Called by God
Commentary
When I read about Amos' certainty of his call from God, I wonder. Some in my acquaintance who have been equally certain, seemed also very mistaken. They illustrated the conundrum over deciding whether a vision of GPC meant "Go preach Christ" or "Go plow corn."
Having been an organization man, I have always had the fellowship and procedures within the church to help with decisions, whether they pertained to me personally or to others. Of course, I could not claim that these institutional reinforcements were infallible. In fact, there were times when, like most leaders in the church, I had to press ahead in unpopular ways.
At such a point, any of us might envy the apostles. When they were called, Jesus was right there. "Oh to have been with him them." Even now it helps to see the nature of their ministry, in order to match our abilities with the work to be done. Fortunately, today there is a sufficient variety among the ways to serve that everyone should be able to find a useful place to witness, whether employed within the institutional church or strengthened by relationship to it for service everywhere.
Even Amos, while more isolated than most of us would ever need to be, was not totally detached from corporate life. His references to the history of Israel (2:9-11) and to practices forbidden by the Law (As examples, compare 2:7-8; 8:5 with Exodus 22:25-27; Leviticus 19:36;Deuteronomy 24:10-15.) show that Amos was guided by the traditions of his people. His certainty was not self-generated, nor dependent on totally private religious experience.
The community context for God's call is most fully evident in Ephesians. Not only does the will of God explain the role of an apostle in the church (1:1), but the whole universal church exists by God's choice and will (vv. 4, 5 and 11). When such terms and others like them are used, Ephesians stays within the realm of faith. Certainty pertains to divine purpose, revealed in Christ, to redeem humanity from slavery to sin and to create a church that is one family in the presence of God. The call to that redemption and family is for everyone.
Individual calls may be less definite, but their certainty and character may be worked out within the church. The call of the people of God is to be as prophetic as Amos, as pastoral as the apostles and as united in the gospel as proclaimed in Ephesians.
OUTLINE I
God's view is different
Amos 7:7-15
A. vv. 7-9. God, like a building inspector, is testing a wall that represents the specially chosen people. The wall is so out of line that it cannot remain standing. The symbolism is explained in factual detail in 2:6-8; 5:21-24; 8:4-6. Although King Jeroboam II had been successful in expanding the territory held by the northern kingdom of Israel and had maintained prosperity, his dynasty came to an end six months after his death, around 750 B.C., when his successor was slain in a revolt.
B. vv. 10-11. While the authorities reveled in their victories and material wealth, the prophet looked at the suffering of the poor and denounced the injustice, which contradicted God's covenant. Looking deeply into the weaknesses of the society, he knew that it could not last. Two decades later, Assyria had conquered Israel and taken exiles. Yet to the priest at the royal sanctuary in Bethel, the foresight of Amos was unpatriotic, even treasonous.
C. vv. 12-13. Since Amos was from Judah or the southern kingdom, the priest told him to carry out his unwelcome prophesying in his own land. It seems fair enough!
D. vv. 14-15. The trouble was that Amos obeyed a higher authority. Since the verb for "be" is absent in Hebrew, it is impossible to know whether the tense is past or present. Probably Amos intended the present in order to reject the slur from the priest and to indicate that he was not earning his living from prophesying. Still among the laity, Amos would obey God rather than king or priest.
OUTLINE II
Cosmic and personal
Ephesians 1:1-14
A. vv. 1-2. Perhaps the absence of any reference to Ephesus in some ancient manuscripts explains the emphasis on the universal church (1:14, 22-23), rather than upon a congregation.
B. vv. 3-6. This hymn begins like some Psalms, the Benedictus (Luke 1:68) and 1 Peter 1:3, also probably a baptismal hymn. There the term is "new birth," here it is "adoption."
The plural pronouns refer to the universal church, which defines the scope of relationships among the baptized. These soar to the heavens (1:3, 20, 2:6) and were encompassed in God's purpose before creation (1:4), so closely is the church identified with Christ.
