Four Essential Elements for a Proper Call

The point: Do not be indifferent to the charge to discern faithful and able men to whom we can commit truth.

An ambitious mother or pastor pushing someone into ministry for personal glory is given as an example of an unsanctified and unwise ambition of others, a wrong motive for ministry.

And last of all, the unsanctified and unwise ambitions of others. The ambitious mother, the ambitious pastor, who wants to say X number of men have gone into the ministry under his influence and leadership. Well, these, I say, are six of the leading and most, frequent wrong reasons why men consider the ministry. And sad to say, some, in some men, two, three, four, five, maybe all six of these things meet.

2:26 - 2:58 Read in full sermon

The point: Do not be indifferent to the charge to discern faithful and able men to whom we can commit truth.

Spurgeon's idea that ministry is a 'catch-all for general flunkies' is used to illustrate the wrong motive of entering ministry because one has failed in other fields, rather than from a genuine call.

But be it one or two or any combination of the six, these are not biblical reasons for aspiring to the office of teaching, particularly the office of a teaching and a ruling elder. Spurgeon mentioned several others. In his section on the calls of the ministry, which also fit the idea that the ministry is a catch-all for general flunkies. A man who have not been able to make it anywhere else, so they feel well.

2:59 - 3:27 Read in full sermon

The point: Do not set the standard for ministry below what Scripture puts it, lest you encourage some to run whom God has not sent.

A quote from Bridges on the Christian ministry is used to introduce the common objection that strict qualifications would leave churches without enough pastors, which Martin refutes by prioritizing piety and adherence to God's command.

Someone remarks that if none were to be admitted into holy orders, which is the term used in Anglicanism, except those who are possessed of necessary qualifications, there could not possibly be procured a sufficient number of pastors for the supply of our churches. Now, that's a common objection. I'm sure, after we've gone over what the requisitions are for this office, even today, that the objection may be voiced, if not overtly, at least mentally and inwardly. Well, if we admit none but such as meet that standard, we wouldn't have enough pastors for our churches.

5:08 - 5:48 Read in full sermon

The point: Do not set the standard for ministry below what Scripture puts it, lest you encourage some to run whom God has not sent.

The extraordinary way God saved the Apostle Paul (direct revelation, audible voice, visible manifestation) is used to illustrate that this is not the 'rule' for ordinary conversions or calls to ministry, which are more diverse.

He saved him by direct revelation from heaven. He saved him by an audible voice, by a visible manifestation of his power. Now, you see, we don't make that the rule for us, but since the ways of the Spirit in the ordinary sense in conversion are diverse, the ways of the Spirit are like the wind, it is hard to formulate what constitutes the steps leading to a true conversion. None of them are exactly the same.

10:00 - 10:28 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: Martin quotes Bridges on the preference for few qualified pastors over many unqualified ones, then introduces John Owen's distinction between extraordinary (prophets, apostles)…

The humorous story of a man who saw 'G-P-C' in the sky and interpreted it as 'Go Preach Christ,' only to be questioned if it meant 'Go Pick Corn,' illustrates the danger of relying on extraordinary, subjective signs for an ordinary call.

Now, I found that distinction very helpful to me and whereas it clarifies the issue, it also lets us know the complicating factor in the issue because none of us, I trust, believes that God is speaking by direct revelation and that somewhere in the middle of the night out in the middle of the woods you heard a voice saying, go preach. In fact, you've heard the famous illustration of this. The fellow that said he was out plowing one night and he saw big, bright letters in the sky, G-P-C, and he concluded that God had called him to preach. Go preach Christ.

11:47 - 12:23 Read in full sermon

The point: Seek to assess the pressures, responsibilities, and demands of the Christian ministry in a very realistic way, avoiding romantic or unrealistic concepts.

Jeremiah 20:9, where Jeremiah describes God's word as a 'fire shut up within my bones,' is quoted to illustrate the constraining, internal desire that compels a true preacher.

If we think of it in terms particularly of the preaching aspect, I believe it's right to say we will experience something like unto what Jeremiah experienced when he said in Jeremiah 20, in verse 9, Thy word was in my heart as a fire shut up within my bones. I was weary with forbearing and I could not stay. Jeremiah had said, I'm going to shut up, I get nothing but trouble when I preach, but he said, I couldn't be shut up because the word was in my heart as a fire shut up within my bones. So then there must be desire, but you'll notice I've qualified it desire born of right motives. And if I w...

18:49 - 20:00 Read in full sermon

The point: Seek to assess the pressures, responsibilities, and demands of the Christian ministry in a very realistic way, avoiding romantic or unrealistic concepts.

The romanticized idea of ministry as spending eight hours a day reading Puritans in an 'ivory tower' is used to illustrate an unrealistic and inconsiderate desire for ministry, which will quickly be 'burst.'

