WHEN GOD CALLS

INTRODUCTION

it was a Saturday night, of Thanksgiving weekend, and the Coconut Grove was packed. Waiters were setting up extra tables to handle the diners. The overflow from the dining room surged down a narrow stairway to the Melody Lounge. This dimly lit basement bar offered a South Seas ambiance, with artificial palm trees, driftwood, rattan and a ceiling draped in blue satin. The only illumination came from behind the bar, supplemented by low-wattage bulbs hidden in the palms. Even this was too bright for one young man. He reached up, unscrewed a bulb and settled back in his date's arms. Like many others there, he was in uniform. It was 1942; the U.S. had been fighting WWII for nearly a year. Dr. Vincent Senna was having dinner that night in the Grove and was paged because one of his patients had gone into labor. Grumbling, Senna rushed to the hospital in time to deliver the baby...and save his life. Because after he left, for still unknown reasons, the Coconut Grove burst into flames, and over 490 people died in the smoke and flames. The interruption that ruined his evening also saved his life!

Has anyone here ever experienced an interruption that seemed to inconvenience you and You were so engrossed in your own thing that you were unwilling to give heed to that which was calling for your attention? I rose this afternoon to impart this message to somebody who needs to slow down long enough to listen. If you would pardon my intrusion into your personal space long enough this afternoon, I need to let you know that God is calling. He has been trying to reach many of you for the longest time, but you won’t answer because you see it as an interruption.

Consider...

Genesis 12:1–9 NASB 2020

1 Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country, And from your relatives And from your father’s house, To the land which I will show you; 2 And I will make you into a great nation, And I will bless you, And make your name great; And you shall be a blessing; 3 And I will bless those who bless you, And the one who curses you I will curse. And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed.” 4 So Abram went away as the Lord had spoken to him; and Lot went with him. Now Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran. 5 Abram took his wife Sarai and his nephew Lot, and all their possessions which they had accumulated, and the people which they had acquired in Haran, and they set out for the land of Canaan; so they came to the land of Canaan. 6 Abram passed through the land as far as the site of Shechem, to the oak of Moreh. Now the Canaanites were in the land at that time. 7 And the Lord appeared to Abram and said, “To your descendants I will give this land.” So he built an altar there to the Lord who had appeared to him. 8 Then he proceeded from there to the mountain on the east of Bethel, and pitched his tent with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east; and there he built an altar to the Lord and called upon the name of the Lord. 9 Then Abram journeyed on, continuing toward the Negev.

The 12th chapter of Genesis begins a new section of the book in which the author focuses on four main personalities. The first of these person was a man named Abram. What we read about Abram is that he was just an average guy going about his daily routine. It was from within this context that God calls Gen 12:1-3

I. When God calls Listen Gen 12:1-3

a. What is meant by God called Abram? A call or to be called is a biblical concept to describe God’s summons or invitation to individuals to follow His will. The Bible is replete with instances of people whose lives were abruptly interrupted by the call of God. What this text says to us today is that God is still calling; the issue that concerns is that many are not listening. The text says "Now the LORD said to Abram. Here we discover that God is making a divine action by revealing himself to Abram by speaking to him.

b. Illustration:

In his book When You’re All Out of Noodles, Ken Jones writes about a lesson he learned one day at the office.

When I walked into my office,] I noticed something I had never seen before. It was round, about the size of a dessert plate, and plugged into the wall, giving out a constant noise. It wasn’t a loud noise, just constant. What in the world is that thing? I thought as I stopped to stare.

I finally asked the receptionist about it. She said, “It’s an ambient noise generator. If it’s too quiet in here, we can distinguish the voices in the counseling offices, and we want to protect their privacy. So we bought the noise generator to cover the voices.”

Her explanation made perfect sense to me, but didn’t it have to be louder to mask the conversations, I asked. “No,” she said. “The constancy of the sound tricks the ear so that what is being said can’t be distinguished.”

Interesting, I thought. Very interesting. One kind of noise to cover the sound of another. It made me think and pray.

No wonder, Lord. No wonder I strain to hear what you have to say to me.… The constancy of sound—little noises, soft, inward, ambient thoughts and fears and attitudes—tricks the ears of my inner man and masks your still, small voice.

God isn’t silent. We just have trouble hearing him.

Larson, Craig Brian. 2002. 750 Engaging Illustrations for Preachers, Teachers & Writers. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books.

c.Application:

Don’t be so engulfed in your mundane existence until you can’t stop and listen to what the Lord is saying to you. By listening you will experience what “eye hath not seen and ear hath not heard.

