Answering and Understanding the CALL of God for Your Life workbook
On this topic, one of his most helpful guidelines is to watch where God is at work and join Him Chapter 6. There is a particularly fruitful illustration of this on pages There is so much to praise.
god and church student workbook answers
As someone once said, however, the devil is in the details. The key to my concern about all of these good teachings is the way Blackaby applies them. These fine directives are pressed into service of another notion, one that is not Biblical. The concept of divine "assignment" is central to everything Blackaby has written. He mentions it more than times.
God's Wisdom for Daily Living — a Proverbs Daily Bible Devotional
This is what he means by "God's will" and by God "speaking. Such direction, according to Blackaby, is given in small steps on a short term basis.
God does not give the whole blueprint. Instead of demanding the big picture, we should follow God's leadership "one day at a time" 33, 34, 36 to "be right in the middle of God's will for your life" This is the critical fourth step in the "Seven Realities of Experiencing God. The Christian receives an "assignment" from God that is special and unique to each individual, the specific will of God for his own life.
How does God speak to us? He uses the Bible, prayer, circumstances, and the church other believers. No one of these methods of God's speaking is, by itself, a clear indicator of God's directions. But when God says the same thing through each of these ways, you can have confidence to proceed" In this way God reveals His purposes, His assignment to us so we can then be involved in His work.
Blackaby is intentionally vague on the manner of this communication. The method differs from person to person In general, the goal of the Christian is to develop the ability to "sense" God's "leading. Blackaby describes it this way: This skill is vital. Instead, "Focus your attention on hearing God's call to an assignment" So be patient and wait" A failure to receive such assignments is a failure in one's love relationship with God Virtually everything commendable about Blackaby's book is meant to serve this end.
Certainly we should obey God's Word. But Blackaby means obey the assignment. Certainly we should seek God's will, not ours. Our lives should be God-centered, not self-centered. But Blackaby means we should only pursue those plans God tells us to pursue the assignment. Blackaby exhorts us to be faithful to the Word, to surrender, have faith, trust, and follow Christ even when we don't understand all speaking of the assignment. Regardless of the chaos, the price, the difficulty, and the hardship it brings, we must follow our assignment, our personal, private revelation from God.
My question is simple. According to the Bible , does experiencing God's work in our lives depend on receiving personalized assignments from Him? Does intimacy with God depend on our ability to "sense" His "leading"? Is this taught in Scripture?
The Call (Includes Workbook)
Is it modeled by the apostles or the early church? There is only one way to answer these questions. Blackaby properly notes that "Scripture will be your source of authority for faith and practice. You cannot depend on human traditions, your experience, or the experience of others to be accurate authorities on God's will and ways" 6. I will hold Mr. Blackaby's own teaching to that standard.
I can find no better model than Him" His comment refers to the quote from John 5: My Father has been working until now, and I have been working Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself; but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner. For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He himself does. The principal question is this: Is Jesus our model in everything?
The correct answer is no because Jesus was not only the perfect man and humble servant, but also the Messiah and incarnate Son of God. We imitate His human perfections, but not His prerogatives of divinity or messianic office. What about in the passage in question? This is one of many examples where Blackaby, like other authors, patches together verses to make his point, often excluding relevant material from the context that changes the entire sense of the citation. His omission of verses 18, a portion of 19, and verses 21, 22, and 23 is unfortunate.
Each is vital to our understanding and seriously qualifies the meaning of the passage, as this more complete citation of John 5: He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him. Note first of all verse 18, the overlooked verse. The word "therefore" in verse 19 indicates that what follows is meant to buttress this singular claim in verse Note also the three phrases in parallel construction: These verses are a complete unit. In context, these verses have to do with the divinity of Christ. He is unique as the incarnate Son of God and therefore has unique obligations, unique abilities, and a unique relationship with the Father.
Verses clear up any question on this score: As Messiah, Jesus has a singular role. No subsequent writers Peter, John, Paul, Luke ever mention it. Remember, John 8 is one of the great passages on the deity of Christ. The Jews ask, "Who are you? Jesus is arguing that He is utterly unique. He is from above, not below, and not of this world v. He is the only Savior v.
