Called In
Scripture Reading — 1 Thessalonians 2:9-12
Live lives worthy of God, who calls you into his kingdom and glory.
—1 Thessalonians 2:12
When I was a child, I spent a summer vacation at my uncle’s farm near a lake in the Netherlands. Sailboats cruising the lakes and canals would tie up near the sheep pen. Campers often slept in the barn. There was so much going on that I missed the call to supper one day. When I came in late, my uncle grumbled that “if a calf missed the feed pail, it went hungry.” But my aunt fed me anyway, and my cousins made sure I did not miss the call to supper again.
Did you notice that the apostle Paul sees his job as making sure that we do not miss God’s call?
God calls us “into his kingdom and glory.” That means full, new life in God’s presence forever: a new earth and heaven to enjoy with all of God’s people!
Paul worked “night and day” to urge believers to live a life fit for the King. And here he invites believers to consider who is calling them, and to what they are being called.
Today, the church still urges us to be ready for what is coming and to prepare for where we are going. In the Christmas season we make all kinds of preparations, but preparing for Jesus’ second coming involves much more than house cleaning and festive decorating.
What shape does a life “worthy of God” take for you and me?
Lord, help us listen to your Word. You promise peace to all your people, your faithful servants. May we not turn away but listen to your call. Amen.
About the author — Morris Greidanus
Beginning in 1964, Morris Greidanus served churches in Alberta, Ontario, and Michigan. He was campus pastor at the University of Toronto from 1968 to 1974. After retiring in 2002, he served on various interim tasks in churches and educational institutions until he passed away in 2017. Morris and his wife, Alice, were married 58 years and had three children, five grandchildren, and a growing number of great-grandchildren.
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