, losing and surrender were the same thing. This, of course, spilled over into everything we did. We had elaborate battles with army figures. We played Life, Monopoly, and Chess. We all became conditioned to believe that surrender was the same as losing. It was never something we did willingly. Ben-hadad & Ahab During the time when Ahab was king of Israel, Ben-hadad, the king of Damascus, along with a bunch of other rulers set out to take Samaria, Ahab’s capital city. They devastated the country-side just scavenging for food and stuff. After a while, Ben-hadad sent this message to Ahab: “This is what Ben-hadad says: ‘Your silver and gold are mine, and so are your wives and the best of your children!’” This was not a good place to be in. Weighing the possible consequences of fighting, Ahab sent this message back. “All right, my lord the king,” Israel’s king replied. “All that I have is yours!” (1 Kings 20:2-4, NLT)
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Sweet Surrender
Page 1 | 23
“Uncle”
When I was a kid, we enjoyed wrestling with each other. The goal was to get the other person to say
“uncle.” I’m not sure why “uncle” was the code word; I guess it sounded better than “I surrender.”
But, surrender was the object. As we got a little older and stronger it came down to how much pain we
could endure. We tried to get each other into a hold that produced pain and then the other person had
to say “uncle” to spare themselves more pain.
It was always humiliating to get pinned – to have to say “uncle.” The winner would always poke fun at
the loser. It was always bruising to the ego. I know, because I had to say it often.
Right across the street from our house in Massachusetts was a tennis court. In the winter they would
take down the nets and flood it to make a skating rink. We had lots of fun over there.
One day when I was there by myself practicing some hockey moves, a classmate of mine – Eddie – came
in and made a bee-line towards me. I tried to get away, but he caught me, punched me, and threw me
to the ice and then proceeded to put me in a choke hold. I had no choice but to say “uncle.”
When I did, he stood up and raise his arms in victory shouting to someone across the field, “I did it, I
beat him up!” How humiliating!
Growing up, losing and surrender were the same thing. This, of course, spilled over into everything we
did. We had elaborate battles with army figures. We played Life, Monopoly, and Chess. We all became
conditioned to believe that surrender was the same as losing. It was never something we did willingly.
Ben-hadad & Ahab
During the time when Ahab was king of Israel, Ben-hadad, the king of Damascus, along with a bunch of
other rulers set out to take Samaria, Ahab’s capital city. They devastated the country-side just
scavenging for food and stuff. After a while, Ben-hadad sent this message to Ahab:
“This is what Ben-hadad says: ‘Your silver and gold are mine, and so are your wives and the best
of your children!’”
This was not a good place to be in. Weighing the possible consequences of fighting, Ahab sent this
message back.
“All right, my lord the king,” Israel’s king replied. “All that I have is yours!” (1 Kings 20:2-4, NLT)
Jeremiah 4:3-9 (NLT): This is what the LORD says to the people of Judah and Jerusalem:
“Plow up the hard ground of your hearts! Do not waste your good seed among thorns. 4 O people
of Judah and Jerusalem, surrender your pride and power. Change your hearts before the LORD, or
my anger will burn like an unquenchable fire because of all your sins.
5 “Shout to Judah, and broadcast to Jerusalem! Tell them to sound the alarm throughout the
land: ‘Run for your lives! Flee to the fortified cities!’ 6 Raise a signal flag as a warning for
Jerusalem: ‘Flee now! Do not delay!’ For I am bringing terrible destruction upon you from the
north.” (Jeremiah 4:3-6, NLT)
Ezekiel 44:9 (NLT): “So this is what the Sovereign LORD says: No foreigners, including those who live
among the people of Israel, will enter my sanctuary if they have not been circumcised and have
not surrendered themselves to the LORD.” (Ezekiel 44:9, NLT)
Matthew 5:1-11 (NLT): One day as he saw the crowds gathering, Jesus went up on the mountainside and
sat down. His disciples gathered around him, 2 and he began to teach them.
3 “God blesses those who are poor and realize their need for him,
for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs. 4 God blesses those who mourn,
for they will be comforted. 5 God blesses those who are humble,
for they will inherit the whole earth. 6 God blesses those who hunger and thirst for justice,
for they will be satisfied. 7 God blesses those who are merciful,
for they will be shown mercy. 8 God blesses those whose hearts are pure,
for they will see God. 9 God blesses those who work for peace,
for they will be called the children of God. 10 God blesses those who are persecuted for doing right,
for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs.
