Walk Worthy Of Your Call
Walk Worthy Of Your Call
March 17, 2012
Topic: Christian Basics
INTRODUCTION
Walk worthy of your call!
Have you seen babies walking? At first, the baby lies down seeing Mom and Dad walk and when the time is right they climb up holding on to things. Soon they start taking little steps holding onto the wall. Parents help them walk by holding their hands. Very soon the first steps come to a sudden stop as the baby loses balance and falls. However, quickly the hands of a loving parent swoop down and pick their baby back up on their feet to send them once again stepping out with growing assurance and poise. As the baby gains confidence the parents let go of the child and he begins to venture out on his own but the parents are always behind them guiding the way.
God wants to hold our hands to help us walk. And when we fall Father God is always there to pick us back up and lead us into our call.
This morning we are going to understand the purpose of God’s call in our lives.
Ephesians 4:1
As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received.
Ephesians 4:1
(KJV ) I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called.
Worthy – worth the value, according to the value. We are to walk according to the value of our calling. Therefore first we need to know our calling. Secondly, we will see how we can walk worthy of the calling.
What is our Call? To walk worthy of our calling
1. God called us from darkness into His wonderful light
I want you to see how God called Abraham.
Genesis 12:1
Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee. When God called Abraham, God called him out of something and into something. God called him out of his country into a land that he would show him. When we are called by God we are called out of something into something.
1 Peter 2:9
But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.
We are called out of darkness into God’s light. Now there are 2 kingdoms – the kingdom of darkness and the kingdom of light. We are called out of the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of light. Before our salvation, we were in darkness which is the kingdom of Satan.
Colossians 1:10-13
10 Walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God; (11 being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, 12 and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light.) 13 For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves.
We are all saved from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of light. Christians are called to live in the light but many times we end up living in the darkness.
How do we know whether we are living in darkness or the light?
Ephesians 5:8-13
8 For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light 9 (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) 10 and find out what pleases the Lord. 11 Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. 12 It is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret. 13 But everything exposed by the light becomes visible—and everything that is illuminated becomes a light.
Romans 13:12-14
12 So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. 13 Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy. 14 Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the flesh.
We were taken out by the Lord Jesus from the fruitless deeds of darkness into the divine light of God. So when we walk in the light of God we produce the fruit of the Spirit. So we are to stop doing the fruitless deeds of darkness and start producing the fruit of the spirit.
Fruitless Deeds of Darkness
Romans 13:13
Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy.
Galatians 5:19-21
19 The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; 20 idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21 and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like.
Fruit of the Light
Ephesians 5:9
The fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth.
Galatians 5:22-23
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control.
God has called us from darkness into his wonderful light. In other words, God has called us to be holy.
2 Timothy 1:9
He has saved us and called us to a holy life.
1 Thessalonians 4:7
For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life.
2. We are called to proclaim God’s Praises to others
1 Peter 2:9
But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.
Psalm 9:11
Sing the praises of the LORD, enthroned in Zion; proclaim among the nations what he has done.
Isaiah 43:21
– the people I formed for myself that they may proclaim my praise.
Isaiah 61:1
The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me, because the LORD has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners.
When God called us, he called us to declare his praises so that the gospel can be reached, his work can be completed through us. We are called to build the Kingdom of God by proclaiming his love and praises to the nations. There were times when we were full of zeal to talk about the Lord, to work for the Lord. Now God has blessed many of us, He has given us good jobs, a good family, and a good house and we end up enjoying God’s provisions rather than proclaiming His praises.
It was a similar condition when the Israelites returned from exile and started rebuilding the Temple of God which was in ruins. Soon they faced opposition from the enemies and they stopped the temple work built houses and settled down. Now God’s temple was in ruins, the work of God was incomplete and the people were comfortably staying in paneled houses. See what God says:
Haggai 1:3-11
3 Then the word of the LORD came through the prophet Haggai: 4 “Is it a time for you yourselves to be living in your paneled houses, while this house remains a ruin?” 5 Now this is what the LORD Almighty says: “Give careful thought to your ways. 6 You have planted much, but harvested little. You eat, but never have enough…but never have your fill… on clothes, but are not warm.You earn wages, only to put them in a purse with holes in it.” 7 This is what the LORD Almighty says: “Give careful thought to your ways.
8 Go up into the mountains and bring down timber and build my house, so that I may take pleasure in it and be honored,” says the LORD. 9 “You expected much, but see, it turned out to be little. What you brought home, I blew away. Why?” declares the LORD Almighty. “Because of my house, which remains a ruin, while each of you is busy with your own house. 10 Therefore, because of you the heavens have withheld their dew and the earth its crops. 11 I called for a drought on the fields and the mountains, on the grain, the new wine, the olive oil and everything else the ground produces, on people and livestock, and on all the labor of your hands.”
