Answering God's Call

Finding, Following, and Fulfilling God's Will for Your Life

R. Scott Pace, Heath A. Thomas

• Publisher: B&H Academic
• Year: 2020
• Print ISBN: 9781087703473
• eBook ISBN: 9781087703480
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Christian Ministry

"Whatever you do, do it from the heart, as something done for the Lord and not for people." – Colossians 3: 23 Every believer has a calling from God. We are all called to salvation, to service, and to surrender. Discerning and pursuing God's call in your life becomes the work of a lifetime. Biblically insightful, theologically faithful, and practically helpful, Answering God's Call will draw readers into a deeper understanding of God's will for their lives.

PART I

ANSWERING GOD’S CALL

We all know what it’s like. Our phone rings, and an unrecognized number appears on the screen. Immediately we try to discern, who is calling me? and why are they calling me? Before we’re willing to commit to a conversation, we want to know the identity of the one trying to reach us. Their identity can help us to determine why they are calling and, specifically, what it has to do with us. Oftentimes, when we can’t immediately verify the source of the call, we ignore it. We send it to voicemail. We think, “If it’s important, they’ll call back.”

But God’s call on one’s life is not like this everyday experience. When the Creator of the universe calls, we can’t ignore it, delay our response by sending it to spiritual voicemail, or dismiss it as a wrong number as though God mistakenly called us. We must answer him. But the same questions that influence whether or not we answer our phone also determine how we respond to God’s call. Who is calling you, and why the caller is specifically calling you, both have implications that impact every area of your life. Therefore, it is crucial for us to explore how the Lord calls an individual, why he calls people to specific tasks, and how we can discern his personal will for our lives as we answer his call.

Our Universal Calling as Christians

The whole concept of “calling” is often approached with a mystical understanding. Many people assume that when someone refers to “being called,” it is referring exclusively to vocational ministry. But this ignores or overlooks the fact that as believers we all have a calling on our lives. This fundamental understanding of God’s calling is repeatedly affirmed throughout Scripture and involves three primary aspects.

First, the Christian calling is a call to salvation. Scripture describes salvation as the foundational aspect of our calling, as we “were called by [God] into fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord” (1 Cor 1:9). This is why the Bible identifies all believers as “those who are the called” (Jude 1:1) and as those who “share in a heavenly calling” (Heb 3:1). The Scriptures also speak of salvation in terms of the “eternal life” to which we “were called” (1 Tim 6:12), as the inheritance from the One “who calls [us] into his own kingdom and glory” (1 Thess 2:12), and that which we pursue as the prize of “God’s heavenly call in Christ Jesus” (Phil 3:14).

The call to salvation is universally extended through the grace of God (Titus 2:11), but it must be personally received through faith in Jesus Christ (Eph 2:8). When we receive Christ as Lord and Savior, we are responding to God’s call. The reality of our salvation is the truth that enlightens the eyes of our hearts to “know what is the hope of his calling, what is the wealth of his glorious inheritance in the saints” (Eph 1:18).

In addition to our salvation, the Christian calling is a call to serve. This means that it is not only a heavenly calling, but also a humble calling. Jesus taught us that he “did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Matt 20:28). Our Lord demonstrated a genuine heart to serve as he washed his disciples’ feet on the night before he would pay the ultimate sacrifice for them on the cross (John 13:4–14). As he concluded this display of humble service, he instructed them, “For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done for you” (v. 15).

When Jesus invites us to follow him, it is not simply a decision to receive eternal life and forgiveness for our sins. He invites us to learn from him, specifically his humility of heart (Matt 11:28–29), so that we might embrace his same disposition. But the calling to serve is not merely an attitude of service; it must be lived out in acts of service. God calls us to “serve one another through love” (Gal 5:13) with an attitude that reflects the heart of Jesus, considering others as more important than ourselves, not looking out for our own interests, but for the interests of others (Phil 2:3–5).

The third truth we must recognize is that the Christian calling is a call to surrender. Our salvation was purchased by the “precious blood of Christ” (1 Pet 1:18–19). His payment for our sins identifies us as his disciples whose lives belong to him (1 Cor 6:19–20). This means that as we receive eternal life from him we simultaneously surrender our lives to him (Matt 16:24–27). We submit to him as our Lord, the King of our hearts, and Ruler over our lives (2 Cor 5:15). Therefore, we are called to offer our lives continually as living sacrifices (Rom 12:1), fully surrendered to honoring him by fulfilling his mission (Matt 28:18–20).

