Chapter 2, Personal Consecration

PERSONAL CONSECRATION

THE importance of personal Christian consecration must be pressed home to everyone. To those who today can say by the grace of God that they are living in fellowship with Jesus Christ as their personal Savior, the consideration of this theme should urge an earnest and honest searching of hearts and a thorough review of the past, that there may be a re-consecration for a closer walk with God and a more faithful service in the vineyard. And to those, who either may have backslidden or have lived as nominal Christians up to this time, may this message reveal to them the supreme and present need of a conversion, a new birth, that they, too, may consecrate themselves to a life in faith and fellowship with Jesus, as Savior and Lord.

What is meant by consecration? It means to be set apart for a specific use and purpose. And Christian consecration means to be set apart for the Lord and Master’s ownership and service. As true Christians we are not our own. “Know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost, which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s (I Cor. 6:19-20). We have all learned Luther’s explanation of the Second Article, where he states the purpose of Christ’s redemption, that He has redeemed us “in order that we might be His own and live under Him in His kingdom.”

And this consecration is a personal experience. We can do business by proxy, but we cannot be consecrated by proxy. It does not make us Christians because our parents were devout and God-fearing folks. Nor does God deal with us en masse and save us in groups, by families or congregations. He deals with each one personally. The invitation is extended to each individual with all that is necessary for our salvation; but the choice is ours. The responsibility for our own salvation rests upon us, not upon God.

We shall try to make plain what personal consecration in our Christian life implies.

In the first place it implies surrender to the Lord with soul and body, talent and time, position and possessions. When the Lord says: “My son, give me thine heart,” it means that we yield ourselves to Him, let Him take full possession of our heart. He cleanses it from sin and the guilt of sin and makes it the temple of the Holy Spirit. A new life with power over sin and temptation is created and preserved in the heart. We are now no longer “slaves to sin.” “Sin shall have no dominion over us.” Being emancipated from sin, we have become “bond—servants to God.” We are now in position to live the victorious life. When the heart, out of which are the issues of life, is surrendered to Christ, then Christ abides there, and through Him we are “dead to sin,” and His will must be our will. And as we thus belong to Him, we gladly surrender all else, what we are and have, to Him. Having yielded ourselves to Christ, how safe and secure we are against the tempter! The simple story of Mary, who was examined on having applied for membership into the church, beautifully illustrates the assurance of victory, which the consecrated Christian has in Christ. She was asked, “Are you a Christian?” “Yes.” “Does it make any difference in your life that you are a Christian?” “Oh, yes, very much.” “Well, what difference?” “Suppose you are tempted to sin, what would you do?” She replied: “When I hear Satan knocking at my heart’s door, I just turn to Jesus and say: ‘Lord Jesus, won’t you go to the door?’ He goes and opens the door, and when Satan sees Jesus, he says: ‘Excuse me; I have come to the wrong place,’ and he goes away.” If you will surrender fully to the victorious Christ, you shall be assured of victory and safety against the powers of evil.

But personal consecration also implies separation from the world and the ways of the world. How necessary it is that this be emphasized to our church members in our day. There is a lowering of standards and a compromise with the world in many of our congregations to the extent that there seems to be no difference between the pursuits, pleasures and interests of the worldly-minded and the members of the church. We hear frequently of congregations resorting to worldly means of raising money and questionable ways of providing entertainment for the young people with plays, pageants, and bridge and bunco parties. The church becomes a house of entertainment and the congregation becomes a social club. Church members are seen to mingle with the theater-going and dance-crazy masses and feel at home in their social atmosphere. It is surprising frequently to meet prominent church members, leaders in the congregations, defending indulgence in these pleasures of the world, asserting that it is narrow to condemn these pursuits and pleasures. Where is the testimony for truth, right and purity, when you cannot see any difference in the example and the attitude between the man of the world and the man of the church? The salt has lost its savor, the light has become darkness, and how great is then the darkness!