We are to give priority to the Kingdom of God, we are called to sing the praises of the Lord. There are chances that our source of blessing can be stopped if we neglect our calling.
3. God called us to be a Blessing
Ephesians 1:3
Praise be to God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.
We are called to be blessed. God does not want us to lead a life of disgust or failure. He wants us to have a blessed life.
1. Our Blessing has already been Accomplished
Ephesians 1:3
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us… It is past tense. The blessing upon you has already been accomplished. No one can take it away. It is the devil who makes you think you are a failure. God has already blessed us; we just have to walk the blessed walk of life.
In Numbers 23 Balak the king of Moab summoned Balaam to curse the Israelites. Understand the Israelites have been blessed by God. See what happens.
Numbers 23:16, 19-20
16 The LORD met with Balaam and put a message in his mouth and said, “Go back to Balak and give him this message.” 19 God is not a man, that he should lie, nor a son of man, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill? 20 I have received a command to bless; he has blessed, and I cannot change it.
God has already blessed us. God does not change his mind and curse anyone. Our blessings are already promised and accomplished by God and no one can take them away. Turn to someone and say ‘I am blessed.’
2. Our Blessings are comprehensive
means all kinds of blessings, inclusive of everything we need.
Ephesians 1:3
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.
God has blessed us with all spiritual blessings. It is comprehensive. It constitutes all the blessings you and I need. We lack nothing because God has blessed us with all blessings. Blessings are needed for your life, family, studies, work, business, and children everything comprehensively has been given to us.
3. Our Blessings are Spiritual
Ephesians 1:3
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.
4. Our Blessings do not depend on the natural Realm
They do not originate from or depend on the natural realm. So our people group, race, family line, bloodline, education, or ability has nothing to do with this blessing. The source of our blessings is spiritual but we experience these blessings in our natural realm, in our physical life.
5. Our Blessings are heavenly
Ephesians 1:3
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. Our blessings are based on the heavenly realm.
And they are superior to all that the earth has to offer. Also, they are more secure, sure, and incorruptible than the corruptible things of this world like silver and gold. Yes God blesses us physically and materially when we are in this world but more than these corruptible things God has blessed us spiritually and heavenly.
Romans 12:14
Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse.
Genesis 12:2-3
I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse, and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.”
God called us to be a blessing and also to bless others.
Now I want to bring it all together. God has called us with a diving calling. He called us from darkness to light. He called us to proclaim His Praises to the nations. God has called us to bless others. The main purpose of our calling is for eternity, to prepare us for eternity.
How do we achieve our call?
Ephesians 4:1
I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called.
We need to walk worthy of our calling.
How can we walk worthy of our calling?
Now walking and living are very different. In the original text, it asks us to walk worthy of the calling not live. Living can be passive; you can just sit and do nothing yet live. It can be motionless; you can go through life and yet not go anywhere. And also, it can be pointless; you can go through life with no sense of purpose or goal.
Walking must be active; you must get up and take action. It is progressive; with each step, you are moving out of one place and into another. Also, it has direction; you are looking forward to where you are going. We are not just taking a walk in the park—we’re going somewhere.
Therefore, when we are following God we must walk worthy of our calling. We need to take action on the Word of God. We have to obey and practice the Word of God in our lives. Walk according to the Word of God.
ILLUSTRATION
For instance, imagine a scale with objects of equal weight on opposite sides so that it does not tilt. The scale balances perfectly. But, if either of the sides is heavy the scale tilts. Now consider the Word of God on one side of the balance and our life on the other side of the balance. Paul is saying that words must perfectly balance with our walk. How much ever we know the word if our walk in life is not in balance with the word then we are not walking worthy of our call.
In other words, the Word of God and our life have to match. We match the colors when we wear a dress, therefore our life and the Word should match for us to walk worthy of our calling.
CONCLUSION
This morning let us examine our hearts. Let us examine our walk. Are we living in darkness or are we living in the light? Do we proclaim the Lord’s message to others? And, are we leading a blessed life? Can others think that we are living a holy life?
Romans 11:29
for God’s gifts and his call are irrevocable. Remember God has already called you and blessed you and it is we who are to change our ways. Amen.
For more related Sermons
Jesus, the True Light | John 1: 6 – 13
The Right Walk | Ephesians 5: 1 – 20
Growing in God’s knowledge | Colossians 1: 9 – 14
Take Your Stand | Spiritual Warfare 2 | Ephesians 6: 10 – 20