Ecclesiastes 3:11 says that God put eternity in our hearts. Nothing can ultimately satisfy us apart from God himself – not success, wealth, fame, power, or pleasure. Jesus told us to put eternity first.
But don’t be so concerned about perishable things like food. Spend your energy seeking the eternal life that the Son of Man can give you...” John 6:27 (NLT)
Yet we so easily substitute other things for God. We often busy ourselves in the pursuit of that which can never satisfy.
God issues three basic calls to his people, each of which resonates deeply in the hearts of those who love him. Each is tied firmly to God’s eternal purpose to glorify his Son, and each is a doorway into joy and fulfillment in life. Jesus combined all three in one beautiful sentence.
...“Come, follow me, and I will show you how to fish for people!” Matthew 4:19 (NLT)
Come… Follow… Fish. Each call invites us deeper into our relationship with God. Each has a higher personal cost associated with it, and each brings us to a new level of fulfillment and joy. Disciples embrace all three.
Come: The Call to Belong
The call to come is the gospel invitation to be forgiven, loved, and included in God’s own family through the new birth.
The call to belong to God satisfies our deepest longing and answers our identity question. No longer do we need to wonder who are we. We are beloved children of God.
And you... have been called to belong to Jesus Christ. Romans 1:6 (NLT)
People experience belonging in marriage, family, church, social clubs, and all sorts of other groups, but nothing is able to ultimately satisfy our deepest longing outside of belonging to God. Belonging to God automatically makes us belong to everyone else who belongs to God.
When Jesus launched his mission to die for our sins as God’s Lamb and recover all that Adam lost, as the risen Lord, God the Father spoke from heaven.
..."This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased." Matthew 3:17 (NASB)
Jesus knew (and knows) beyond a shadow of doubt where he stands with his heavenly Father, but sin and Satan seek to block us from knowing and experiencing God’s love, acceptance, and favor. Until we put our faith and allegiance in Christ, our sin actually does separate us from God. Up to that point, our sense of rejection is a self-imposed reality connected to our rejection of God and his rule in our lives.
Our biggest problem, deepest fear, and loneliest prospect is a life and an eternity separated from God.
Since Father God understands our plight and loves us deeply, he sent Jesus to earth to repair the breach and issue an invitation to be reconciled to God.
Listen to Jesus’ wonderful call to belong.
...“Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.” Matthew 11:28-30 (NLT)
The first and most fundamental call anyone can receive from God is the gospel call to become sons and daughters of God through the new birth.
It is a call to belong to God’s family and to be loved and accepted by our heavenly Father. The only way this is possible is because Jesus paid the price for our sin and rebellion. When we put our faith and allegiance in Christ, Jesus shares his relationship with Abba Father with us.
Corresponding Baptism
There are three baptisms mentioned in the New Testament. The one which corresponds to the gospel call to belong is the baptism into the body of Christ which is done by the Holy Spirit at the new birth.
For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free—and have all been made to drink into one Spirit. 14 For in fact the body is not one member but many. 1 Corinthians 12:13–14 (NKJV)
This spiritual baptism makes us one with Christ and his people.
But he who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with Him. 1 Corinthians 6:17 (NKJV)
Action Point
If you have never done so before, now is the time to respond to the gospel invitation to become a child of God. Jesus did the hard part on the cross, but we have our own responsibility in the matter. His hand is extended to offer us the gift of life. Our part is to reach out and receive that gift.
But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, 13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. John 1:12-13 (ESV)
Prayer
Jesus, I receive you as my Lord and Savior. I believe you died for my sins and rose again as my Lord. I give you my life and receive yours. Thank you for reconciling me to Father God and making me a part of your eternal family. Amen.
Follow: The Call to Allegiance
Being loved and part of God’s family is deeply satisfying. Being faithful and loyal to Jesus fulfills another fundamental desire we all have – to be approved.
...and behold, a voice out of the heavens said, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased." Matthew 3:17 (NASB)
First and foremost, we are human beings, not human doings. We must first discover who we are through the new birth before we can move forward. However, God did not create us merely to exist. He also intends for us to do good works of faith and love.
