The Alternative

Dr. Tony Evans: You remember the rabbit ear antennas. You had to move that thing until you connected with the signal that got you a clear picture. Worship is positioning yourself to be able to link into the Holy Spirit’s signal.

Guest (Male): Dr. Tony Evans talks about getting tuned in to God's calling for your life. This is The Alternative broadcast, featuring the timeless biblical teachings from the archives of Dr. Tony Evans.

The busyness of life can distract us from the things that are really important, not the least of which is our destiny. Today, Dr. Evans examines the connection between our worship and our calling and directs us to those things that can help us tune in to our God-given destiny. Let's join him as he begins.

Dr. Tony Evans: Acts chapter 13, if you'll open your Bibles. The first four verses help us to prepare to hear God. If you are pursuing your calling, then you want to hear him when he calls. You want to hear the phone ring. You want to know it's him on the other side of the line. You want to hear his calling.

There are three concepts in this passage that we want to look at: the context for this calling, the content, and then the conduit that were involved in this calling of Paul and Barnabas to the work that God had for them to do.

It says, "Now there was in Antioch in the church, prophets and teachers." He names some. Barnabas, he was the son of encouragement, the great encourager. There was Simeon called Niger. Niger means black. Simeon was a man of African descent in the Antioch church.

There was Lucius the Cyrene. That's North Africa, also a black nation at this time. There was Manaen who had been brought up from Herod the Tetrarch. So he was from the royal community. He was one of Herod's persons. And then there was Saul.

Now, before we go too far, it's important for us to know that you had different races, different creeds, different colors. You had different classes who all made up the one church. No matter what your background was, what your history was, there was room for all.

Why were all these people coming to the church at Antioch? Because that was the place where they could hear God speak. We know that because we're told in verse one, "There was there prophets and teachers."

Now, a prophet was a proclaimer of the Word of God with an emphasis on applying God's truth to the lives of the people. A teacher was a pedagogue, that is, someone who was concerned with instruction and making sure the Word of God was understood.

The church at Antioch was made up of leaders who communicated God's truth in a relevant way to the congregation. And so they wanted to come and hear God's truth proclaimed because they knew that anything God called them to do would always be in line with God's Word.

And so it is in the context of the church, of corporate worship, that this calling is going to occur that we're going to read about in just a few moments. Let's look at what they were doing in church. We know they were listening to God's Word because there were prophets and teachers.

But look at verse two, "And while they were ministering to the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said." While they were ministering to the Lord, the Holy Spirit said. Don't miss that. While they were ministering to the Lord. Do you know you come to church to minister to God?

Do you know that when you come to church, God is the audience? It's not the pastor, not the choir. The Lord is the audience and we're ministering unto him. So these people in a context of worship, ministered to the Lord. They served the Lord, they worshiped the Lord, they praised the Lord.

They even fasted because of the seriousness of the issue. And if you're searching for your calling, that's a serious issue. They wanted God. Now, the problem is we don't minister to the Lord often this way because we don't really look for the Lord's guidance this way.

We're self-sufficient. We're like men who don't want to pull over and ask directions. William Wilberforce stopped slavery almost single-handedly in England in 1833. He was part of the British Parliament.

And slavery was rampant there, but it got stopped a lot earlier than it did here, primarily through the efforts of William Wilberforce. One day, Wilberforce was in his study praising God and praying to God and seeking his calling in life.

And in Wilberforce's diary, he writes it was while he was in worship that the Holy Spirit made it clear to him that God's purpose for his life was to end slavery in England. The history books are filled with the life and story of William Wilberforce.

And three days before Wilberforce died in 1833, he got word that the House of Commons banned slavery in England. He saw his calling fulfilled. Now, he did it as a politician. He was part of the British Parliament.

But his calling was to end slavery. It's a tragedy to go through life with a job and not with a calling. But the text says that the context in which that was discovered was in a context of worship. Now, that leads to the third point, the point we want to zero in on for those looking for your calling.

