When God Calls
Read the Text: Matthew 4
Memorize the Text: Don’t think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to abolish but to fulfill. (Matthew 5:17)
Consider the Text: Matthew 4:18-22
Matthew 4 details the beginning of Christ's ministry. As the chapter opens, Matthew explains Christ's temptation and shares the victory over the tempter. The gospel writer then addresses the launching of Jesus' ministry in Galilee before landing on the calling of the first disciples. In reflecting on Matthew 4, this moment of calling provides four important thoughts to remember.
First, JESUS CALLS US IN OUR CURRENT MOMENT. As Jesus moved from one ministry setting to the next, he walked along the Sea of Galilee. While traveling, he noticed two brothers carrying out the family business of fishing and did not expect anything different from the daily routine. Nevertheless, Jesus called out to them with a command to follow him in this moment. Notice that Christ did not wait for the brothers to come in from their fishing expedition or for their lives to be what he desired them to be. No, Jesus called them in the middle of their current moment.
The same truth remains today. Jesus does not wait for us to clean up, get right, or be prepared when he calls us. The calling extends to us in our current state. He calls out to us where we exist with the knowledge that his calling includes a work of transformation and preparation that comes only from him. Like the first disciples, we receive the calling of the Lord in our current moment in life. The key to hearing the call centers on the ability not to find excuses to neglect the hearing of the call but instead set the heart on intent listening for the voice of God.
Second, JESUS CALLS US TO FOLLOW HIM. The base call of Christ requests that the believer follows after him. Such a call meant that Peter and Andrew did not need to understand the complete calling of the Lord or know every detail of the journey. They just needed to acknowledge and believe that following Jesus was enough. The mentality centered on surrender to the Lord and trust that whatever Christ had in store for them was okay. Thus, we find that they immediately abandoned what they knew, their family ties, and their livelihood to follow Jesus.
Today, the call of Christ does not come with a step-by-step manual that offers completion of the task if each step is followed. Instead, the believer follows Jesus with the trust that Christ leads in a manner that brings glory to him and guides, empowers, and directs the believer's life for obedience. The follower of Christ holds that following Jesus often means stepping into the unknown because God already knows.
Third, JESUS CALLS US TO TRUST HIS TRANSFORMING WORK. Christ told the brothers that following him would lead to a transformation in their work. Their occupation was to fish. Now Jesus calls them to fish but changes the target to people. The target would no longer be gathered by the nets but would be gathered through the proclamation of the good news. The ability to live out this new life occupation would exist because of the work of the Lord in and upon their lives and not by mere training alone.
Today, God calls with the desire to transform. God calls the believer not because of who we are but because of our willfulness to entrust our lives to who the Lord desires to form us to be. God extends a call to us when we are ready and available and not when we are able. Like Peter and Andrew, we can never fish for people without the Lord. This is because God alone equips us and empowers the words that enable us to fish for souls.
Fourth, JESUS CALLS US WITH AN EXPECTATION. When Christ called out to Peter and Andrew, he expected them to follow him. At the same time, Jesus knew that following would mean that sacrifice would occur. To follow, Peter and Andrew had to surrender security in the eyes of the world and abandon all they had ever prepared for. They had to sacrifice the known for the unknown and the comfortable for the uncomfortable. The call of Christ to the believer comes with an expectation that following will be costly and demand sacrifice.
When God calls us to follow him, the obedient response comes with a sacrifice. We follow knowing that we may leave the comfortable and known for the known. The sacrifice includes abandonment of our security for faithfulness. Such a response comes out of the trust we must have in the Lord. The expectation of surrender and sacrifice comes from the Lord, who modeled perfect sacrifice and surrender so that we would have the opportunity to follow him. Thus, the Lord asks nothing that he has not already done in a great way.
Matthew 4 provides a challenge to each of us. We must ask the basic question about our listening to the call of the Lord amid our current life. We must be ready to understand the cost of following after Jesus and be ready for him to work in our lives when we follow. This passage reminds us that God calls the available, not the able because he makes the available able.
This blog is part of the Coffee and Quiet Time with Jesus Devotional Series found at equippingfaith.com. Join the journey of reading through the New Testament this year. More information can be found at equippingfaith.com.
