The Call to the Ministry

Rev. J. Roos, Barneveld, the Netherlands

(The following article is excerpted and edited from Mount Zion where it was included in an article about the Tabernacle Service.)

The necessary calling

All those who labor in the Lord’s service need a call from God and a call from God’s church. Thus, the calling to the office is distinguished in an internal call and an external call. This twofold calling is a necessary prerequisite for the administration of the office.

The internal calling

Paul writes to the Hebrews, “And no man taketh this honour unto himself but he that is called of God, as was Aaron” (Hebrews 5:4). As we write this it comes to mind what took place in our life years ago. The call to the ministerial office pressed us so severely that we did not know what to do. We had the intention to impart this to a soul friend. When we arrived at her house, she said she had no time because she had to prepare a meal for her children. As we walked away, her eyes followed us. Then the Lord spoke the following words to her soul, “And no man taketh this honor unto himself, but is called of God, as was Aaron.” Before we arrived home, she had already called my wife by phone. She asked if we would come back right after lunch because now she knew why we had been there in the morning. With this the Lord confirmed what He had promised, namely, that He would make the calling to the ministerial office known to His people. Article 31 of The Belgic Confession also speaks of the inward and outward calling: “Therefore everyone must take heed not to intrude himself by indecent means, but is bound to wait till it shall please God to call him, that he may have testimony of his calling and be certain and assured that it is of the Lord.” Thus, Guido de Bres teaches us that the church of the Reformation has to be on guard that no “interlopers or schismatics” will intrude. This has been ratified by the Synod of Dort.

The external calling

When the Holy Spirit calls men to perform the office of shepherd and teacher, for example, then He inwardly convinces such a person by His Word. It is necessary for the external calling to be added to the internal one (John 10:1). There are people who cannot understand that they may not perform official work. They think to have received a call as well as ability and therefore voluntarily present themselves. It can happen that when they are not accepted with the one denomination, they seek to be admitted to another denomination. However, just as the consistory is responsible for setting candidates for the office of elder or deacon, so it also has the responsibility of giving an attest to someone who thinks to have a call to the office of minister.

Our readers know that we have our Curatorium in church life. This is a committee which consists of members chosen by the Synod to examine the state of grace and calling of those who present themselves. This is a very weighty and responsible task. The members of the Curatorium are aware that they are human and that they can also be mistaken. The pure evidences of the internal calling, however, are revealed in the right knowledge of and love for the office, the right dependence on the Lord, and the right concern for those who have been entrusted to their care. The Lord confirms this by giving them ability and willingness to perform their office in the congregation which has called them. The result is that as ministers of the divine Word they place themselves in the background and set Christ in the center so that He alone receives the glory.

(May the Lord remember the members of the Curatorium as they hope to meet later this month to examine the students in the theological school and to hear those who may have received an attest from their consistory. May the Lord give much prayer within the congregations and among His people to the honor of His name and the welfare of Zion. —Ed.)

Prayer is the pulse of the renewed soul, and the constancy of its beat is the test and measure of the spiritual life.

— Octavius Winslow

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