Planting Churches Among the City's Poor - Volume 2

194 • P LANTING C HURCHES AMONG THE C ITY ’ S P OOR : V OLUME 2

2. What direction or decision should I now pursue in light of what the Lord has been saying to me here?

3. What precisely do I need to do, and whom should I talk to about my decision here?

The Lord’s Sure Promise

Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber. But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. A stranger they will not follow, but they will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers. ~ John 10.1-5 (ESV)

II. Does Feeling Uncertain or Unworthy Necessarily Mean That I Am Not Called?

The legitimacy of God’s calling should not be dismissed simply because an individual has doubts or resistance.

A. Some biblical examples of resistance to calling.

Exod. 4.13 – But Moses said, “O Lord, please send someone else to do it.”

Jer. 1.6 – “Ah, Sovereign LORD,” I said, “I do not know how to speak; I am only a child.”

Luke 5.8 – When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!”

Resistance to the pastoral calling is a perennial feature of seriousness about it. ~ Thomas Oden. Classic Pastoral Care, Vol 1 .