II. When God calls go for it (v 4-6)

a. By “go for it” I mean to strive to the utmost to gain or achieve something. The expression is often used as an exhortation. When we read the text we see that Abram did this exact thing: He went for it!

He was not tentative about it but it went for it with everything he had (5). According to (v5) “Abram took his wife Sarai and his nephew Lot, and all their possessions which they had accumulated, and the people which they had acquired in Haran, and they set out for the land of Canaan;”

He went for it “against all odds”: The text says that he was 75 years old and childless (4) in addition to this, when he arrived in Palestine (Middle Stone Age) the Canaanites were in the land (6).

b. Many men of the world have understood the necessity for commitment if they are to accomplish great things. For example, when Spanish explorer Cortez landed at Vera Cruz in 1519 to begin his conquest of Mexico with a small force of seven hundred men, legend has it that he purposely set fire to his fleet of eleven ships. Presumably, his men on the shore watched their only means of retreat sink to the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico. There was now only one direction to move—forward into the Mexican interior to meet whatever might come their way.

c. As part of our commitment as Christ’s disciples, we must purposefully destroy all avenues of retreat. We must resolve that whatever price is required for being his follower, we will pay it. See Luke 9:23

Luke 9:23 NASB 2020

23 And He was saying to them all, “If anyone wants to come after Me, he must deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow Me.

Michael P. Green. 2000. 1500 Illustrations for Biblical Preaching. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books.

III. When God calls Worship Him(7-9)

a. Notice that when Abram arrives in the land of Canaan that the LORD appeared to him. The word appeared is translated from the Hebrew Ra’a. In Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament, the literal sense of the verb calls for no special comment, for it is the common word for seeing with the eyes. God appeared to Abram because he believed and obeyed. He had told Abram to go to a land that He would show him; when he arrived at in Canaan, the Lord said “To your descendants I will give this land.” It is here, that Abram models for us one more thing we should do when God calls. The text says: He built an altar at two locations to the LORD who had appeared to him. See Gen 12:7-8

Genesis 12:7–8 NASB 2020

7 And the Lord appeared to Abram and said, “To your descendants I will give this land.” So he built an altar there to the Lord who had appeared to him. 8 Then he proceeded from there to the mountain on the east of Bethel, and pitched his tent with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east; and there he built an altar to the Lord and called upon the name of the Lord.

Altars function as sacrificial platforms. Their construction can also mark the introduction of the worship of a particular god in a new land. Abram’s setting up of altars in each place where he camped defines areas to be occupied in the “Promised Land” and establishes these places as religious centers in later period. Abram shows us that worship is in order when God calls.

b. The adoration and praise of God, ascribing to him the value and worth that is due to him. Worship includes a recognition of one’s own dependence on God and is inspired by God’s greatness as well as God’s goodness as extended to oneself and others. Theologians typically claim that God does not require worship from humans because of any need to be praised on his part but because worship deepens a relation to God on our part and leads to our own fulfillment.

C. Built a personal altar to worship and call upon the Lord.

CONCLUSION

Softly and Tenderly, Jesus is calling...

Practical Illustrations: 1 Peter, 2 Peter, 1 John, 2 John, 3 John, Jude 12-184: The Value of Following God’s Will (Obedience)

Doing the will of God keeps us from going our own way. Have you reached a place in your Christian walk where you can do God’s business while trusting that He will take care of yours? This story echoes that thought.

Queen Elizabeth asked a rich English merchant to go on a mission for the crown. The merchant [protested].… saying that such a long absence would be fatal to his business. “You take care of my business,” replied the Queen, “and I will take care of yours.”

When he returned, he found that through the patronage and care of the Queen, his business had increased in volume and he was richer than when he left. So every business can afford to place Christ’s interests first, for the promise is clear and unmistakable. Do Christ’s will, and He will look after your welfare.

I heard the voice of Jesus say, “Come unto Me and rest; Lay down, thou weary one, lay down Thy head upon My breast.” I came to Jesus as I was, Weary and worn and sad; I found in Him a resting place, And He has made me glad.

What we are called from and called to:

I. Called from labor to rest (Matt. 11:28) II. Called from death to life (1 John 3:14) III. Called from bondage to liberty (Gal 5:13) IV. Called out of darkness into light (1 Pet. 2:9) V. Called from bondage to peace (1 Cor. 7:15 VI. Called to the fellowship of His Son (1 Cor. 1:9)