Open Heaven 11 June 2023 TOPIC: When God Calls You 1
MEMORISE: “I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called, With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love;” – Ephesians 4:1-2 (KJV)
READ: 2 Peter 1:1-11 (KJV)
1 Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ:
2 Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord,
3 According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:
4 Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.
5 And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge;
6 And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness;
7 And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.
8 For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
9 But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins.
10 Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall:
11 For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Psalm 34-37
MESSAGE:
The call of God is actually a call to God. Many people think that when God calls them, it is a call to something, whereas it is a call to Him. When He calls you, He is saying, “Come closer to me”. In Mark 3:14, the Bible says that the first reason He called the disciples was that they should be with Him.
The call of God is two-fold. First, He can call you to leave your sinful ways, to leave the kingdom of darkness and come to Him in the Kingdom of light. This is the call He made in Matthew 11:28: “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest”. We will focus on this first call today.
This call is the very one that every human being will receive. When you are in a service and you hear the preacher making the altar call, it is actually God Himself calling out to sinners to leave their sinful ways and come to Him for salvation.
There was a very notorious young man who brought someone to Church with his motorcycle. He waited for a little while outside the Church and listened to the sermon. When the altar call was made he considered surrendering his life to Christ, but then decided against it and zoomed off. Unfortunately, he got involved in an accident later that day and died. If only he had answered the altar call when it was made! Even if he had still died, at least he would have made it to heaven.
God’s call unto salvation is extended to everyone. He desires to call all sinners out of darkness into His marvellous light. He is seeking to make everyone a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation and a peculiar people (1 Peter 2:9). Some however, heed God’s call, become saved then start to sin again wilfully. Such people are not fit for the kingdom of God (Luke 9:62) and He has promised to spue such out of His mouth if they do not retrace their steps back to Him. (Revelation 3:16).
KEY POINT:
God’s call to salvation is a call to holiness. If you don’t live holy, you are rejecting the call.
HYMN 2: Amazing Grace
1 Amazing grace! How sweet the sound!
That saved a wretch like me!
I was once lost, but now am found;
Was blind, but now I see.
2 Through many dangers, toils and snares,
I have already come;
‘Tis grace that brought me safe thus far,
And grace will lead me home.
3 The Lord has promised good to me,
His Word my hope secures;
He will my Shield and Portion be,
As long as life endures.
4 Yea, when this flesh and heart shall fail,
And mortal life shall cease,
I shall possess, within the veil,
A life of joy and peace.
5 The earth shall soon dissolve like snow,
The sun forbear to shine;
But God, who called me here below,
Will be forever mine.
6 When we’ve been there ten thousand years,
Bright shining as the sun,
We’ve no less days to sing God’s praise,
Than when we’d first begun.
Also Read: RCCG Sunday School Teacher Manual 11 June 2023: The Earthen Vessels
