Silence ringing in my ears … His voice broke through. “Go” he whispered. Was I just called? I wondered aloud. What does it mean to be called?
“Where?” I thought to myself…
“Not where – what!”
As Jesus walked beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. “come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.” At once they left their nets and followed him. Mark 1:16 – 18
First, Christ called us to follow Him
Os Guinness writes in his book, The Call that we are called by Christ, to Christ, for Christ.
Does this mean that there is a distinct, voice in our ears ringing out a litany of things we must do? NOT at all. For some, the call is crystal clear. For others, like C.S. Lewis, it was only through the exhaustive study of God and man that he felt “dragged” into the Kingdom of God by God who pursued Lewis for much longer than he had realized.
Second, Christ called us to Action for people
In the passage, we see Simon and Andrew fishing in the Sea. Christ doesn’t say to them, “Come, I will send you to be evangelize and convert people in my name.”
He says, “I will send you out to fishing for people.”
What would he have said to them if they were in a different position?
- To the Builder – “Come, I will send you to build for people”
- To the Investor – “Come, I will send you to invest for people”
- To the musician – “Come, I will send you to perform music for people”
- To the Teacher – “Come, I will send you to teach for people”
- To the Firefighter – “Come, I will send you to fight fires for people”
The Distinction is:
[KiwiClickToTweet tweet=”The beneficiaries of what we do are people we serve. The reason we serve is God. #lovepeople #serveGod” quote=”The beneficiaries of what we do are people we serve. The reason we serve is God. “]The reason we do it is because we are called by Christ, to Christ, for Christ.
It is because we are following Him that we build, invest, teach, fish for people.
What are you an expert in? How can you use that talent and skill to bring others closer to God?
Do you really believe that what you believe is really real? Do you display your faith? Can you give reasons for why you believe what you believe?
