The Beauty of Your Calling

Transcript

So if you have your Bible, will you please open to 1 Corinthians 7, start at verse 17. I’m gonna read 17 to 24. If you don’t have a Bible with you, there should be one under the seat in front of you, and this text is found on page 898. It’s also on page four of your bulletin if you got a bulletin when you came in.

If I could ask you to stand please for the reading of the word of God. Hear now God’s word to you. Only let each person lead the life that the Lord has assigned to him and to which God has called him. This is my rule in all the churches. Was anyone at the time of his call already circumcised? Let him not seek to remove the marks of circumcision. Was anyone at the time of his call uncircumcised? Let him not seek circumcision. For neither circumcision counts for anything nor uncircumcision, but keeping the commandments of God. Each one should remain in the condition in which he was called. Were you a bondservant when called? Do not be concerned about it, but if you can gain your freedom, avail yourself of the opportunity. For he who was called in the Lord as a bondservant is a freedman of the Lord.

Likewise, he who was free when called is a bondservant of Christ. You were bought with a price. Do not become bondservants of men. So brothers and sisters, in whatever condition each was called there, let him remain with God. This is the word of the Lord. Thanks be to God. You may be seated.

Let’s bow our heads and pray this morning and ask for the Lord’s help as we get started. Our Father and our God, we thank you so much for your word. We ask you now for the Holy Spirit to fill us, to empower us, to hear it, and then let your word change us, correct us, encourage us, and teach us the things that you would have us to know and to put into practice so that we may grow in Christlikeness. So that we may glorify our Lord and Savior, Jesus, in whose name we pray this morning and commit all this to you, amen.

Your Calling

Well, in first century Corinth, just as in the community where you live in the 21st century, believers come from various walks of life in diverse conditions. So we often find ourselves viewing our lives in segmented terms, and there are times that we can feel conflicted and sometimes worry that some parts of our lives are not pleasing to God, that they’re not spiritual enough, if you will. We tend to think that the more spiritual life is one in vocational ministry, or in missions work, or in parachurch organizations. But this is not the case, and Paul’s message is clear. Each one should remain in the condition in which he was called. So your work, whether it be in the trades, as a stay-at-home mom, maybe an accountant, an engineer, somebody in business or finance, and even as a student, can be a testament to God’s glory when you faithfully serve God where he has you.

Now in Corinth, there were some there, especially servants, those people who did the manual labor of the day, who thought to themselves, well, how can I serve God fully in such a lowly position? But Paul teaches that each person’s calling is from God. If you were a servant when you were called, Paul says, don’t let it trouble you. Serve with all your heart, as if serving the Lord, not people.

You think about it, our varied roles and our positions serve to enrich our community, and they demonstrate God’s diverse calling for his people. And we are to faithfully serve where God has us, knowing that in God’s eyes, all work done, as if for him, and with a content heart, is holy.

Now Paul’s message to the Corinthians in this section is emphasizing that all believers should embrace their current circumstances, seeing it as their divine calling, serving God faithfully in their given roles and situations. And there were people there in Corinth, just as there are in our culture, they just don’t view their life’s calling as spiritual enough, and they doubt that what they are doing for God is enough. This morning you will see that God has gifted each of you, and blessed each of you, in unique ways. And you are to use these gifts and these blessings to obediently serve God with a content heart that trusts him.

So I’ll ask you the question this morning, how do you think about your current life’s situation as God’s calling for you? To live for him, to obey him, to glorify him? And in order to better answer this, I want us to look at these verses of Paul’s letter under three main headings. First we’ll look at your calling, that’ll be in verses 17 and 18 and 20 to 22. Then we’ll look at your obedience, and that’ll be verses 19 and 23. And then we’ll close this morning with your contentment, verse 24. So let’s start in verse 17 with your calling. Look with me at verse 17. Only let each person lead the life that the Lord has assigned to him, and to which God has called him. This is my rule in all the churches. If you remember back to last week, in the verses prior to these,

Paul was focused on people that were married or unmarried. And he’s telling some of the married believers to stay married, even to unbelieving spouses. He also said last week in the text we looked at, that he wished that all were as he, unmarried, in order to have undivided devotion to Christ. And so this verse just takes up from where we left off last week, and this is really an extension of Paul’s way of reminding the people to stay in that condition where they found themselves when they were saved. And we know that for single Christians to marry another Christian would not be a sin. They don’t have to stay single. And notice in our verse here, Paul says this is his rule in all the churches. That’s his way of saying that this isn’t just for the Corinthians. And we interpret this to mean that this is for all churches everywhere at all times.