Giving God control of our lives is an ongoing act of moment-by-moment submission to him. It involves everything from life-altering decisions to life’s everyday decisions. In all things, you are called to “live worthy of the calling you have received” (Eph 4:1). This means that our lives must be set apart for his purposes, for “he has saved us and called us with a holy calling” (2 Tim 1:9; cf. 1 Thess 4:7; 1 Pet 1:15–16). While there will be times that we fall short and temporarily reassume control of our lives, God’s loving discipline will lead us to a renewed heart of surrender and submission to him.

God’s calling for all believers is a heavenly calling, a humble calling, and a holy calling. When we trust Christ we are embracing his call to salvation, his call to serve, and his call to surrender. In this sense, we are all called!

Our Unique Calling as Christians

The universal nature of God’s calling for all believers does not eliminate his personalized calling. We share the fundamental elements of our calling, but there are unique aspects as well. The Lord has chosen you to serve him in a particular way, at a specific place and time, with a unique combination of talents and gifts, for his strategic purpose.

God Desires to Use You. Throughout history, God has graciously chosen to work through the lives of his people to accomplish his plan. His use of particular individuals for strategic and specific purposes demonstrates his desire to use each of us. God specifically called Noah to build the ark (Genesis 6), selected Abraham to be the father of the nations (Genesis 12), and chose Moses to deliver his people (Exod 3). He also called Samuel to be his prophet (1 Samuel 3), David to be his king (1 Samuel 16), and Solomon to build his temple (2 Samuel 7; cf. 1 Kings 5). Esther was chosen as God’s instrument at a particular time and place (Esth 4:14). Isaiah and Jeremiah also had specific callings as God’s spokesmen (Isa 6:1–8; Jer 1:5). Similarly, Jesus personally selected his apostles (John 15:16), including Paul (Gal 1:15–16; cf. 1 Cor 15:8), with a specific plan for their lives.

In the same way, God has designed you to serve in a unique role within his master plan. He saved you with a specific purpose in mind. God is calling you, just as Paul instructed Timothy, to “fulfill your ministry” (2 Tim 4:5). Similar to his message to Archippus, you must, “Pay attention to the ministry you have received in the Lord, so that you can accomplish it” (Col 4:17). For some this involves serving God in a vocational capacity as a minister or a missionary. Although there certainly are distinct calls to serve the Lord in this way, your specific calling may not be to a formal ministry or foreign mission field. But this does not minimize your calling as though it is less significant. The proper understanding of your vocation is to embrace your career as your calling. In fact, the term vocation literally means “calling”! God uses all kinds of professional fields of service as part of his kingdom here on earth. God has gifted you and prepared you for a unique calling that he has for your life!

God Is Determined to Use You. When you consider the people in the Bible that God chose, we often think of them as iconic heroes. But we must be careful to recognize that God did not use them because they were exceptional; he used them because they were available. The patriarchs were all flawed people just like us. Abraham lied to people and laughed at the absurdity of God’s plan. David sinned miserably. Jonah fled fearfully. Peter denied Christ repeatedly. Yet God was able to use them.

God wants you to “consider your calling” in the same way that Paul challenged the Corinthian believers (1 Cor 1:26–28). It is not in spite of our weaknesses that God has called us; it is because of them! By accomplishing great things through modest people, the Lord’s greatness is magnified. Therefore, we do not have to fear that God cannot use us, or that he is unwilling to use us. In fact, we don’t even have to pray for God to use us! He has promised that he will use us. We simply have to be “usable.” As you seek to fulfill God’s calling by devoting yourself to holiness, you will become “a special instrument, set apart, useful to the Master, prepared for every good work” (2 Tim 2:21).

Looking Ahead

God is calling you and you must answer the call. He has called you as his child and as Christ’s disciple to serve him with a submissive and surrendered heart. He is also calling you for a specific and strategic purpose that he wants to accomplish through you. The chapters in this section will help you to confirm and clarify God’s specific call on your life. As you discern his plan for you, we will also explore practical steps you can begin to take as you answer his call.

CHAPTER 1

Confirming God’s Call on Your Life

When I began serving in ministry, a church member invited me to join him for a business trip. As an accountant who was going to perform an audit, he thought he could use some help. Since I had graduated from college with a degree in accounting and had worked in the field before surrendering to the ministry, he asked me if I’d like to come. As a young youth pastor, newly married, and still in seminary, any extra income was a blessing. So I agreed.

My friend was successful. He had a loving family, a beautiful home, a comfortable life, and he loved the Lord. One night as we took a break for supper, he admitted that as a younger man he had felt called to ministry. Based on his current life situation, I assumed he had concluded that his ministry would be in the field of accounting. After all, God’s calling is not limited to vocational ministry; he uses all types of careers for his kingdom purposes. But as he explained that evening, he had taken a step back from ministry to work as an accountant and had never returned to his true calling. When I probed further, he confessed that it would be “impossible” for him at this stage to abandon his career, alter his lifestyle, and pursue vocational ministry. It was too late, he said. He had resigned himself to living with the knowledge that he had abandoned his calling.

