SERMON NOTES

“Defeat and Surrender always feel the same to me, but what does it matter? They both bring me to my knees.”

                -  Mumford & Sons, Surrender

“The essence of surrender is getting out of the way so that God can do what He wants to do.”

                - AW Tozer

JOHN 3:26-30 (NLT)
(26) So John’s disciples came to him and said, “Rabbi, the man you met on the other side of the Jordan River, the one you identified as the Messiah, is also baptizing people. And everybody is going to him instead of coming to us.” (27) John replied, “No one can receive anything unless God gives it from heaven. (28) You yourselves know how plainly I told you, ‘I am not the Messiah. I am only here to prepare the way for him.’ (29) It is the bridegroom who marries the bride, and the bridegroom’s friend is simply glad to stand with him and hear his vows. Therefore, I am filled with joy at his success. (30) He must become greater and greater, and I must become less and less.

EVERY GOOD THING YOU HAVE COMES FROM GOD

• Humans like to take ownership of anything that is good.
• Our calling is always to move from owner to steward in everything we have.

YOU ARE NOT THE STAR OF THE SHOW

• Whatever you do, be like John: happy to stand with the Lord, happy to make Him famous, and happy to draw people’s attention to the bridegroom.
• It’s easy to start with Jesus at the center and most important place in our life but slowly and over time kind of push him off to the side.

SURRENDER & JOY GO TOGETHER

• The Upside-Down Kingdom of God
• You can live by holding onto your own importance but when you surrender your heart, your life, your daily habits, and everything… just watch the joy of the Lord flood into your life.
• He must increase, I must decrease.

APPLICATION QUESTIONS:

1. What areas of your life are easy to surrender/what areas are difficult?
2. Who inspires you to live a life of surrender and why?
3. How have you experienced surrender & joy working together? If never, how can you imagine it working?

SERMON AUDIO