11 “God blesses you when people mock you and persecute you and lie about you and say all sorts
of evil things against you because you are my followers.” (Matthew 5:1-11, NLT)
Matthew 5:43-44 (NLT): “You have heard the law that says, ‘Love your neighbor’ and hate your enemy. 44 But I say, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you!” (Matthew 5:43-44, NLT)
Matthew 10:28-39 (NLT): “Don’t be afraid of those who want to kill your body; they cannot touch your
soul. Fear only God, who can destroy both soul and body in hell. 29 What is the price of two
sparrows – one copper coin? But not a single sparrow can fall to the ground without your Father
knowing it. 30 And the very hairs on your head are all numbered. 31 So don’t be afraid; you are
more valuable to God than a whole flock of sparrows.
32 “Everyone who acknowledges me publicly here on earth, I will also acknowledge before my
Father in heaven. 33 But everyone who denies me here on earth, I will also deny before my Father
in heaven.
34 “Don’t imagine that I came to bring peace to the earth! I came not to bring peace, but a sword. 35 ‘I have come to set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-
in-law against her mother-in-law. 36Your enemies will be right in your own household!’
(Micah 7:6)
37 “If you love your father or mother more than you love me, you are not worthy of being mine; or
if you love your son or daughter more than me, you are not worthy of being mine. 38 If you refuse
to take up your cross and follow me, you are not worthy of being mine. 39 If you cling to your life,
you will lose it; but if you give up your life for me, you will find it. (Matthew 10:28-39, NLT)
Matthew 11:28-30 (NLT): Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy
burdens, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am
humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy to bear,
and the burden I give you is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30, NLT)
Matthew 20:25-28 (NLT): But Jesus called them together and said, “You know that the rulers in this
world lord it over their people, and officials flaunt their authority over those under them. 26 But
among you it will be different. Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant, 27 and whoever wants to be first among you must become your slave. 28 For even the Son of Man
came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
(Matthew 20:25-28, NLT)
Matthew 23:11-12 (NLT): “The greatest among you must be a servant. 12 But those who exalt themselves
will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” (Matthew 23:11-12, NLT)
Matthew 28:18-20 (NLT): Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven
and on earth. 19 Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name
of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. 20 Teach these new disciples to obey all the
commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the
28 Afterward, when Jesus was alone in the house with his disciples, they asked him, “Why couldn’t
we cast out that evil spirit?” (Mark 9:14-28, NLT)
Mark 10:42-45 (NLT): So Jesus called them together and said, “You know that the rulers in this world lord
it over their people, and officials flaunt their authority over those under them. 43 But among you
it will be different. Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant, 44 and
whoever wants to be first among you must be the slave of everyone else. 45 For even the Son of
Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
(Mark 10:42-45, NLT)
Luke 9:23-26 (NLT): Then he said to the crowd, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up
your own way, take up your cross daily, and follow me. 24 If you try to hang on to your life, you
will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it. 25 And what do you benefit if
you gain the whole world but are yourself lost or destroyed? 26 If anyone is ashamed of me and
my message, the Son of Man will be ashamed of that person when he returns in his glory and in
the glory of the Father and the holy angels. (Luke 9:23-26, NLT)
Luke 22:24-27 (NLT): Then they began to argue among themselves about who would be the greatest
among them. 25 Jesus told them, “In this world the kings and great men lord it over their people,
yet they are called ‘friends of the people.’ 26 But among you it will be different. Those who are the
greatest among you should take the lowest rank, and the leader should be like a servant. 27 Who
is more important, the one who sits at the table or the one who serves? The one who sits at the
table, of course. But not here! For I am among you as one who serves. (Luke 22:24-27, NLT)
John 3:1-21 (NLT): There was a man named Nicodemus, a Jewish religious leader who was a Pharisee. 2 After dark one evening, he came to speak with Jesus. “Rabbi,” he said, “we all know that God
has sent you to teach us. Your miraculous signs are evidence that God is with you.”
3 Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, unless you are born again, you cannot see the Kingdom of
God.”