Paul is trying to put the brakes on people making sudden changes due to their newly found position in Christ. And this is because many of the Corinthians thought that it would be more spiritual for them to change their marital status or their vocation. I love this quote from C.K. Barrett. He says, a man is not called to a new occupation, rather his old one is given new significance. Notice that Paul says in this verse, God is the one who has assigned your life’s calling to you. Now calling in 1 Corinthians 7 has a twofold sense to it. First of all, we’ll see verses 18, 21, 22, and 24. The sense of being called is that of the most important call a person can receive. It is the vertical call from God to salvation. And Paul opened the letter with this. If you look at chapter one with me, verse nine,

Paul said this to the Corinthians. He said,

God is faithful by whom you were called into the fellowship of his son, Jesus Christ, our Lord.

— 1 Corinthians 1

(ESV)

Theologians refer to this as God’s effectual call. The Westminster Shorter Catechism defines effectual call as the work of God’s spirit by which convincing us of our sin and misery, enlightening our minds in the knowledge of Christ and renewing our wills, he persuades and enables us to embrace Jesus Christ freely offered to us in the gospel. So the Corinthians have been called to saving faith by the Lord’s divine work in them. And if you are here this morning and you are a Christian, then you too have been effectually called by God through his divine work in you by giving you a new heart because your old heart was stone and it was dead. And I’d encourage you, don’t let that slip by this morning

without some serious reflection that you should think in terms of God has called you into a relationship with his son. He is the initiator. That should elicit worship from us when we consider this. Now, secondly, you have a horizontal call, okay? This is the life situation you are in, your circumstances, if you will. And we see this in primarily verses 17 and 20.

Now in Corinth, Paul’s command to stay in the condition you were in when called was primarily directed at new believers since at that time there were so many new Christians, almost everybody was a new Christian at that time. But there’s a sense in which we all have a horizontal life’s calling. Remember back earlier in 7-7, 1 Corinthians 7-7. I love that Paul said this. He says, each has his own gift from God, one of one kind and one of another. So our gifts and our callings are different for each person. We don’t all have the same thing. Some of us have spouses, some of us do not. Some of us have one vocation, some another. Some of us live in one place, some in another. And it is important for us to remember what we are to be doing with our callings and gifts. Peter is really helpful in 1 Peter 4-10

when he says this. He says, as each has received a gift, use it to serve one another as good stewards of God’s varied grace. In order that, in everything, God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. One commentator says this. He says, God’s call to serve him governs all decisions.

Think about that for a minute. God’s call to serve him governs all your decisions. That is really important. We have a calling to serve God. We are to use our gifts to serve our community, where, as Paul said in Acts 17, where we live and move and have our being. And that is especially true in the local church.

Two Illustrations

Now Paul goes on to use two illustrations of how a person need not be concerned about radically changing their life’s circumstances or social status because they are a Christian. So let’s look at the first one, which is that of Jew and Gentile. Look with me at verse 18.

Was anyone at the time of his call already circumcised? Let him not seek to remove the marks of circumcision. Was anyone at the time of his call uncircumcised? Let him not seek circumcision, for neither circumcision counts for anything nor uncircumcision. So what Paul’s doing here is he’s just blowing the doors off this cultural divide and this religious divide that existed between Jews and Gentiles before coming to Christ. And it was a divide that had still lingered in the church. Jews viewed circumcision as holy and often as being necessary for one to be close to God and to be keeping the commandments. Gentiles, on the other hand, were often repulsed by the practice and considered it to be barbaric. Paul is saying the Jewish Christian can continue to live as a Jew. It is who he was when he was saved. And he need not worry about circumcision

any longer. But what he cannot do is he cannot return to the works righteousness of Judaism or to try to impose that upon other Jews or Gentile Christians. And that’s the whole purpose for the letter of Galatians. Paul told the Galatians in chapter three, he says, “‘Does he who supplies the Spirit to you “‘and works miracles among you do so “‘by the works of the law or by hearing with faith, “‘just as Abraham believed God “‘and it was counted to him as righteousness?’ “‘We are saved by faith, not works.’”

