Divine Sovereignty & Calling

to Mark Chapter 3. I titled this message here in Mark Chapter 3, Divine Sovereignty and Calling. Divine Sovereignty and Calling. One thing, every person will learn sooner or later is that God is sovereign in all things. Every person is going to learn that. Nothing happens apart from His will, His purpose, and power. Johnny read in 1 Thessalonians 5, In everything give thanks.

FOR THIS IS THE WILL OF GOD CONCERNING YOU IN CHRIST JESUS. That just struck me, I had to go and write it down. I want to try and maybe write an article on it. AND EVERYTHING GIVES THANKS, BECAUSE THIS IS THE WILL OF GOD CONCERNING YOU. God is sovereign, isn't He? In everything, in our lives, everything that comes our way, comes our way by the divine will and sovereign purpose of God and we are glad that it's so. We're glad that it's so.

I'm going to read you some scriptures concerning God's sovereignty. I don't want to just stand up here and say God is sovereign. That means nothing if I can't back it up. And when a man stands in a pulpit, and when he makes statements, he needs to back it up with scripture, because it's the Word of God. Ultimately, that's the last statement on anything, is God's Word. What does God's Word say? I'm going to give you just a few scriptures, and I'm not going to make much comment, if any at all, because I have some other things I want to get to. but we see God's sovereignty over all creation.

In 1 Chronicles 29 11, David prayed this prayer, Thine, O LORD, is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty, for all that is in the heaven and in the earth is Thine. THINE IS THE KINGDOM, O LORD, AND THOU ART EXALTED AS HEAD ABOVE ALL. And He goes on to say that Thou MAKEST RICH. God makes rich and He makes poor and He lifts up.

Colossians 1 16 17 For by Him were all things created that are in heaven, that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, dominion, principalities, or powers. All things were created by Him and for Him. HE IS BEFORE ALL THINGS AND BY HIM, BY WHO? WHO'S THE HIM? THE LORD JESUS CHRIST. HE'S THE HIM. HE'S THE ONE WHO CREATED ALL THINGS. IT WAS ALL CREATED BY HIM AND FOR HIM. AND HE'S BEFORE ALL THINGS AND BY HIM ALL THINGS CONSIST, MAINTAINED, HELD TOGETHER. WE SEE GOD'S SOVEREIGNTY OVER ALL NATIONS.

IN DANIEL 4.35 Nebuchadnezzar learned this the hard way, but he learned it. You know, if God teaches you, if God takes you in hand to teach you, I promise you, you'll learn it. You'll learn the lesson. Nebuchadnezzar said, HE DOETH ACCORDING TO HIS WILL, AND THE ARMIES OF HEAVEN, AND AMONG THE INHABITANTS OF THE EARTH, AND NONE CAN STAY HIS HAND, OR SAY UNTO HIM, WHAT DOEST THOU? King Nebuchadnezzar learned a real lesson.

Isaiah 46 9 through 11, Remember the former things of old, for I am God, and there is none else. I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure.

That's God over all the nations. HE DOES AS HE WILL WITH WHOM HE WILL, HE DOES AS HE WILL WITH THE NATIONS. HE'LL RAISE ONE UP, HE'LL BRING ONE DOWN. THEN WE SEE GOD'S SOVEREIGNTY OVER HUMAN AFFAIRS. PROVERBS 16 AND 9, A MAN'S HEART DEVISETH HIS WAY, BUT THE LORD DIRECTETH HIS STEPS. JAMES SAID THIS IN JAMES 4 AND 15, if say say if the Lord will we shall live and do this or that don't say you're gonna go into the city or don't say you this is what you're gonna do tomorrow the Lord willing is what you're gonna do tomorrow if it's the Lord's will and then God's sovereignty and salvation Romans 9 verse 15 16 for he says to Moses I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that showeth mercy. He goes on to say He will have mercy on whom He will, and whom He will He will harden.

Paul goes on to say that there in Romans chapter 9. 2 Timothy 1.9 Who has saved us? and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began. And then we see God's sovereignty in all circumstances.

