Chapter 8
GOD'S CALL
Part I -God's Call to Him
(Matthew 4:18-22)
Before we begin our study of God's call upon our life let us pray and ask Him for His blessing.
Dear Heavenly Father,
We come before You in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Father please bless this study of Your Word. Cause us to see and understand that You have called us from the dominion of darkness into Your Kingdom of light. Holy Father we thank You for Your Mercy and Grace that You have extended to us through Your only begotten Son, Jesus Christ.
Amen
We begin our study by reading the following Scriptures.
Matthew 4:18-22
"[18] As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. [19] "Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men." [20] At once they left their nets and followed him. [21] Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John. They were in a boat with their father Zebedee, preparing their nets. Jesus called them, [22] and immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him."
Let us notice the following verses,
19(a) … Jesus first called Peter and Andrew to follow Him.
19(b) … Next Jesus called Peter and Andrew into service for Him.
21-22 … Jesus also called James and John.
The above Scriptures illustrate that God has two calls upon our life: (1) His call to Him and (2) His call to service.
Consequently, this subject has been partitioned into the following two chapters.
Chapter 8 … God’s call to Him
Chapter 9 … God’s call to service
With this in mind let us now explore in a little more depth God’s call to Him. As we do this we will discover that,
1. We are to love Him above all things and love others as He loves us.
2. We are to depend upon God for our needs.
With this brief introduction let us now explore the first aspect of God's call to Him, and that is to,
LOVE GOD ABOVE ALL THINGS AND LOVE OTHERS AS HE LOVES US
To explore this aspect of God's call we will first examine the example of Abram and then examine our call.
With this introduction we begin with,
THE EXAMPLE OF ABRAM (LATER RENAMED ABRAHAM)
For this example let us read about the time when God called Abram to follow Him and leave the security of his country and his father's house. Abram's call is recorded for us in,
Genesis 12:1-4
"[1] The LORD had said to Abram, "Leave your country, your people and your father's household and go to the land I will show you. [2] "I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. [3] I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you." [4] So Abram left, as the LORD had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he set out from Haran."
Let us notice the following verses,
1 … God called Abram to leave his country and his father's household.
2-3 … God promised Abram that He would bless him.
4 … Abram obeyed God and followed Him.
It is noted that when Abram left Haran he took with him his wife, Sari, Lot, his nephew, along with their possessions and the people they had acquired for their households. To see this let us continue our reading from,
Genesis 12:5
"[5] He took his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, all the possessions they had accumulated and the people they had acquired in Haran, and they set out for the land of Canaan, and they arrived there."
With this example of Abram and the examples of Andrew, Peter, James and John in mind, let us address the question of: "What about us? What about you and me?"
To find out let us now read about,
OUR CALL
This aspect of Jesus' call for us to follow Him is recorded for us in,
Luke 14:25-33
"[25] Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said: [26] "If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters--yes, even his own life--he cannot be my disciple.
Does this mean that Jesus is asking us to really hate our family and pick up and leave them? The answer is No! In fact the Bible teaches us that,
WE ARE TO LOVE, CHERISH AND CARE FOR OUR FAMILIES
To see this let us first read about the,
Relationship between the husband and his wife
To read God’s desire or instruction concerning the relationship between husband and wife we go to,
Ephesians 5:22-33
"[22] Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord. [23] For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. [24] Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything. [25] Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her [26] to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, [27] and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. [28] In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. [29] After all, no one ever hated his own body, but he feeds and cares for it, just as Christ does the church-- [30] for we are members of his body. [31] "For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh." [32] This is a profound mystery--but I am talking about Christ and the church. [33] However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband."
Let us notice the following verses,
22-24 … Wives are to be subject to their husbands as to the Lord.
25-28a … Husbands are to love their wives as Christ loves the church.
As we consider the above relationships let us recall that when God called Abram to leave Haran, he also took his wife Sari with him. To refresh our memory let us reread,
Genesis 12:5
"[5] He took his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, all the possessions they had accumulated and the people they had acquired in Haran, and they set out for the land of Canaan, and they arrived there."
To further illustrate this relationship between a man and his wife we go to Paul's first letter to the Corinthians. In the following verse we discover that when the Apostles went on their missionary journeys they took their wives with them. This is recorded in,
1 Corinthians 9:5
"[5] Don't we have the right to take a believing wife along with us, as do the other apostles and the Lord's brothers and Cephas?"