Now in reverse, the Gentile Christian can continue to live as a Gentile. He doesn’t have to seek circumcision to be more spiritual or to make him closer to God or to keep the law. But what he cannot do is he cannot fall back into his pagan practices. Things like sexual immorality or idolatry or drunkenness.

Now the second illustration this morning is that of bondservants. Or your translation may say slaves. Look with me at verse 20. “‘Each one should remain in the condition “‘in which he was called. “‘Were you a bondservant when called? “‘Do not be concerned about it. “‘But if you can gain your freedom, “‘avail yourself of the opportunity. “‘For he who was called in the Lord “‘as a bondservant is a freedman of the Lord. “‘Likewise, he who was free when called “‘is a bondservant of Christ.’ So the bondservant was totally acceptable in God’s sight to serve and his work is just as holy to God as anyone else’s. Paul says, do not be concerned about it. And our work is especially holy when it is done as if it is being done for God.

Maybe some of you remember last summer when we were in Colossians. It was August last year. We talked a little bit about work and we talked about bondservants. And in chapter three, we read this.

Bondservants, obey in everything those who are your earthly masters, not by way of eye service as people pleasers, but with sincerity of heart, fearing the Lord. This is really key. Verse 24, whatever you do, work heartily as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord, you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.

— Colossians 3

(ESV)

It is estimated that in the ancient Roman world, about a third of people were slaves or bondservants. That is a staggering number of people. Some were slaves by being born slaves. Some because of debt that they had incurred would agree to work and become a bondservant until they could pay off their debt. Some were convicts, some were prisoners of war who came from areas that the Romans had conquered. And this word bondservant comes from the word dulos. And in mind here, it typically meant that was one that was mostly a voluntary nature. Bondservants were often household servants who lived with a master and his children and his wife or wives. But nevertheless, bondservants were often treated very badly. They had no rights. And the spread of Christianity, as it did with other institutions, was bringing a change to that. And that is why Paul leaves the opening in verse 21.

Look at the piece in parentheses there. But if you can gain your freedom, avail yourself of the opportunity. They didn’t have to stay bondservants if they were able to get freedom. Now, many people believe today that they need to change their social status or to be seen in a certain way, especially in church. Well, listen to this Tom Schreiner quote. He says, believers should not worry about changing their social status or their particular circumstances as if such matters were crucial for their relationship to God. And now we see a beautiful picture of that relationship in verse 22. For he who is called in the Lord as a bondservant is a freedman of the Lord. Likewise, he who was free when called is a bondservant of Christ. Well, what does Paul mean here? Prior to coming to Christ, we were all slaves. Slaves to sin. We were slaves to the cruel taskmasters

that we served in our sin. Paul told the Ephesians in chapter two,

you were dead in your trespasses and sins in which you once walked. Following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience among whom we all lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind and were by nature children of wrath like the rest of mankind. But then when you get to Ephesians 2.4, we see two of the greatest words in the Bible. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us even when we were dead in our trespasses made us alive together with Christ. By grace, you’ve been saved.

— Ephesians 2

(ESV)

Kim Riddlebarger says the slave has been freed from something far worse than their current plight.

Your Obedience

The Christian slave in all of us has been freed from the slavery to sin, slavery to the law, slavery to the world, slavery to the devil, and slavery to death. Now in Christ, we are freedmen. We are, as Paul told the Romans, we having been set free from sin have become slaves of righteousness. Now at the end of verse 22, Paul writes, likewise, he who was free when called is a bondservant of Christ. Paul, Peter, and James all opened their letters referring to themselves as servants of Christ. It is the same word. We are all to be bondservants of Christ. Peter wrote, live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a coverup for evil, but living as servants of God. And that leads us right into our next section, your obedience. Look with me at verse 19 now. For neither circumcision counts for anything

nor uncircumcision but keeping the commandments of God. This came just after Paul told them not to worry about circumcision. He says it counts for nothing but keeping the commandments of God. Now this would have been very hard for the Jews to hear, especially those who viewed circumcision as keeping God’s commandments. But the keeping of God’s commandments has nothing to do with circumcision in the New Testament life. Actually, this section right here, this is actually the linchpin of this section right here. This is what God cares most about. It’s not so much where you work or where you live or whether you’re single or married. It is whether you are obedient. Are you living in such a way that you obey the things that Christ has commanded you? This is found in quite a few places in our New Testaments. Let’s look at a few of them.