Possibly we have one-sidedly emphasized justification by faith in our teaching and preaching and neglected to stress with scriptural clearness and urgency the importance of sanctification, as the essential result of justification, that living faith must bear the fruits of good works in a surrendered and separated Christian life. Faith without works is dead. In our effort to escape the work-righteousness of the Catholic Church and the superficial religion of the Reformed Church by preaching that we are saved by grace through faith in Christ without works, we have failed at the same time to stress duly the demands that God places upon a believer, that he must hate sin, forsake the world, take up the cross of self-denial and follow in the footsteps of Jesus; he must walk the narrow way and leave worldliness behind. Too many of our church members comfort themselves with the fact that they are once baptized, later confirmed and are members of a church, paying their dues to the church, attending worship more or less regularly and perhaps taking communion once or twice a year. We have so many baptized unbelievers in our congregations. We need to preach revival sermons to our Sunday morning congregations that those who sleep so soundly and securely on the pillow of a dead historic faith, may be awakened to realize their awful self-deception before it is eternally too late.

The well-balanced Christian has yielded himself to Christ and dedicated his life to Him in an inseparable union, as the bride to the bridegroom. The believer is married to Christ, has received His name and nature, shares His triumphs, His life, His glory. What a gracious and glorious relationship! But the bride of Christ must be loyal and true to Him, and can not, and will not compromise with the world, but keep “unspotted from the world.” Let us not neglect to stress uncompromisingly the separation, which Scriptures so emphatically enjoin upon the believer. In II Cor. 6:14-17 we read: “Be not unequally yoked with unbelievers, for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? and what concord hath Christ with Belial? Or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God, as God hath said: I will dwell in them and walk in them, and I will be their God and they shall be my people, wherefore come ye out from among them and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing, and I will receive you.” And in Romans 12:2 we read: “Be not conformed to this world, but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good and acceptable will of God.”

How weak and faint are the evidences of this separation from the world among us! No wonder that the spiritual life pulsates feebly and the demarcation between the out-and-out
worldly respectables and many church members is hard to discover. If some have the Christian courage consistently to show their colors and take exception to and separate themselves from the ways, pursuits and practices that are tolerated in many church circles, they are regarded as narrow, intolerant, fanatical and queer.

We do not mean to say that this separation from the world implies that we are not to associate with the worldly and unsaved, nor that we are justified in leaving a congregation because of persecution and opposition from the worldly element in it. We are to be in the world, but not of the world, and that applies where the world has the controlling power in the congregation. The light is needed in darkness. Christ calls His followers to be His witnesses against wrong and falsehood, to be a savory salt and a shining light in the world, whether it be in the congregation or outside.

Conformity to the world on the part of many church members degrades the church, dishonors Christ and hinders the soul-winning work among us. Oh, for a closer walk with God! But if our walk with God is to be close, it must be a separation from the ways of the world. We must have the courage of our convictions; we must dare to be a Daniel, dare to stand alone, ever assured that we are on God’s side. Then we know He is on our side, and God and one consecrated believer is a majority. Luther stood alone with God and won the victory. Hans Nielsen Hauge had the church and state against him, but God was with him and gave him victory. If God be for us who can be against us? If our separation from the world does not mean a separation unto Christ, then we are sure to go down to defeat. We must not only forsake sin but follow Jesus. We must not only let go the world, but cling to God. Without Him we can do nothing. Separated unto Christ we can say with Paul: “Now I live, yet not I, but Christ liveth in me.” “I can do all things through Christ who strengtheneth me.”

In the third place personal consecration means service. We are saved to serve the Lord. There are others to be saved; and Christ counts on us, who are saved to win others for Him. The Gospel has a go in it, not only for the pastors but for every parishioner, who is saved. If you have accepted His “Come unto me,” He says to you: “Go work in my vineyard!” “Go ye into the highways and hedges and compel them to come in.” “Go home and tell how great things the Lord hath done for thee.” The love of Christ constrains us to serve Him out of gratitude for what He has done for us and out of compassion for our unsaved fellow men. The consecrated Christian has two hands, that he has received from God: the hand of faith and the hand of love. Both must be used, or we lose them. Faith worketh by love.

Even as Christ forgot Himself in serving us, so shall we serve unselfishly in winning others for
Him. He has set us free, but free to serve Him. Paul says in Romans 6:16: “Know ye not that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are, whom ye obey,” and in v. 18 we read: “Being then made free from sin ye became the servants of righteousness.”