The sad reality is that many believers fall into this same category. Some decisions to walk away are intentional, as believers count the cost and are unwilling to make the necessary sacrifices to follow God’s will for their lives. But the cost and sacrifice of not obeying Christ is far greater. They are haunted by regret and are left to wonder “what if?” for the rest of their lives. Others don’t intentionally disobey God; they simply never discern their calling and end up pursuing what seems most natural, enjoyable, or comfortable. They often live with an undiscerned void and never quite identify the source of their discontent.

The disappointing truth of a Christian failing to fulfill God’s plan as a result of ignorance or disobedience is tragic and far too common. But the Scriptures provide us the counsel we need to confirm our calling. In Paul’s letter to the Galatians, he defended his calling in order to validate the message of the gospel and his ministry. His description of his personal experience provides for us a deeper understanding of the nature of God’s calling and how it can be confirmed.

Galatians 1:11–24: ¹¹For I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that the gospel preached by me is not of human origin. ¹²For I did not receive it from a human source and I was not taught it, but it came by a revelation of Jesus Christ.

¹³For you have heard about my former way of life in Judaism: I intensely persecuted God’s church and tried to destroy it. ¹⁴I advanced in Judaism beyond many contemporaries among my people, because I was extremely zealous for the traditions of my ancestors. ¹⁵But when God, who from my mother’s womb set me apart and called me by his grace, was pleased ¹⁶to reveal his Son in me, so that I could preach him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with anyone. ¹⁷I did not go up to Jerusalem to those who had become apostles before me; instead I went to Arabia and came back to Damascus.

¹⁸Then after three years I did go up to Jerusalem to get to know Cephas, and I stayed with him fifteen days. ¹⁹But I didn’t see any of the other apostles except James, the Lord’s brother. ²⁰I declare in the sight of God: I am not lying in what I write to you.

²¹Afterward, I went to the regions of Syria and Cilicia. ²²I remained personally unknown to the Judean churches that are in Christ. ²³They simply kept hearing: “He who formerly persecuted us now preaches the faith he once tried to destroy.” ²⁴And they glorified God because of me.

Your Calling Must Be Authentic

Whenever we hear unbelievable news about a friend or read a startling report on social media, our immediate response is typically, is this true?! Our willingness to accept the reliability of the information largely depends on the credibility of the source. If we know the person we heard it from or can verify that the source is valid, then we will respond accordingly. However, if the source is one that is unfamiliar or unreliable, we are likely to dismiss the information.

Similarly, the first aspect of confirming God’s call on your life must be to verify the source. Is your calling authentic? The false teachers that were deceiving the Galatians were attempting to discredit Paul. If they could undermine his credibility, they would be able to discount his message and his ministry. Paul defended the authenticity of his calling in order to validate the unbelievable good news of the gospel. His defense of his ministry provides us with a model of how our own calling can be authenticated.

Paul’s experience teaches us that a genuine calling is received from Christ. While traveling on the road to Damascus to secure warrants for the persecution of Christians, Paul was confronted by a glorious appearance of Christ (Acts 9:1–5). In this encounter, he was converted and would subsequently receive his calling. The Lord said, “This man is my chosen instrument to take my name to Gentiles, kings, and Israelites” (v. 15). To authenticate his message and his ministry, he specifically told the Galatians that the gospel he preached was not received from an unreliable or secondary source, but from Jesus Christ himself (Gal 1:11–12).

Although Jesus may not physically appear to you in a “Damascus road” experience, your calling must be received from him. This means that your calling will be spiritually discerned within the context of your own personal relationship with Christ. To receive his calling, we must first be confronted with our sinfulness and converted by saving faith in Christ as our sacrificial substitute. Through his death, burial, and resurrection, we can be forgiven for our sin, rescued from his judgment, and redeemed for his glory. His payment for our sin restores our relationship with God, adopts us into his family, and enlists us in his mission.

As we grow in our relationship with Jesus, he will reveal his specific calling for our lives. But we must be careful to discern the nature of that calling. Oftentimes Christians who sincerely desire to serve the Lord, who are compelled by grace and gratitude, and who want to make a difference for Christ can surrender to a “calling” that seems to be more spiritual or more significant. Sometimes believers embrace a perceived calling that is imposed on them by well-meaning parents, friends, or spiritual leaders. Others who genuinely want what is best for us can pressure ...

Table of contents

• Acknowledgments
• About the Library
• Part I. Answering God’s Call
• Part II. Assisting the Church
• Part III. Abiding in Christ
• Concluding Thoughts
• Subject Index
• Scripture Index