Honor Your Calling
Five Keys To Cooperating With Your Calling
Guest Pastor - Tom MullinsGateway Church, Southlake Texas - GatewayPeople.Com
"Careers Come and Go, but Callings Never Change." Coach Tom Mullins
Key Scripture Text: Jude 1:1
Jude 1:1 NKJVJude, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, To those who are called, sanctified by God the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ:
KJVJude, the servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, to them that are sanctifiedby God the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ, [and] called:
Jude points out that as a servant of Jesus The Anointed One; we are:
- Called: "Invited (as unto an event) - Selected (as unto an office or position)".
- Sanctified: "Set Apart and Cleansed For Special Purpose".
- Preserved: "Cared For, Watched Over, Guarded".
Every person in the Kingdom of God is called. Not just Pastors and "Ministers", but all of us.
So what if we are all called, what are we called to?
2 Corinthians 5:15-21 (New International Version)
15 And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again. 16 So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer.
17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!
18 All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: 19 that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation.
20 We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. "We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God."
21 God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
We are Ambassadors of Jesus The Anointed One, through His Anointing. We have died to ourselves and live for Him. So when you see people, even really angry or mean people, don't be mad at them.
Don't see people as mere people. See them as precious ones that Jesus chose to die for. Even really bad people, are just people being deceived by the enemy. They are prisoners that need to be delivered, not enemies. To Minister Is To Serve.
How do we serve them?
We have been given a mission and a message.
Our Ministry, Mission, and Message is RECONCILIATION.
What is that message, exactly?
"We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God."
Be Reconciled To God.
*Personal Note***
How often have we, who have been "in the Church" for a long time, lost that sense of the ultimate calling. We are like the people in the life boats of the Titanic.
Did you know that there were 472 unused seats on the life boats that left the Titanic? Did you know that of the 16 life boats launched from the Titanic that fateful night, only 2 came back to rescue more people? Thanks to that, only 9 more people were lifted from the waters... 3 of them died from Hypothermia. FAR short of the 472 unused seats that could have been filled.
Much has been said of the lack of planning, considering that Titanic was only carrying life boats enough for 33% of it's passengers. But what of the boats there were, and the people on them?
How could 472 seats remain unfilled?
#1 Complacency; I'm saved, some of those others decided not to get on the boat in the beginning. They didn't think they were going to drown. So why should I save them now? It's too late for them.
Did you know that there were 472 unused seats on the life boats that left the Titanic? Did you know that of the 16 life boats launched from the Titanic that fateful night, only 2 came back to rescue more people? Thanks to that, only 9 more people were lifted from the waters... 3 of them died from Hypothermia. FAR short of the 472 unused seats that could have been filled.
Much has been said of the lack of planning, considering that Titanic was only carrying life boats enough for 33% of it's passengers. But what of the boats there were, and the people on them?
How could 472 seats remain unfilled?
#1 Complacency; I'm saved, some of those others decided not to get on the boat in the beginning. They didn't think they were going to drown. So why should I save them now? It's too late for them.
#2 Fear; fear that if I try to save others, I may die in the process. They may, in their desperation, bring me down with them, or claw at me, or otherwise endanger me, or endanger my comfortable place here. I'd rather be saved comfortably, than die trying to rescue others.
We must consider our Ministry, Mission, and Message. We must die to ourselves, and live for Him who called us.
We must consider our Ministry, Mission, and Message. We must die to ourselves, and live for Him who called us.
God says: "Those who honor me I will honor, those who despise (think little of, or don't even bother to think about) Me I will despise. 1 Sam 2:30We honor God by honoring the calling on our lives.
* Personal Note ***
You will catch men by Your Obedience to His Word... not by your strategies and/or talents. Darrell Wolfe***
In Luke 5 we can see:
5 Keys to Finding and Living Our Your Calling.
Key Text Luke 5
1. Obey The Word Of God
Peter had just obeyed Jesus by letting him use his boat, and got a chance to hear some impressive teaching. He was moved by it. But when the preacher asked him to go fishing, Peter began to object. He'd been fishing all night.This was the worst time of day to go fishing. He was frustrated by having just spent the whole night without a catch. His own vast experience and talents in the field of fishing should have produced but they didn't. Furthermore, his experience told him Jesus' suggestion was a waste of time. Yet, we see Peter willing to partially obey the command.
