Do you hear the call? It’s louder now than ever.
Acts 16:9 – And a vision appeared to Paul in the night; There stood a man of Macedonia, and prayed him, saying, Come over into Macedonia, and help us.
______________________
In our Text for Today, the call to “come over…and help us” was as clear as it could be. It came in a vision from the Lord. Obviously, Father was intent on getting the message of the Word of God into Macedonia. And while Jesus had already given His command to go into all the world, the means of communication available to the world at that time was extremely limited, especially if it had to be done within a certain time frame. At the time Paul had this vision, a written message from one person to another could easily take months, if not longer. Still, the Great Commission has already been established, and the call to Macedonia was very clear.
I’ve a question for you today. in our Text for Today, we see that there were people in Macedonia who were calling on the Lord for someone to dome help them to hear, understand, and put to work the Gospel of Jesus. In this case, God used a vision. Now here’s the question. Is the call to “come over…and help us” still being made? I believe it is. I believe it also true that it is just as important today as it was in Paul’s day to be obedient to the call of the Lord. And I likewise believe that today we have so many more ways to be aware of the call of the Lord than Paul had. Consider these; television and radio news, news-papers, social media, church reports, literary publications, testimony (word of mouth). I understand Paul could have learned about the need in Macedonia by word of mouth, but how long would it have taken to get to him. Today, word of mouth can be almost as fast as the speed of light. A person witnesses a need, takes a photo, posts a Facebook posting, and in moments, it is seen around the world by potentially huge numbers of people. What I am saying is simple. Even if a person is not in a position to receive a vision from the Lord, if they’re on social media, they are likely aware of the need people have to receive the ministry of the Word in the power of Holy Spirit in places thousands of miles from their doors.
Allow me to speak to that briefly. Learn to hear from Holy Spirit for yourself. There are many means of hearing of needs, but there is still only one way to hear from Holy Spirit; He speaks to your heart. It’s that simple. The things we perceive through our senses are not our points of contact for leadership. Our leadership MUST arise from Holy Spirit. Is He directing you to go? If so, GO! If He is NOT directing you to go personally, HELP someone He is sending. And in that case, you GO! People need help, and they are calling out for it.
Manna for Today – Acts 16:6-40; Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 16:15-20; 2 Timothy 4:2; Romans 8:14