You've Got a Calling On Your Life, Part 1.

Me: My Calling

We: Some of us might have struggled with our goals and our plans this year, but before you make those new year plans, let’s explore over the next few weeks God’s calling for our lives....

The calling comes from a God Who is Holy.

Exodus 3:1–6 ESV

Now Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian, and he led his flock to the west side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. And the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. He looked, and behold, the bush was burning, yet it was not consumed. And Moses said, “I will turn aside to see this great sight, why the bush is not burned.” When the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” Then he said, “Do not come near; take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.” And he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.

“You become self-conscious when you are in the presence of greatness.”

I remember my first internship. Going to the job and I met the person that was a manager at the place. She was black like me and had come through the ranks like me, but she had been able to climb the ladder. I was looking at somebody who had been great. I was conscious of that greatness and it made me insecure. I know I was insecure, because I know what I said to within a week or two of meeting her. I’m going to take your place one day. It sounds crazy and bold, but my ego was threatened by somebody who is greater than me and the only thing that I could think of was that I’m really as great as her so I’ll be her one day.

But if you become self-conscious in the presence of greatness of perfection, what happens when you are in the presence of someone you can’t dare approach. If you 55 and meet a 33 year old billionaire, do you feel put in your place? You’ll never be a 33 year old billionaire. You could be a 55 year old one but not a 33 year old one. If you been in trouble with the law and you see somebody with a clean record, you can be a productive citizen, but you will be a productive citizen with a past.

Take this to another level, what if you are in the presence of a pristine and unique God who is so powerful and superlative he appears in a fire that can not be quenched. His fire is so powerful that it sustains life rather than takes it. In his presence, all your inadequacies, your fears, your doubts, your tensions, your shortcomings, your sins, your mistakes instantly are confronted. He is something, you can never be. He is unique and special, and you are not. He is your superior and if you get to close. His glory could incinerate you, decimate you, erase you.

Quote on the holiness of God:

He’s holy, but he came close.

The calling comes from a God Who Comes Near to Save.

Passage:

Exodus 3:7–9 ESV

Then the Lord said, “I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters. I know their sufferings, and I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. And now, behold, the cry of the people of Israel has come to me, and I have also seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them.

He comes to liberate his people

He doesn’t call him to repentance although could you help it if he revealed himself to you. His presence would knock the disobedience right out of you. He reveals himself violently and powerfully as one who desires to liberate the people he now identifies with.

Derrick Henry is a 6’4 250 pound running back, that prefers to run through and not around other big strong NFL men. Imposing figured for the Tennessee Titans. Comes to play for your club co-ed flat football team.

It must have been confusing to Moses, because ultimately Moses was not hiding from Pharoah, ultimately he spilled the blood of one of God’s creations. He’s hiding from God. And God has come to find him. God found him in the desert, but as powerful and as awe-inspiring God must have been. He isn’t coming to kill him, although he should, he’s coming to save him and use him as an instrument to save his people so that they can be with their husband forever.

But don’t miss the fact that although he doesn’t die, he might as well have.

His holiness stops your whole process, he changes your life.

He’s been the son-in law of Jethro, husband to a sister named Zipporah, shepherd of his daddy-in-law’s sheep, but now he will die and be reborn as the shepherd of Israel.

”His holiness is damning and liberating for his people who were once his enemies.” “ His holiness is just damning for his enemies.”

When you are at the end of yourself, you are at the beginning of God.

Hey someone listening, just heard the call of God

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This Calling is Ultimately From the Father to His Son.

Exodus 3:10–12 ESV

Come, I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.” But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?” He said, “But I will be with you, and this shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.”

Abraham met the god who appeared as a fire and was the father of many nations, Samuel the prophet, priest — got the call from a voice in his sleep, Jeremiah got a call from god to go to israel and say, you will not

Genesis 12:1–3 ESV

Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”

Jeremiah 1:4–9 ESV

Now the word of the Lord came to me, saying, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.” Then I said, “Ah, Lord God! Behold, I do not know how to speak, for I am only a youth.” But the Lord said to me, “Do not say, ‘I am only a youth’; for to all to whom I send you, you shall go, and whatever I command you, you shall speak. Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you to deliver you, declares the Lord.” Then the Lord put out his hand and touched my mouth. And the Lord said to me, “Behold, I have put my words in your mouth.

Christ is called to Liberate His People and Bring them out of the Kingdom of Darkness, into the the Kingdom of God, and we participate in that call. Christ fulfilled his call, and so have we, and we now live out of the overflow of his fulfilling his call, completing the fulfilled call. It’s done, it’s just a matter of time.

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Every Christian has a calling because Every Christian is in the Christ who was called.

By Faith, my story became his story. His story became my story.

In him, I’m on holy ground

In him, I’ve been made holy

In him , my calling has been fulfilled.

In him, my calling was to accept his call to trust him.

In him, that’s It, that’s the shout.

In him, that’s the birthright, that’s the work, that’s the call to believe on the one who fulfilled his call to liberate you through his body.

In him, you were led from the wilderness of sin, through the red blood of his execution, pardoned from the presiding force of the universe into the milk and honey of heaven.

and We participate in that calling....

We’ve got coworkers, friends, people we go to school with, folk who are sick. While we are clubhousing, quarantining, and living in our anxiety, we know that God is with us. The calling is not to build our kingdom, but to use our resources to declare his, because it’s already built in Christ Jesus.

We walk in our calling together with God in Us. With the Fire inside of us.

We confidently walk from a place of victory not in anxiousness hoping to get to a place of victory. The event of the burning bush is to build our confidence that one greater than Moses didn’t trip over his call, but embraced his call and won liberation for his people you and I.

We imitate the one who gave up his life, by giving ours up

We all ready know the end we win the game in

It’s the 4th quarter we are up 42-9. There is time still left on the clock. But we are aggressively closing out the game, running up the score. The enemy might score every now, but he’s got no passing game. He can’t get in the end zone. So he can only score 2 points there and 3 points here. You are fully operational. Your quarterback can throw the football and your running back can get you first downs. It’s like when the Kansas city chiefs play the dallas cowboys, you already know which team won the game, you watch the game to see how the game is going to play out. You already know the score is going to be huge, but you watch to see who got the touchdowns. How many defenders was he able to shake off. Did he get a hail Mary in the game? The angels already know that the Jesus and his church have won the game, they watch the game because of the highlights.

We can look back and see that Jesus got his well done, he came to serve humanity and die on his behalf. God said this is my son in whom I’m well pleased. He fulfilled his calling and died for us to bring us into fellowship with him...