First John 2.3, and by this we know that we have come to know him if we keep his commandments. Jesus said in John 14.15, if you love me, you will keep my commandments. Now some commentators believe that what Paul’s referring to here when he says keeping the commandments of God is he’s referring to the law of Christ. You see that a few times in the New Testament. And Paul consistently does this throughout his letters where he gives the people all these gospel indicatives of how it is that God has saved them. He speaks about their blessings through Christ, bringing them from death to life, and that is your identity. That’s where you find your identity, which in turn then gives you your marching orders to go live your life’s responsibilities. Those would be the imperatives, is to live a life of faith for him and a life of obedience.

Paul sometimes even refers to this as having a walk that is worthy of the calling you’ve received. Being a mature Christian is not so much based on what theology you know, it’s based on your obedience. Now this law of Christ can be summed up best at its most basic level as God’s people imitating God. Think about that. All of God’s imperatives, all of his commands reflect his character and his holiness. And they are what he has given us because they are what is best for us.

John wrote in 1 John 5, 3, for this is the love of God that we keep his commandments and his commandments are not burdensome. We have the Holy Spirit who indwells us, he is our helper, we have God’s reliable word to guide us and we have each other. We have the church, people like us who can help us and who we can help to live the Christian life. What matters is keeping God’s commandments. Now none of us is capable of doing this perfectly because of our ongoing struggle with the indwelling sin we fight daily. Thankfully, we don’t have to keep the commandments in order to be acceptable in God’s sight. I’m so thankful for that. Jesus did that for us. And our acceptance with God is because he sees Christ’s work for us. He doesn’t see our sin stained record, we have Christ’s righteousness imputed to us.

So let me ask you, can you say this morning that you have Christ’s righteousness, that you have trusted in him to be in this position? If not, I want you to know that the call of the gospel is for everyone. Anyone who will turn from their sin and turn to the Lord Jesus will receive forgiveness. You will find Jesus to be merciful, to be kind, to be willing to forgive, to be your savior. If you have never done that, I’d encourage you to look on page five of your bulletin. We’ve placed a written prayer in there. It’s called a prayer of belief. If you read through that and it represents the desires of your heart to come to Christ, you could use that to formulate your own prayer to God. The words of the prayer are not a formula, they’re not magic. God looks at the intentions of your heart.

If you have more questions about this, you’re always welcome to come after the service and speak with anyone you’ve seen up here about what it means to turn from your sin and turn to Christ. Now in keeping with this theme of your obedience, let’s look at verse 23 now. Paul says, you were bought with a price. Do not become bondservants of men. Paul said this earlier in chapter six. He said you were bought with a price when he urged them to avoid sexual immorality and to glorify God in their bodies. And this is where we must ask ourselves, am I living more as a bondservant of Christ or as a slave to men, a slave to sin? This is Paul’s way of saying, do not fall back into the slavery of sin. You are freedmen. And it’s easy at times for us to lose sight of our identity in Christ

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Your Contentment

and end up being controlled too much by people and the ways of the world and end up compromising ourselves into things for which we should know better, things actually for which we must know better. Think of the things that we can often fall back into slavery with. Status, wealth, position. How about this one? People’s opinions of us. Possessions, career, addictions of numerous kinds. The list is practically endless. These are things we must not allow ourselves back into a slavery of sin. We are purchased by the blood of Christ and it is for Him that we are called to serve. And we must do that with a holy contentment. Which brings us to our last section, your contentment. Look at our last verse in the section today, verse 24. So brothers and sisters, in whatever condition each was called, there let him remain with God.

