Unconditional Surrender: When Eternity's on the Line

Six minutes before the sermon ended, I reached for my phone, texted a friend sitting nearby, and told him: I think I’m going to email our singles minister. The next morning, after a few hours debating, I hit send.

Over the years, I’ve heard hundreds, if not thousands, of messages—and never have I reached out to a speaker to follow up on a quote he shared. But that Tuesday night, the final words he read grabbed my attention and wouldn’t let go.

My church’s minister to young single adults, who was speaking that night, ended his message by sharing about his friend, a man around my age who used to sit in those same seats and attend the same church services and social events that I do. For years, the two of them had talked through his friend’s struggles with singleness, his desire for marriage—and more recently, his call to the mission field. 

The friend had answered that call and moved overseas. As our singles minister prepared for the message, he reached out to ask how his friend’s perspective on singleness had changed. Here’s how he responded: 

The more time I spend among the lost, the less significant marriage seems to me. The day of judgment is coming. Eternity is on the line. To me, the momentary pleasures of marriage cannot compare with the eternal reward of living as if eternity is at stake for every soul. There is nothing like the joy and the freedom that comes from surrendering everything to King Jesus—even the most precious things in life, even the hope of marriage.

Jesus makes good on His promise: “These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full” (John 15:11 ESV). Some of the deepest intimacy I have experienced with God has come from surrendering my dreams for marriage to the Lord, so that I prove to be His disciple (John 15:8).

I see the day drawing nearer and nearer where the everlasting, ever-increasing joy of dwelling with the Creator will be fully manifested. The pleasures of marriage will seem as nothing in that day.

High Stakes

“Eternity is on the line.” Those five words stayed with me as I drove home. The next morning, I sent our singles minister a message with two requests: I asked if he’d send me the quote above, and I questioned whether he thought his friend would be willing to do an anonymous interview we could share here.

I’m thankful the answer to both was yes. Below you’ll find the first part of my interview with “Nate,” a pseudonym chosen because the missionary friend’s answers and heart have reminded me of quotes from Nate Saint, a missionary who served alongside Jim Elliot in Ecuador in 1956: 

People who do not know the Lord ask why in the world we waste our lives as missionaries. They forget that they too are expending their lives . . . . and when the bubble has burst, they will have nothing of eternal significance to show for the years they have wasted.¹

. . . may we who know Christ hear the cry of the damned as they hurtle headlong into the Christless night without ever a chance. May we be moved with compassion as our Lord was.³

Katie: During the service, our singles minister mentioned that you used to sit in those same seats in the worship center on Tuesday nights. Will you share a little about what your life looked like then and what it looks like now? 

Nate: I moved to Houston after college to work at a construction contracting company. None of my family members lived in Texas (their loss). God led me to a church in Houston and blessed me with many friends, but most importantly, God blessed me with Himself. Thanks to a friend who was an effective disciple-maker, I grew steadily into a passion for God’s Word. 

I wanted to make disciples, but I found myself confused. Who should I disciple? What should I teach them? I tried to share the gospel with my coworkers, but there was no fruit. My goal was to invite at least one coworker to a one-on-one lunch each week where I could share the gospel, but I often fell short of this mark. I enjoyed my workplace and had a good team. I really enjoyed my social life. This was a blessing and a curse—the desire to belong and to be included socially distracted me from a more surrendered spiritual life.

I lived in Houston for nine years before deploying to the mission field. I’ve now finished eleven months of living in South Asia. So far, my time has been given to language classes, language practice, and community involvement. There is a massive park near my house where I go to share the gospel with strangers and practice my language. Ironically, I find that I share the gospel more consistently in a foreign language than I did with my native one.

 After finishing my language training, I plan to live out my dream of equipping the local saints for the work of ministry. I will connect with local fellowships to train them to share their testimony, to share the gospel, to make disciples of new believers, and to start house fellowships. I also pray to be used by God to take the good news to people groups and places where it has never been. 

Katie: What first stirred your heart toward missions, and how did God begin leading you to serve overseas? 

Nate: Event #1: I grew up in church and knew some doctrine, but I never read even part of the Bible. After moving to Houston, I joined a small group Bible study, and for the first time, I started reading the Bible for myself. About three months after I joined, our study led to the topic of the afterlife. I interrupted with a question: “Wait, so after we die, everyone either goes to heaven or hell, right?” The guys answered, “Yes.” 

