Graduate Degree
“I have finished the work which You gave me to do.” John 17:4
Finished – I love Oswald Chambers’ work. Years before most of us had any idea about the Hebrew worldview, God’s spirit of insight and wisdom invaded this man’s consciousness. He speaks like a rabbi. His articulations of biblical truth resound with Hebrew thought patterns. And yet he rarely moves his focus off of Jesus. His daily devotional for September 13 is worth intense study and, if you will allow, a bit of extended commentary.
“Surrender is not surrender of the external life, but of the will; when that is done, all is done.” You can take that to the bank! Chambers rightly notes that the battle with the surrender of the will “never needs to be re-fought.” Yeshua surrendered his will to the Father’s purposes long before the foundations of the world. Once he delivered himself into the hands of the Father, the rest, as we say, is history. Willingly emptying himself of his divinity, he took on the form of a slave for the express purpose of accomplishing the work he was given to do. That’s why the last words from the cross are not “It is finished,” but “It is accomplished.” Yeshua’s death was not the end (finish). It was the sacrifice that guaranteed the execution of the renewed covenant and opened the door to the Gentiles. It is the completion of Israel’s assignment given at Sinai.
The Greek verb here is teleioo, a verb whose emphasis is on reaching the goal. It means “to bring to a full end.” It is often translated as “perfect,” but we should not think of it as “perfect” in mathematical correctness. This is perfect in the sense of done just the way it should be done. It is an action verb, not a cognitive function. Add this to your reading of Hebrews 5:9: “And having been made perfect, He became . . the source of eternal salvation.” In other words, He followed the path directed by the Father all the way to the end. No man can do that without surrendering his will.
Let’s take one more look at Oswald’s insight – this battle never needs to be fought twice. I find that daunting. Certainly it is true of our Lord. No matter how intense the temptation, how subtle the enemy’s approach, how disguised the flavor of self-reliance, Yeshua turns it away. Just think of the enormity of Peter’s unconscious alignment with Satan when, just after proclaiming Yeshua as the Messiah, he suggests that death need not be part of the road to victory. But for me, the sting of Oswald’s obviously true spiritual perception is this: I seem to have to fight this battle many times. That leads to the inevitable conclusion – I have yet to really surrender my will. As much as I want the fight to be over, I am a coward when it comes to total abandonment. I keep holding on to just a little reserve – just in case, you know, things get really bad. Just in case they don’t work out the way I want. Just in case I really seem to be heading for a cross. So, the battle over my will keeps surfacing. I haven’t abandoned all my desires, choices and dreams. I keep thinking that I live in a Garden that I planted. How difficult I make things for myself by not seeing that ‘eden is His, not mine; and that He has provided all that I need to be all that I am under His majestic care, available immediately upon full surrender.
Perhaps you feel the twinge with me. Maybe today there is just a little bit of you left on the altar that was supposed to be given to destruction. Maybe you and I need to pray for the courage to trust. “Lord, I believe. Help now my unbelief.”
Topical Index: finished, teleioo, accomplished, surrender, Oswald Chambers, John 17:4
“As much as I want the fight to be over, I am a coward when it comes to total abandonment. I keep holding on to just a little reserve – just in case, you know, things get really bad.”
Hi Skip,
I think the irony is that when things get really bad, total abandonment is relatively easy.
Until the point of really bad, we are probably all cowards when it comes to total abandonment 🙂
Just shows you how deceptive our thinking really is. When I was 10, I couldn’t swim. I fell off a boat in a lake. I can remember to this day what it was like watching the boat receding from under the water and knowing I would die if I couldn’t get to the surface. Things were bad. I learned to swim right then. Today, if I fall off a boat it’s no big deal. I am no longer afraid because I have the experience of surviving. This lesson needs to be applied to other fears. When we lost millions in a financial fraud some years ago, I thought we couldn’t make it. But here we are, surviving. Now I know that if it happens again, I will know what to do.
Do you suppose that one element in God’s plan is to give us experiences that teach us not to fear by taking us into our greatest fears?
“Do you suppose that one element in God’s plan is to give us experiences that teach us not to fear by taking us into our greatest fears?”
Genesis: |12| And he said, Lay not thine hand upon the young man, neither do thou any thing unto him: for now I know that thou fearest ELOHIM, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine ben yachid from ME.
I am thinking that Avraham would be saying “yes” to your question Skip! The Lord doesn’t tempt but He surely brings about testing and refinement!
It would seem that the experiences of Avraham are not to be viewed as exceptional but rather as normal. As David prays in Psalm 26: |2| Examine me, Adonai, and prove me; try my heart and my mind. (Scary? Oh Yea!)
I at times personally fear the “Job scenario” while not recognizing that it is the same as the “Avraham scenario”! Perhaps I as well need to better embrace Psalm 23: |4| Yea, though I walk through the Gey Tzalmavet (Valley of the Shadow of Death), I will fear no rah (evil); for Thou art with me; Thy shevet (rod) and Thy mateh (staff) they comfort me.
So cowardice, as harsh as it sounds, is not your burden alone to carry my brother Skip!
