Our Primary and Secondary Calling
Greetings everyone! I have been meaning to post this entry for a couple of weeks. I usually do not do this, but it’s not very often that I get to speak at church recently. As some of you already knew, one reason we came back to Macau early during the summer because the pastor at our local church here in Macau asked me to cover him while he was out. Thankfully he is doing much better and has recently received an update from his doctor that he no longer has any cancer! He recently shared his testimony and it is an amazing story of God’s divine providence, even in the most difficult times in our lives.
I was privileged to be able to speak at Morrison Chapel, which is the head church of our sister church, which meets at Macau Anglican College. Though Morrison Chapel was only built in the 1900s, the origin story of Morrison Chapel dates further back in Christian Chinese heritage/ history. It was an honor and privilege to be able to speak at one of the oldest protestant churches in Asia.
If you are interested in hearing the sermon for yourselves, I am including the YouTube link.
<Excerpt from the Sermon>
Society or culture tells us that we are defined by certain roles and that defines who we are, our purpose in society. But what happens when we loose that position or role in society? What about that sense of calling you just previous contemplated? What if that season eventually passes and God has you move onto something else? What happens to the woman who defined herself as a mother and her children have left the home because they grew up, the salaryman who lost his job that he has been working the past 20 years of his life, the actor who has been diagnosed with cancer and no longer sees the possibility of acting? Too often, we classify ourselves and associate ourselves with these roles, and once that season has passed, we feel as if we lost what it means to be us. We should not rely on how the world’s classifies us or determines our self worth, but we should hold to the worth that Christ has set before us. Our calling in life is not about our occupation, our role as a parent or anything else for that matter. We have two callings in life, a primary calling and a secondary calling. Too often we get confused or led astray by society as to which is more important, we forget our true calling in life, resulting in a distortion of who we are in Christ and what is our purpose in life. Allow me to take a moment and explain what these two callings are in our lives, whether you are saved or not saved.
Primary meaning, “main” or “number one” calling. Os Guinness states that our primary calling is not to somewhere or something… We are actually called by someone to God, for God and by God. No matter what other things we accomplish in life, whether its our role as a husband or father, wife or mother or our occupations, these roles will never be greater than this primary calling to God, for God and by God. Christ coming to dwell with us accomplishes these calling in our lives by giving us the ability to know Him and His Father, to live His way, and to give us the power/ strength to introduce others to become His disciples. It would even appear that Guinness is pulling from what Jesus tells us in
“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’
“This is the great and foremost commandment.
“The second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’
“On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets.”
Matthew 22:37-40 ESV
37 他回答：「你要全心、全性、全意愛主你的 神。38 這是最重要的第一條誡命。39 第二條也和它相似，就是要愛人如己。40 全部律法和先知書，都以這兩條誡命作為根據。」
聖經新譯本（繁體•神字版）, 第二版. (香港: 環球聖經公會, 2005), Mt 22:37–40.
37 예수께서 대답하셨습니다. “ ‘네 마음을 다하고 네 생명을 다하고 네 뜻을 다해 주 네 하나님을 사랑하여라.’
38 이것이 가장 중요하고 으뜸 되는 계명이다.
39 그리고 둘째 계명도 이와 같다.‘네 이웃을 네 몸처럼 사랑하여라.’
40 모든 율법과 예언자들의 말씀이 이 두 계명에서 나온 것이다.”
두란노서원, 우리말성경, 3판 ed. (서울시 용산구 서빙고동 95번지: 도서출판 두란노서원, 2014), Mt 22:37–40.
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all of your mind. Listen again to that commandment from Jesus Himself. This heavily relates to the purpose/ meaning of our lives and if others can see the love of Christ emulating through us, then they will be more interested in the Words/ teachings of Christ and potentially become His disciples.
The secondary calling is simply put, all that we do to fulfill the primary calling. Therefore all of these other components/ factors that we define ourselves by are actually secondary and should not be placed higher in terms of importance in our lives. When we do see a shift of importance, this is where problems arise, such as depression, unhappiness, anxiety or loss of meaning to name just a few. So those secondary callings may include: our giftedness (talents), resources (things at our disposal), and spheres of influence (who we encounter or interact with). All of these areas of our lives are to help draw us and others closer to our primary calling to God, by God, for God. These areas of our lives do not define us entirely, they are just a means of helping us to fulfill that calling to have a relationship, to dwell in fellowship with God.
The sermon was heavily inspired by the Bible and Os Guinness’s book entitled “The Call”. If you are interested in reading more on Morrison Chapel or The Call, please refer to the reference list below!
Please help me to pray that God will open up more opportunities that I can share the Gospel with the people of China. That is where our heart is, to see the Chinese come to know the Lord. God bless you all and I hope that this message will draw you closer to the Lord!
References-
1. Guinness, O., 2003. The call: finding and fulfilling the central purpose of your life. Nashville, Tenn: W Pub. Group.
2. Anon. 2023. Morrison Chapel » History of Morrison Chapel. Available at:<https://morrisonchapel.com/history/> [Accessed 8 September 2023].
3. The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), Mt 22:37-40
4. 聖經新譯本（繁體•神字版）, 第二版. (香港: 環球聖經公會, 2005), Mt 22:37–40.
5. 두란노서원, 우리말성경, 3판 ed. (서울시 용산구 서빙고동 95번지: 도서출판 두란노서원, 2014), Mt 22:37–40
branhow.com 
Beautiful. Thanks for sharing 🙏🏻❤️
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Blessings!
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