LESSONS ABOUT OUR CALLING

“Therefore, since we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we do not lose heart” (2 Cor. 4:1 NKJV).

In our verse, the apostle Paul gives us a good lesson about our calling from the Lord. It speaks about the awareness of our calling, the awarding of our calling, and the attitude in our calling.

Awareness of our calling – “Since we have this ministry.” While the apostle Paul knew that he was called to be an apostle, he is not the only one who should know his calling. We all should know the will of God for our lives. Few things are as important as knowing what God wants us to do. Tragically, there are many folks fumbling around not knowing what they are called to do. They are fumbling around because they are not paying attention to God’s call on their lives. Instead, they are more interested in doing what they want to do and not what God wants them to do. To know God’s call on our lives, we need to get into the Word of God and pray. Further, we need to be willing to do whatever He asks. This is the key to knowing our calling.

Awarding of our calling – “As we have received mercy.” The apostle Paul recognized that his calling was a result of God’s mercy to him. All callings are a result of Divine mercy. It is a privilege to serve the Lord, and we are able to serve not because of our goodness but because of His grace. We cannot brag and boast about our calling because it is all of Divine mercy. And mercy should motivate us to be dedicated in fulfilling our calling.

Attitude in our calling – “We do not lose heart.” Here the phrase “do not lose heart” have to do with courage. Often in fulfilling our calling, it requires courage to do our work. It is not easy to live for God. Cowards will quit quickly. But if we are going to fulfill our Divine calling, we must have courage to keep going in spite of dangers. We must not faint in fear at the task before us. If God has called us, He will go with us. Therefore, fear not to serve Him.

(Adapted from Butler’s Daily Bible Reading 3)

Soli Deo Gloria (To God Alone Be The Glory)

Quotation of the Week

“Each of us may be sure that if God sends us on stony paths He will provide us with strong shoes, and He will not send us out on any journey for which He does not equip us well!”

Alexander MacLaren (1826 - 1910)

English Non-conformist Minister   

Word Study

Be found

In 2 Peter 3:14 we read, “Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless” (KJV).

“Be found” is the Greek word heurískō (εὑρίσκω = hyoo-ris'-ko). The word means to find after searching and so to discover, to experience for oneself and to obtain or procure. In classic Greek, heurískō means find, discover. In the Septuagint, heurískō also means to find. And in the New Testament, heurískō means to find something or someone. Figuratively, heurískō speaks of a spiritual or intellectual discovery gained through reflection, perception, investigation. The most frequent use of heuriskō is when it is paired with a verb about “coming.” It speaks of the conditions a traveler finds upon arrival at a destination. However, the ultimate example fixes our attention on what the Lord will “find” when He comes (cf. Mark 13:34-37). Will we as believers “be found…without spot and blameless” when the Lord returns?

Did You Know…

The prophet Jeremiah was instructed by God not to take a wife or have children in the land of Judah. The reason was the impending judgment upon the nation. By abstaining from marriage and parenthood, Jeremiah embodies the prophetic role of mourning over the spiritual condition of the nation and calling for repentance (Jer. 16:1-4).

Bible Quiz

Regarding the adulterous woman in the Gospel of John, what did the Lord Jesus said to her?

**Answer to last week’s Bible Quiz

When Daniel heard there was a law forbidding prayer to his God what did he do? As was his custom, he continued praying, giving thanks and asking for help (Dan. 6:10).

Prophecies Fulfilled by the Lord Jesus Christ

The Lord Jesus Christ, forsaken because of the sins of others – (Psalm 22:1; cf. Matt. 27:46; 2 Cor. 5:21)

"My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me? Why are You so far from helping Me, and from the words of My groaning?” (Psalm 22:1 NJKV).

In context, the Psalmist David is again feeling frustrated by God’s lack of response to his cries (cf. Psalms 13:1-4). While on the cross, the Lord Jesus quoted David’s words (cf. Matt. 27:46; Mark 15:34). On the cross, a holy transaction took place. There the horror of the crucifixion reaches its climax. God the Father regarded God the Son as if He were a sinner. This is the unfathomable mystery of the gospel. No one can really know what was involved in God the Father forsaking the Lord Jesus. What we do know is that the Lord Jesus bore God’s curse for the world’s sin and that somehow God in His holiness was forced to turn His back upon His Son while He bore that sin. The Lord Jesus, the spotless Lamb of God “who knew no sin” was “made sin for us” (cf. 2 Cor. 5:21). He bore God’s wrath which we deserved. He “become a curse for us” (cf. Gal. 3:13). Thus, He was forsaken by God the Father.

Did You Know – Christian History

Katharina von Bora was born on January 29, 1499, in Lippendorf, Germany. She was the wife of the German reformer Martin Luther and a seminal figure of the Protestant Reformation.

After years of being a nun, Katharina became interested in the growing reform movement and grew dissatisfied with separated, monastic life. Conspiring with several other sisters, she contacted Luther and begged for his assistance. With Luther’s help, the nuns escaped by hiding in a covered wagon among the fish barrels and fled to Wittenberg. Several of the nuns returned to their families; Luther helped find homes, husbands, or positions for the rest. Within two years after their fishy ride, all of the nuns had been provided for except one – Katharina. Gradually, through the persuasion of friends and his father, Luther married her himself. She was 26, he was 42.

At the time, Luther was living in the building that had been the Augustinian monastery at Wittenberg. Katharina took over its operation in 1525, the year of her marriage. She cleaned the place up and brought order to Luther’s daily life. She managed the family finances and freed Luther for writing, teaching, and preaching. Luther called her the “morning star of Wittenberg” since she rose at 4 a.m. to care for her many responsibilities. She took care of the vegetable garden, orchard, fishpond, and barnyard animals, even butchering the stock herself. Had Katharina not been a hard-working woman of pure character, the reformation might have suffered. For centuries, the Reformer’s family served as a model for German families. Luther viewed marriage as a school for character: Family life helps train Christians in the virtues of fortitude, patience, charity, and humility. Further, in addition to their own six children and the four orphans they raised, there were as many as 30 students, guests, or boarders staying in the monastery, all of whom came under Katharina’s care. Katharina also nursed Luther’s many illnesses with herbs, poultices and massages.

Katharina survived her husband Martin Luther by six years, dying in 1552. She lived long enough to see all her children (except Magdalena, who had died at the age of fourteen) achieve positions of influence. One of the last things she said was “I will cling to Christ like a burr on a topcoat.” Katharina proved herself a model of Christian virtue and played a crucial role in shaping the Lutheran movement.

A Little Humor

During his sermon, the preacher’s phone rang. With the congregation staring at him, the preacher calmy said, “It’s a calling from a higher power!”

Thought Provoking Church Sign

“God’s promise in the manger outlasts every season of uncertainty!”