Sunday I will be
preaching a sermon from Galatians 1:11-24 entitled "The Gospel
Call". The concept of God's call is a rather nebulous one
today. Perhaps it is because modern technology has changed our
understanding of what a call is. Today, a call is simply an invitation to
have a dialogue. First, we are notified that someone wishes to interact
with us by a ringtone. Then we check to see who is calling in order to
determine if we really want to have a conversation with this person. At
that point we have three options. If we don't want to talk to the person,
we can disconnect the call. If we would be interested in talking to them
but it is currently inconvenient, we can simply not answer and trust that if it
is important they will leave a message. The final option is answering the
phone and having a conversation. But even if we do answer, we do so
knowing that we still have full control of the situation. If we do not
like the person on the other end, or their message, or their tone of voice, we
can simply hang up! The bottom line is that even if we do not initiate
the conversation, we are still able to exercise control over it.
But God's call is
different. His call is not an invitation...it is a revelation. He places
his call upon us. When he calls us, God reveals to us His glory, our sin,
how wicked we are, and how good he is. His call is not an invitation, but
a gift given that is gratefully received by people that have been spiritually
awakened.
In this passage, Paul
does not describe the events of his call (we find that in Acts 9). Instead he talks about the consequences of the call that God placed upon
him. He describes how the call to be a follower of Jesus is not an
invitation, but a life changing event in which our spiritual nature and our
reason for living are eternally changed. As you prepare for Sunday, read
our passage and ask yourself the following questions:
1) Have you been called
by Jesus?
2) How do you
know? How did his call change you?
3) How have your
priorities changed? How is your life different than it was before he
called you?
4) If you have been
called by Jesus, what are your expectations of him?
5) How do others view
your new life?
Blessings,
Scott