More personal is the description of living in love with no blame as a barrier to God, children along with the one, whom at baptism, God declared "Beloved" (Mark 1:11). Such are God's "spiritual blessings" (v. 3).
C. vv. 7-14. As in the previous section, God's will, good pleasure and abundant grace work through Jesus Christ. Now he gives redemption and forgiveness through his blood and especially revelation of God's plan for cosmic fulfillment. This involves two peoples: (1) "we" in vv. 11 and 12 are Jewish Christians who have the ageold inheritance and have been the first to hope; (2) "you" (v. 13) are Gentiles who heard the gospel, believed and were marked at baptism. By the Holy Spirit, both have the guarantee to be "God's own people," united in one purpose to praise God's glory (v. 14, like vv. 6 and 12).
OUTLINE III
Jesus' ministry extended
Mark 6:7-13
A. v. 7. A new section of narrative begins a greater focus on the 12 apostles. Their calling had been reported earlier in 1:16-20; 2:13-14; and 3:13-19. In the last of these passages, as in the present verse, Jesus calls in order to send, which in Greek is apostellein. The call has a purpose, not only to enjoy a close relationship with Jesus, but to share his ministry with others.
B. vv. 8-11. The preparatory instructions (Does it sound like seminary?) had two parts. (1) In their itinerant ministry, the apostles should not be concerned to provide for themselves materially. Less severe than Matthew 10:5-15 or Luke 9:1-5, Mark allowed them staff and sandals, perhaps an adjustment to the Gentile world that he addressed. (2) They should expect to receive the necessities for living from those who benefitted from their ministry. This practice prevailed among the churches mentioned in Paul's letters, although Paul diverged from the norm by supporting himself.
C. vv. 12-13. The work of ministry is similar in 3:14-15 -- preaching, exorcism and healing. Proclaiming repentance resembled John the Baptist (1:4). Jesus too, except that he also announced the kingdom of God (1:14-15), as the passages in Matthew and Luke have the apostles doing. Mark concentrates on urging a change of heart or conversion, freeing people from obsessive evil and healing, a deeply personal and pastoral ministry.
Having been an organization man, I have always had the fellowship and procedures within the church to help with decisions, whether they pertained to me personally or to others. Of course, I could not claim that these institutional reinforcements were infallible. In fact, there were times when, like most leaders in the church, I had to press ahead in unpopular ways.
At such a point, any of us might envy the apostles. When they were called, Jesus was right there. "Oh to have been with him them." Even now it helps to see the nature of their ministry, in order to match our abilities with the work to be done. Fortunately, today there is a sufficient variety among the ways to serve that everyone should be able to find a useful place to witness, whether employed within the institutional church or strengthened by relationship to it for service everywhere.
Even Amos, while more isolated than most of us would ever need to be, was not totally detached from corporate life. His references to the history of Israel (2:9-11) and to practices forbidden by the Law (As examples, compare 2:7-8; 8:5 with Exodus 22:25-27; Leviticus 19:36;Deuteronomy 24:10-15.) show that Amos was guided by the traditions of his people. His certainty was not self-generated, nor dependent on totally private religious experience.
The community context for God's call is most fully evident in Ephesians. Not only does the will of God explain the role of an apostle in the church (1:1), but the whole universal church exists by God's choice and will (vv. 4, 5 and 11). When such terms and others like them are used, Ephesians stays within the realm of faith. Certainty pertains to divine purpose, revealed in Christ, to redeem humanity from slavery to sin and to create a church that is one family in the presence of God. The call to that redemption and family is for everyone.
Individual calls may be less definite, but their certainty and character may be worked out within the church. The call of the people of God is to be as prophetic as Amos, as pastoral as the apostles and as united in the gospel as proclaimed in Ephesians.