Romans 8, 28, and we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to His purpose. All things work together for our good. And whatever circumstance you're in, it's working for your good. It may not look good, but it's working for your good. If you're a child of God, it's working for your good.

We have to take God at His Word. If we're going to find any comfort and peace, it's taking God at His Word. Romans 11, 36. FOR OF HIM, THROUGH HIM, AND TO HIM ARE ALL THINGS. TO WHOM BE GLORY FOREVER. AMEN. Now, the passage before us is a demonstration of that sovereignty I just read to you.

In Mark 3, 13-21, we see Christ, the Lord Jesus Christ, exercising His sovereign authority in calling, ordaining, equipping and sending His apostles. In verse 13, Christ sovereignly calls whom He will. And He goeth up into a mountain, and calleth unto Him whom He would, and they came to Him. The Lord did not take applications, He did not hold an election, He called whom He would. Every true minister of the gospel is made so by divine calling of God. You know, that troubled me for years, whether the Lord called me to preach or not.

I just struggled with it. I don't struggle with that no more. I believe He has. I believe He has. And He's given me a people to preach to every week. The people that want to listen, the people that want to hear me preach the gospel. You want to hear the gospel, I have to preach. But God makes the preacher.

No man appoints himself to this work, the call comes from God. The apostles came because for one reason, He called them. He called them, that's why they came. Just as every sinner comes to Christ because Christ calls him. IF THE LORD CALLS YOU TO A WORK, IF HE CALLS YOU TO SALVATION, YOU'RE COMING! YOU'RE COMING, BECAUSE POWER GOES WITH THAT CALL. AND CHRIST ORDAINS AND SENDS HIS SERVANTS. HE CALLS THEM, AND HE ORDAINS, IN VERSE 14, AND HE ORDAINED TWELVE, THAT THEY SHOULD BE WITH HIM, AND THAT HE MIGHT SEND THEM FORTH TO PREACH. FIRST THEY WERE CALLED, HE CALLED THEM UNTO HIMSELF, AND THEN THEY WERE TO BE WITH HIM.

THEY WERE TO BE WITH HIM. YOU CAN'T TELL ABOUT SOMEBODY YOU DON'T KNOW. In one scripture in the gospel it says, THEY TOOK NOTICE THAT THEY HAD BEEN WITH JESUS, HIS DISCIPLES. It says, THEY TOOK NOTICE THAT THEY HAD BEEN WITH JESUS. Before they could preach, they had to learn of Him and from Him. They had to be taught.

One qualification of an apostle was receiving his message directly from the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul tells us this in Galatians chapter 1, he said, For I neither received it of man, I neither received the gospel that I'm preaching of man, neither was I taught it by any of the other apostles, neither was I taught it but by the revelation of Jesus Christ. The message of the gospel is not of man, it's of God and it comes by divine revelation. That's not seeing a vision, you know that. It's when God opens His Word and gives you an understanding and you can see Christ in all the Scriptures. It comes by revelation.

And then they were sent. They were sent to preach. They were not sent to entertain. They were sent to preach. They were not sent to compromise. They were sent to preach. Preach the truth. Preach the gospel. Our Lord not only called them, He commissioned them.

One of the reasons that I'm happy, and I'd say this, I'm happy. I know a lot of unhappy people. I know a lot of unhappy people. Too many of them claim to believe God. But I'm happy because I believe I'm doing the will of God. I believe this is God's will, what I'm doing right now. And that makes me happy. That's my happy. Money can buy temporary happiness, but it can't buy eternal happiness. But I'm telling you, I'm happy because I believe I'm doing God's will. I believe I'm doing it. And that to me is every believer's true happiness is doing the will of God. Did not our Lord say this? My meat is to do the will of Him. That sent me. They were sent to preach. They were commissioned by the Lord and He called them and then He sent them to preach.

And no seminary NO SEMINARY HAS EVER PRODUCED A PREACHER OF THE GOSPEL, NOT ONE! Take all the seminaries in this country or any other country, they have never produced one preacher of the gospel, not one. Schools may educate men, but only God makes a preacher, only God makes a preacher. When God makes a preacher, He can be sure of these four things.