It was Christ’s consuming passion to minister, not to be ministered unto. He says: “I have given you an example that ye should do as I have done unto you. Verily, verily, I say unto you, the servant is not greater than his lord.” There are unsaved people all around us, who wait for our ministry. There are relatives and friends and strangers that are lost in sin here at home, there are the benighted millions in the far-off heathen lands, and there are the scattered sheep of the house of Israel the world over. Truly the fields are white unto harvest. We need the uplifted eyes to see the fields, the compassionate and loving heart to compel us to enter into the neglected fields, and work while it is day to “rescue the perishing, care for the dying, snatch them in pity from sin and the grave; weep o’er the erring ones, lift up the fallen, tell them of Jesus, the mighty to save.”

But to serve the Lord means to serve Him with body and soul, heart and hand, self and substance, time and talent. Like the Good Samaritan our ear must hear the cry and our eye must see the helplessness of the one that has fallen by the Jericho road of life. Our hands must be extended to help him, and our tongue must be ready to plead his cause as we bring him to the place of rescue and refuge. And our pocketbook must be open to help in making possible and complete his care until he can join the willing workers in rescuing others. If we have the mind of Christ, the love for others, we will not like the priest and the Levite pass him by.

If we are faithful servants of Christ we will never be ashamed or afraid to confess Him. We will gladly recommend and introduce Him to others. It is strange that there shall be so much silence in that respect among us. As if it were possible to be a Christian without confessing your Savior. So many know how to quote Paul, when he says: “With the heart man believeth unto righteousness” (Rom. 10:10), but they do not seem to stress what he says in that same verse, that “with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” A courageous testimony and a consistent life must tell the world where we stand in relation to Christ. Jesus says: “Whosoever will confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. But whosoever will deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father, which is in heaven” (Matt. 10:32-33).

“Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your Father which is in heaven” (Matt. 5:16).

“I beseech you brethren, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service” (Rom. 12:1). The motive of consecrated service is gratitude to God and love for others; the purpose of service is the good of others and the goal is to glorify God. Whatever we can do in serving the Lord is not to our credit, but only to the glory of God.

As we have seen, personal consecration implies a full surrender to Christ, a consistent separation from the world unto Christ and a self-sacrificing service rendered Him in winning others to the glory of God. The best and briefest definition of consecration that I have ever come across, is that given by a devout Christian woman. She held up a blank sheet of paper and said: “It is to sign your name at the bottom of this blank sheet of paper and let God fill it in as He will.” A young Christian girl prayed: “Lord, fill me to overflowing. I can not hold much, but I can overflow a great deal.” She had the right understanding of a Spirit-filled life. The Christian life must have an outlet. So many Christians seem to think that the Christian life consists only in taking in and not giving out. It is a sickly religious life that only receives, enjoys selfishly the good things of the kingdom, worships regularly by singing hymns, offering prayers and listening to sermons, and running to all kinds of religious meetings, but fails to serve, sacrifice and work to bring others into the kingdom. The reservoir that has an inlet and no outlet will soon have dead water, stagnant and useless. The purpose and nature of the stream or river is to flow on. This is what Jesus means when He says in John 7:38: “He that believeth on me as the Scriptures bath said, out of his life shall flow rivers of living water.” No sooner had Simon found Jesus, when he went to find his brother Andrew and brought him to Jesus. Philip finds Nathanael. The Samaritan woman, as soon as she had met Jesus at the well and believed in Him as the Messiah, she returned to her townsfolk in Sychar, aroused the whole town, told them that she had found the Messiah and brought them out to meet Jesus. The result of this woman’s testimony was the conversion of many. Jesus tarried with them two days, there was a revival among them and many of the Samaritans of that city “believed on Him for the saying of the woman, which testified” (John 4:39). The Christian life must seek an outlet in loving service and practical ministry to others.

