The Hope of His Calling, Part 1

Introduction: Paul's Prayer for Spiritual Illumination

0:02 I would encourage you to turn with me in your own Bibles to Ephesians chapter 1.

0:10 I shall read verses 15 through to the middle of verse 19, and break off the reading there at a rather awkward place.

0:24 But since this entire paragraph is one extended sentence, this seems to be a convenient place to break it off for the purpose of our study today.

0:36 For this cause I also, having heard of the faith in the Lord Jesus which is among you, and the love which ye show toward all the saints, cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you a spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of your heart enlightened, that ye may know, know what is the hope of his calling, what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints, and what the exceeding greatness of his power to usward who believe.

1:21 In this tremendous prayer of the Apostle Paul, we have seen that the principal concern of that prayer is that the Father would grant to the Ephesian Christians a greater measure of the Spirit, presence and power, particularly in the realm of his ministry of opening up the truth of God. Now the Spirit is the Spirit of love, he is the Spirit of power, he is the Spirit of grace, he is the Spirit of all of these things, and yet of all the many faceted works and ministries of the Spirit, that which the Apostle Paul focuses upon is his participation, his particular ministry of illumination in the mind and heart of the believer.

2:14 Now since, as we saw last week, the Apostle Paul was not concerned to gain a reputation for being profound, nor was he concerned simply that there be some very astute and perceptive lay theologians at Ephesus, we must constantly ask ourselves why of all the things that a man who has such a broad vision of the Father, the purpose of God, and such an accurate knowledge of the people of God, why should he focus on this particular work of the Holy Spirit? Why should he be concerned that they know certain things? That the Father give them the spirit of wisdom and revelation?

The Purpose of Knowing Divine Truth: Sanctification and Godliness

2:58 Well, it's for the simple reason that the Apostle Paul knew that it is by means of more accurate, enlarged and spiritually perceptive views of divine truth that Christians grow and are established.

3:17 God is ordained that the sanctification of His people advance within the context of truth. Jesus prayed in John 17, 17, Father, sanctify them in the truth. Thy word is truth. So there is no valid sanctification outside of the realm of truth.

3:40 And the extent of our sanctification in great measure will depend upon the extent of our understanding of divine truth. And when we catch that biblical perspective, it will save us from a great error on the left and a great error on the right. There are those who say, yes, we must know the word, we must know the truth, we must understand the book. But they act as though that were an end in itself.

4:10 And it never was intended to be an end in itself. Jesus didn't say, Father, help them to know the truth. He said, sanctify them in the truth. That's why Paul can say in Titus 1, the truth which is according to godliness.

4:27 The whole end of truth is godliness. So if we catch that perspective, it will keep us from the error of what we might call barren intellectualism, dead orthodoxy. But now on the other hand, there are those who say, all this matter of thinking about theology and these words, calling and chosen and predestined and redeemed, these big words, I'm just a simple believer and I love Jesus. You folks be theologians.

4:55 I just want to draw close to Jesus.

4:58 I just want to know Jesus. Doctrine divides. Just tell me more about Jesus. But wait a minute, my friend.

5:06 You cannot go on in love to Jesus unless you know more and more with greater biblical accuracy who Jesus is. What He's done for you. What you are in Him. So it keeps us from that terrible error on the right hand of what we might call mysticism.

5:22 Or the hyper-spiritual mentality that pits knowledge against experience. And this is being done on every hand in our day. You people can have your theology. We're going to get happy and we're going to get blessed.

5:37 But my friend, if you get blessed and happy any other way than by the Holy Ghost opening your mind to truth, your happiness and your blessing comes from a source that is not scriptural.

5:51 If the light of truth focuses upon the mind and heart until it burns and you shout glory and walk right up over the ceiling and down again, that's alright.

6:01 Just so long as the thing that got you up the walls and across and down was divine truth brought home to the mind by the Spirit and then when you go out of here that you walk straight according to the rule of God. That's why Paul prays this way. Now we're examining his prayer. We've looked at the setting, the context of the prayer and we noted last week by way of introduction that the prayer focused upon the Spirit's granting to the Ephesians the ability to know, that is, to have enlarged more accurate perception of certain things.

