Word for the day by Christian Education Forum
CALLED AND EMPOWERED
Jeremiah 1:4-8
"Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations." [Jeremiah 1: 5]
Jeremiah 1:4-8
"Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations." [Jeremiah 1: 5]
There is no obligation in this world like the obligation of being trusted. It is impossible to fail or let down someone who trusts us. God put all his trust in Jeremiah, even when he was in the womb of his mother. It is a rare moment, which shows God's commission of Jeremiah for His mission, even before Jeremiah's age of discernment, over against the human reasoning. For him, the journey to become a servant of God was long and challenging, but the call for ministry was rewarding and fulfilling as it directly came from God.
Mission from God's Call and Commission: The way we see God's call and commission to do His ministry shapes our perspective to God's call and mission. How we define, these — God's call and commission - determine our response to God's call and mission. Paul said; "For from him, and through him and to him are all things."(Romans 11: 36). If, so mission comes from God, and God calls his children to mission at God's time, which is beyond human comprehension. Therefore any human speculation, which fixes, certain age limit as a requirement to discern God's call is against the paradigm of God's call and commission. God trusts us. That is really what Jeremiah meant when he spoke about the story of his call and empowerment for mission. Currently God is no longer in this world in the incarnated form of Jesus Christ, and therefore the plain truth is that, if God wants his mission done, he has to get a person to do it for him through His body — the Church. For that, He calls us and empowers us from among His called out community — the Church.
God's Call and Mission of Jeremiah gave him a New Perspective of Mission: For Jeremiah, life became a pilgrimage to translate his assignment into reality, and therefore, every act of his, even at the time of his pathos, turned to be a signpost in the history of Israel. When we see the mission in the perspective of God's call and his empowerment, it becomes no longer one thing after another in a sequence, but it becomes the pilgrimage of our life towards fulfilling God's tasks, through His Church. That is the reason why Jeremiah, proclaimed God's message, before the men the message, which he received from God to His called out community — the Old Israel. Commissioned as the servants of God, the faithful must confess before humans the faith which they have received from God through Jesus Christ and His Body — the Church. Through the sacrament of Baptism, we are identified with His death and resurrection as well as are incorporated into His Church by God's grace, as in the case of Jeremiah. By the sacrament of confirmation, we are empowered by the Holy Spirit. Therefore we are more strictly indebted to do His mission, as God's chosen people.
Mission from God's Call and Commission: The way we see God's call and commission to do His ministry shapes our perspective to God's call and mission. How we define, these — God's call and commission - determine our response to God's call and mission. Paul said; "For from him, and through him and to him are all things."(Romans 11: 36). If, so mission comes from God, and God calls his children to mission at God's time, which is beyond human comprehension. Therefore any human speculation, which fixes, certain age limit as a requirement to discern God's call is against the paradigm of God's call and commission. God trusts us. That is really what Jeremiah meant when he spoke about the story of his call and empowerment for mission. Currently God is no longer in this world in the incarnated form of Jesus Christ, and therefore the plain truth is that, if God wants his mission done, he has to get a person to do it for him through His body — the Church. For that, He calls us and empowers us from among His called out community — the Church.
God's Call and Mission of Jeremiah gave him a New Perspective of Mission: For Jeremiah, life became a pilgrimage to translate his assignment into reality, and therefore, every act of his, even at the time of his pathos, turned to be a signpost in the history of Israel. When we see the mission in the perspective of God's call and his empowerment, it becomes no longer one thing after another in a sequence, but it becomes the pilgrimage of our life towards fulfilling God's tasks, through His Church. That is the reason why Jeremiah, proclaimed God's message, before the men the message, which he received from God to His called out community — the Old Israel. Commissioned as the servants of God, the faithful must confess before humans the faith which they have received from God through Jesus Christ and His Body — the Church. Through the sacrament of Baptism, we are identified with His death and resurrection as well as are incorporated into His Church by God's grace, as in the case of Jeremiah. By the sacrament of confirmation, we are empowered by the Holy Spirit. Therefore we are more strictly indebted to do His mission, as God's chosen people.
Prayer:
"O Lord, compel us to do justice to ourselves and to you by doing the tasks you commissioned us to do. Amen."
"O Lord, compel us to do justice to ourselves and to you by doing the tasks you commissioned us to do. Amen."
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
Whom God Calls, He Empowers; Where God Sends, He Provides
Christian Education Forum, Diocese of NAE of the Mar Thoma Church
Christian Education Forum, Diocese of NAE of the Mar Thoma Church