Now some might say that this instruction to stay with their wife only pertains to those who have believing wives. Thus, if I have an unbelieving wife then I am to leave. Before we jump to this conclusion let us read the following words of advice given by the Apostle Paul,
1 Corinthians 7:12-14
"[12] To the rest I say this (I, not the Lord): If any brother has a wife who is not a believer and she is willing to live with him, he must not divorce her. [13] And if a woman has a husband who is not a believer and he is willing to live with her, she must not divorce him. [14] For the unbelieving husband has been sanctified through his wife, and the unbelieving wife has been sanctified through her believing husband. Otherwise your children would be unclean, but as it is, they are holy."
Let us move on to read what the Bible teaches us concerning the,
Relationship between the parents and their children
To do this we go to,
Ephesians 6:1-4
"[6:1] Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. [2] "Honor your father and mother"--which is the first commandment with a promise-- [3] "that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth." [4] Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord."
Let us notice the following verses,
1-2 … Children are to obey their parents and honor their father and mother.
4 … Fathers are not to exasperate their children. This implies they are to raise them with love and understanding.
In other words the Holy Spirit is not instructing those who have been called by God to abandon their families. No! In fact He is instructing them to love, cherish and encourage them to live their life with God.
On the surface it would appear that the Scriptures we read seem to be in conflict with one another. So what is the Holy Spirit teaching us?
THE TEACHING
As we reflect upon all we have read we come to understand that when Jesus calls us to follow Him, He is not asking us to hate or leave our families to fair for themselves. What He is asking us to do is the following two things.
First, Jesus is instructing us to not love anything or anyone more than Him. To see this let us prayerfully read from,
Matthew 10:37
""[37] Anyone who loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me;"
And secondly, He is asking us to love others as He loves us,
John 13:34-35
""[34] A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. [35] By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.""
We now come to the second aspect of God's call to Him, which is,
WE ARE TO DEPEND UPON GOD FOR ALL OUR NEEDS
To see this facet of God's call we will examine: (1) the example of Lot, (2) the example of Levi and then (3) examine our call.
Let us begin with,
THE EXAMPLE OF LOT
To do this let us read about the time when God called Lot and his family to leave Sodom and Gomorrah. However, before we do let us first read how Lot and his family wound up living in Sodom. It is recorded for us in,
Genesis 13:1-13
"[1] So Abram went up from Egypt to the Negev, with his wife and everything he had, and Lot went with him. [2] Abram had become very wealthy in livestock and in silver and gold. [3] From the Negev he went from place to place until he came to Bethel, to the place between Bethel and Ai where his tent had been earlier [4] and where he had first built an altar. There Abram called on the name of the LORD. [5] Now Lot, who was moving about with Abram, also had flocks and herds and tents. [6] But the land could not support them while they stayed together, for their possessions were so great that they were not able to stay together. [7] And quarreling arose between Abram's herdsmen and the herdsmen of Lot. The Canaanites and Perizzites were also living in the land at that time. [8] So Abram said to Lot, "Let's not have any quarreling between you and me, or between your herdsmen and mine, for we are brothers. [9] Is not the whole land before you? Let's part company. If you go to the left, I'll go to the right; if you go to the right, I'll go to the left." [10] Lot looked up and saw that the whole plain of the Jordan was well watered, like the garden of the LORD, like the land of Egypt, toward Zoar. (This was before the LORD destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.) [11] So Lot chose for himself the whole plain of the Jordan and set out toward the east. The two men parted company: [12] Abram lived in the land of Canaan, while Lot lived among the cities of the plain and pitched his tents near Sodom. [13] Now the men of Sodom were wicked and were sinning greatly against the LORD."
Let us notice the following verses,
1-5 …Upon God's call for Abram, both Abram and Lot left their homeland and their father's house and journeyed to the Promised Land.
6-7 … The land was not able to physically provide the required needs for both of Abram and Lot’s herds and flocks.
8-9 … Because of all the quarreling between their herdsmen for sufficient water and vegetation to sustain their flocks and herds, Abram suggested they split up.
10-11 …Because of the water and lush vegetation in the plain of the Jordan, Lot chose to leave the Promised Land of Canaan and depend upon the Jordan River to provide for his needs.
12 … Abram stayed in the promised land of Canaan and Lot dwelt in the rich plain of the Jordan and settled near the city of Sodom.
13 … However, the sin of the inhabitants of Sodom was very great.