For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them. Ephesians 2:10 (NASB)
We do not do good works to gain God’s approval and favor, which are a free gift. Our approval by God is first and foremost based on Christ’s performance on our behalf. He kept the law of God perfectly and served his Abba Father without deviation all the way to the cross.
When we accept Christ as our Lord and Savior, his right standing with God and the approval attached to his perfect obedience are credited to our spiritual “bank account”.
This is called justification, the judicial act of God’s imputing or crediting Christ’s righteousness to those who believe.
That’s the “being” part. In addition, because we are new creations in Christ, who already have a right standing with God and his approval, we (super)naturally desire to do good works. The indwelling Holy Spirit inspires and enables us to carry them out.
For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him. Philippians 2:13 (NLT)
The Holy Spirit enables us to live and experience what has been given to us through justification.
He works to translate our inner identity into outward performance. In other words, through what is called sanctification or transformation we start to think and act more and more like Christ. We participate in this process by consecrating, dedicating, or surrendering ourselves to Christ’s lordship and the inner work of God’s Spirit.
This ongoing act of cooperating in the transformation process is a “work” of faith on our part.
When some of his disciples asked Jesus what works God wanted them to do, here is what our Lord said.
..."This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent." John 6:29 (NASB)
The Greek verb pisteuo, which is translated “believe,” also carries the fundamental idea of allegiance.
It is a lot more than mere agreement with a set of doctrines or belief that Jesus lived, died, and rose again. Faith or belief in Jesus that does not include faithfulness or allegiance to him and his Word is mere lip service and is not biblical faith. Jesus’ call to follow him is a call to show allegiance to him above all else. This requires us to surrender our will to his. When we choose to do this by faith, the Holy Spirit helps us to enter into an experience of Christ’s allegiance to his heavenly Father.
By coming into alignment with Christ’s obedience through the Spirit’s help, we gain a deeper experience of God’s approval that previously was simply a free gift to us.
In other words, God imputes (credits to our account) Christ’s righteousness, but he also wants us to experience living out that righteousness. Some say this is when what was imputed becomes imparted.
Corresponding Baptism
The call to allegiance is our invitation to make a public declaration to loyally follow the One who called us to belong.
Following Jesus means we attach ourselves to him personally and follow his teachings. It means we seek to be continually “led by the Spirit.” It means we no longer belong to ourselves: we belong to God. Our first loyalty and allegiance is to Jesus. This is much different from merely being called a Christian or being a church goer. It means we seriously commit ourselves to Christ and are not ashamed to be known as one of his disciples.
Water baptism is our formal declaration of allegiance to Jesus. In it we lay aside our past self-directed way of living and launch ourselves into a life on mission.
Action Point
Receiving Jesus as Savior can be done privately, but the call to follow requires a public identification with our Lord. He wants us to unashamedly declare our allegiance to him.
I tell you the truth, everyone who acknowledges me publicly here on earth, the Son of Man will also acknowledge in the presence of God’s angels. 9 But anyone who denies me here on earth will be denied before God’s angels. Luke 12:8-9 (NLT)
Water baptism is the perfect setting for us to do this. If you have never publicly declared allegiance to Christ, why not right now? If you have never been baptized in water, that is something that should be at the very top of your priority list.
Prayer
Jesus, thank you for dying for me. This cost you everything, but required nothing from me. Now I see how important it is for me to respond to your love by giving myself back to you. I choose to follow you. I declare allegiance to you. Holy Spirit, help me to be loyal and unashamed of Jesus and the gospel from this day forward. Amen.
Fish: The Call to Mission
Some of Jesus’ first disciples were fishermen, whose trade or job was catching fish. It was what they did. Success for them would be measured by the number of fish they caught in a day. For men in general, our jobs often highly influence our self-concept. In most conversations among men, when we first meet, the question usually arises, “What kind of work do you do?”
No matter what our mission or job in life has been up to this point, Jesus gives his followers a new responsibility – fishing for people.