The Hope of His Calling: Its Source and Substance

6:38 Three things in particular. The hope of his calling. Secondly, the exceeding, I'm sorry, the riches of the glory, of his inheritance, and thirdly, the exceeding greatness of his power. Now we hope to examine those one by one, show their relationship one to another. This morning we begin to examine the first. He prays that they may know what is the hope of his calling. And as you see the words before you in the text, something should be very obvious to you. Namely, that whatever the hope is, the source of that hope is the calling of God. Look at it. That ye may know what is the hope

7:25 of his calling. That is the hope which derives from the calling of God. When God calls a man, he implants hope within his bosom. Before we are effectually called by God, one of the descriptions of us is chapter 2 and verse 12, no hope and without God in the world. The mark of the unconverted man is no hope. The mark of every converted man is hope. And what's the difference between the converted and the unconverted? One's been called, the other has not. And so we are calling then this matter of the calling of God.

8:09 We are designating it the source of the Christian hope, the calling of God. And then next week, God willing, we shall study. The substance of the Christian hope, the consummation of redemption, and then possibly, thirdly, the superiority of the Christian hope, the covenant of grace. So then, let us address ourselves this morning to a study of the source of the Christian's hope, the calling of God.

8:36 Ephesians 4.4 makes very clear that when we attribute the source of the hope to God's calling, we are not forcing something into the text. For Paul uses a similar phrase in chapter 4 and verse 4. Look at it.

8:50 There is one body and one spirit, even as ye were called in one hope of your calling. And he traces the hope again back to its source in the calling of God. Now this brings us to a very practical issue this morning. Every one of you sitting in this place, from the youngest to the oldest, from the most, uninstructed or ill-instructed to the most advanced student of the word, all of us are put in one of two categories, very simply divided this morning. Some of you have a hope because you've been called. Some of you have no hope because you've not been called. You say, well, how can I know which class I'm in? Well, you've got to know what calling is. How can you tell if you have the

Defining 'Calling': Beyond 20th Century English

9:42 hope, which is always identified with a calling, unless you first of all know, have I been called? And how can you know if you've been called unless you know what that word is? And so we're going to zero in this morning on seeking to expound this concept of the call, which is the source of the Christian's hope. What then is the precise meaning of this word calling? It's another of those biblical words, which if you simply attach to it a 20th century English meaning, you've absolutely bled it of all of its biblical blood and life. In fact, you've killed it. It's one of those words, like so many biblical words in the New Testament that begin like a small snowball in the Old Testament. And I thought maybe the kids were going to be able to make some snowmen the other day when those big snowflakes came. Didn't it look like we're going to have lots of nice wet snow and

10:32 then turn into rain? But anyway, what happens when you make the snowball? Well, the snowman, you start with that little ball. And as you roll it down the hill or across the front lawn, it gathers more and more snow, more and more snow until you have that huge thing that forms the base of that man.

10:50 That ought to go to Weight Watchers. He's always rounded out like this. Now that's what happens when you start studying a word like calling. You see it begin to be used in the Old Testament.

11:02 And as it comes rolling through the pages of the history of God's people, it gathers more and richer and greater significance until it comes before us in all of its beauty, in all of its fullness in the New Testament. To change the figure, there's an aspect in which it's like some diamonds that are found in the diamond fields of South Africa. When they are initially found, there are a lot of impurities attached to them and on the outside of them. And before you can see that diamond in all of its beauty, it has to be, first of all, removed, all of the impurities removed, and then it has to be cut a certain way and then polished until finally there it is set against a piece of black velvet. And there's an oscillating light above it that moves slowly. And as it passes over, it's like a piece of black velvet. And as it passes over, it's like a piece of all of the inner fire and beauty of that gem shines out in its various facets. Why? Because

12:00 that thing is now reflecting and displaying all that it had inherently here. But now it's prepared to show it in all of its true beauty. Now the word calling, like some other biblical words, because God was dealing with a nation, it had many things about it that were external and temporal. But when the word comes to us in the New Testament, it comes to us in the New Testament.

