The Shepherd's Call

I. THE NEED FOR A CALL
1. What is personal ministry? (John 20:21-23; 1 Peter 2:9; Matthew 5:16; Mark 16:15)

2. What is the public ministry? (Philippians 2:19-23; 1 Timothy 5:17; Hebrews 13:7)

3. What are some forms of the public ministry?

4. While every Christian has the call to proclaim Christ to the world, how does a Christian receive a call into the public ministry? (1 Corinthians 14:40; Romans 10:15)

5. Should a pastor preach, teach, or administer the sacraments if he does not have the call to do so? Our Lutheran Confessions assert: “Our churches teach that nobody should preach publicly in the church or administer the sacraments unless he is regularly called.” (A.C. XIV)

6. Martin Luther states emphatically: “I dare not preach without a call. I must not go to Leipzig or to Magdeburg for the purpose of preaching there, for I have neither the call nor the office to take me to those places. Yes, even if I heard that nothing but heresy was rampant in the pulpit at Leipzig, I would have to let it go on.” By saying this, was Luther approving of allowing false preaching to continue?

7. How were the prophets and apostles called?

8. According to 1 Timothy 3:1, can a person preach if he feels he has a so-called “inner call” to do so?

9. If the Lord doesn’t call Christians into the public ministry through an immediate inner call or through a direct assignment from Him, how, then, does the Lord call public ministers today? (Acts 6:1-7; Titus 1:5)

10. Is a call through the church less divine since the call did not come directly from the Lord? (Matthew 18:19-20; Ephesians 4:11-13; 1 Corinthians 12:28)

II. THE CHURCH THAT CALLS
1. Who has the right to extend a call for the public ministry?

2. Though it is the congregation’s responsibility to extend a call, in reality, it is only a small portion of the congregation who is actually representing the congregation in calling process. How is this representative group determined? (Exodus 20:12; 1 Corinthians 14:34-35; 1 Timothy 2:12)

III. LEGITIMATE CALLING PRACTICES
1. How is a particular person chosen to receive a divine call by a congregation?

2. What is the difference between a contract and a call? (1 Peter 5:1-4)

3. Usually a permanent call is extended for people into the public ministry. However, there are examples in our Synod where a temporary call is needed. Can you think of some examples?

4. What is the difference between the office seeking out the man and the man seeking out the office?

5. What is simony? (Acts 8:18-21) Is it proper for a pastor to actively seek an office or preach trial sermons in an attempt to receive a particular call? Is it proper to speak to members within the calling congregation, examine the church/parsonage/school, discuss salary, etc.?

IV. ACCEPTING OR DECLINING A CALL
1. Who has the final decision on whether he should accept or decline a call?

2. Who will the pastor consult when considering a call?

3. Upon what will the pastor base his decision of whether he should accept or decline a call?

4. Now let’s make this more personal. What factors lead you to see Pastor Zarling contemplating accepting the call to Bethlehem and leaving Epiphany?

5. What factors lead you to see Pastor Zarling contemplating declining the call to Bethlehem and remaining at Epiphany?

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Justified in Jesus

Water into blood and water into wine

Believe It or Not