Calling #2: Get the Word Out
October 24, 2024 | by: Dale Thiele | 0 Comments
Posted in: Pastoral Encouragement
Last week I started to share about my sense of God’s calling on my life. This is the one of the fruits of my sabbatical, as I took time to reflect on what God has equipped and gifted me to focus on. I was ordained for gospel ministry fifteen years ago. My sense of calling has not changed much over these years. This time of reflection, however, has provided me the opportunity to refine my focus on God’s call on me.
I shared last week that my first calling is to shepherd the flock of Oak Hills to faithfully follow Christ and live for his kingdom. I summarize this calling with the shorthand, “for the kingdom.” I want to live for the kingdom. I want you to live for the kingdom. I want Oak Hills to expend all its ministry efforts and energies for the kingdom of Christ.
The second calling I sense on my life is to proclaim the riches of God’s grace, especially to those unfamiliar with the concept of grace. Here is another way I have articulated this: provide excellent and clear teaching of the Reformed faith especially for those not from a Reformed background.
Part of my passion for this calling is that it is personal. I grew up in the church and was very active in ministry. When I was exposed to clear teaching on the riches of God’s grace, however, my faith was revolutionized. No longer did I focus on what I needed to do to find favor in God’s eyes, but I focused on all that God has given me by his grace to do what he called me to do. I understood the gospel no longer as merely for new believers, but for me as God’s power continually working in my life. Bible reading no longer was a task to prove myself to God or others, but it became the gateway to receiving more of God’s grace. I did not need to try to hide behind my shaky righteousness, but I could be revel in God’s grace which is greater than all my sin.
So many people, both those who profess to be Christians and go to church and those who are not in the church, live in misery, a misery that only God’s grace can relieve. They mask this misery in so many different ways: family, careers, pleasure, volunteerism, etc. But only God’s grace is sufficient for the deepest needs and longings of the human heart. I want people to know the freedom, the joy, the power, and the peace that comes only by God’s grace.
If you consider my two articulations of this calling above, you may notice that I interchange “the riches of God’s grace” with “the Reformed faith.” I do this because I have found that the Reformed faith most clearly exalts the riches of God’s grace as taught in the Scriptures. The Reformed faith, as articulated in the Westminster Confession of Faith and Catechisms, clearly teaches the majesty, sovereignty, power, and freedom of God, the sinfulness, weakness, and need of man, the sufficiency of Christ, and the effectiveness of the Holy Spirit. God plans, pays for, applies, and preserves salvation for his people. By grace alone, we rest in Christ for the forgiveness of sin, redemption, reconciliation to the Father, adoption as children, the empowerment of the Holy Spirit, growth in holiness, and acceptance into glory for eternity. This is the overarching message of the Bible, and I have found that Reformed theology articulates it in the clearest and most God-honoring way.
Practically, what does this calling mean for me and Oak Hills? John Currie, in his book The Pastor as Leader: Principles and Practices for Connecting Preaching and Leadership, gives a helpful answer. “If the leadership is hearing from the texts preached that the ministry of the word is how Christ’s kingdom is extended, they might also intentionally dedicate resources to getting the word out to the world beyond the walls of the church” (p. 173). This is where I get my shorthand for this second calling: Get the Word Out. “The Word” is shorthand for the riches of God’s grace or the Reformed faith. This is what God’s Word is all about. And I want to get this word out. Currie speaks about “the world beyond the walls of the church.” These are the people who do not know the goodness of God’s grace.
The question then comes down to how do we get the Word out. There are many ways to get the word out today. Evangelism. Church planting. Podcasting. Blogging. Other forms of writing and video. Enhanced/intentional website. Word of mouth. And more. I want Oak Hills to “intentionally dedicate resources” to getting the Word out. We can’t do everything, but we need to do something. What will that look like for Oak Hills? Will you help us get the Word out?