12:21 It comes with tremendous and God-honoring beauty. How are we to understand, then, what the word calling means? Well, I refer you to a statement in the Confession that I find so helpful in this whole matter. 674 in your hymnals, if you want to just look at the statement. It's paragraph number nine in the section on the Scriptures. And paragraph nine says, Roman numeral IX, the infallible rule of interpretation of Scripture is the Scripture itself. And therefore, when there is a question about the true and full sense of any Scripture, which is not manifold but one, it must be searched and known by other places that speak more clearly. Now isn't this the precise task that is before us this morning? Paul says, I'm praying that you may know what is the hope

13:19 that derives from this scripture. And I'm praying that you may know what is the hope that derives from this scripture. And I'm praying that you may know what is the hope that derives from this calling. And we're together asking the question, what is the calling? Well, the Confession says to us, the only infallible rule to find out the true and full sense of this scripture, Ephesians 1.18, is to search out the other places in Scripture which speak more clearly. And that's what we're going to do this morning. What then does the word call mean? Well, it has in the first place what we would call a general order. We would call it a general order. We would call it a general order. or a secular usage.

Secular and General Usages of 'Calling'

13:52 And if you search the scriptures, you'll find that this same word in the original has at least three different secular usages. Sometimes it simply means to designate someone or something, to give a name. Matthew 1.21, good Christmas verse.

14:09 Thou shalt call, same word, call his name Jesus. Thou shalt designate him Jesus. It's the word used in Matthew 22.43.

14:19 If David called him Lord, that is, he designated him Lord. Sometimes in a secular use, it means to send for or to beckon someone, usually with special authority. Matthew 2.1, Herod called, same word, the wise men.

14:39 He beckoned to them. He sent for them. Matthew 25.14, the master called his servants to him.

14:47 He beckoned for them with particular authority. Sometimes it means, in the third place, in a secular way, to be appointed or assigned to a particular function or station in life. Romans 1.1, Paul says, Paul, a called apostle.

15:06 1 Corinthians 7.20, Let a man abide in the calling, the occupation, which has been assigned to him. Now those are the usages in a secular sense. But now our concern is with calling, as it relates to a totally different field.

15:23 Namely, when it relates to the summons from God to the blessings and provisions of salvation through the gospel. And whenever the word call is used with reference to the summons from heaven to guilty sinners to partake of the blessings of salvation through the gospel, it is used in two senses. One, very infrequently, the, the last is the predominant use. The infrequent use, and you will only find this in the gospels, not once in the epistles is the word used in this way.

16:02 You see, the snowball is still gathering weight and size and dimension when it comes through the gospels. So when you come to the word call, you don't take it in its fullest sense as you find it in the gospels. For you will find it used there in the specimen case, Matthew 22, verses 3 to 8. This is very familiar.

16:23 It ought to be more so since it was the imagery of one of the hymns we sang this morning. It's the parable of the marriage feast. And in Matthew 22, in verse 3, we read, And send forth his servants to call them that were called. Same word in the original.

16:42 Call them. Invite them that were bidden to the marriage and they would not come. Verse 8, Then said he to his servants, The wedding is ready, but they that were bidden, they that were called, they that were invited, were not worthy. And you have a similar reference in Luke 14 as well.

17:02 Now it's obvious what this is. This is what we would call the general call or invitation to gospel privileges and to gospel demands. This is what we would call the universal offer of the gospel. And this call is always sincere.

17:20 God says, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that ye turn and live. Turn ye, turn ye, for why will ye die? When I call sinners in this place to repent and to believe the gospel, that call that comes through the servant of Christ from God is a sincere call. It is always, secondly, a universal or indiscriminate call.

17:44 Ho, everyone that thirsteth, come ye to the waters. And he that hath no money, come, buy wine and milk with us. Without money and without price. And it is often attended by the Spirit.

17:57 Stephen could say to those of his day, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost. The Holy Spirit speaking through the apostolic witness. 1 Peter 1.12 Peter speaks of those that preached unto you the gospel with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven.

18:14 This is what unlocks passages like Hebrews 6 and Hebrews 10. They've tasted of the heavenly gift. We're made partakers of the Holy Spirit. The offer is given.

18:26 The gospel is preached. It's attended with power. People sit there and know, I'm hearing something more than the voice of another mortal. I'm hearing the voice of God thundering in my conscience and in my spirit.

18:40 Sometimes it is used in the sense of that call. But you'll notice that this call can be ignored. It can be despised. And it can be resisted.

18:51 You find it in the parable of the marriage feast. They said, oh, thanks for the invitation, but not today. They treated it lightly. They ignored it.

