God’s call and our response – 2

The first is God’s free choice. Jesus makes it clear that God chooses us not because we are good but because he loves us. “It was not you who chose me, but I who chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit that will remain” John 15:16. In his letter to Timothy, our brother Paul reminded Timothy, “Not according to our works but according to his own design” 2Tim. 1:9. The second is a mission, which could entail leaving the safe, the familiar, the known and moving to the unknown and accepting the new and the untried. Paul tells Timothy again to “Bear your share of the hardship for the Gospel” 2Tim.1:8. The mission that was entrusted to Abraham was to move away from his father’s house to a foreign land where God was to establish a new covenant with him. Though Abraham had no children, he was promised descendants that would be as many as the stars in the sky.

As Christians we do have a mission to our family, our community, our co-workers, or job, our fellow students and our friends. This mission is to be determined by our relationship with God. The closer our relationship is with God, the stronger will our commitment be to those entrusted to our care.

The third is a promise, which in Abraham’s case consisted of a posterity – children. I will make of you a great nation. In our case, this promise consists of life and immortality. In all these the basic requirement is that we have faith and trust in God and be prepared to do what God commands us to do.

The call to leave our country to the place God will show us has a lot of implications for us. This movement does not require our literally leaving our environment, by no means! It means a movement away from where God is not at home with us, where there is darkness, selfishness, evil, pettiness, sin, division and backwardness. We must remove the root cause of sins from our lives. God is calling us to be transformed and be transfigured, to move from the land of sin, darkness and evil to a land of holiness. God has called us to be holy, Paul told Timothy, and Jesus calls us to be holy as his heavenly father is holy.

In order to leave the familiar terrain, we must listen to the voice of Christ. By listening to him we learn to walk with him day by day and take on his ways; his ways of thinking, of speaking and relating with people. This is what leaving behind my own selfish ways and taking on Christ’s selfless ways means, by dying to myself and living for others. Indeed, I must be another Christ wherever I find myself.

So look at the land where you live now, walk around it and see what is in every corner of it. Perhaps there are some habits you want to change, like, drinking, smoking, being engrossed in pleasure seeking trip, quarreling with everyone. It may be laziness that creates problems for you and your family. Tell Jesus that you are ready to leave this behind you. Once you make this decision, please do not look back. Move towards the land that God will show you. In that land a promise awaits you. You will not get that promise unless you move.