Consecration is not the experience of a moment merely, as justification or regeneration. The moment a sinner believes he is justified before God. The moment the Holy Spirit through baptism in the infant or through the Word in the case of the adult enters the sinner’s heart, he is regenerated, born again to new life. But consecration is a life-long process, and it implies progress, growth. The Christian life is a growth in grace. There is no stand-still. As believers, we must either go forward or back-slide. It means more consecration, a fuller surrender, a more complete separation from the world, and a more faithful and efficient service.

How may we become more consecrated, more fit for the Master’s use and service? How does the child grow and develop in strength and health physically? You have a ready answer: by taking wholesome and sufficient nourishment, living in a pure atmosphere and exercising properly. Our spiritual life needs the same care, if it shall grow and increase in usefulness.

Right here we find the fatal neglect among us, the reason why so many (who became babes in Christ in baptism or later were converted) have lost their spiritual life or whose spiritual life is in a sickly and dying condition. Their life has been starved. It has not received nourishment, not been given the proper environments, nor been given helpful exercise in service. God has provided us with bountiful provisions for the sustenance of our spiritual life, that we may live a vigorous, consecrated life. In His Word and Sacrament He gives us the Bread of Life and the Water of Life. We have the open Bible, the full Gospel and the unaltered Sacrament. How are we using these blessed means of grace?

Is the Bible prayerfully read in your home by you and your family? Do the young people come together in Bible classes on the Lord’s Day to study the Word? Do our men and women bring their Bibles to Sunday school to study God’s Word in Bible classes? Is the Family Altar maintained in your home? If not, how can you expect to live the Christian life? What would happen to your body if you quit taking nourishment?

Then your Christian life needs to live in an atmosphere of prayer. Prayer is the breath of spiritual life. Where there is no prayer, the spiritual life is dead. What is the condition of the prayer life in your home? In your congregation? Is the power of the prayer of faith felt in your home and in your church?

And as we have already emphasized, the spiritual life needs exercise in service, in order to develop, grow and be preserved. There can be no growth in your personal consecration without exercising your spiritual gifts, using your God-given talents. What you do not use, you lose.

It becomes a personal and heart-searching question: Are you leading a consecrated Christian life? And if so, do you realize that you have suffered from neglects and omissions, and feel the need of re-consecrating yourself for a closer walk with God, a more self-sacrificing service, a more diligent use of God’s Word and the Lord’s Supper, more exercise of your faith in prayer and testimony, and more passion for the soulwinning ministry?

Let us rather halt right here and ask a few questions with reference to your past life. Have you been a witness for Christ? Or is your voice never heard in your home, or in the congregation in prayer or in testifying for Christ? What about your daily prayer-life? What have you done for your nearest and dearest ones to lead them to Christ? What impression do people have of you at home as well as away from home? Can they give you the testimony as they meet you: There goes a real Christian? What kind of an epistle are you? What does the world read out of your life? What are you sacrificing for the cause of Christ? Are you a liberal and cheerful giver toward missions, charities and Christian education? A conscientious answer to these and similar questions will help you to see to what extent you are consecrated and what are your spiritual needs. Maybe such an examination will humble you, as you realize your shortcomings, and will serve to bring you to God in a sincere confession of your sins and a re-dedication of self.

But what are you going to do, who have been nominal Christians, members of the church, but unsaved? Is it possible to be a prodigal son and daughter and still take part in church activities? There is much churchianity, but very little vital Christianity. Should you be one, whose name is on the membership roll of a congregation and not have your name written in the Book of Life in heaven, what are you going to do about it? Will you not turn to the Lord, confess your sins, and yield yourself to Him, who has tenderly been calling you and patiently waiting for you to come? May the Lord help you to say: “Lord, I come, take me as I am. I surrender all to Thee.”

May Francis Havergal’s consecration hymn be our prayer:

Take my life and let it be
Consecrated Lord, to Thee;
Take my hands and let them move
At the impulse of Thy love.

Take my feet and let them be
Swift and beautiful for Thee;
Take my voice, and let me sing
Always, only for my King.

Take my silver and my gold,
Not a mite will I withhold;
Take my moments and my days,
Let them flow in ceaseless praise.

Take my will and make it Thine,
I shall be no longer mine;
Take my heart, it is Thine own
It shall be Thy royal throne.