19:00 They turned it down. In fact, if this were the only kind of call God ever issued, no one would ever comply with it.

19:13 Why? Because the scripture says the carnal mind is enmity against God. It is not subject to the law of God and neither indeed can it be.

19:24 Well, what is God's law? It's the expression of His will. What is His will? That we repent and believe, but the carnal mind will not repent.

19:33 A man who loves his sin, is he going to forsake that which is the darling of his heart? To embrace something that he thinks is terribly foolish? Well, the preaching of the cross is to them that bears foolishness. The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness unto him.

19:49 Neither can he know them, because they are spiritually deserved.

19:54 John 3, 19 and 20, this is the scripture. This is the scripture. This is the scripture. This is the scripture.

19:55 This is the scripture. This is the condemnation that light has come into the world and men love darkness rather than light because their deeds are evil and they will not come to the light that their deeds should be reproved.

20:08 And in the Gospels, in the only indisputable passage would be the Matthew 22 and the Luke 14 passage. You may have it in Matthew 9, but it's not certain. The word calling refers then to this matter of the general, the universal, the indiscriminate summons to repentance and faith and to the blessings of God. To the blessings of the Gospel.

The Exclusive New Testament Usage: Effectual Calling

20:28 But now, and all of this has been to lead us, I hope to understand Paul's prayer in Ephesians 1. The second usage and by far the almost exclusive usage in the New Testament and it is the exclusive usage in the epistles. The word calling never refers to summons and invitation alone. It always refers to that powerful, efficacious call that actually brings men into the blessings of the Gospel which it offers.

21:06 It was the same love that spread the feast that sweetly drew me in. Else I had still refused to come and perished in my sin. Lenski, one of the most careful commentators in the New Testament says concerning this use of the word call, quote, in the epistles, noun, verb and verbal noun that is calling, called, the called ones are always used with reference to the successful call of God and not as in Matthew 22.14 with reference to the rejected call.

21:47 Now how can we establish that? Well it's very simple and I won't wear you with a dozen references. Let me take two or three that are an index of all the others. Will you turn to Romans 8 for a moment?

21:59 And I hope you can keep the development of thought in your mind as we've come thus far. The source of our hope is the calling of God. What is the calling of God? Well we've seen the word call has three secular usages that don't fit here.

22:13 It has two usages with reference to the Gospel, the general invitation. That doesn't fit here. That doesn't give birth to hope. Sometimes that gives birth to condemnation.

22:23 But the second use and predominant use is that powerful effectual call which brings us to God. And that is the calling of God. men to the blessings of salvation Romans 8 now the very familiar text used for the consolation of God's people in the face of calamity and we know verse 28 that to them that love God all things work together for good now who are the people who love God did they just get up some morning and say hey you know I love God isn't that wonderful how did I come into this state well he tells us look he parallels the lovers of God as those that are called according and you'll notice in your Bibles the word his is in italics the pronoun is not there in the original the proper translation is them that are called according to purpose now parallel the two things does everybody who hears the gospel love God yes or no alright then calling in this context must mean something more than just summons right who loves God those who've actually been saved now he describes the lovers of God as those who've been called of God you see how the word invitation just won't fit here not all who've been invited to the gospel love him some of the most deeply died haters of God are those who've had the light

23:52 of the gospel and refused it so you see the word call here will not allow any other translation or any other meaning than the condemnation of being brought into actual possession of grace read on for whom he did foreknow he also foreordained to be conformed to the image of his son that he might be the firstborn among many brethren whom he foreordained them he called you see what he's saying the result of foreordination is calling and whom he called he justified is every man summoned through the gospel actually justified first of all so you see you can't put any meaning on this word call that falls short of God actually not merely summoning but laying hold of the sinner and bringing him to the very blessings which he offers in the gospel and he goes on to say all who are called are justified all who are justified are glorified and calling stands right in the middle between God's predestinating grace on the one hand and the glorification of the believer on the other and to take calling out of the context of that great boundary of eternal and sovereign grace is absolutely to butcher the sense of the apostles teaching one other passage that we'll look at very briefly is 1st Corinthians 1

