The Two sides of Calling

19 March 2020

CALLING IS BOTH BROAD AND SPECIFIC

In Scripture, we can identify two categories of calling: the broad and the specific. 

Broad Call 

Scripture informs us that we all share in a broad call – that is, our Christian witness. We see this outlined by Jesus through the Great Commandment and the Great Commission. 

1. We are all called to love God, and to love our neighbours (others) as we love ourselves (Matt 22:37-9 The Great Commandment). Micah 6:8 “He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”
2. We are all called to share the gospel with others and make disciples of all nations (Matt 28:16-10 The Great Commission).

As a movement, we believe in what’s known as “the priesthood of all believers”, whereby everyone has equal access to God, and everyone has equal opportunity to be involved in ministry. 

It’s not for the chosen few - we are all called to come alongside others and share the love of Jesus with the lost, the last, and the least. 

To live out the gospel, to reveal the kingdom of God, to partner with God, to bring hope, restoration, life, to live, love and fight alongside others – this is the broad calling of ministry we are all called to outwork in our daily lives as followers of Christ. 

We don’t need to wrestle with this - we all have a part play in God’s kingdom. 

Specific Call

We also read in Scripture that God also calls people to specific tasks, roles, locations, and ministry functions. 

In the Old Testament, we see God calling:

• Abraham to start a nation
• Moses to deliver a nation
• Deborah to lead a nation 
• David to rule a nation
• Esther to save a nation,
• And the prophets to speak to a nation. 

However, these are all pretty big and unique examples of callings and can be hard to relate to. 

Thankfully, we also read about God giving specific calls to more common day works: working with crafts (Exo 35:30-35, 36:1), to be musicians (1 Chron 15:16), to be in the marketplace (Dan 1:3-5), to be involved in social reform (Neh 13:1-31).

In the New Testament, we read about God calling people aside to a specific ministry function.

We read in,

“So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up” (Eph 4:11-12).

We can think of

• John the Baptist – who prepared the way for Jesus (Lk 3:4-6),
• Jesus – the saviour of the world (Acts 4:12),
• Priscilla – a teacher of teachers (Acts 18:26, Rom 16:4),
• Phoebe – a minister in the church of Cenchreae (Rom 16:1), 
• Junia – an apostle for Christ (Rom 16:7),
• Timothy – a local church pastor (2 Tim 2:15).

Though we all share in the broad call to be Christ’s ambassadors, there are specific callings that God grace us with.

A note on specific calls

Though we read about specific callings, it’s wise to acknowledge that while the call might be specific and clear, the outworking of it (how it unfolds and develops) is rarely straight forward. 

Take Paul the apostle for example. He was called to “be a light to the Gentiles” (Acts 13:47). But what did this look like? Not one thing, but many things. 

He was an evangelist, a church planter, an author, a teacher, a travelling itinerant preacher and more. 

He had a specific calling, but not a specific outworking. 

Another wise point to remember is that calling isn’t about finding “the one right task or area to serve God through”, it’s about being available for God. It’s about cultivating a heart that is willing following after where God is leading. It’s about responding to what God is doing and joining God’s mission.  

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Other articles on this topic: 

What is Calling

The Shape of Calling 

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Note: If you like to speak to someone about calling, feel free to contact us: https://www.salvationarmy.org.au/comealive/contact-us/