The Call of God Is Always About Serving a Need
JOB DESCRIPTION FOR THOSE CALLED TO SERVE
Have you ever wondered why God calls people?
Why does God call someone to be a pastor, prophet, teacher, evangelist, apostle, minister, intercessor, or simply someone who serves faithfully in His house?
Is it because they desire a title? Is it because they want a position? Is it because they want to stand before people and be recognized?
No. The call of God is about serving a need. Isaiah 61:1-3
Whenever God sends someone on an assignment, there is a purpose connected to that sending.
There are people who need to be reached. There are lives that need to be restored. There are souls that need to be saved, captives who need liberty, broken hearts that need healing, and people who need to hear the truth of God’s Word.
The calling is not simply about the person who has been called.
It is about the people God is sending that person to serve.
1. When Israel Cried, God Called Moses
In Exodus 3:7–10, God spoke to Moses concerning the suffering of the Israelites.
God had seen their affliction. He had heard their cries. He knew their sorrows.
Then God told Moses:
“Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt.” — Exodus 3:10 (KJV)
Notice the order.
Israel was in bondage.
Israel cried out.
God heard their cry.
And God sent Moses.
There was a need before there was an assignment.
Moses was not sent to Egypt simply to become a great leader.
He was sent because people needed deliverance.
His calling was connected to their suffering.
His assignment was connected to their freedom.
And his obedience was connected to God’s purpose for an entire nation.
This is something we must remember in ministry.
God does not call us merely to occupy a position. He calls us to fulfill His purpose in the lives of others.
2. The Job Description for Those Called to Serve
When you apply for a job, one of the first things you receive is a job description.
The employer tells you what the position requires, what responsibilities you must carry, and what you are expected to accomplish.
You may receive a title, but that title comes with responsibilities.
The title is not the job.
The work described under that title is the job.
I believe we need to bring this understanding back into the Church.
Somewhere along the way, we have placed so much emphasis on titles, positions, recognition, and platforms that we sometimes overlook the actual work of ministry.
We speak about being called, but do we understand what we are called to do?
We speak about being anointed, but whom is that anointing meant to help?
We speak about being sent, but who are the people we have been sent to serve?
Isaiah 61:1–3 gives us a powerful picture of what God’s anointing accomplishes.
The passage begins:
“The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek…” — Isaiah 61:1 (KJV)
Jesus later read this passage in the synagogue and declared its fulfillment in Himself (Luke 4:18–21).
Therefore, Jesus is the perfect example of what Spirit-anointed service looks like.
And as His followers, we are called to continue His work according to the gifts, responsibilities, and assignments He gives us.
3. Fourteen Reminders of What Ministry Is About
Using Isaiah 61:1–3 as our foundation, I have organized this passage into fourteen reminders of the work of ministry.
Anointed to:
- PREACH good tidings to the poor.
- HEAL the brokenhearted.
- PROCLAIM liberty to the captives.
- OPEN prison doors to those who are bound.
- PROCLAIM the acceptable year of the Lord.
- PROCLAIM the day of vengeance of our God.
- COMFORT all who mourn.
- CONSOLE those who mourn in Zion.
- GIVE beauty for ashes.
- GIVE the oil of joy for mourning.
- GIVE the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness.
- CALL them trees of righteousness.
- PLANT and nurture lives rooted in the Lord.
- GLORIFY God through the work accomplished.
These are teaching applications drawn from the passage, not fourteen separate commands addressed to every individual believer. No single person is expected to fulfill every assignment independently.
Some are called to preach.
Some are called to teach.
Some are called to shepherd.
Some are called to intercede.
Some are called to encourage, help, give, restore, disciple, or strengthen others.
But whatever our particular assignment may be, the purpose of serving God is never separated from serving people according to His will.