Preach the Call - Again!
I have watched significant changes in Church culture in the 55 years since I received Christ as Saviour. The drift away from the moorings of key Biblical essentials is alarming. And so, I make this impassioned plea. Now is the time for us, as devoted kingdom leaders, to return to preaching and practicing some historical non-optional calls to ensure fruitful Church function in the next generation.
Preach the call to prayer. Wherever the Kingdom is advancing, you will find the Church on its knees. Unless and until we preach the call to prayer, we will be mired in mediocrity. Strategies, fads and novel ideas may suffice for success in business but never in the Church. While there is no excuse for anything less than excellence in the execution of ministry, all will be impotent without the underpinning of passionate and persistent prayer. It is not an option!
Preach the call to salvation for the lost. Include it in every message, every opportunity. There is ultimately no other purpose for the Church to remain on earth. The only restraint against the return of the Lord Jesus is His immeasurable love for the lost. His grace prevents His return. No message should ever be preached, and no appointment with a non-believer should ever be conducted without a corresponding appeal to find personal salvation through the shed blood of Jesus. It is not an option!
Preach the call to discipleship. Emphasize the need to grow and develop in love, light, and life (the elements of the Kingdom of God). Living a holy and separated life unto the Lord and subsequently sharing the Gospel with others is the natural progression of a believer’s development. In a highly functioning Church, every believer is a minister who has been adequately equipped for kingdom service. It is not an option!
Preach the call for the vocational ministry. God still calls children, youth and adults into full-time, lifetime ministry. They are in every Church. We must present the call to life-long ministry as a vocational investment without ambiguity and without apology. God’s call on the life of selected individuals is still definite and irrevocable. The ascension gifts of Ephesians 4 (Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists, Pastors, Teacher) are still relevant and essential to kingdom advancement. It is the responsibility of local church leadership to discern, call out and nurture God’s summons on individuals to give their one and only life to full-time ministry. It is not an option!
We must not lower the lower the bar! We must not compromise the truth! Gently but clearly, we must persistently preach the call. There is no other way out of the spiritual quagmire in which the 2024 Canadian Church finds itself.
Al is an experienced pastor and counselor who works out of our ABNWT District Resource Centre in Edmonton as the Pastoral Care Coordinator. A pastor to the pastors, Al is a friend, mentor, and confidante to all.