First of all, He's CALLED by God. No man CALLS another man to be a preacher. And here's what's sad in a lot of these false gospels, these false churches. If a man comes in, especially a young man, and he's talented and he can handle himself, they want to stick him right there with the young people because he can connect with them. He doesn't know a hill of beans. You don't put somebody in there just because they connect with people. No, it's a man who's called by God. Secondly, he's taught by God, he's equipped by God, and he's sent by God. THOSE FOUR THINGS MUST HAPPEN. And how do we recognize a true preacher of the gospel? How do we recognize when God has sent a true preacher to preach? I know many claim to be called of God, but about every yahoo there is can say, He's a preacher, that God called me to preach. Anybody can say that! I mean, the Three Stooges could say that! That doesn't make them a preacher!

That's one of the sad things about this Position this calling is all kinds of people come out of the woodwork saying God called me to preach Well John gives us a He gives a test by which we can go by Beloved believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God. How do we try the spirits? By the Word of God by the Word of God A TRUE PREACHER PREACHES THE SAME CHRIST PREACHED BY THE APOSTLES.

HIS MESSAGE IS CHRIST'S GLORIOUS PERSON. GOD INCARNATE, THAT'S WHO HE IS. HE'S THE MESSIAH. HE'S THE MESSIAH. HIS MESSAGE IS CHRIST'S FINISHED WORK. When Christ hung on the cross And he cried, it's finished. Is it? Did he finish the work? Is redemption finished? The redemption of our souls. He said it's finished. And that means it's finished. Nothing left to be done. Nothing left for any sinner to do. Not Christ did his part and you do your part. That's just, that's so sad.

And then he preaches Christ as the prophet, priest, and king in his offices. I never even heard of that until I heard Henry. I never knew about the offices of Christ as prophet, priest, and king. I KNOW HOW IGNORANT THEY ARE OUT THERE! I DO, BECAUSE I'VE BEEN OUT THERE!

Paul said in 1 Corinthians 2, Verse 2, 2 For I DETERMINED NOT TO KNOW ANYTHING AMONG YOU, SAVE JESUS CHRIST AND HIM CRUCIFIED, THE SUBSTITUTIONARY PERSON AND WORK OF THE LORD JESUS CHRIST. Paul said, Let's talk about that first. Let's settle this issue first.

Because we're not going to build a relationship apart from Christ. We're not going to build a friendship apart from Christ. Our friendship is going to be in fellowship with one another in the Lord Jesus Christ. Outside of Christ, we can be friendly, but it's not going to be a real friendship, fellowship.

It's not going to be. NOT THE MESSAGE. You can be sure God has not sent that messenger. He's not of God. The many conflicting religious systems of our day that we have on every corner is not of God. It's not of God. God is not the author of confusion.

You know who is? Satan. where there's one gospel church, where there's one solid gospel church, Satan will raise up a thousand around it, like circle the wagons around it. It's sad, but it's so. But God allows him to do it. God allows him, for a time. Then Christ gives power to his message. I DON'T GIVE POWER TO THE MESSAGE! I DON'T CARE HOW LOUD SOMEONE SPEAKS, THAT DOES NOT GIVE POWER TO THE MESSAGE! YOU COULD SHOUT, YOU COULD HAVE A BLOOMING VOICE, THAT IS NOT POWER! THAT'S NOT POWER!

Elijah, when he was in that cave, there was a whirlwind and a fire, and God wasn't speaking in those, but you know, He spoke in a still, small voice. A still, small voice. here listen verse 15 and he he called them he ordained them and to have power and to heal sicknesses and to cast out devils they were going to go preach and while they preached they would have power to do these things and these miracles as you know you already know this these miraculous gifts confirmed their message because they didn't have the word of god like we have it we have the complete word of god it was being written Paul writing to these churches, Peter writing, and James writing, it was BEING WRITTEN! And these miracles that they performed, healing diseases, casting out devils, it was to CONFIRM THE MESSAGE!

We don't need that no more! We have the Word of God right here, the whole Word of God. This is all we're going to have, and it's all we need! If we needed any more, God would have gave us more, but it's all we need. Now while gifts serve a temporary purpose at that time, the gospel itself, we don't have these gifts now. I know these televangelists like to play like they have them, to dupe people and get rich over it, but we don't have these gifts now.

