The Lord, the Mighty One, is God, and he has spoken;
he has summoned all humanity from where the sun rises to where it sets.
(Psalm 50:1, NLT)

From the beginning, God has spoken to us. In fact, He has called us. Often by name.

God walked with Adam in the garden, and when Adam failed to show up one day, “the Lord God called to the man and asked him, ‘Where are you?'” (Genesis 3:9, GW)
God set a bush on fire to get Moses’ attention. “When the Lord saw that Moses had come over to see it, God called to him from the bush, ‘Moses, Moses!'” (Exodus 3:4, GW)
God called Samuel when he was a young boy, sleeping in the temple. “The Lord came and stood there. He called as he had called the other times: ‘Samuel! Samuel!'” (1 Samuel 3: 10, GW)
God had Jesse and Samuel call David in from the sheep fields. “Samuel told Jesse, ‘Send someone to get him. We won’t continue until he gets here.’ So Jesse sent for him.” (1 Samuel 16:11-12)
And God called out to Isaiah, “Then I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, “Whom will I send? Who will go for us?” (Isaiah 6:8, GW)

If God calling us is not personal enough, He gets even more personal. Scripture tells us, “In the past God spoke to our ancestors at many different times and in many different ways through the prophets. In these last days he has spoken to us through his Son.” (Hebrews 1:1-2, GW)

God’s Son. Immanuel. Hebrew meaning “God with Us.”

This past Sunday marked the beginning of the Advent Season. Advent is latin for the word “to come” and is a time of expectation, anticipation, and preparation. We are waiting. Waiting for the coming of the One God has promised, His Son, Jesus, Savior, Messiah, Anointed One, Immanuel.

When Jesus walked this earth among us, He continued to speak, to call us.

Jesus called his disciples. “As he was walking along the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon (called Peter) and Andrew. They were throwing a net into the sea because they were fishermen. Jesus said to them, ‘Come, follow me!'” (Matthew 4:18-19, GW)

Jesus also called Saul. “As Saul was coming near the city of Damascus, a light from heaven suddenly flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, ‘Saul! Saul! Why are you persecuting me?'” (Acts 9:3-4, GW)

In each instance, the one God called answered, responded, acted.

And the Lord continues to call. “For the Lord’s eyes scan the whole world to find those whose hearts are committed to him…” (2 Chronicles 16:9, GW)

At Christmas, we read how the Angel proclaimed “Don’t be afraid! I have good news for you, a message that will fill everyone with joy.” (Luke 2:10, GW)  This message, the good news, is Jesus, the One by Whom God calls us.  “With this in mind, he called you by the Good News which we told you so that you would obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (2 Thessalonians 2:14, GW)

What joy, to be called by God. This Advent Season, as God calls, are you listening? Are you quieting your hearts to hear God speak? Are you slowing down enough to pay attention? As Jesus so often urged, “Let the person who has ears, listen!” (Matthew 13:9, GW).

God calls, from where the sun rises to where it sets

Prayer

Heavenly Father, as you call us this Advent Season, let us listen, let us hear, let us answer. 

Grace & Peace