The second half of verse two says, "The Holy Spirit said. The Holy Spirit said." To put it another way, folks, the Holy Spirit talks. There are two extremes in Christianity. One extreme is a view of the Bible that says the Bible is so sufficient, it's all you need. Simply read it and you'll be okay.

That is incorrect. Not because the Bible's not sufficient, but the Bible does not apply everything it teaches. In other words, the Bible does not tell you how to take a truth and execute it in a given situation you're facing.

Or else this book would be as big as this building because we're all in different scenarios. You can find principles in the Bible. You can find precepts in the Bible. What you can't find in the Bible is all of the applications of it. And so in that way, in an applicational way, the Bible is not sufficient.

It's sufficient in precepts and principles. It's not sufficient to tell you whether you ought to be working here, to tell you whether you ought to be marrying somebody over there, to tell you whether you ought to come to this church versus another church. So one extreme is a view of the Bible that does not recognize it does not apply itself to every situation.

You need more help than just reading the Bible. But then there is another extreme. The other extreme is a view of the Holy Spirit that doesn't need the Bible. You just wait to be zapped by the Spirit. Never mind that how you said the Spirit zapped you and what the Bible says are in total contradiction to each other.

The Holy Spirit never says anything that contradicts what he wrote. In other words, the Bible says the words of God were recorded by the leading of the Holy Spirit. So anything the Spirit of God says to you has to agree with what he wrote to you. He can't contradict himself.

He can't do like we do, talk out of both sides of our mouth. Many of us when we were in college went to the guidance counselor, or maybe high school. And we wanted the guidance counselor to help us. We didn't want the guidance counselor to put us in school. We were already in school.

We went to the guidance counselor for two things: to help us with our career path and to help us to choose the classes that would be appropriate for where we wanted to go. We didn't have enough information. It didn't mean that we didn't have the list of classes.

It means we didn't know how to apply the list to our track. So we needed guidance. Well, what the guidance counselor was to your career, the Holy Ghost is to your ministry. He is the ministry guidance counselor. His job is to illuminate you, to turn on the light bulb.

You will know you're called when out of a lifestyle of worship, the light bulb comes on and you say, "Whoa, that's what I'm supposed to be doing." Because they were intimate with God, his voice was clear. The Spirit still speaks today and he still uses the prophets and the teachers.

That is the proclaimers of the Word of God, to take the generic truth that's taught and apply it individually to you and your pursuit of your own calling. So it goes on and says, "The Holy Spirit said, 'Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work which I have called them to do.'"

God has a work that he has called you to do. And please notice how specific it was. Set apart Saul and Barnabas. He had a work for them to do by name. Your work has your name on it and it's only your work. The Bible says work out your own salvation in fear and trembling.

Leave mine alone. Let me leave yours alone. You work out what God has planned for you because nobody can be you but you. Stop wishing you were somebody else. God already has them. If God wanted two of them, there would have been twins, identical twins. He doesn't want two of them. He wants one of you.

The psalmist says in Psalm 139, "I am fearfully and wonderfully made." I am unique. Stop trying to be something other than what God made you and listen to this, stop trying to do stuff you were never made to do. That's operating outside of your calling. And a lot of people are operating outside of their calling.

And that is because they're not hearing God's voice. So they were listening to the Word of God and the Spirit said. They were listening to prophets and teachers and they heard the Spirit call their name or apply it to individual lives.

The Holy Spirit does this still today. He talks to you, but he talks at a deeper level than what you're hearing with your ear. He's speaking to your spirit. That's why it's often referred to as a still small voice. It's often referred to as a still small voice because of where it's being heard the loudest. And where it's being heard the loudest is deep down. It's deep down.

Guest (Male): Dr. Evans will return with more of our message in just a moment, including how worship helps us tune our hearts to hear God's voice more clearly. First though, I'd like to tell you about a special resource package we've put together as a way of saying thank you when you make a donation to keep this ministry going.