Ultimately the sin of the people of Sodom and Gomorrah was so grievous and wicked that the time came when God decided to destroy them. However, because of Abram's intercession to save Lot, God sent two angels in the form of men (Genesis 19:1) to call Lot away from the sinful people and the riches of the land. With this in mind, let us now read what happened. It is recorded in,
Genesis 19:12-26
"[12] The two men said to Lot, "Do you have anyone else here--sons-in-law, sons or daughters, or anyone else in the city who belongs to you? Get them out of here, [13] because we are going to destroy this place. The outcry to the LORD against its people is so great that he has sent us to destroy it." [14] So Lot went out and spoke to his sons-in-law, who were pledged to marry his daughters. He said, "Hurry and get out of this place, because the LORD is about to destroy the city!" But his sons-in-law thought he was joking. [15] With the coming of dawn, the angels urged Lot, saying, "Hurry! Take your wife and your two daughters who are here, or you will be swept away when the city is punished." [16] When he hesitated, the men grasped his hand and the hands of his wife and of his two daughters and led them safely out of the city, for the LORD was merciful to them. [17] As soon as they had brought them out, one of them said, "Flee for your lives! Don't look back, and don't stop anywhere in the plain! Flee to the mountains or you will be swept away!" [18] But Lot said to them, "No, my lords, please! [19] Your servant has found favor in your eyes, and you have shown great kindness to me in sparing my life. But I can't flee to the mountains; this disaster will overtake me, and I'll die. [20] Look, here is a town near enough to run to, and it is small. Let me flee to it--it is very small, isn't it? Then my life will be spared." [21] He said to him, "Very well, I will grant this request too; I will not overthrow the town you speak of. [22] But flee there quickly, because I cannot do anything until you reach it." (That is why the town was called Zoar.) [23] By the time Lot reached Zoar, the sun had risen over the land. [24] Then the LORD rained down burning sulfur on Sodom and Gomorrah--from the LORD out of the heavens. [25] Thus he overthrew those cities and the entire plain, including all those living in the cities--and also the vegetation in the land. [26] But Lot's wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt."
Let us notice the following verses,
12-13 … The two angels, who were in the form of men, had full intention of saving all of Lot's family from the impending destruction.
14 … Unfortunately, Lot's future sons-in-law thought Lot was kidding. Thus, they did not flee with Lot and his family from the impending destruction.
15-16 … Lot was still hesitant about leaving the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. However, the two angels grasped their hands and led them to safety.
17 … Lot and his family were instructed to not look back. In other words they were to leave the sinful cities of Sodom and Gomorrah without regret.
24-25 … God destroyed the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah along with all its inhabitants.
26 … Unfortunately, Lot's wife looked back.
Let us now move on to the New Testament and read about,
THE EXAMPLE OF LEVI
For this study let us read from,
Luke 5:27-28
"[27] After this, Jesus went out and saw a tax collector by the name of Levi sitting at his tax booth."Follow me," Jesus said to him, [28] and Levi got up, left everything and followed him."
It is noted that in the days of the Roman Empire the job of tax collector was quite lucrative. To see this let us read what is written about the chief tax collector, Zacchaeus,
Luke 19:1-2
"[1] Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through. [2] A man was there by the name of Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was wealthy."
Thus, when Levi left his job as a tax collector to follow Jesus, he also left the security of the riches offered by that position.
This now brings us to,
OUR CALL TO LEAVE BABYLON
To read about this aspect of our call let us read the following excerpt of a vision that God gave to the Apostle John concerning the coming wrath of the end times. To do this we go to,
Revelation 18:1-5
"[1] After this I saw another angel coming down from heaven. He had great authority, and the earth was illuminated by his splendor. [2] With a mighty voice he shouted: "Fallen! Fallen is Babylon the Great! She has become a home for demons and a haunt for every evil spirit, a haunt for every unclean and detestable bird. [3] For all the nations have drunk the maddening wine of her adulteries. The kings of the earth committed adultery with her, and the merchants of the earth grew rich from her excessive luxuries." [4] Then I heard another voice from heaven say: "Come out of her, my people, so that you will not share in her sins, so that you will not receive any of her plagues; [5] for her sins are piled up to heaven, and God has remembered her crimes."
With consideration of the above verses and the Scriptures in Revelation 18:9-19, I believe that Babylon the Great is symbolic of the world's commerce or economic system.
Thus, as God called Lot and his family to leave Sodom and Gomorrah before He destroyed it He is now calling the born again believers to leave Babylon the Great. Does this mean that Jesus is asking us to pick up and leave everything and go live in a remote cave? The answer to this question is no. However, He is asking us to not love or depend upon the world's system to provide for our material needs.