25:20 verses 24 and 26 Paul is speaking about the offense of the cross and how God is designed to save men through a message that they call foolishness verses 23 and following of 1st Corinthians 1 but we preach Christ crucified unto Jews a stumbling block and unto Gentiles foolishness but unto them that are here's the word called both Jews and Greeks Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God does Christ become the power of God to every man who's invited every man who's summoned of course not he becomes the power of God he becomes the power of God he becomes the power of God and the wisdom of God to those who are actually brought into vital relationship with him and here Paul calls them the called ones so special is this concept of calling that it actually becomes one of those precious exclusive words by which the people of God are described in scripture that little word saint the hagios, the holy ones becomes a special designation of believers the word called becomes a special designation of the true people of God two instances of it Jude verse 1 Jude verse 1 Jude a servant of Jesus Christ and a brother of James

26:49 to them that are called beloved in God the Father and kept for Jesus Christ you see how rich the word is calling is so peculiar to the believer that he puts it on a parallel with being beloved in God and being kept by the power of God and you find a similar thing in Revelation 17 and verse 14 where John in this vision sees the redeemed and how does he describe them Revelation 17 14 these shall war against the Lamb and the Lamb shall overcome them for he is King of Kings sorry for he is Lord of Lord and King of Kings and they also and they also shall overcome that are with him how shall I describe them what's the first word he gives called chosen and faithful so you see there is absolutely no other conclusion we can draw than that the word called means nothing less than this powerful work of God ushering men into the possession of gospel grace now in order to as it were back off back off back off and take the raw materials on this great theme of calling and just break them down into some kind of structure for the remainder of our time very quickly

Four Lines of Truth About the Effectual Call

28:18 consider with me four lines of truth about this call which is the source of the hope first of all who's the author of this call why the author is obviously God himself look at the text back in Ephesians he says I pray that ye may know not what is the hope of your calling then it would focus on the fact that they are called but it's what is the hope what is the hope of his calling the calling that comes from the living God himself that ye may know what is the hope I'm sorry I'm looking at the wrong passage here that ye may know what is the hope of his calling and Paul is very very careful to make sure that whenever we think of calling we never look at the hope inward to ourselves but upward and outward to him who has done the calling and that's the pervasive emphasis of the New Testament 1 Corinthians 1.9 but God is faithful by whom ye were called into the fellowship of his son Jesus Christ our Lord 1 Peter 2.9 that ye should show forth the praises of him who called you out of darkness into marvelous light if this is true then we do not call ourselves

29:47 you see this cuts the nerve of what historically has been called synergism that is that when a man asked himself why is it that I'm a believer he would in any way think that he has mixed up some activity of his own with the mighty working of God as opposed to synergism soon the Greek word for together we confess the biblical truth of mightiness that is it is God alone who lays hold of us and draws us to himself hence the scripture says those who are born and are made the children of God are not born of the will of man nor of the will of flesh nor of blood but of God oh you say that's all very well and good pastor but what practical implications does this have well when you begin to consider the hope it has all kinds of implications you see if that hope is the result of something that began with man it can terminate with something in man but if it's the hope that is the result of his calling thank God it's a hope that can never be frustrated the hope rests down not upon the shifting sands of what man can do but upon the eternal rock of what God does down and in particular the emphasis of the scripture is that the Father

31:16 is the primary agent in the triune God in calling we need to keep this in focus sometimes we neatly split up the Trinity in its work of salvation by saying the Father purposes the Son purchases and the Spirit applies and that's alright if you think of it in a larger context but it's not as though the Father purposed salvation Jesus died and went back to heaven and now the Spirit is operative no no at every point in the redemptive process all of us all three persons of the Godhead are active and in our calling though the sinner is most conscious of his approach to God through Christ looking to Christ as his sin bearer and as his sovereign his prophet priest and king he must recognize as a conscious act of worship that it was the Father who effectually called him look at those texts that I quoted earlier God is faithful by whom you were called unto the Father the fellowship of his Son well there the word God obviously refers to the Father for it's the Father who calls us into fellowship with the Son and in the context here Paul says for this cause I pray to whom the God of our Lord Jesus the Father of glory that he may give you to know what is the hope of his calling and the his refers back to the Father