Another question came to mind. “And the only way to go to heaven is if you believe in Jesus, right?” “Yes, that is true,” they answered. 

“And nobody can believe in Jesus unless someone goes to tell them about Jesus, right?” Once more, they said, “Yes.” 

My mind flooded with emotion and questions. Then what are we doing?Why aren’t the people at church more concerned about this? Why does nobody talk about their concern for the eternal state of their loved ones, coworkers, friends, etc.? Shouldn’t we pray for one another and for the lost in view of eternity? Shouldn’t we all feel the weight of this and live with urgency?The first seed was planted in my heart. 

Event #2: A friend (a girl I was going on dates with actually) asked me, “If God called you to serve overseas as a missionary, do you think you would go?” I pondered the question for several seconds. “No, I don’t think I would,” I replied. “I love America, and I can’t imagine how hard it must be to learn a new language and live overseas.” 

I went home, but the question kept coming back to my mind. I didn’t like my answer. I was singing songs that my life was “surrendered” to Him, but the plain fact was this: as long as I was not willing to go overseas—or willing to do anything for Christ—then I could not honestly say that my life was surrendered to King Jesus. 

I was essentially saying: “Lord, You can have my whole life . . . as long as You keep me in America.” This is conditional surrender, but that’s not what Jesus asks for. He commands unconditional surrender. Could I claim Jesus as my “Lord”?

Event #3: Was I willing to do anything for God . . . even leave America? Even serve as a missionary and endure great suffering? The question kept plaguing me, and I was hungry for answers. I watched any sermon I could find about missions. (If you’re looking for a spiritual and emotional crisis, I have a great suggestion. Do some quick YouTube searches for “David Platt Missions” and “John Piper Missions.”) Every video, saturated with biblical truth, was a hammer to my heart. Compassion for the lost consumed me. The reality of eternity, either in heaven or in hell, could not have seemed more real or any closer. What was I going to do about it?

Event #3.5: It is very difficult to hear that over 2,000 people in the world will die this hour without ever hearing about Jesus a single time in their life.³ If they have never heard about Jesus, are they in heaven? The biblical truth is that nobody can be saved without hearing and receiving God’s gift of salvation, the forgiveness of their sins in the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ (Acts 4:12; Rom. 3:21–26). 

The Christian’s typical response to this sobering truth is so natural but misguided: “But what about the people who never hear? Do they go to hell? That doesn’t seem fair! Surely God would save those innocent people, right?” As if He already knew that we would ask these valid questions, Paul spoke directly to the matter:
 

• All people sin and deserve God’s wrath (Rom. 1:18, 3:23). 
• God has shown Himself to everybody in creation, but they have not honored Him or given Him thanks (Rom. 1:19, 21). 
• Everyone who chooses to worship created things rather than the Creator is without excuse (Rom. 1:20). 
• Even people who have no access to God’s Word are guilty for their sin because they break God’s law, which is “written on their heart” (Rom. 2:12–15). 
• It requires nothing less than a sent one—a preacher, a herald of good news, an ambassador of Christ—communicating the gospel to give the lost any chance of salvation (Rom. 10:14–15; 2 Cor. 5:18–20). 

Without these theological convictions, I would probably still be in America. But enough was enough. I confessed to God: “Lord, I have not yet surrendered my whole life to You. If You want me to go overseas, though I am afraid, I am willing.”

Event #4: I began to wonder, “Lord, I am willing to go, but am I supposed to go?” I had no idea. Wise counsel suggested that I sign up for a mission trip to explore the idea, so I went to South Asia for a ten-day trip. People who had never heard of Jesus before professed faith in front of my eyes. I was stunned. I wanted more, but I was still afraid of the cost. Immediately, I began planning a months-long trip back to South Asia. I had to know: was God calling me to mission work? If so, could I survive long term? Ten days is one thing; multiple months is another. 

After careful consideration, I quit my job and moved to South Asia for four months of ministry work in search of answers to my questions. During this time, as I was praying to the Lord, I sensed God’s invitation to an indefinite commitment to church planting work among the lost. The promises for all-out obedience were too valuable. The joy of working with God to reach generations of lost people was too thrilling. The freedom of full surrender was too rewarding. The hope of standing before the throne on judgment day with no regrets was too captivating. Despite the suffering that I knew would come, I was determined to go. 