This was an LOL or DUH moment … I had not deleted the text-pad spell check version of the posting and glanced at it … something looked strange about it!
As a clarification …. I meant …. Job as in Biblical “The Book Of Job” …. the man who lost all … not discussing personal employment! 🙂
You are not alone, Skip. I am in the same corner with you. Maybe one day, I will be able to make the total surrender. I do know that I find parts of me that have not.
George MacDonald said that the deeper we go, the more we find the secret resistance. My view is the closer we get to Him, the further away we find ourselves
Secret Resistance … very appropriate comment! Often times the resistance is in fact hiding and simply waiting for the right circumstances to emerge. Gives me even more insights into the heart of David … referencing Psalm 26 once again. David clearly knew that the purging process was premised upon a challenge and response model.
It would seem that the way Adonai helps our unbelief is to expose it … what a far cry from traditional thought that thinks in opposite terms … that lack of testing can be equated with Adonai’s approval. The truth is that exposure of my unbelief is no punishment but rather a blessing! Oh for the courage to genuinely pray for such testing and exposure!
Well today like any other day is a good day to be deeply humbled and challenged! HIS will be done and not ours! Ahmein!
Greetings Dr. Moen
Just two seconds to check it the so called ” Prodigal Son” Parable. Check it out the verb that describes what the son did before start the journey toward his father’s house. Ins’t it that before he started the journey toward home he first “traveled” toward his own soul. Could that mean that our journey start traveling toward our own soul, first, and then, we start the journey toward our Father’s house??? Remember these are just questions, not declarations. Blessings
Shalom shabbat
Thanks Ismael. I will take a careful look.
We are traveling together some exciting ground today!! Abraham was tested. Moses was tested. David was tested. Peter was tested. Skip was tested. Carl was tested. Roy was tested. Drew was tested. The names change but the pattern remains the same. G-d will not tempt us, but He will test us, so that we may know what is within our heart and to deepen our relationship with Him. A “crisis” situation. Sanctification has been called “a crisis followed by a process”. Skip lost millions announced in a single email. I have had (at 56 years of age) my own “crisis” situations. If G-d is Sovereign (and of course, He is), we know that “all things” are in the constant process of conforming (a word of heat and pressure) us into the image of the Son. Doesn’t it strike you as rather odd that we are able to “rejoice always?”, even in situations and circumstances we find less than pleasant? What a mighty G-d we serve! When we read in our Bible- “My G-d shall supply all your need.. do we count “tribulation” as one of our needs? (excuse me.. I’m having a one of those G-d “moments”). One of our dear brothers who has travelled this pathway before us was Andrew Murray. He wrote over two hundred books back in the days before the word processor. One of his opus works is entitled, “Absolute Surrender”. I highly recommend this as a “must read” for all. Why? – because this is the “simplicity” found “in Christ”. We must, we must .. surrender all. This is more than a song of invitation (I Surrender All)/ – this is a lifestyle and a mindset. This is the mind of Christ. (Who was surrendered in totality to the Father’s will?). I remember the day I did this. I became the little lad with the five loaves and two fishes. I held out my empty hand to the Father above and surrendered my “all”. My time, my testimony, my treasure, my teeth and my tongue. “All.”
After all- He is worthy, is He not? And also the LORD is good- is He not? He can be trusted. (Can He not?) He knows what is best. (Does He not?) Over three hundred and sixty six references are made in our Bible concerning: “fear not.” Perfect love (not mine-His..) casts out fear. What did Jesus do with the surrendered lunch? After breaking it He blessed it and He multiplied it. What did G-d do with Abraham’s surrendered Son? Is G-d good? What, tell me what, is the hold-up? What tell me what.. are we waiting for? You know the drill. No one has to tell you. (we have an unction from the Holy One and know all things). Total surrender is the way to Victory. Worried about a “cross?” That cross was His and His alone. The full measure of G-d’s wrath fell upon Yeshua. His sacrifice and His alone is our peace with YHWH. We cannot add half an ounce to this. It is full, complete and final. All we can do is rejoice in the victory He has won for us and receive by faith the finished work of Calvary. Behold, what manner of love the Father has given unto us, that we should be called the sons of G-d! Wow!- (is that a Hebrew word?)..
No, “wow” isn’t a Hebrew verb but “oy veh” is.
Maybe “peleh” (wonderful) or “norah” (awesome) could suffice? 🙂
I have carried “Absolute Surrender” around with me for a few years….”lower down…..down lower” is where I learned so much more about Jesus. And, yes, I’ve come to know that tribulation is one of our needs! May God bless you at this very hour….Kelly
**….”lower down…..down lower” is where I learned so much more about Jesus.**
Hey Kelly.. Thank you and our Abba’s full blessings to you. I must tell you also of another of Andrew Murray’s writings which I guarantee is an eye-opener and a mondo-conformation of “the way up is down” and that is A.M.’s book entitled “Humility.” Run, don’t walk to the bookstore and pick up a copy. This book was written toward the end of A.M.’s life and was dictated to his daughter as A.M. was in his late,late years and too crippled to write. It is a summary teaching of years of walking with the Master. -What a mighty G-d we serve!