Giving Ourselves First

II Corinthians 8:5

The Christian life should be a Christ-centered life. Believers who have been born again into God's family and have a new identity, which motivates us to live as one of God's children. We must not center our lives on ourselves or on others, but on Christ, serving Him in the local church.

Tonight, I want us to understand three things:

As stewards, we are responsible not only for our material possessions, but for our bodies and our lives. We must be willing to give ourselves totally to the Lord. But the motivation for this does not come from within ourselves-it comes from an understanding of who we are in Christ.

I. We Must Surrender Self

One word describes our willingness to present, separate and transform ourselves; to occupy ourselves doing God's will; and to think soberly: Surrender. God extends to every born again person a call of surrender. This call asks us to make Him Lord of our lives, to place ourselves on the altar of sacrifice rather than to pursue our own will and desires.

Our surrender to God is the best ID we have that we belong to God's family.