4 “What do you mean?” exclaimed Nicodemus. “How can an old man go back into his mother’s
womb and be born again?”
5 Jesus replied, “I assure you, no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water
and the Spirit. 6 Humans can reproduce only human life, but the Holy Spirit gives birth to spiritual
life. 7 So don’t be surprised when I say, ‘You must be born again.’ 8 The wind blows wherever it
wants. Just as you can hear the wind but can’t tell where it comes from or where it is going, so
you can’t explain how people are born of the Spirit.”
9 “How are these things possible?” Nicodemus asked.
10 Jesus replied, “You are a respected Jewish teacher, and yet you don’t understand these things? 11 I assure you, we tell you what we know and have seen, and yet you won’t believe our
testimony. 12 But if you don’t believe me when I tell you about earthly things, how can you
possibly believe if I tell you about heavenly things? 13 No one has ever gone to heaven and
returned. But the Son of Man has come down from heaven. 14 And as Moses lifted up the bronze
snake on a pole in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, 15 so that everyone who
believes in him will have eternal life.
16 “For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who
believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. 17 God sent his Son into the world not to judge
the world, but to save the world through him.
18 “There is no judgment against anyone who believes in him. But anyone who does not believe in
him has already been judged for not believing in God’s one and only Son. 19 And the judgment is
based on this fact: God’s light came into the world, but people loved the darkness more than the
light, for their actions were evil. 20 All who do evil hate the light and refuse to go near it for fear
their sins will be exposed. 21 But those who do what is right come to the light so others can see
that they are doing what God wants.” (John 3:1-21, NLT)
John 12:24-25 (NLT): “I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat is planted in the soil and dies, it
remains alone. But its death will produce many new kernels – a plentiful harvest of new lives. 25 Those who love their life in this world will lose it. Those who care nothing for their life in this
world will keep it for eternity.” (John 12:24-25, NLT)
Romans 5:1-10 (NLT): Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace
with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us. 2 Because of our faith, Christ has
brought us into this place of undeserved privilege where we now stand, and we confidently and
joyfully look forward to sharing God’s glory.
3 We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us
develop endurance. 4 And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens
our confident hope of salvation. 5 And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know
how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.
6 When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners. 7 Now,
most people would not be willing to die for an upright person, though someone might perhaps
be willing to die for a person who is especially good. 8 But God showed his great love for us by
sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. 9 And since we have been made right in
God’s sight by the blood of Christ, he will certainly save us from God’s condemnation. 10 For since
our friendship with God was restored by the death of his Son while we were still his enemies, we
will certainly be saved through the life of his Son. (Romans 5:1-10, NLT)
Romans 6:19-23 (NLT): Because of the weakness of your human nature, I am using the illustration of
slavery to help you understand all this. Previously, you let yourselves be slaves to impurity and
lawlessness, which led ever deeper into sin. Now you must give yourselves to be slaves to
righteous living so that you will become holy.
20 When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the obligation to do right. 21 And what was
the result? You are now ashamed of the things you used to do, things that end in eternal doom. 22 But now you are free from the power of sin and have become slaves of God. Now you do those
things that lead to holiness and result in eternal life. 23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free
gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6:19-23, NLT)
Romans 10:1-4 (NLT): Brothers and sisters, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for the Israelites is that
they may be saved. 2 For I can testify about them that they are zealous for God, but their zeal is
not based on knowledge. 3 Since they did not know the righteousness of God and sought to
establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness. 4 Christ is the culmination of the
law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes. (Romans 10:1-4, NIV)
Romans 12:1-2 (NLT): And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God
because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice – the kind he will find
acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. 2 Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this
world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will
learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. (Romans 12:1-2, NLT)
Philippians 4:4-7 (NLT): Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again – rejoice! 5 Let everyone see that
you are considerate in all you do. Remember, the Lord is coming soon.
6 Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank
him for all he has done. 7 Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can
understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.
(Philippians 4:4-7, NLT)
Colossians 2:1-10 (NLT): I want you to know how much I have agonized for you and for the church at
Laodicea, and for many other believers who have never met me personally. 2 I want them to be
encouraged and knit together by strong ties of love. I want them to have complete confidence
that they understand God’s mysterious plan, which is Christ himself. 3 In him lie hidden all the