OUTLINE I
God's view is different
Amos 7:7-15
A. vv. 7-9. God, like a building inspector, is testing a wall that represents the specially chosen people. The wall is so out of line that it cannot remain standing. The symbolism is explained in factual detail in 2:6-8; 5:21-24; 8:4-6. Although King Jeroboam II had been successful in expanding the territory held by the northern kingdom of Israel and had maintained prosperity, his dynasty came to an end six months after his death, around 750 B.C., when his successor was slain in a revolt.
B. vv. 10-11. While the authorities reveled in their victories and material wealth, the prophet looked at the suffering of the poor and denounced the injustice, which contradicted God's covenant. Looking deeply into the weaknesses of the society, he knew that it could not last. Two decades later, Assyria had conquered Israel and taken exiles. Yet to the priest at the royal sanctuary in Bethel, the foresight of Amos was unpatriotic, even treasonous.
C. vv. 12-13. Since Amos was from Judah or the southern kingdom, the priest told him to carry out his unwelcome prophesying in his own land. It seems fair enough!
D. vv. 14-15. The trouble was that Amos obeyed a higher authority. Since the verb for "be" is absent in Hebrew, it is impossible to know whether the tense is past or present. Probably Amos intended the present in order to reject the slur from the priest and to indicate that he was not earning his living from prophesying. Still among the laity, Amos would obey God rather than king or priest.
OUTLINE II
Cosmic and personal
Ephesians 1:1-14
A. vv. 1-2. Perhaps the absence of any reference to Ephesus in some ancient manuscripts explains the emphasis on the universal church (1:14, 22-23), rather than upon a congregation.
B. vv. 3-6. This hymn begins like some Psalms, the Benedictus (Luke 1:68) and 1 Peter 1:3, also probably a baptismal hymn. There the term is "new birth," here it is "adoption."
The plural pronouns refer to the universal church, which defines the scope of relationships among the baptized. These soar to the heavens (1:3, 20, 2:6) and were encompassed in God's purpose before creation (1:4), so closely is the church identified with Christ.
More personal is the description of living in love with no blame as a barrier to God, children along with the one, whom at baptism, God declared "Beloved" (Mark 1:11). Such are God's "spiritual blessings" (v. 3).
C. vv. 7-14. As in the previous section, God's will, good pleasure and abundant grace work through Jesus Christ. Now he gives redemption and forgiveness through his blood and especially revelation of God's plan for cosmic fulfillment. This involves two peoples: (1) "we" in vv. 11 and 12 are Jewish Christians who have the ageold inheritance and have been the first to hope; (2) "you" (v. 13) are Gentiles who heard the gospel, believed and were marked at baptism. By the Holy Spirit, both have the guarantee to be "God's own people," united in one purpose to praise God's glory (v. 14, like vv. 6 and 12).
OUTLINE III
Jesus' ministry extended
Mark 6:7-13
A. v. 7. A new section of narrative begins a greater focus on the 12 apostles. Their calling had been reported earlier in 1:16-20; 2:13-14; and 3:13-19. In the last of these passages, as in the present verse, Jesus calls in order to send, which in Greek is apostellein. The call has a purpose, not only to enjoy a close relationship with Jesus, but to share his ministry with others.
B. vv. 8-11. The preparatory instructions (Does it sound like seminary?) had two parts. (1) In their itinerant ministry, the apostles should not be concerned to provide for themselves materially. Less severe than Matthew 10:5-15 or Luke 9:1-5, Mark allowed them staff and sandals, perhaps an adjustment to the Gentile world that he addressed. (2) They should expect to receive the necessities for living from those who benefitted from their ministry. This practice prevailed among the churches mentioned in Paul's letters, although Paul diverged from the norm by supporting himself.
C. vv. 12-13. The work of ministry is similar in 3:14-15 -- preaching, exorcism and healing. Proclaiming repentance resembled John the Baptist (1:4). Jesus too, except that he also announced the kingdom of God (1:14-15), as the passages in Matthew and Luke have the apostles doing. Mark concentrates on urging a change of heart or conversion, freeing people from obsessive evil and healing, a deeply personal and pastoral ministry.
