The Confusing Language of "Calling" Series: Click | View Series

It is common Christian parlance to say, "I feel called to do so and so." What we're usually trying to communicate is that we feel God has given us a specific "missional" assignment in his kingdom. I wonder, however, if that language is misleading and harmful.

Why Wait on the Call?

Think of walking through your city one day and coming upon a small, handicapped child laying on the railroad tracks. The child cannot move, and you hear the sound of an oncoming train. Do you stop, get on your knees, and ask if it's God's will to pick up the child? If you don't get a clear sense of God's call, do you move on? Of course not. God's will is clear. Save the life.

I often think about this in regards to the question of whether or not we need to go overseas. Jesus made it clear that his will was for people of every nation to know the gospel. Why, then, are so many Christians waiting on a warm and fuzzy sensation—for God to spell out "Afghanistan" in their Cheerios—before they go? The call has been given. Go. If your talents can best serve God's kingdom by using them overseas, why would you wait on a call to do so?

So let me say it plainly: I don't think you need to be "called" to go overseas, any more than I think you need to be "called" to live missionally wherever you are. As a disciple, you must ask, "How can my talents best be used in God's worldwide mission?" If the answer is that you can be part of an overseas community-building, Jesus-preaching project, don't wait for a special calling. Pack your bags.

The Area of Greatest Need

Now I often hear the objection, "Why should we send people all over the world? Aren't there lost and needy people here?" Certainly, we should be committed to blessing our local communities and multiplying our churches here in America. But there are still many places in the world where there is no gospel witness at all, which is in direct violation of Jesus' command.

While one third of the world's unbelievers are Muslims, only half of one percent of all our resources (i.e. our people and our money) goes toward reaching Muslims for Christ. Does God prefer the Western world so much that it justifies such a lopsided allocation of resources?

I meet people who say, "If God calls me to go, I'll go." Perhaps the better posture is, "If God tells me to stay, I'll stay. Otherwise, I'll go." Over there is the area of greatest need. Every disciple of Jesus must consider what his role is in obedience to Jesus' command.

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The Confusing Language of "Calling" Series: Click | View Series

It is common Christian parlance to say, "I feel called to do so and so." What we're usually trying to communicate is that we feel God has given us a specific "missional" assignment in his kingdom. I wonder, however, if that language is misleading and harmful.

Our Call Has Already Been Issued

Christians don't need to be specially "called" to live missionally; it is inherent in being a disciple. To become a disciple of Jesus means that you evaluate your passions and talents in terms of how they can best be used to spread God's kingdom. The call has already been issued: "Glorify me in all that you do. Love and serve your neighbor. Go into the world and preach the gospel to every person." That's it.

Each person must evaluate how they have best been suited to fulfill that call, but the call is clear. If you are a businessman, you are to do excellent work to the glory of God, to the benefit of humanity, and to the testimony of Christ in your community. You don't have to wait on a special call to begin to do so—you've already received that call as a Christian. We talk about finding God's will; it's not lost.

Specific Directions in Active Participation

I know that sometimes God gives specific directions. God tells Paul in Acts 16:8 to go specifically to Macedonia, but those "course corrections" were given in the context of Paul's active participation in God's mission. The Holy Spirit tells the church at Antioch to set apart Barnabas and Saul for a church planting mission (Acts 13), but both Barnabas and Saul were already active in preaching and serving.

I say this because we have so many people sitting around waiting on a warm, fuzzy, and goose-bump-inducing vision from God before they embark on some ministry. Maybe we've invented the whole language of calling to mask the fact that most Christians don't want to live missionally.

To be continued.

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