32:44 and so as the people of God we must know what it is to worship the Father not only for those counsels in eternity when he planned redemption but for his mighty call by which he brought us out of darkness into marvelous life the author of the call is God himself hence anything that comes out of that call and particular the hope that comes out of it is a solid and a certain hope secondly what is the origin or the source of this call or the first framework and I fought for the right word and I'm still not satisfied so you take which one suits you best when we ask now what was it that moved God to call what is the framework out of which the call came as with all the blessings of grace the Bible is careful to say that the calling goes back to the eternal electing love and sovereign purpose of God turn back to Romans 8 and see how beautifully Paul ties these things together and then we'll look quickly at three other passages where the same framework of the call is set before us try to catch now the broad sweeping concepts we go back to verse 28 everything's working together to good for good to those who love God that is the lovers of God are those called according to purpose

34:12 now notice these words for whom he foreknew now not what he foreknew the idea of exegeting this verse that God foresaw that some would believe and therefore he chose them that would read for what he foreknew he doesn't foreknow things he foreknows people for whom he foreknew that is whom he regarded with distinguishing love and affection Romans 11 2 Israel is called the people whom he foreknew what did he do he foreordained them to be conformed to the image of his son and to the image that he might be the firstborn among many brethren and whom he foreordained them he called do you see the framework of calling we must never look upon our calling as coming in isolation from that framework that origin that source of God's gracious design to save a people a people called here the ones whom he foreknew the ones upon whom he set his love in sovereign and electing grace look at 2nd Timothy 1 and verse 9 where the same thought is attached to calling Paul can't think of calling without thinking of this framework tracing it back to its source and its origin 2nd Timothy 1 verse 9 or verse 8 to pick up the thread of thought

35:41 be not ashamed therefore of the testimony of our Lord nor of me his prisoner but suffer hardship with the gospel according to the power of God who saved us and called us with a holy calling not according to our works the framework of his calling was not that he saw we would do something when he called no no but it was according to his own purpose and grace which was given us see it purpose grace given does that language set the bells of your heart to ringing purpose grace , given that's the language of the Bible where was it given in Christ Jesus before times eternal Paul cannot trace what happened on the road to Damascus back merely to some circumstances of what he saw in a godly example in Stephen and these other things he was never content till he traced it back to where he met that mysterious veil of God's eternal purposes and he was and then he fell on his face and he worshipped saved us called us according to eternal purpose now turn to 2 Thessalonians and you'll see again this framework this origin this source of the calling what is it

37:10 he starts in chapter 2 in verse 13 with these words we are bound to give thanks to God always for you brethren beloved of the Lord for that God chose you from the beginning unto salvation in sanctification of the spirit and belief of the truth where unto he called you through our gospel to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ can you feel with the apostle what he's talking about here he says when I bow and I think about you Thessalonians what can I do but render thanks to God and as he renders thanks to God what does he do he says oh God thank you thank you that you chose a people there at Thessalonica look at his language we're bound to give thanks beloved of the Lord for that God chose you he thanks God for his electing purpose he says without that there'd be no Christians at Thessalonica but Lord I know that you chose a people why because when the gospel was preached you called them you called them by my gospel and Lord though I must leave them you haven't left them and though my designs and desires may be frustrated Lord yours won't you've called them to the obtaining of the very glory of Christ and so the same

38:39 vision of Romans 8 comes into view from eternity to eternity and in between God calling a people and keeping them by his grace what's the framework of God's call the framework of his call his sovereign electing mercy and grace that perspective comes out even in the book of the revelation and I'm amazed how at times we can get so caught up in trying to give our own particular interpretation of the imagery in revelation and miss some of these gems of solid uncomplicated Christian teaching go back to that verse that we looked at a moment ago Revelation 17 14 notice the two things that are put back to back those that are with the conquering came what are they called they are called the called ones the chosen ones and the faithful they are called why called because they were chosen and how can they know that they've been called and chosen because they persevere and they are faithful there's the doctrine of perseverance there's the doctrine of unconditional election there's the doctrine of efficacious call all three doctrines in one little verse there they are that's not reading into them that's letting the Bible

40:07 interpret what those words mean the people of God are called and called because chosen for the framework of calling is always God's sovereign and electing grace ah you say again now Pastor what practical effect does that have well you see we're going to study the hope next week what is the substance of hope what is the substance of hope what is the substance of hope what is the substance of hope what is the substance of that hope thank God that hope which in its essence I'll give you a little preview is the confidence of the consummation of God's redemptive designs for me in eternity that's that hope it's the confidence that all His redemptive designs will be consummated in eternity what gives me that solid hope it's that those designs began in eternity see and when I see the framework of calling being that of God's eternal purposes then I'm prepared to understand the hope of His calling what a hope cannot be frustrated it will not be frustrated Almighty God designed it in eternity and He shall realize it in the world to come hallelujah well then in the third place and we must hurry through this what is the nature of this call this call without which there is no hope but thank God when you have the call you have the hope

