R.O.Y.A.L.: 5 Characteristics of a Life Lived "In Christ," Part 3

We've seen that for the believer a life lived in Christ is reflected in our reliance upon Him and our obedience to His teachings. A third characteristic of this kind of life is that:

We are to be YIELDING.

The believer is to be yielded to and yielding to God. What this means is that every single day, we are to yield, give ourselves over, to God. James writes this: “Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you” (James 4:7-8).

Yielding is similar to reliance, but it has much more to do with relationship, guidance, and peace, than with support and strength (though they are not opposed to each other in the slightest – two sides of the same coin, if you will).  When we yield ourselves to Christ, we are in essence echoing Jesus’ relationship with God the Father. As He prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane the night before His crucifixion, Jesus prayed, “Father, if You are willing, remove this cup from Me; yet not My will, but Yours be done” (Luke 22:42).

A life that is yielded to Christ can say, like Paul facing a sentence of execution, that “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain” (Philippians 1:21). And in the yielded life there is joy and peace. Paul exhorts the Philippians to “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice! Let your gentle spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 4:4-7).