But I tell you this, the gospel is still very powerful. And the gospel still heals the spiritually sick and the lame and gives sight to the blind and it raises the dead. The gospel is the power of God to salvation. Now if it's the Lord's will, if I lose my eyesight or have some disease, if it's the Lord's will, He can heal me of it. But that's not my primary need. My primary need is spiritual healing. Is spiritual healing what I need? Because if it makes me whole, guess what?

I'm going to get sick again. He raised Lazarus from the dead. You know Lazarus had to die again. Eventually he died. That's this body. That's this body. Whatever gets healed ends up still later on down the road. BE SICK AGAIN! Our greatest need is SPIRITUAL HEALING! That's our greatest need.

Paul wrote this in 1 Thessalonians chapter 1 verse 5, he said, Our gospel came not unto you in word only. Now there are some people who hear the gospel in word only. There are some people who hear it like that for a long time before the Lord saves them, and there are some who hear it like that and they never, never hear it any more than that, than word only. It has no more effect on them than water running off a duck's back. Our Gospel came not unto you in word only, but also in POWER, and in the Holy Ghost, a demonstration of the Spirit.

And then he goes on to say, YOU FORSOOK YOUR IDOLS, YOU FORSOOK YOUR IDOLS AND FOLLOWED THE LORD. When God blesses the preaching of the gospel, sinners are delivered from the curse of the law, sinners are freed from the dominion of sin, and sinners are delivered from the power of Satan. THAT'S THE POWER OF THE GOSPEL! When the GOSPEL COMES IN POWER, THAT'S WHAT HAPPENS! When it comes in power to YOUR SOUL, THAT'S WHAT HAPPENS! GOD DELIVERS YOU FROM THE CURSE OF THE LAW, THE POWER OF SIN AND THE POWER OF SATAN! YOU'RE HIS! YOU'RE HIS! ONLY CHRIST! ONLY CHRIST CAN CAST OUT SATAN! Only Christ can save us from the curse of the law. Only Christ can save us from the power of indwelling sin. Only Christ can do that.

Those who make a spectacle, and I was thinking of in the scriptures when there were some men trying to do an exorcism. And they went into this house and they were going to do this exorcism. And the Spirit said, Paul I know, Christ I know, but who are you? And they went out of that house, I believe they fled out of that house naked. And the Spirit jumped upon them.

Only Christ can deliver us from these things. I can't do it. I CAN'T DELIVER YOU FROM SATAN! I CAN'T DELIVER YOU FROM THE CURSE OF THE LAW! And by the way, that's the only curse that's real. No other curse is real. THAT CURSE IS REAL! TRUE POWER IS NOT FOUND IN RELIGIOUS CEREMONIES, BUT IN THE HOLY SPIRIT APPLYING THE GOSPEL TO THE HEART. That's TRUE POWER!

Now, in verse 16 through 19, we see the NAMES of the ones He calls. And I'm not going to go through these names, but I do know this, these verses record the names of the twelve apostles, and every name is known of Christ. HE KNEW THEM BY NAME, HE CALLED THEM BY NAME. HE KNEW THEM PERSONALLY, AND HE CHOSE THEM PERSONALLY. HE CALLS HIS SERVANTS INDIVIDUALLY. THEY WERE CALLED INDIVIDUALLY.

THEY WERE NOT CHOSEN BY ACCIDENT, NOT EVEN JEWISH. THEY WERE CHOSEN ON PURPOSE. In fact, they were chosen on purpose before the world began, just like everyone whom God saves. Christ said, you didn't choose me, I chose you and ordained you. I chose you. He calls His servants individually, He calls them personally, and He calls them to Himself. And He teaches them, He instructs them. And then we see in verse 20, Christ receives needy sinners after He calls them and brings them to Himself. Here we read in verse 20, And the multitude cometh together again, so that they could not so much as eat bread.

I tell you, our Lord He worked more than any human being on this earth. He was continually about His Father's business. The crowds pressed upon Him because needy sinners were drawn to Him. And when the Holy Spirit reveals our need, as He has many of us here, when He reveals our need, we come to Him. We're drawn to Him. And when we come to Him, He never turns a sinner away. He's never turned a sinner away.