And so along this line, let me urge you to seek to assess the pressures, the responsibilities, the demands of the Christian ministry in a very realistic way. I've met some young men who actually felt that being in the ministry meant they could spend eight hours a day sitting up in their ivory tower with their old Puritan tones plopped on their laps, sipping tea or coffee and once in a while come down and play with the kids and kiss their wife and make a call or two here and there. And back up into the ivory tower. And that was their understanding of the Christian ministry.

20:39 - 21:17 Read in full sermon

Driving home: A disinterested love is a love that is concerned with its object, not with itself.

A quote from John Newton (also cited by Spurgeon) is used to explain 'disinterested desire,' warning that zeal for preaching without hunger for grace in one's own soul likely springs from a selfish principle.

It must be then disinterested, and I've already hinted at this, a desire born of what this office can mean to the people of God, born of a desire what it can mean to the glory of Christ and to the ongoing of the kingdom. At this point, let me quote from John Newton, whom, by the way, Spurgeon quotes in full. He quotes his whole letter in his lectures to his students. He said, when I gave the lecture, I wasn't aware of what Newton had said.

23:45 - 24:19 Read in full sermon

Driving home: A disinterested love is a love that is concerned with its object, not with itself.

The story of an engineer friend who designed his first bridge, only to see it rust, leading to dissatisfaction with his career and a growing desire for ministry, illustrates how the desire for ministry can develop at varying stages.

There have been some men who have testified that they felt long before they were even converted that God had his hand upon them for the purpose of the ministry. I can't quarrel with that. This desire has come to some men almost commensurate with their conversion. Others, I think of a dear friend of mine who had his degree in engineering and who had designed his first bridge, and this is how God began to put the desire in him.

25:09 - 25:36 Read in full sermon

Driving home: Either they have so sinned as to grieve away the Spirit that He's withdrawn their gifts, or they were never equipped by the Lord in the first place. And I'm forced to one of those two conclusions.

The analogy of a 5'2", 115-pound football player with immense desire but no physical ability to stop a 6'4", 270-pound tackle illustrates that desire alone is insufficient for ministry; divine gifts are also necessary.

Let me amplify it. Did I use the illustration about the 5 foot 2 inch 115 pound guy? Did I? Oh, well, I'll repeat it.

33:50 - 34:03 Read in full sermon

Driving home: Either they have so sinned as to grieve away the Spirit that He's withdrawn their gifts, or they were never equipped by the Lord in the first place. And I'm forced to one of those two conclusions.

The analogy of a poor woman trying to sew a dress without knowing the difference between a sleeve and a bodice, resulting in a 'grotesque product,' illustrates how a lack of spiritual wisdom (savvy) leads to misapplication of the Word.

He cannot rightly divide, or literally, cut a straight course in the Word of Truth. He'll be laying a promise on in the wrong place. It'll be like a poor woman trying to sew a dress who doesn't know the difference between a sleeve and the bodice. Between a buttonhole and a hem.

37:36 - 37:54 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: Continuing the third element, Martin discusses intellectual gifts, drawing from Owen on the need for a comprehensive grasp of divine truth, its interrelatedness, and distinctions…

A quote from Bridges (quoting Owen) highlights the danger of men undertaking ministry with only superficial knowledge, emphasizing that true wisdom and understanding of Scripture are far more profound than many realize.

So, there may be men in the assembly, who have a gift of exhortation, who can take the truths, established by a painstaking, exegetical teaching elder, and using that as his fuel, may be able to have a gift of exhortation to the assembly. And I think that distinction is seen in Romans 12, where Paul says, He that teacheth, give himself to his teaching, he that exhorteth, to his exhortation. Indicating that not every teacher, will have the gift of exhortation, not every exhorter, will have the gift of teaching. But if one is aspiring to the office of the Christian ministry, to becoming a leadin...

42:48 - 44:11 Read in full sermon

The point: Give yourselves a fair trial in public speaking to ascertain if God has called you, and honestly assess whether you can edify others.

The example of God filling men with the spirit of wisdom and understanding for building the tabernacle (Exodus 31) is used to argue that God will similarly equip those He calls to build His spiritual temple with gifts of wisdom and utterance.

When you turn to Exodus 31, you see how God has purposed to have a tabernacle raised up. And he's given directions to Moses. So it says, he filled with the spirit of wisdom and understanding and cunning craftsmanship. Here they needed someone wise enough to take the plans given on the mountain and to implement them.

48:37 - 49:03 Read in full sermon

The point: Give yourselves a fair trial in public speaking to ascertain if God has called you, and honestly assess whether you can edify others.

A quote from Spurgeon's lectures emphasizes that aptness to teach and other necessary qualities must accompany desire, using the metaphor of Leviathan aspiring to fly without wings to illustrate the folly of lacking gifts of utterance.

