In Romans 1:1, Paul opens his magnum opus letter with a salutation we can learn from. He says, “Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God.”
What is your current understanding of these three areas modeled on Paul’s clear articulation of his calling and mission?
- You are a servant of who/what?
- You are called for what?
- You are set apart for what?
What is my purpose in life? What am I supposed to do? What is my calling? Many times these questions paralyze us into a state of inaction. Don’t let them.
If you are a Christ follower, washed by His blood, you can be confident to describe yourselves as a Servant of Christ Jesus.
The second descriptor, “apostle,” describes Paul’s vocational call into ministry. Meaning, ministry was Paul’s full time job, and his was the job of apostle.
What is your full time job now? How can you serve God in that job? Yes, God can call you into another job, or full time ministry, or even part time ministry. But what have you been called to do in this season?
My calling is to lead. And let me clarify, when you are a leader, don’t feel compelled to lead in every setting, in every conversation, and in every season of life. Doing so will annoy everyone around you.
But for me, at this point in my life, I see the calling of leadership in my life. Wes, Servant of Christ Jesus, called to be a leader.
How do you answer these three questions for yourself?
Here are two other points of clarification. If you asked me when I was 15 years old, even 25, 30, I would not have had that realization that I am supposed to lead in certain settings.
I don’t believe the apostle Paul knew his calling until later in his life. While the Bible does not say, it is believed that he was in his thirties when he was converted.
The other idea is that our calling can change from one season to the next. I am not sure why we think our calling must be the same our entire life. Many seem to zoom in on what seems to be the most important or visible aspect of their personality or vocation. Just be open to the voice of the Lord should that change or evolve.
Within your calling, what are you set apart for? Here again, all of us should be concerned with sharing the gospel.
Let’s pray for clarity on this. If I were to write a letter in the style of Paul’s, I might say: “Wes, servant of Christ Jesus, called to be a leader, set apart for the Gospel.” What about you?