However, this does not mean we are to sit around doing nothing and expect God to somehow provide for our physical needs. Instead the Bible teaches us that we are to work for our physical needs. To see this let us read from,
2 Thessalonians 3:7-10
" [7] For you yourselves know how you ought to follow our example. We were not idle when we were with you, [8] nor did we eat anyone's food without paying for it. On the contrary, we worked night and day, laboring and toiling so that we would not be a burden to any of you. [9] We did this, not because we do not have the right to such help, but in order to make ourselves a model for you to follow. [10] For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: "If a man will not work, he shall not eat.""
Let us notice the following verses,
8 … Paul, Silvanus and Timothy worked so they could pay for their own food and provisions.
9 … Being preachers and teachers of God's Word they were well within their right to expect their physical needs to be provided for them. However, to be an example of how the born again believers are to work and provide for their own needs, they did not exercise this right. With this in mind let us read the following instruction in verse,
10 … "If a man will not work, he shall not eat."
To further amplify upon this let us read the following instruction that was written to the church in Ephesus. As we read it let us substitute the word employer for master and the word employee for slave or servant.
Ephesians 6:5-9
"[5] Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ. [6] Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but like slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. [7] Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men, [8] because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free. [9] And masters, treat your slaves in the same way. Do not threaten them, since you know that he who is both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no favoritism with him."
Again the Scriptures appear to be confusing and in conflict with one another. So, what is our Lord teaching us? What does He mean by asking us to work and earn a living and yet leave the security of riches and of the world? The answer to these questions is twofold: (1) we are to work so as to provide for the material needs for ourselves and our families, and (2) in doing so we are remember the following three things.
First of all,
WE ARE NOT TO LOVE THE WORLD OR THE THINGS OF THIS WORLD
To see this let us read from,
1 John 2:15-17
"[15] Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. [16] For everything in the world--the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does--comes not from the Father but from the world. [17] The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever."
Secondly,
WE ARE NOT TO BE YOKED TO THE WORLD, THAT IS THE UNBELIEVERS
This is best summarized for us in,
2 Corinthians 6:14-18
"[14] Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? [15] What harmony is there between Christ and Belial ? What does a believer have in common with an unbeliever? [16] What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: "I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people." [17] "Therefore come out from them and be separate, says the Lord. Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you." [18] "I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.""
Let us notice the following verses,
14(a) … In other words, even though we must work with or for the unbeliever we are not to be in partnership with them. The reason for this is provided to us in the following verses,
14(b)-16 … We belong to two different kingdoms. They, the unbelievers, are in darkness and we, the born again believers, are in the light. Remember, the born again believers are temples of God the Holy Spirit. Hence, we are to think differently, we are to see things differently and we are to behave differently than those who belong to the world's system. Consequently, how can there be an agreement or partnership between the two?
17 … Hence, until our Lord comes, we are to separate ourselves from the world's values, ways, thoughts and lusts.
However, this does not mean we are not to love them or care about their eternal destination. Instead we are to pray and ask God the Father to send out laborers to save them. To see this let us read the instruction Jesus gave His disciples as it is recorded in,
Matthew 9:36-38
[36] … when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd. [37] Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few. [38] Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.”
To amplify this a bit let us now read the following instruction God the Holy Spirit has given to us as recorded in,
1 Timothy 2:1-4
[1] Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, [2] for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence. [3] For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, [4] who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.
The third thing we are to keep in mind is that,
WE ARE TO SEEK FIRST THE KINGDOM OF GOD
Our lord Jesus Christ gave this instruction to us during His Sermon on the Mountainside. For this study let us read from,
Matthew 6:24-34
""[24] No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money. [25] "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? [26] Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? [27] Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life ? [28] "And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. [29] Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. [30] If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? [31] So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' [32] For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. [33] But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. [34] Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own."
CLOSING
Before we close this study let us read the following exhortation from,
Philippians 3:17-21
[17] Brethren, join in following my example, and note those who so walk, as you have us for a pattern. [18] For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ: [19] whose end is destruction, whose god is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame—who set their mind on earthly things. [20] For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, [21] who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body, according to the working by which He is able even to subdue all things to Himself.
With all the above in mind we close this study by reading from,
1 Thessalonians 5:23-24
[23] Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. [24] He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it.
Blessed be the Lord Forever,
Amen and Amen