Jesus said to throw down the Nets, plural. Peter obeyed, but out of doubt and tiredness, Peter threw down one net. Single. That one net produced a bigger harvest than all his others would have on a normal day. It was boat sinking, net breaking harvest. Some, including myself, assume that the net Peter did use was an older net, as he'd likely just washed all his good nets before the message (it says he was washing them when Jesus came to them).
So we see obedience, even small obedience, will get you far with God.
2. Team Up With Believers For Greater Impact
When the harvest came in, Peter's first reaction was to call his team to him for help. This is a good reaction for a leader. Leaders know that it takes a team to succeed, you can't do it alone.So we too, must be part of a team. Following a team leader, until the day we are given our own team to lead.
3.a Live A Life Of Transparency
Peter was sinful, and he knew it. We see a paradox here because this is both positive and negative.Peter was transparent. This was a character trait we see often in his life. He said: "Woah Jesus! You are a great man, that was supernatural, I'm a sinful man, I shouldn't be in your presence." So we see Peter not trying to hide, or impress, but being open about who he was and where he was at the time. This is a good place to be.
You can't grow unless you are willing to be exposed.
# 3.b - Watch Your Thought Life
Yet, we also see the sin consciousness at work here too. Peter just hear great teaching, and great instruction, obeyed it (mostly), and got a great harvest. You'd think he'd be excited! Nope. Being conscious of your mind to focus on your state, so rather than seek the presence of God, you run from it.
Jesus hadn't died yet, and the Holy Spirit hadn't come. So this is a perfectly normal reaction for Peter. But we shouldn't model it entirely. YES! We want to be transparent. YES! We want to expose ourselves and be open, not hiding sin from The Light.
However, we should also realize, if we are saved, that we are Saved! We are a new creature.
2 Corinthians 5:15-21 (New International Version)Make sure that you do stay open, don't hide any sin in your life, but also don't run from the one who can make you free of it. That is what Peter did right too. When Jesus re-directed his attention from who he was, to who he would become! "Peter... You will catch men now!"
17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!
4. Never Loose Your Awe Of God
Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you. James 4:8Peter was impressed by who Jesus was in his life. We must never let that Awe become too familiar. If we come to the point we start to treat God, or the things of God, as common or ordinary, we are in danger of forfeiting those very things... like Judas eventually did.
You Draw Near To Him. He Draws Near To You.
You walk in His presence, and his Presence goes with you.
* Personal Note ***
> You bring His Presence into your daily life, by making a point to spend time in His presence regularly throughout your life. Just like Moses, when he left the Presence of God his face glowed and it affected the people around him. Just like Peter, post Pentecost, when his very Shadow would heal people.
I must spend time with God, FREQUENTLY, if I am to experience his presence through the mundane parts of my day.
****
5. Abandon Your Past To Take Hold Of Your Future
Have the courage to walk away from your past (Peter's Fishing Business). Peter was a fisherman. In ancient, and even recent, cultures; trade was a family business. You learned a trade from your father, and eventually took over the family business. It was the ancient world's IRA/401(k) retirement plan. That is why it was so devastating NOT to have children, sons especially. They were your retirement plan.Peter didn't just walk away from a job, a nine to five. He walked away from his life, family, history, business, livelihood. We even see Peter return to this business after Jesus death and resurrection. He assumed the course of events was over. He was disillusioned, or at least unsure, or what to do next. So he went back to what he knew. (John 21:3)
Peter left behind all he knew, his very identity as a fisherman, to become something new, something he was Called to!
So must I, leave behind any ambitions I have, if I am to embrace the Calling on my life.
I must stop trying to make my life be what I want(ed) it to be. I must instead, seek HIS Will for my life, and DISCOVER my Calling.
Darrell
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