Greetings again my Brethren. As we hear His divine call we will behold His glory. How can we not see His glory? His glory and call cannot be separated they are one in the same. In reality the clearer and more distinct we can hear God’s call in our thoughts and spirit the more of God’s glory we shall be able to behold. Rarely (even in the Scriptures) does God speak in an audible voice, but He speaks to our mind and heart in a small still voice. In the Book of 1 Kings God told Elijah, “Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the LORD. And, behold, the LORD passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the LORD; but the LORD was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but the LORD was not in the earthquake: 12And after the earthquake a fire; but the LORD was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice.” (1 Kings 19:11-12) We look for God in the great wind, the earthquake, the fire, all of the flashy signs of God, but He is not found in them oh no God is found only in the small still voice that speaks to our thoughts and spirit. The more we can be quiet and still the more we will be able to hear His call and that small still voice. As we hear and go we will discover (we do not find things in God we discover them) two central truths; we are taught by Him and we have not been sent by men, but by God and by Him alone. In
John Jesus tells us, “No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day. 45It is written in the prophets, And they shall be all taught of God. Every man therefore that hath heard, and hath learned of the Father, cometh unto me.” (John 6:44-45) No man can come to the Father (be saved of their sins) unless first the Holy Spirit draws or convicts them of their great need of a savior and their need to be saved from their sin. Now notice verse 45, “And they shall be all taught of God.” Does God have a school? Yes most assuredly. The school is our hearing, “Every man therefore that hath heard, and hath learned of the Father, cometh unto me” until then we have no ears for understanding. The Father Himself will teach us, through the Holy Spirit, what we need to know, but hearing is not enough there must be learning. Both hearing and learning is required to come to the Father. Sadly many people today hear the word of God every Sunday, but walk out the door rejecting what they have heard. Learning is achieved when we receive and understand what has been said. The other central truth in this section is we are sent by God and God alone. In Mark we read, “And he (Jesus) ordained twelve, that they should be with him, and that he might send them forth to preach,” (Mark 3:14) Jesus today is still in the business of ordaining people to go out and preach. A degree from some Bible School or seminary is not required to go and preach the word of God. I am not sure why there is such a great push for everyone to go to Bible school. Paul shared this truth with us in the Book of Romans, “How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?” (Roman 10:14) I do not see the mention of Bible School in this verse. I think it was Francis of Assisi who said, “preach the gospel at all times; when necessary, use words.” Our life and actions speak louder than any message we can preach. Yes preaching must happen, but our Christian witness carries much more weight in the eyes of the lost. Lastly never forget who has called you and who has sent you. Paul chides the Church at Galatia (and us) with this verse, “For do I now persuade men, or God? or do I seek to please men? for if I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ.” (Galatians 1:10) If we try to please man we do not know who has called us. If we try to persuade men we have not heard the call of God for our lives and thus, “we shall not be a servant of Christ.”
Next month we begin to look at how the call of God can come under diverse circumstances. Do you hear Him now?