It starts with our current two-volume, 12-message audio collection called "Called for a Purpose," and includes Tony's encouraging devotional book specially created to complement and build on the material presented throughout the series. Together, these resources expand what we've been learning about your one-of-a-kind, God-given calling.

God has something special he intends for you to do, and these resources will help you discover what it is and faithfully pursue it. There's no greater source of satisfaction and success than finding and fulfilling your purpose. We feel this information is so important, we'd like to send you the "Called for a Purpose" resource package as our gift when you make a donation to help support the work of The Alternative.

But don't wait. This exclusive offer will only be around for a short while. Details are waiting for you at TonyEvans.org, where you can also sign up for Tony's free weekly email devotional. Again, that's TonyEvans.org. Or call our 24-hour resource center at 1-800-800-3222 and let one of our friendly team members help with your request. That's 1-800-800-3222. We'll continue with more of today's message right after this.

Guest (Female): Impactful, amazing, intense, thought-provoking. That's how just a few students describe their experience since enrolling in the Tony Evans Training Center. The best part is the Training Center is wherever you and your online connection are.

Going beyond a Sunday sermon, these compelling Bible study courses take a much deeper look at Scripture, the Bible's writers, social issues of today, and so much more. Log on today to learn more at TonyEvansTraining.org. TonyEvansTraining.org. Explore the kingdom anytime, anywhere.

Dr. Tony Evans: Worship is like an antenna. We don't need them today, but you remember the rabbit ear antennas. You had to move that thing until you connected with the signal that got you a clear picture. Worship is positioning yourself or the antenna of the spirit to be able to link into the Holy Spirit's signal.

The Holy Spirit still speaks today. Therefore, if you want to hear him tell you what your calling is, because he said, "I have a calling for two individuals, Saul and Barnabas, I have a work for them to do." Your calling always involves a work and it's your work, nobody else's.

So it was the Word of God, the prophets and the teachers, combined with the Holy Spirit that led to a clear calling of these men. Have you ever been in a 3D movie where the 3D picture is real fuzzy until you put on them glasses that clear it up? Even more instructive is a hologram, which is a 3D image.

And you've seen it. You move a certain way and the eye will blink or the person will start talking. You stand up straight, it just looks like a picture. You move a little bit this way or that way and the picture starts moving. That's because it's a 3D image.

Now, if you move out of alignment with it, you won't see nothing. And the further you move, the less you see. Your calling may be unclear right now, but you get close enough and you'll see God's lips move and your name read. So he says in verse three, "Then, when they had fasted and prayed, they laid their hands on them and sent them their way."

Here we have guidance. It is the work of the Holy Spirit to be your guidance counselor. When my kids were small, we'd come over to the church and they would want to drive the car. So when they were small and not old enough to drive, I'd bring them over here late Saturday night when nobody was here.

I'd sit one of my kids on my lap and I'd tell them, "Let's go. Drive." So they'd sit on my lap and they'd be driving, having a good old time. But now, while they were holding on the wheel, I was running the show. I wasn't crazy. My foot was on the brake and the accelerator and no matter where they had their hands, I had my two fingers at the bottom of that wheel, controlling how far they could turn it and how far they couldn't turn it.

They would put their foot on the accelerator, but I would have mine on the brake. They weren't going too fast, not with me in the car. In other words, they had positioned themselves, but I was still controlling where we were going. You get in God's lap. You position yourself right.

And he'll steer it so that you wind up going where he wants you to go, even though you think you're in the driver's seat. A lot of us think we're in the driver's seat, but if we're in his lap... Now see, a lot of us don't even want him in the car.

No wonder we've run over so many folk in our lifetime or been run over ourselves, going from this to that to this to that. One miserable situation to another miserable situation. Marrying the wrong people, taking the wrong jobs, moving to the right places.

Why? We're doing that because we are operating so independently of God, we're not sitting on his lap. It says the Holy Spirit spoke and called them. And when God calls your name, you know it's your name he's calling, nobody else's.

