{"id":27709,"date":"2021-10-05T04:00:10","date_gmt":"2021-10-05T10:00:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/?p=27709"},"modified":"2023-08-29T11:32:50","modified_gmt":"2023-08-29T17:32:50","slug":"answering-gods-call-living-for-a-greater-cause","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/answering-gods-call-living-for-a-greater-cause\/","title":{"rendered":"Answering God\u2019s Call: Living for a greater cause"},"content":{"rendered":"

Living in a Fallen World<\/h3>\n

The sobering reality of life in a fallen world confronts us early in Scripture. In Genesis 4 we find a homicide, and by chapter 6 we read this sad commentary:<\/p>\n

Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And the Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart<\/em> (verses 5-6).<\/p>\n

At that point it would have been justifiable for God to wipe the slate clean and start over. But instead, He spared Noah and his family and gave them the same charge He\u2019d given to Adam and Eve: \u201cSo God blessed Noah and his sons, and said to them: \u201cBe fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth\u201d <\/em>(Genesis 9:1, NLT).<\/p>\n

But sin has a corrupting influence. Its trace in one family was enough to make a mess of the new civilization. So, by Genesis 11 a rebellious group seeks to build a staircase tall enough to reach heaven!<\/p>\n

God Called Abraham and Gave Him a Purpose<\/h3>\n

What God did next instructs us concerning the disciple-making<\/a> process. He called one man to Himself and shaped his heart for the creation of a new race of people. We know this man as Abraham, though he was merely Abram when God called him. Here\u2019s what God said to him:<\/p>\n

The Lord had said to Abram, \u201cLeave your native country, your relatives, and your father\u2019s family, and go to the land that I will show you. I will make you into a great nation. I will bless you and make you famous, and you will be a blessing to others. I will bless those who bless you and curse those who treat you with contempt. All the families on earth will be blessed through you.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

God’s Call and Purpose for Your Life<\/h3>\n

The fulfillment of God\u2019s purpose in creation now rests on the obedience of one man. It involved trading his extended family and familiar surroundings for a faith journey into unfamiliar far-off places. It began with childlike obedience to God\u2019s call upon his life.<\/p>\n

The subject of \u201cthe call\u201d looms large on the Artios Christian College spectrum, as in the recent past, Artios has used a textbook by Os Guinness, titled, The Call: Finding and Fulfilling God\u2019s Central Purpose for Your Life<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

Early in the book Guinness writes, \u201cDeep in our hearts, we all want to find and fulfill a purpose bigger than ourselves. Only such a larger purpose can inspire us to heights we know we could never reach on our own. For each of us the real purpose is personal and passionate: to know what we are here to do, and why\u201d (p. 3). <\/em><\/p>\n

It\u2019s like Mark Twain once said, \u201cThe two most important days in a person\u2019s life are the day they were born, and the day they discover why.\u201d <\/em><\/p>\n

Discovering Your Purpose<\/h3>\n

Discovering why we were born and spending ourselves in the fulfillment of that purpose is liberating. It creates in us a sense of invincibility in the Lord\u2019s service.<\/p>\n

Is this what inspired Jim Elliot and his missionary friends in their pursuit of the Auca Indians? Even at the risk of their lives? Elliot\u2019s final journal entry before the Indians martyred him and his friends says it all: \u201cHe is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Gracia Burnham, missionary to the Philippines, said something similar to her husband (Martin) during their long captivity at the hands of kidnappers (not an exact quote): If they kill us, we will at least die knowing we did what God called us to do. <\/em><\/p>\n

Living for a Cause Greater than Ourselves<\/h3>\n

The Apostle Paul must have felt this when he declared from his jail cell knowing that at any moment he might be executed, \u201cFor to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain\u201d <\/em>(Philippians 1:21).<\/p>\n

Converted in a dramatic way and given a specific calling by God, Paul lived for a purpose so much bigger than himself. Absolutely nothing\u2014not even death\u2014could disturb his sense of confidence in Christ!<\/p>\n

And it follows that when we live for a cause<\/a> greater than ourselves, our lives continue to make an impact long after we\u2019re gone.<\/p>\n

[bctt tweet=”When we live for a cause greater than ourselves, our lives continue to make an impact long after we’re gone. – Whaid Rose” via=”no”]<\/p>\n

Responses to God’s Call<\/h3>\n

Thousands of years past his pilgrimage, we still admire Abraham and glean lessons from his life. Paul\u2019s writings still instruct and inspire us, and we love and regard him as a mentor and friend. And we often quote Jim Elliot and talk about Martin and Gracia Burnham. We do this because something about their response to God\u2019s call is irresistible.<\/p>\n

As Os Guinness goes on to explain, \u201cCalling is the truth that God calls us to Himself so that everything we are, everything we do, and everything we have is invested with a special devotion and dynamism lived out as a response to his summons and service\u201d<\/em> (p. 4).<\/p>\n

Where Ministry Begins and Ends<\/h3>\n

That\u2019s where ministry<\/a> begins and ends. So we don\u2019t just admire those gone before us who\u2019ve lived that way. We make the call central to who we are and everything we do. In the process our ordinary lives are transformed into extraordinary trophies of God\u2019s grace.<\/p>\n

[bctt tweet=”In the process our ordinary lives are transformed into extraordinary trophies of God\u2019s grace. – Whaid Rose” via=”no”]<\/p>\n

For you see, \u201cWe\u2019re not primarily called to do something or go somewhere; we are called to Someone.\u201d And the good news is that \u201cHe who calls you is faithful, who also will do it\u201d<\/em> (I Thessalonians 5:24).<\/p>\n

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