Who Hears the Call of God?
The call of God is a work of God in a man that brings him to salvation and forever changes him.
A.W. Tozer explores the characteristics of those who are responsive to God's call, emphasizing that even unconverted individuals can be marked by a divine touch that sets them apart. He identifies key signs of this divine influence, including a deep reverence for the sacred, heightened moral sensitivity to evil, and a profound moral discontent that compels one to seek repentance. Tozer asserts that these traits indicate God's work in a person's heart, preparing them for salvation and a transformative relationship with Him.
Text
Who can deny that there are certain persons who, though still unconverted, nevertheless differ from the crowd, marked out of God, stricken with an interior wound and susceptible to the call of God? In the prayer of Jesus in John 17:1lb, He said: "Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me." Surely no man is ever the same after God has laid His hand upon him. He will have certain marks, perhaps some not easy to detect. First might be a deep reverence for divine things. A sense of the sacred must be present or there can be no receptivity to God and truth. Another mark is great moral sensitivity. When God begins to work in a man to bring him to salvation He makes him acutely sensitive to evil.
Another mark of the Spirit's working is a mighty moral discontent.
It does take a work of God in a man to sour him on the world and to turn him against himself; yet until this has happened he is psychologically unable to repent and believe!
Sermon Outline
- Marks of the Call of God
- Deep reverence for divine things
- Great moral sensitivity
- Mighty moral discontent
Key Quotes
“Surely no man is ever the same after God has laid His hand upon him.” — A.W. Tozer
“It does take a work of God in a man to sour him on the world and to turn him against himself; yet until this has happened he is psychologically unable to repent and believe!” — A.W. Tozer
Application Points
- Be sensitive to the work of God in your life and recognize the marks of His call.
- Repentance and belief are impossible without a work of God in a person's life.
- A sense of the sacred is necessary for receptivity to God and truth.