We don’t see the word contentment in this verse, but the idea certainly is there. We are to remain with God. We are not to try to seek to create some special spirituality by changing our marital status or our vocation or our circumstances. We are to remain faithful to God by living contentedly, knowing this life’s calling is from Him and for Him. God has given each one of us the beautiful calling of being saved from our sins. He’s given us our life’s calling. He’s given us our position in this world, where we live, what we do, the spouse we have, or the status of being single in order to serve Him more, even if that’s only for a season. And so each of us should be seeking daily to live in obedience to Him and serve Him, knowing that all of it is from Him.

If your life circumstances or your vocation is not something sinful, you need not worry that what you are doing is not spiritual enough. All of it is spiritual, and all of it is holy when it is done for the Lord. When we speak about contentment, we could never give that any kind of treatment without going to Philippians. And in Philippians 4, Paul says the following.

Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound in any and every circumstance. I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.

— Philippians 4

(ESV)

And the Lord Jesus Himself said to us that we must abide in Him. This is a really cool thing.

The word abide is the same as the word remain in our text. Jesus said, abide in me and I in you, as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine. Neither can you unless you abide in me. I am the vine, you are the branches.

Now I asked you earlier, how often do you think about your current life’s situation as being God’s calling for you, to live for Him and to obey Him and to glorify Him? Well, this is how you do it. You remain in God, you abide in Christ as a branch in the vine. You must let Jesus supply everything to you.

And God has gifted and blessed each one of you in unique ways. You are to use these gifts and these blessings to obediently serve God with a content heart that trusts Him. We are not to become slaves of men. We are now free to choose to do the right thing. We have been given the ability by God to choose not to sin. And every time you make a right decision to obey God in something, it is an act of worship. Do you know that?

Paul reminds us that God’s calling transcends our circumstances. Whether we find ourselves single, married, employed in jobs we love or searching for the right one, whether we are in perfect health or struggling with a chronic condition, God’s plan is at work. We live in a world that pressures us constantly to change our circumstances, to look like someone or something else that we are not. And it can be overwhelming. Social media bombards us with images of idealized lives that are not reality. Society often measures success based on our achievements. But Paul tells us something radically different. He urges us to remain in the condition in which we were called, not as a call to complacency, but as a profound reminder of God’s providence and sovereignty and love for us.

We know that God is sovereign over all aspects of our lives. This means that he has placed you in your current situation for a reason. Your job, your relationship status, your struggles and your successes are all within God’s will. And your call is to remain and trust in God’s perfect wisdom and timing. Find contentment and purpose where you are, where he has you. Trust that God’s plan is unfolding even when you cannot see the whole picture. This doesn’t mean you don’t strive for improvement or seek to make changes when necessary, but it does mean that you rest in the assurance that God is in control. Friends, this should be incredibly liberating. You don’t need to have everything figured out perfectly.

Living Boldly

You don’t need to compare your life to someone else’s highlight reel. Instead, focus on being faithful where God has placed you. Serve him diligently in your current circumstances, knowing that he sees you, he loves you, and he has a plan for you. And remember that ultimately, God is preparing you for eternity. That’s very important to remember. Let’s also remember the powerful truth in verse 23, you were bought with a price, do not become bondservants of men. It must be in Christ that we find our truest identity and freedom. You are not defined by someone else’s expectations of you or your personal achievements, but by the amazing love and sacrifice of Christ for you.

So as you go out of here today, embrace this beautiful calling from God with confidence, trust in God’s plan for you, find contentment in his providence, and live boldly for his glory right where he has you. Amen? Let’s pray. Our Father and our God, we thank you for this practical word that gives us hope that we can know, Lord, that our calling and our circumstances are from you and for us to give you glory. We ask you to help us and to empower us to live in a way that is obedient to your word and pleasing to you. Teach us and help us as we help others discover what it means to remain in Christ, to abide. Help us to be secure in our identity as saints, people you have called to salvation in your son. God, we worship you for who you are, for your greatness,

for your love to us, and for your provision for us. For giving us your word and for your Holy Spirit indwelling us. Help us to realize what our inheritance and future hope is on that great and final day. God, for those of us that are weary this morning, which seems to be a lot going on for many of us, God, we pray, Maranatha, come quickly, Lord Jesus.

Commit all this to you. Thank you. Worship you and love you, God. Amen.