Jeremiah 38:20-21 (NIV) “They will not hand you over,” Jeremiah replied. “Obey the Lord by doing what I tell you. Then it will go well with you, and your life will be spared. But if you refuse to surrender, this is what the Lord has revealed to me:

Many versions of the bile do not use the word surrender at all. Even here in Jeremiah’s word of prophecy it is used out of context to its true meaning, but this is as close to the true meaning as I could find.

Yesterday I mentioned that the one liners we use to invite others to come to the Lord do not contain enough information to obtain salvation. I used this word, surrender, and it is a difficult concept for the lost to understand.

Genesis 3:15 And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.

It started in the garden and through no fault of our own that enmity fell upon all mankind, without belief or understanding.

Romans 8:20-21 For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope, Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.

If you do not believe in God then you cannot perceive that you are in the enemy’s camp, for if there is no God there is no enemy. But there is God and there is an enemy and even if you do not consider yourself to be at war with God, your commander does.

The only way out of the enemy camp and into the heavenly kingdom is surrender.

John 3:16 Do I really have to quote John 3:16? It is perhaps the best known verse in all the world. You see signs at football games that depict just that John 3:16.

Henny Youngman was the king of the one liners. “Take my wife, please.” That was perhaps his best known joke. Biblical one liners are no joke but can you say with any certainty that anyone was ever  saved by this one liner? “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

If that was the only thing any unbeliever ever heard about Jesus Christ, would it lead to their salvation? Where in this verse does it speak to confession of condition, repentance or surrender? Does it speak to justification, sanctification or conformance?

“For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.” Do you know the address for this quote? It is just as vital as John 3:16. Do the lost even understand the issues of condemnation? I have seen the looks on the faces of the lost as they are told bitterly that they are going to hell. It doesn’t do any good to preach hell to a person who doesn’t believe in God.

If you love the lost it takes a longer and deeper conversation than delivering one liners. Even if that one line is “What is going on in your life?” That care and concern isn’t accepted and the conversation cannot deepen until trust is established. That doesn’t come quickly for hurting people.

Now comes the last word anyone wants to hear that is central to Christianity, sacrifice. How much of your life are you willing to give up to save a lost soul? We all have responsibility and needs, so any amount of time spent loving the lost is a sacrifice of some sort.