The Confirmation Journey

By Chris Vaught

Nothing can fully prepare a person for the range of emotions felt when God places a call upon his or her life. Each call is unique and specific to the individual and comes from a personal encounter with God. The call given will carry a specific purpose concerning how God has chosen to use the believer in fulfilling a role in His Kingdom plan.

One can only imagine how Jeremiah felt when God spoke these words to him, “I chose you before I formed you in the womb; I set you apart before you were born. I appointed you a prophet to the nations” (Jer 1:5). The call was specific, and Jeremiah could not doubt what his role was to be. The Apostle Paul had a similar conviction. In writing to Timothy, he encouraged believers to be prayerful and to lead a quiet life so that they would have opportunities to be a witness for the Gospel of Jesus. Paul states, “For this I was appointed a herald, an apostle...” (1 Tim 2:71 ).

Theologian Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones believed six traits accompany the call of God upon one’s life. The first, and perhaps most foundational, being an inner compulsion. He explained that the call instills irresistible inner coercion that becomes dominant in one’s life. To a class of seminary students, Charles Spurgeon would say, “If you can do anything else do it. If you can stay out of the ministry, stay out of the ministry.” Why would he give such a statement? Because if the student had an authentic conviction that they were called to the ministry, no other vocation could tempt them to quit.

Now comes the dilemma. Joy, gratitude, and excitement often accompany the call of God in a person’s heart. Yet, so does fear, insecurity, and doubt. At the moment the call is given, a spiritual war ensues. A battle within the soul rages between the indwelling Spirit of God and one’s own fallen human nature. Like Moses, one may doubt giftedness and value. Moses asked, “Who am I?” and proceeded to tell God why he wasn’t the right choice (Exodus 3), or such as Isaiah, one becomes keenly aware of their spiritual inadequacies and sinfulness (Isaiah 6).

Thankfully, in His wisdom and understanding, God established a principle to aid in solidifying the call of God in the heart of the one He has chosen. Deuteronomy 19:15 says, “by the mouth of two or three witnesses the matter shall be established.”

God never calls someone to affirm the calling in isolation but in the care and accountability of other believers. Therefore, it is of the utmost importance that followers of Jesus recognize someone who is wrestling with the call of God then come alongside them with the support and direction necessary.

Let’s turn to the Scriptures and identify four action steps we can take to walk along with a Christ-follower on the confirmation journey.

Action Step: Reassure that God knows what He is doing.

In the early stages, there is often a need for simple reassurance that God may be setting him or her apart for a specific Kingdom purpose. Like a mother Eagle who adds thorns to her nest making her eaglets uncomfortable when it’s time for them to leave the nest, God often unsettles the heart when He is calling a person to leave the comfortable and familiar and to leap in faith into the great unknown.

This was the Apostle Paul’s experience. Known at the time as Saul of Tarsus, he was struck to the ground on the road to Damascus as he encountered the resurrected Christ. The call was given, and the battle in the soul began. Blinded by the encounter, Saul makes his way to a God-ordained encounter with Ananias. As Ananias enters the room where Saul sat in the darkness, he places his hands on Saul’s shoulders and says to him, “Brother Saul...”(Acts 9:17). How powerful were the words of reassurance that he was indeed accepted by Christ into the family!

Now, what Ananais did next is crucial. He didn’t tell Saul what his calling was, he simply encouraged him in the LORD and allowed the Holy Spirit to settle the matter in Saul’s soul.

Action Step: Give Support, Not Confirmation.

The temptation is to try and ease the fears and answer all the questions for the one wrestling with the call. Don’t give in to that temptation. Jacob wrestled all night with the angel. Had the match

ended too soon, Jacob would not have experienced his full transformation into Israel. Wrestling may be uncomfortable to watch in someone’s life, but it is necessary.

Remember, only God can place a calling upon a life. The late Dr. Adrian Rogers stated, “If I can talk you into something, someone else can talk you out of it.” The call is unique to the person. Everyone called into ministry for Christ does not have the same calling. Paul explained this to the church in Corinth and wrote, “I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth” (1 Cor 3:6).

I was just a teenager when I sensed the call of God upon my life for pastoral ministry. I went to two men of God that I highly respected for words of wisdom. Both men, the Rev. Roy Loney and the Rev. Roger Wright, each in their way, encouraged me in alignment with the words of 2 Peter 1:10, “Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do these things you will never stumble;” (NKJV).

Dr. Lloyd-Jones said, “Preachers are born, not made. This is absolute. You will never teach a man to be a preacher if he is not already one.” Only God has the right to convince a person of his or her unique calling.

Action Step: Encourage Further Devotion

After Ananias’ encounter with Saul, the Bible gives us little detail for the next three years of his life other than he went to Arabia. It was there that he stated he was taught the Gospel by a revelation of Jesus Christ Himself (Galatians 1:11-12, 17-18).

Paul learned an invaluable truth: The call is not to something, but to someone! Many have made the mistake of confusing the call with a career, instead of a life of devotion to Christ Himself. If a person gets this wrong, he or she ends up looking more like a Pharisee protecting personal status and traditions than a disciple devoted to the purpose of Jesus. In Acts Chapter 13, when the Holy Spirit called Saul to become the great missionary and church planter we know as Paul, he was living out his devotion with other believers praying, fasting, and worshipping Christ.

Action Step: Offer Opportunities to Serve

When Saul came back to Damascus following his three years of seminary in the desert with the Holy Spirit, he immediately looked for opportunities to serve in his calling. He did not have a position or title; he simply had the burden of his calling. Acts 9:20 tells us that he began proclaiming Jesus in the synagogues. Week after week, Saul shared how Jesus was indeed the Messiah spoken of in the Old Testament Scriptures. The Pharisee was now the preacher. Even when his life was threatened, Paul’s call was not quenched.

Opportunities to serve were crucial for me at the time I was wrestling with the call. The men at Leigh’s Chapel General Baptist Church, led by Pastor Wright, approached me with the simple task of helping direct parking on Homecoming Sunday. Now, nearly thirty years later, I still can recall the feeling of affirmation I felt as a teenager getting to serve on such a special day. The other opportunity that the Holy Spirit used for me came at the church pastored by Rev. Loney. Once he knew that I sensed God’s call, he invited me to do a short devotion every Sunday evening at the beginning of the worship service. Surely the LORD had mercy upon the ears of those sweet people sitting in the pews as they smiled and nodded at my attempts to exegete the Scriptures.

I believe that the Church of Jesus Christ is the hope of the world! However, we must remember that the church is not a building, but a people. The Church is ecclesia, the called-out assembly of individual men and women with unique callings to serve. May we become so sensitive to the Holy Spirit that as He calls certain ones from among our assembly for specific purposes that we will come alongside them with prayer, fasting, and encouragement like the Church in Antioch did the night Saul and Barnabas were called.

* All Scriptures referenced are from the Christian Standard Version (CSB) unless otherwise noted.