41:35 well we understand from the scripture it is an efficacious call that is a call that effects what it ought to effect Paul describes it this way in 1 Corinthians 1.9 God is faithful by whom ye were called what into the fellowship of His Son Jesus Christ our Lord when God calls a sinner He doesn't leave you with just some kind of an empty decision or profession He brings him into union with His Son and if you're united to Christ and the very life of God has been implanted within your bosom you're a new creature in Christ and if you're not a new creature you're not in Christ and if you're not in Christ you're not called you may have heeded the evangelist's tender appeals to walk an aisle you may have heeded the clever little syllogisms of the personal work or in the inquiry room and prayed your prayer but you're lost you're on your way to the pit if you're not a new creature in Christ with new motives new desires new longings new ambitions new loves and new hates this is an effectual call it brings men into union with Christ are you united to Christ?

42:59 are you? God is faithful by whom ye Corinthians were called into the fellowship of his Son it's an efficacious call brings you into Christ it's efficacious brings you out of darkness 1 Peter 2.9 show forth the praises of him who has brought us out of darkness into light it's a call that's efficacious because it actually makes men holy Paul says in 2 Thessalonians 2.13 and 14 God chose you through sanctification of the soul spirit and belief of the truth whereunto he called you by our gospel when they were called what did they come what did they come into?

43:44 he said belief of the truth and the sanctifying power of the spirit you say you believe the truth of the gospel? then my friend you better demonstrate that you've experienced and are experiencing the sanctifying power of the gospel and if you're not experiencing the sanctifying power of the gospel don't you talk about believing the truth God didn't call you into that he always calls with an efficacious call that leads you to the truth that lays hold of the sinner the nature of the call efficacious secondly it's immutable Romans 11.29 the gifts and callings of God are without repentance thirdly it has consummate glory as its goal 1 Peter 5.10 more of that next week but I want to close on this note what's the manner in which that call comes?

The Manner of the Call and Personal Application

44:29 we looked at the author God himself the framework of the call electing grace the nature of the call it is efficacious it is immutable it has consummate glory as its end but how does the call come? turn back to the 2 Thessalonians I'll get it yet the 2 Thessalonians passage you try that this afternoon on your own it's much easier to say 2 Thessalonians and just hang the tongue out yes alright 2 Thessalonians chapter 2 now notice the manner in which the call comes and this brings it down to a very pointed practical note on which I trust to end this morning we are bound to give thanks to God always for you brethren beloved of the Lord for that God chose you from the beginning unto salvation in sanctification of the spirit and belief of the truth where unto he called you here's the phrase through our gospel how does this mighty call of God come always and only in connection with the gospel and Paul says our gospel by that he means the full blown apostolic gospel in all of its doctrinal vigor

45:58 and substance he didn't say where unto he called you through a gospel or through some gospel but through our gospel that's how the call comes and the most beautiful example I know of this are not thee but one is in the book of Acts in the 16th chapter when Paul goes down to a riverside prayer meeting to preach and the scripture says in this beautiful simple language concerning a woman named Lydia whose heart the Lord opened so that she attended to the things that were spoken by Paul how did the call come is someone sitting in his or her sins indifferent and careless half asleep sitting in a service like this morning with a mind full of the roast and the presents yet to be bought and all of a sudden they just find themselves enamored with the glory of Christ no no what happens the gospel begins to take hold of the mind they begin to think seriously about God and his law and sin and heaven and hell and the great facts of the gospel and they begin to contemplate the reality the relationship of those facts to themselves and some in a very gradual way some in a very sudden some in a way in which all the inward bells and sirens go off at full pitch some in which there is

