Called and Chosen of God

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The Bible does plainly speak of those who have been called by God. Notice what Paul said to the Thessalonian brethren: “Faithful is He [God] that calls you …” (1 Thes. 5:24). As a warning to the Galatian congregation, who were losing sight of the true gospel, he said this: “I marvel that you are so soon removed from Him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel” (Gal. 1:6), and later added, “This persuasion comes not of Him that calls you” (Gal. 5:7-8). To the Corinthian congregation he wrote, “For you see your calling brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called” (1 Cor. 1:26).

Christ Himself spoke on many occasions about the Christian calling. You may be familiar with His statement, “For many are called, but few are chosen,” found in both Matthew 22:14 and 20:16. Later, adding meaning to the second part of this phrase, He explained this to His disciples: “You have not chosen Me but I have chosen you” (John 15:16), and then “But I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hates you” (John 15:19).

When placed together, these passages explain that God is calling a few people—actually a very few—out of the world for His supreme purpose. Those who respond to His calling are then “chosen,” going on to repentance, baptism, and conversion.

What about You?

Over time, many find themselves learning things that they have never heard before. They discover that there is a correct (a true) understanding of the Bible’s doctrines, and there is a wrong one. They come to recognize that they have been brought into contact with extraordinary understanding, unknown to all around them. They notice that the Bible makes sense—that it is not as hard to understand as they had previously thought. Then, feeling a growing need to act on what they are learning, many wonder, “Am I being called by God?” Sometimes this question takes the form of “Am I undergoing ‘conversion’?” or “Should I get baptized?” or even “Have I come in contact with God’s true Church?” At best, most are unsure of how to answer these basic questions, and many have absolutely no idea whatsoever how to even properly address them.

Let’s make plain, from God’s Word, how to know if God is calling you. It can be made simple, virtually impossible to misunderstand. After all, this question is one of the most important you will ever face. Properly understanding its answer is of PARAMOUNT IMPORTANCE to your life!

I first began learning God’s truth when I was 17 years old. Before God called me, I had not known a single one of the true doctrines of the Bible. The calling process for me began when I heard the voice of a man named Herbert W. Armstrong, being broadcast from Pasadena, California. This was 1966, and it was immediately evident to me that I was hearing things from this man that I had NEVER heard before—and with plain scriptural PROOFS to back them up. I remember being astonished at how clear the Bible became—and how exciting it was to study. Prior to this—throughout the time I attended the well-known, respected denomination of my youth—I had always found the Bible boring and hard to understand.

People of all ages and backgrounds puzzle over just what a “calling” is. Many reduce it to little more than a particular feeling that comes over them, which they attribute to God. Millions in the world feel “called”—in some cases to the “church,” in other cases to the “ministry,” or “missionary work,” in still other cases to work with children, and in yet others to serve in the medical profession or even in the military. Ignorant of what God says, so many people are left to rely on mere feelings, assuming that their lives—and the paths they choose—are divinely inspired. They attribute this “inspiration” to being called of God. Sadly, most never learn that these “callings” have nothing to do with following the true God of the Bible.

A true calling from God is much more than a kind of abstract feeling that human reasoning is only too happy to conclude is “from God”!

Defining a True Calling

In John’s gospel account, we saw Jesus stated, “No man can come to Me, except the Father which has sent Me draw him …” (John 6:44). Nineteen verses later, He repeated to His audience, “Therefore said I unto you, that no man can come unto Me, except it were given unto him of My Father” (John 6:65). In the next verse, John records that “From that time many of His disciples went back, and walked no more with Him” (John 6:66).

Many who heard Christ’s statements simply could not understand that God has to “draw” people and that a calling is something that is “given” to them. While many today appear to understand that they must in some fashion be called, they do not seek to understand—from the Bible!—how to know for certain that it is God who is calling—drawing—giving to—them whatever it is they are to receive. Let’s consider a few scriptures that make plain what it is Christians are “given” when they are called. We must clear up all possible confusion.

In Matthew, Christ’s disciples asked, “Why speak you unto them [the multitudes who heard Him] in parables?” (Matt. 13:10). His answer summarizes how and with what God calls: “He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven [or kingdom of God], but to them it is not given” (Matt. 13:11). The next several verses amplify what He meant, explaining how many in the world can hear the truths of God (the “mysteries of the kingdom”) but not grasp them. Since the overwhelming majority of mankind are not being drawn by the power of God’s Spirit, they have not been given the ability to comprehend God’s Word. How does this apply to you? The answer directly explains how to know if God is calling you: a calling, in the simplest terms, is understanding the truths of God when you see, read, or hear them.

Ask yourself: “Do I understand Bible teachings and truths when I hear them? Do the scriptures about the gospel of the kingdom of God; the plan of salvation and the purpose of human existence; climactic, soon-coming prophesied events; God’s warning message to His people; His Law—including the Sabbath command—the Holy Days; tithing; clean and unclean meats; the one true Church; and many other teachings make sense to me?”

When you read or hear these things in books such as this one, do they have meaning to you? Are you grasping them? Are they PLAIN to your understanding? Do you see them as SPECIAL KNOWLEDGE others do not have? Do you feel tempted to pinch yourself in disbelief that you could be shown things of which the masses have no idea?

If the answers to these questions are “yes,” then God is calling—“drawing”—you! The mysteries of the kingdom of God are being given to YOU!

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