He lives in perfect obedience to the Father v. He is a free man, a son, not a slave v. Note also that Jesus said the Jews were also "hearing" from their Father, Satan: Are we to understand that the Jews were having conversations with Satan getting direct commands from him? Or did Jesus mean rather that they were doing his deeds see v. I think the latter. Even Jesus did not expect it was enough merely to claim to speak for God. Instead, He appealed to corroborating witnesses: John the Baptist, prophecy, miracles, and Scripture e.
I do not think Blackaby intentionally misconstrued this verse. It is just one of many examples of the reckless way he uses Scripture. Later in the Gospel of John we find another. The passage in John 10 where Jesus refers to His sheep hearing His voice is central to Blackaby's view. It also frequently misapplied by others. It is important to know precisely what Jesus has in mind when He uses these terms.
John records four mentions by Jesus of His sheep hearing or knowing His voice Verse six is key to understanding this passage. Jesus begins by talking about shepherds and sheep Unlike the thief and robber, the legitimate shepherd enters by the door and calls His own by name. They then follow Him as He leads them out. Jesus' point is lost on those listening, though, so He explains the details of the illustration. He is the door of the sheep 7. Those who pass through Him find salvation and abundant life He is also the good shepherd who, unlike the hireling, lays down His life freely for His sheep , 15, The shepherd and the sheep know each other When His other sheep hear His voice, they also become part of His flock Once again, the Jews fail to completely understand v.
What is the problem? Two key questions need to be answered from the text of John Blackaby answers one way and Jesus answers another. Blackaby seems to have a couple of things in mind when he mentions hearing God's voice. Gaining insight or applying a command from Scripture is one kind of "hearing" Getting a personal "assignment" from God through a leading or a calling is another This is not what Jesus has in mind here, though.
It is critical at this point to remember John's clarification. Jesus was using a figure of speech. The word "voice" cannot mean voice. A thing is never a metaphor of itself.
What's available @ Bible Study Guides
It is a picture of something else. Jesus must be referring, in a figure, to something else that the phrase "hear my voice" represents. He says, "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me and I give eternal life to them" v. They hear His voice. Then He gives them eternal life. What "voice" is it that draws us to Jesus and results in our salvation?
Most likely it is the ineffable drawing by the Father through His Spirit of those who are His, a concept John has already introduced and developed in earlier chapters of his Gospel 5: It is a figure of speech for the inner working of the Holy Spirit that leads to our salvation. Remember, the Jews have no trouble actually hearing Jesus. He did undergraduate studies at the University of London and postgraduate work at Oriel College, Oxford, where he earned a D. Phil in the social sciences. Widely traveled, he has written or edited more than twenty books, including "The American Hour," "Time for Truth, "and "The Call," He makes his home in northern Virginia.
Log In to sync your basket across devices.
The Call (Includes Workbook)
About Meet the Author Reviews. Did you find this review helpful? But it doesn't claim to be an easy book. It can be intimidating and overwhelming on first glance. These Bible Study Guides are designed to help. Our authors search the Scriptures with you in mind, considering what practical answers you need to deal with the real challenges in your life today. We want these lessons to be relevant, engaging and life-changing—making your life better now, and giving you a real, solid hope for your future.
These lessons are a work in progress, and we have dozens more in the works.
Let us know any suggestions you have for future lessons or for improving these lessons. And let us know any way we can serve you better. Your input is important to us—you are important to God and to us! May God bless your study of His precious Bible! These Bible Study Guides are designed to be studied on the Internet, and you are welcome to print them out if you want.
We do not plan to print or mail these lessons. Three quick points and the scriptures are right there for you to read and think about. Exploring the Bible Lesson 1: The Former Prophets Lesson 3: The Major Prophets and You Lesson 4: The Minor Prophets and You Lesson 5: The Writings and You Lesson 6: The Gospels and You Lesson 7: