The Anatomy of the Call

So if God is calling you, simply obey.

God responds to Jeremiah’s response, countering Jeremiah’s counter in three parts.

Jeremiah 1:7-10

This is clear enough. His call was corrective, “Don’t say I am only a youth.” The point is not small. Everything Jeremiah will do will be accomplished in God’s power. There is not even a hint that he is called based on his ability or giftedness.

The most frequent divine command in Scripture is simply, “Do not be afraid.” The comfort God gives Jeremiah is based on the reality that he will be with him to deliver him. That God is calling him to act based on God’s comfort helps us understand true courage. Courage is not an act of character; it is an act of faith. Being brash, taking risks, and throwing caution to the wind—these are not often acts of faith; they are acts of bravado. True courage has an object: faith in the character of God.

God’s encouragements are repeated toward the end of the chapter (vv. 17-19).

God’s commission is specific. God puts his words in Jeremiah’s mouth. God still uses preachers with a prophetic voice, yet God does not use prophets today in the same way he did in the time of Jeremiah. The difference is that we have the complete witness of Scripture. We have in writing what God wants to say to us today and for all future days.

The act of a modern prophet is not retrieving direct revelation from God but rather “re-presenting” what God has already said. As preachers we are not seeking revelation so that we tell others what God is telling us; rather, we are taking his already revealed revelation and speaking it. We are not waiting for “a word” to speak; we are speaking the word God has given to us. This is a critically important distinction. To say it another way, we are speaking God’s word today when we re-present the word that is given to us through Jeremiah.

It is interesting that God appointed him to be over this nation. This was not a political office, but there is a ring of stewardship here. It was his responsibility to offer spiritual guardianship for this people. This is an interesting contrast to the shepherds of Israel who did not keep the stewardship God had entrusted to them (Jer 2:8; 10:21).

In the moment of God’s call to Jeremiah, God has something specific in mind for him. He was to “pluck up and to break down, to destroy, and to overthrow, to build and to plant.” Notice that there are four negatives and two positives. God has promised that he will rebuild and replant Jerusalem. This will happen. But first God will break down and destroy. This is a metaphor he will return to again and again.

Yet even in this destruction God is preparing the way for something new. This is always the point with God. “God’s purpose in history—ancient, modern, or eschatological—is that when God brings catastrophic endings it is to prepare the way for unimaginable new beginnings” (Wright, Message of Jeremiah, 56). This idea is perfectly summed up in Jeremiah’s call. He will be used to both tear down and to build.

Jeremiah 1:11-19

This word picture is a play on words. The Hebrew word for “almond” sounds identical to the word for “watch.” God is taking specific care over his word to accomplish it. God’s will is that which will be accomplished. Jeremiah can speak with confidence. What God says will be accomplished—every promise fulfilled. Every ministry of the church is a ministry of the word. Counseling is bringing God’s word to difficult situations; children’s ministry is bringing God’s word to a child; women’s ministry is bringing God’s word to bear on the issues women face. If we are called to be holy, then ministry is a call to act holy. All of life is a response to a God who has already spoken (Adams, Speaking God’s Word, 59–60).

Preachers today must deal with this. We live in a world that wants suggestions and thoughts but not directives. However, what God has said will absolutely come true. What he promises is true.

The historical backdrop to this chapter is that God is going to bring judgment on his people when the enemy comes from the north. The invading enemy will be Babylon. While Babylon lay to the east, when it invades, it will need to come to Jerusalem from the only real access: the north.

This prophecy would come true. Despite Josiah’s attempt at reform, ultimately God would use foreign nations to discipline Israel.

I know a sermon like this will cause some to wonder whether they are called. It might make you wonder, and some might feel confused: “Am I called to full-time vocational ministry?” God never writes confusion. So if you are confused about a call, take someone into your confidence and talk through the call to ministry. Those of us in vocational ministry have all been there, and it is important to talk through this to sense how God might be moving in your life and heart. But let’s end by talking about this practically. There are both a general call and a specific call.

The general call is for all of us to be prophets. Every Christian, in one sense, is called to be a prophet. God never gives Miranda rights: you do not have the right to remain silent.

To what is God calling you? Some need to take up the mantle of being a man. God is calling you to stop taking the role of father and husband from cultural cues and lead like a godly man, for ladies to stop listening to the ambient culture about what femininity is and start listening to and obeying God, for students to humble themselves before parents and teachers and learn to be wise. These are God’s specific calls. He is not silent. He does not stutter. This is exactly what he is calling you to. It is in his Word. He. Is. Calling. You.

You are called to look at our culture—its government, its values, its entertainment, its way of thinking—and speak to it. Mothers need to be prophets so their children understand what God values. Fathers need to be prophets so families will be able to evaluate culture. It is wise to avoid a movie because of its rating; it is also wise to watch a family- or faith-oriented film and think critically with our children about why the writer and director painted characters in certain ways. Since we knowingly allow movie producers to be the storytellers of our culture, and therefore of our lives, we are obligated to speak to how these stories affirm, deny, or shade biblical truth. Let’s be honest. The church does not have equal time with our children. The church can’t right in one morning the message the world gives in six days, nor was it intended to. We are called to speak of the things of God at every turn (Deut 6:4-9) and thus interpret the culture in light of truth. This discernment is what it means to be a Christian in a foreign kingdom. The darkness will make us more obvious.

Some, however, God has his hand on for a lifetime of ministry as a vocation. If this is you, then please understand that the specifics are not that important at this point. This is not really about a specific call. It’s about obedience.

Yet for some God is coming to you, and he is “hedging you in.” Like a cowboy on a cutting horse, God is culling you out from the herd. You can’t turn to the right or the left. It is just you and God. You know there is a specific call on your life. You want to pretend it is not real, but you are singled out. You can run from lightning, but you can’t run from thunder. You can choose not to heed it, but you can’t choose not to hear it. Maybe there are a thousand questions in your mind. All those questions have answers, but God is not obligated to answer those before you obey.

The question is not calling; it is obedience.

The Battle of Midway was one of the most fascinating battles in naval history, a strategic battle that protected America from the eastward creep of Japanese forces. It was won on a few tactical decisions—a few decisive moments by the Americans and a few surprisingly indecisive moments by the Japanese.

One of the worst indecisions was the Japanese commander’s inability to decide whether to bomb or torpedo. A last-minute decision was made to switch from torpedoes to bombs; the planes were rearmed so quickly that the crewmen left the torpedoes and fuel on the flight deck of the aircraft carrier. When the American dive-bombers descended to bomb the carrier, they were shocked to see all of the bombs, the offensive weapons the enemy was using to attack them, lying in the open. When the American bombs detonated on the carrier, the bombs of the enemy exploded, causing three Japanese carriers to be sunk in moments. The bombs that were offensive weapons became a great tactical advantage for their enemy.

Indecision makes us vulnerable. It allows the enemy the right moment to take our advantages and make them disadvantages. You have heard that an unguarded strength is the greatest weakness. This is because the enemy knows that if we are not seeking after God, we will lose the battle due to overconfidence in our strengths. What we think is our greatest advantage tragically becomes what he will use against us.

Now God is calling you. He is not calling you to do something as explicit as become the prophet for an entire nation. Rather, he is calling you to obey him. This is not about the call; it is about obedience.

Everything God wanted to do with Jeremiah hinged on this one moment of obedience. So it is with you. Obedience is a God-sized risk for a God-sized call. And the opposite is true. Disobedience is a man-sized risk for a man-sized result. The heart of courage is not personality; the heart of courage is faith. So, if God is calling you, believe. Have faith.