And I know that when God really convicts a person of their sins, and they begin to see how vile they are, and they see what they are in God's sight, one of the first things they think of, surely, would He save me? Would He save a wretch like me? Would the Lord save me? Would He save me? He'd save you, but would He save me?

He says in John 6, verse 37, All that the Father giveth me shall come to me, and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out. You know, I never had a problem in my life after the Lord saved me. of telling anybody, anybody that's a sinner, come to Christ. He receives sinners. And then from time to time, I struggle with it myself. I said, Lord, would you, am I really saved? Would you really save me? Did you really save me? Yet I have no trouble believing that for you, but I struggle with it for myself. I thought about this.

There are no office hours with our Lord. His mercy is available day and night. I have woke up so many times. I couldn't tell you how many times over the years I've woken up in the wee hours of the morning, late in the night, and the scripture would be on my mind, or just something just... I felt impressed to pray about something. That's been happening so many times. Wake up and somebody's on my mind and I pray for them. The Lord put them on my mind and I pray for them. Wake up, two o'clock in the morning. That's of God. That's of God.

And then God's sovereignty is seen in unbelief. And when his friends, his kinsmen, heard of it they went out to lay hold on him and they said he is beside himself he beside himself even among christ's own relatives as you know as far as mary and joseph were concerned there was unbelief unbelief those who grew up with him those who knew him unbelief some thought he'd lost his senses some of his relatives thought he lost his senses senses Not everyone who was physically related to Christ, so to speak, believed Him. Not everyone. Here's why.

Because faith is a gift of God. Faith is a gift of God. It's not something we pass down from one to the other. Faith is a gift of God. And it demonstrates God's sovereignty. I have seen this. I've seen God save one in a house and the rest of them lost. I've seen God save a whole house. God demonstrates His sovereignty all the time. Demonstrates His sovereignty. The difference between belief and unbelief is not human wisdom, it's divine grace. That's the difference. That's all the difference. God's grace. Now in closing, Mark 3 teaches us that Christ is sovereign in all things. He sovereignly calls whom He will. He sovereignly calls His servants. He sovereignly sends His messengers.

Henry asked me at least four or five times about being a pastor. Are you interested in being a pastor? And I'd always reply to him, Henry, if it's the Lord's will, I will, and if not, I won't. And not until I was 60, well, I was pastor eight years at Hurricane Row, but here, I mean, I was 60 years old when I came here.

And I mean, I'm not gonna go into, you'd be amazed what took place to bring me here. I mean, it was, the Lord's hand was so evident in it. I mean, just so evident. But He sovereignly sends His messengers and He sends them when He will. They might be 80, Moses. Joe Terrell told me when I came here, he said, Well, you got 20 years on Moses and he sovereignly empowers the preaching of the gospel. I know that. I know I'm at his mercy. You're at his mercy that he speaks to us in power that we go away from here with something that the Lord has given us. We're at his mercy.

And He sovereignly draws sinners to Himself, whom He will. And whom He will, He'll harden. Is that too hard to take? It's the truth. I'd be a dishonest man if I didn't tell you that. He sovereignly grants faith and salvation. You didn't choose me, He said, I chose you. And therefore, with the Apostle Paul, we can gladly confess, for of Him, through Him, to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen. Our Lord is sovereign in all things, and we are glad.

Divine Sovereignty & Calling

Sermon Transcript

About John Chapman

Comments

Articles

Featured Authors

Podcast

Sermons

Featured Preachers

Books

Browse by Format

Music

Recent Comments

About

Legal

Subscribe

Account

Articles

Featured Authors

Podcast

Recent Comments

Sermons

Featured Preachers

Books

Browse by Format

Collections

Music

About

Legal

Subscribe

Divine Sovereignty & Calling

Sermon Transcript

About John Chapman

Comments

More from John Chapman

Related Sermons

Same Scripture

Articles by John Chapman

Where this book stands in the tradition

Plato

Augustine

The Western Christian Tradition

This Book