Jesus’ mission was multi-faceted. He was and is the perfect representation of what Father God is like. He lived in an exemplary way to illustrate what a God-directed and God-glorifying life looks like. He also came to die for our sins as God’s Lamb and to rise again as the exalted Lord of Lords. Finally, as the ascended Lord of the harvest, his continuing mission is to add large numbers of people to God’s family through the church preaching the gospel message. The way he accomplishes this is to pour out his Spirit upon his people and send us to keep working at what he began until the day he returns as the glorious Son of Man, who will judge the world in righteousness.
Responding to the first two calls of God prepares us for mission and propels us into fishing for people and making them into disciples.
God did not create us to be insignificant. He calls us to be actively on mission with him.
God created Adam and Eve to first of all love him and fellowship with him, but from the beginning he gave them a job to do – to be fruitful and multiply and rule over his creation. The church has the same mandate. Another way to put this is that he did not save us simply to go to church and eventually get to heaven. In between being born again and the death of our bodies, we have a mission – to go and make disciples.
Most missional activity takes place outside the church building.
Being on mission is a 24/7 calling. It causes us to look on our neighbors and community with new eyes. Being on mission asks us to be alert to the prompting of the Spirit, in expectation that he will open up doors of opportunity to meet and influence people toward God’s kingdom everyday.
God gave us new life so we can join him in his worldwide mission to fish for, catch, and disciple people.
Jesus formally announced the call to mission just before he ascended into heaven, when he gave his disciples and us what we now call the Great Commission.
And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19 "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Matthew 28:18-20 (NASB)
The call to belong to God’s family is relatively pain free for us, but it cost Jesus everything. For us, it is mainly about discovering how much God loves us. The greatest number of people who call themselves Christians respond to this call. The call to loyally follow Christ introduces the cost associated with identifying with our Lord publicly and keeping his commandments, and fewer accept this call. It is an invitation to die to ourselves and live for our Lord and God’s glory. There usually are more people who identify themselves as Christians than as loyal followers of Christ.
The call to mission is the most costly of all, and fewer still embrace a Great Commission lifestyle. The call to mission invites us to expend ourselves for others for Jesus’ sake. It is our call to have great significance by having great impact in the world and others’ lives.
Because Jesus was God’s own son, and because he always did what pleased his Father, he was someone very significant. His words were to be heeded, just as the Father said when he spoke from heaven.
He was still speaking when, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.” Matthew 17:5 (ESV)
When we share the good news of the Gospel, we become extremely significant, too. People should listen to us because we speak for God himself.
The devil will resist our responding to the Gospel’s call to belong because he wants you and me to be eternally lost. He will also resist our responding to the call to surrender our lives to Jesus’ lordship because he knows that will make us dangerous people with respect to his kingdom of darkness. He most firmly and fiercely resists any person or group who commits to being on mission because he knows that such a commitment will bring many others into the kingdom of God.
Corresponding Baptism and Action Point
One of the first steps to embracing the call to mission is to receive the baptism in the Holy Spirit, which equips and empowers us to proclaim the Gospel boldly with signs following.
…he commanded them, “Do not leave Jerusalem until the Father sends you the gift he promised, as I told you before. 5 John baptized with water, but in just a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.” ... 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Acts 1:4-8 (NLT)
If you have never asked for this free gift, right now is the perfect time. Like all of God’s gifts, it is received by faith. It is for all of his children, and its purpose is to enable and empower us to fulfill the Great Commission.
You can read more about this amazing gift by clicking here.
Prayer
Jesus, I accept your call to mission. I ask you to baptize me in the Holy Spirit to equip and empower me to be your witness. I accept the call to be part of the solution to this world’s dark problems. Set up Holy Spirit encounters with people who will be open to the gospel. Help me to faithfully disciple my family and any others who respond to the gospel. Help me to get involved in my community to be salt and light in any capacity you choose, Lord. Amen.
Conclusion
I hope that you will respond to each of the three calls of God on your life. If you are interested in learning more about what it means to be a modern missionary right where you live, check out my other articles. If you do not have a church home and live in the Burlington, NC area, consider LifeNet. We are doing our best to help people respond to God’s three calls and accept the responsibility of being Great Co-Missionaries. Blessings to you on your discipleship journey!