47:27 but a whispering as they pass the threshold into life but in every case regardless of the external circumstances it's through the gospel that they're called the truth about sin and grace takes hold of the gospel and they repent and they believe on the Lord Jesus Christ isn't that while Paul described their conversion in the first chapter he said ye heard ye believed ye were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise that's how they were called now my friend I press the word on your conscience this morning have you been called when you say preacher you're throwing a curve at me all the preachers in the past asked me if I'd made my decision for Christ I'm not asking if you made your decision for Christ I'm asking you has Almighty God called you has Almighty God laid hold of you and brought you into union with His Son that's my question you say I never thought of it that way you better begin to think of it that way that's the biblical way of thinking of salvation but when it pleased God Paul said who separated me from my mother's womb and called me by His grace to reveal His Son in me that's biblical description of conversion not I did this I, I, I, I, I my friend have you been called that's the question

48:55 I'm not asking have you heard voices I'm not asking have you seen angels fluttering their wings little doves of peace alighting on your brow saying God loves you or something else no, no I'm asking you have you been called through the gospel has the truth of your sin really gripped you that you've offended a holy God you deserve to be crushed by the wrath of God the wrath and anger of that God has that gripped you until inwardly you've trembled at the thought of your friend how about you kids the God that mommy and daddy talk about and pray to have you ever trembled at the thought that He's holy and every time you punch brother and sister and lie to mommy and daddy that's sin enough to cause that God to crush you and send you to the deepest hell even though you may not be ten years old has that really gripped you kids has it you know what it is in your place of prayer laying on your bed lying on your bed at night to say oh God forgive my sins oh God my sins my sins Lord forgive them you kids know what that is how about you adults He calls through the gospel a gospel that always comes in a context of showing the truth about sin it always comes in a context showing the truth about Jesus Christ that He's the glorious Son of God God incarnate in human flesh

50:23 who lived who died who rose and the gospel says that in what He is and does and did upon the cross is the only hope for sinners to be brought to God in a way consistent with all of His glorious attributes has the gospel become good news has it when I ask you have you been called this is what I'm asking you you're called through the gospel has the truth of the gospel gripped you have you complied with the demands of the gospel God commandeth all men everywhere to repent this is the truth this is His commandment that we believe in the name of His Son Jesus Christ have you repented have you believed are you repenting are you believing because if you can answer the first two questions you can answer the last two the only proof you ever once repented and once believed is that you are repenting and you are believing what kind of double talk is that no it's not double talk if you've truly repented you've been given a new heart which is now a repentant heart and if you've truly been given eyes to see the glory of Christ and believe on Him you yet believe on Him that's why all the tenses in the book of John are present tense he that believeth present tense on the Son John 3.16 that great gospel text does not say God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever makes an act of faith no no it's whosoever believeth it's in the present tense in your English Bible and in the Greek

51:52 whosoever believeth whosoever is in a state of recumbency upon reliance upon trust in commitment to the Lord Jesus Christ he shall not perish I know I've gone over the normal time this morning but as I've prayed over the message my prayer has been oh God what I ask above all else is not the ability to make clear the doctrine of effectual calling but oh God give us a monument of what it is and call somebody this morning has the voice of God reached your heart what are you waiting for some of you are waiting for God to thunderize you're out of heaven and pick you up out of your seat and shake you and sit you down again He's not going to do it you're tempting Him He's put you under the sound of the apostolic gospel we're saying to you in Christ's name that you've offended God He has a controversy with you but in love and in mercy He sent His Son who died and rose and now commissions His servants to say repent believe oh my friend lay hold of Christ cast yourself upon Him turn from your sin and from your unbelief that's how men are called and you can be called here this morning for that special efficacious powerful call you'll never know it until you heed the general call

53:22 that's why Peter says make your calling and your election sure and how do you do it by heeding the general call to embrace the Savior and set upon a path a path of godliness and obedience to His revealed will when you have the calling then you've got the hope now you can sit down and examine it but we don't want to waste time examining what we don't have so that's why we started this morning with the basis of the hope the calling of God are you called do you have a ground for the hope if you don't I plead with you in Christ's name come to the feast it's spread and the master says go into the highways and hedges and compel them to come in I would compel you with earnest entreaty in Christ's name come come to the Savior cry to Him for mercy start feasting upon the dainties of gospel provision and child of God if you've been called I hope as never before you have now a more intelligent understanding of what God is doing to you and what God is doing to you and what you're calling it that will lead you to praise God with greater zeal and then to serve Him with greater fervency let us pray