He says in the second place, combined with the earnest desire to become a pastor, there must be aptness to teach and some measure of the other qualities needful for the office of a public instructor. Then he goes on to say, a man must not consider that he's called to preach until he's proven that he can speak. God did not create behemoth, elephants to fly, and should Leviathan have a strong desire to ascend with the light, it would evidently be an unwise aspiration since he is not furnished with wings. And if a man be called to preach, he will be endowed with a degree of speaking ability, whic...

50:04 - 51:17 Read in full sermon

The point: Give yourselves a fair trial in public speaking to ascertain if God has called you, and honestly assess whether you can edify others.

Spurgeon's humorous story of a gentleman whose trial sermon consisted only of advising others not to think preaching is easy, illustrates the importance of having actual speaking ability and the humbling experience of lacking it.

He says in the second place, combined with the earnest desire to become a pastor, there must be aptness to teach and some measure of the other qualities needful for the office of a public instructor. Then he goes on to say, a man must not consider that he's called to preach until he's proven that he can speak. God did not create behemoth, elephants to fly, and should Leviathan have a strong desire to ascend with the light, it would evidently be an unwise aspiration since he is not furnished with wings. And if a man be called to preach, he will be endowed with a degree of speaking ability, whic...

50:04 - 51:17 Read in full sermon

The point: Wait for a correspondent opening in providence, a gradual train of circumstances pointing out the means, time, and place of entering upon the work.

A quote from John Newton advises patience and waiting for a 'correspondent opening in providence' as evidence of a proper call, warning against hastiness and trusting God's timing.

He says, well, let me read his section here. I think it is so helpful. That which evidence is a proper call is a correspondent opening in providence, a gradual train of circumstances pointing out the means, the time, the place of actually entering upon the work. Until this coincidence arrives, you must not expect to be always clear from hesitation in your own mind.

58:28 - 58:56 Read in full sermon

The point: Do not be too hasty in catching at first appearances; trust that if it is the Lord's will, He will appoint your place in service at the proper time.

Newton's personal anecdote of waiting five years for a providential opening after being convinced of his call illustrates the spiritual wisdom of patience and trusting God's timing.

He says, now it is difficult to restrain ourselves within the bounds of prudence when our zeal is warm and the sense of love of Christ is upon our hearts and we have a compassion for poor sinners. But he that believeth shall not make haste. He quotes from the book of Isaiah. Then he tells in his own incident that there was five years from the time he was convinced God had called him and equipped him before there was an opening in providence and then he says, looking back had he run then, he could see how a whole different train of events would have followed and time had proven that it was the ...

59:29 - 60:10 Read in full sermon

The point: Do not be too hasty in catching at first appearances; trust that if it is the Lord's will, He will appoint your place in service at the proper time.

A footnote from Matthew Henry (quoted by Bridges) states that humility will wait for God's call and opening, rather than being 'forward to put forth ourselves' in ministry.

Now Matthew Henry says in a footnote in Bridges page 96 for those of you who have the book, we must not be forward to put forth ourselves in the exercise of spiritual gifts. Pride often appears in this under the pretense of a desire to be useful. If the motive be correct it is good. But humility will wait for a call and by that he meant humility will wait for the place of God's opening and so I submit to you men that if God is calling you if he has furnished you for the work of the ministry he has done so as the great superintendent of the work of the church and he has a people a sphere of min...

60:10 - 61:28 Read in full sermon

Driving home: My heart cries out, Lord, help me to spare your people of the blight of the ministry of an uncalled man.

The story of a diffident friend who, despite feeble personal desire, submitted to the church's judgment and went into ministry, resulting in a 'trail of blessing,' illustrates the importance of the church's recognition and God's approval.

For all intents and purposes I am here till God bullies me out of here by a string in the heart of the earth of Arizona and I am so in the spirit of the Lord of the heavens and I am a design of the earth of the heavens and by that I am a creation of the world I am a soul of the earth and I am a being and I am a state was a being and I am and then we'll open it up for discussion. Let me emphasize again that the emphasis in your own life upon one or the other of these things will be different. I think of one dear friend of mine, whom many of us were convinced had the gifts and the graces for the...

61:28 - 62:48 Read in full sermon

Driving home: My heart cries out, Lord, help me to spare your people of the blight of the ministry of an uncalled man.

The contrast of 'uncalled men' who 'bullied themselves into a place of ministry,' leading to shriveling congregations and disillusionment, highlights the blight caused by those who run unsent.

And when he finally did go, he's been out now for about ten years, and there's been nothing but a trail of blessing wherever that man has put his foot. Blessing has come, a little work of some thirty people built up into a thriving church, same thing going on in the church where he's laboring now, out in the far west. I think of this in contrast to others who have run unsent, who have bullied themselves into a place of ministry, and when I see little congregations shriveling under the ministry, and the sourness, and the disappointment, and the disillusionment, my heart cries out, Lord, help me...

62:48 - 63:32 Read in full sermon