Katie: Was it difficult to step away from the cultural script—career success, marriage, comfort—in order to consider following Jesus where He was calling you? What were the biggest fears or doubts you faced? 

Nate: 1. Marriage. My biggest fear by far concerned my dreams and desires surrounding marriage. If I were to commit to what God was calling me to, at what age could I possibly get married? Would I be willing to get married well into my thirties? Would I be able to find anyone that I wanted to marry in such a small dating pool? Would I ever even get married? 

Putting these hopes and dreams—the most precious things in our hearts—on the altar is a serious test of faith that reveals how valuable and sufficient Jesus really is to us.

2. Language Learning. My second biggest fear concerned learning a new language. How was that supposed to happen?! It means a lot to me to understand others’ hearts as well as to be understood by others. Would I be able to endure the frustration and suffering that come from being misunderstood and unknown?

3. Friendships. I know how to make friends in America, but it’s a different ballgame in a different cultural context. Would any locals choose me to be their friend? How could I compete with locals who speak fluently? If I had no local friends, would Jesus be enough for me?

4. Family. My parents and I have lived in different states since I went away for college, so moving across the world hasn’t changed much for me in my family life. For others, this is a much, much more painful sacrifice. 

Katie: I can only imagine you received some well-meaning pushback about this decision. Even now, there are likely women reading this who aren’t preparing to become missionaries overseas, but who have been advised against obeying the Lord fully because it could affect them financially, narrow their dating pool, or keep them from achieving certain milestones. How did you navigate those types of concerns? 

Nate: I kept faith in God; clung to the promises; focused on the truth. Finances? Yes, I took a pay cut moving overseas. But my needs are met, and there is treasure coming in heaven to make up for any financial effects. Dating pool? Kids? There are definitely more Americans in America than there are overseas. But I have read too many stories where God exercises His sovereignty to do the impossible. God can easily connect me to a spouse overseas at the perfect time, should that be His will. 

Is God calling you to serve overseas? Do you want to be married to someone who also wants to serve overseas? If so, where do you think the best place is to find such a man—in America or overseas? Some may say to you, “But, sister, there are so many lost people in America. Why don’t you serve God here?” There is a difference between being unsaved and being unreached. Every unsaved person in America has access to the gospel. Billions in the world today have no access to the gospel: no one is telling them how to be saved. How could we stay?

Ultimately, the highest duty of every Christian is to obey God in all things. This may mean that we offend, hurt, or even disobey parents and other loved ones. David Platt once said, “When you realize who Jesus is, you realize that it’s not dangerous to surrender to him.⁴ It’s dangerous to not surrender to him.” Obeying Jesus is dangerous. “Count the cost.” But there is something even more dangerous and costly than this: not obeying Jesus.

Where Are You Holding Back?

Nate added one more note as he finished answering the previous question:

The apostle Peter found himself at the brink of death, standing in front of the Pharisees and Sadducees, who had previously threatened him to not preach about Jesus. He said to them, “We must obey God rather than men” (Acts 5:29 ESV). 

Peter’s conviction wasn’t merely intended for the apostles then, and it’s not exclusive to those serving overseas today. Every follower of Christ is called to carry His name, whether it’s across oceans or across the office hallway. So let me turn this conversation to you. 

• Are there places of “conditional surrender” where you’ve been afraid to fully obey Jesus?
• “Eternity is on the line.” How does it impact you to know that thousands of people will die today without ever hearing the good news of the gospel? 
• What bold step of obedience is the Lord calling you to take, and are you willing to do it?

As you work through your answers to these questions, take time to sit before the Lord. Offer your fears and hesitations to Him honestly. And then, like Peter, like Nate, and like the countless brothers and sisters who have counted the cost and gone before us—may you find the courage to say, “Yes, Lord,” and refuse to walk in anything less than full surrender to Jesus.

What happens when a longing for marriage collides with the call to follow Jesus wholeheartedly? Come back next week to hear Nate share how surrendering his deepest desires to Christ has reshaped his priorities, revealed God’s tenderness, and helped him to examine what (and whom) he treasures most. 

¹ Ellen Vaughn, Becoming Elisabeth Elliot (Nashville: B&H, 2020), 134.

² Ellen Vaughn, Becoming Elisabeth Elliot (Nashville: B&H, 2020), 149.

³ Statistic taken from https://www.messagemissions.com. 

⁴ “The Critical Question,” David Platt. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v88e96lmtq4&t=277s. 

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