BEYOND HUMAN ACCREDITATION
THE CALL
The late Paul Grant
Published in www.GlobalMissiology.org April 2013
(This poetic reflection respects God’s gifts of intelligence and scholarship and their place in the human scheme of things. Its thrust, however, is towards that unique endowment of a knowledge that transcends mental thought, yet, when honoured and received purifies and elevates human intelligence. The way we see, understand, and interpret the world around us (“worldview”), through Christ, and by the power and illumination of the Spirit, is a continuing education through transformation. Reason submits to revelation and finds its healing and fullness of function. All believers are equally called and with that call equally accredited in the service of Christ. 1 Corinthians 1:18-2:16 presents a reading that is essential for the following perspectives to be clearly understood.)
1 Samuel 3:19-4:1 The Lord was with Samuel as he grew up, and he let none of his words fall to the ground. And all Israel from Dan to Beersheba recognised that Samuel was attested (‘accredited’) as a prophet of the Lord. The Lord continued to appear at Shiloh , and there revealed himself to Samuel through his word. And Samuel’s word came to all Israel.
Jeremiah 1:4-5 The word of the Lord came to me, saying, Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.
Galatians 1:15 God set me apart from birth and called me by his grace.
Western worldview thought
Promotes accreditation,
Pursuit of learning and training
For a profession or vocation
For societies to develop
In our post-modern cultures
People must be skilled and taught
Through levels and procedures
Training, skilling, and apprenticeships,
Are pathways towards a vocation;
Professional recognition is achieved
Through higher education
A man or woman is normally affirmed
By an accrediting organisation
Approved by governments under law
To confer due recognition
People who succeed are recognised
And given a qualification,
This gives the person eligibility
And status for career and function
Jesus’ call for labourers
Carries different requirements,
The Master simply confronts us
With a challenge to obedience
Through total submission to his will
We begin our discipleship training,
Captivating our deepest affections
He promotes our yearning for learning
Sealed and empowered by the Holy Spirit
We are tutored in truth and grace,
Revelation provides true information
Held fast by his embrace
Credentialled by God’s own equipping,
We are given a qualification,
Transformed by the renewing of our minds
A transcendent education
Obedience to Jesus’ surpassing call
Means brain power is brought into order,
Human accreditations have their place
But the Spirit is the Controller
The call of God brings enlightenment
Of a kind transcending all wisdom[1]
Yet thought made captive to God’s will
Takes on a new dimension
So all believers are accredited
By the Trinity Company Unlimited,
Christ’s redemption gives them authority
For they have been in-Spirited
This is at the essence of God’s call,
An ordination for each believer,
A qualification given to one and all,
An endorsement for service from our Creator
Scholarship credentials have a place
In God’s great Kingdom service,
However, the scholar and apostle Paul
Was challenged by the risen Jesus
He was shown that intelligence alone
Registered deficiency,
Wisdom and learning is seen as barren
Unable itself to attain proficiency
Only the wisdom of the Holy Spirit
Can impart full revelation
Of things divine and God’s way of thinking,
For divinely approved accreditation
Philippians three is Paul’s testimony
Of his own accreditation,
Once qualified by a Rabbi’s Degree
He received God’s own benediction
He heard the call; he renounced all gain;
He relinquished self-reputation,
Forgetting his own accomplishments
He claimed the gifts of redemption
He saw his call as qualification
For an apostolic function,
Not a potential that he developed,
Rather, by the Spirit’s unction
So, Samuel, Jeremiah, and Paul
Exploring the meaning of destiny
Found in the experience of a personal call
Their accreditation for ministry
However, there is one more thing to note,
The call brings with it an identity,
A gift that defines the person,
And the domain of his or her activity
With spiritual gifts, it is edification[2],
With ascension gifts, it is leadership[3],
In every case the accreditation
Is under the risen Christ’s Headship
He is the Source of true endorsement
He is the ultimate Fountainhead,
He is the One who issues credentials,
An authenticity from the Godhead