When God called Samuel, Samuel was in the house of the Lord, it says. He was in the temple. And he heard, "Samuel! Samuel!" And Samuel woke up. And he didn't see anybody. He went back to sleep. "Samuel!" He woke up. "Who's calling me?"

He didn't see anybody. Third time. "Samuel!" He got the message. He said, "Lord, here I am." When you hear somebody calling your name and you don't see anybody... He called him by name. God has a calling with your name written on it. I don't know what it is, I can't tell you what it is.

I can steer you based on your gifts. Your calling will always ignite a fire. If you can say something is your calling and yawn at the same time, that's not your calling. You say, "I'm called in the ministry. I hate people." That's not your calling, okay?

"I'm called to the banking industry. I can't count." That's not your calling. Your calling will always facilitate your gifts, your ability or potential ability, your passion. It will start a fire in you. When you hear it, when you see it, when you think about it, something burns.

It's a fire. And you do it if you weren't paid to do it because you love doing it so much. It's a fire. Now, I know some of you when you hear me say you're not paid to do it think you're just not called to anything, but you know what I mean. It will also, which is another point we'll talk about, take into account your experiences.

Your experiences as we've already said have not been wasted. God has not let your experiences, good, bad, or ugly be wasted. Your pain, whatever that pain happens to be, because the good things, those are easy to talk about. But your pain, those negative things that you want to know why God didn't stop that from happening to you was because he had use for it later on.

He had a reason for not blocking it. When you get to heaven and God shows you a videotape of your life, he's not only going to show you what happened, he's going to show you what could have happened. And that tape is going to be a lot longer than the "what happened" tape.

God has saved us from so much stuff. But why did he let the stuff come through that came through? Because he had use of it. Your experiences matter. That's why you can give thanks in everything. You don't give thanks for everything. You give thanks in everything because you know it had to pass through his fingers first.

I was at the airport some time ago and I was on my way to catch a flight and I heard, "Calling Dr. Evans, calling Dr. Evans. Would you please pick up the white courtesy phone?" You can't send nobody else to pick up the white courtesy phone if they're calling your name.

Now, what was I doing at the airport? I was at the airport to catch a plane. I was going to get in a plane and that plane was going to lift off the ground and was going to take me high in the sky. On my way to catch a plane that was going to take me high in the sky, somebody called my name.

So I'm on my way flying somewhere and somebody calls my name. I get an interruption to pick up the phone. When you come to worship, you're on your way to heavenly places. You are now leaving the earthly realm and you are entering the heavenly realm.

You have now traveled to the place, worship, that is designed to take you from earth to heaven. When your passion is to leave this realm and enter that realm, to climb from down here in order to arrive up there, don't be surprised when on your way you get a call from God with your name on it saying, "Please pick up the courtesy phone. I got a message for you because you're at the right place, leaving here, going there."

When you worship, God is going to call your name and let you know deep down within that he has a work for you to do.

Guest (Male): Dr. Tony Evans, encouraging you to seek God's guidance through worship. Part of his series called "Called for a Purpose." This two-volume, 12-message audio teaching series is designed to help you find and fulfill your unique mission from God.

We'd like to send you this complete audio collection along with Tony's inspiring "Called for a Purpose" devotional book, specially designed to reinforce the truths we've been hearing throughout this study with practical encouragement for everyday living. We're offering this special resource package for a limited time as our thank-you gift when you request it and make a contribution to support the ministry of Dr. Evans and The Alternative.

Be sure to visit TonyEvans.org right away. That's TonyEvans.org. Or call our 24-hour resource center at 1-800-800-3222 and let one of our team members help with your request. Again, that number: 1-800-800-3222. God not only wants you to follow his plan for your life, he wants you to be excited about it. Tomorrow, Dr. Evans shows ways to ignite your passion for God so his priorities become your vision. Be sure to tune in.