"Immediately, I Conferred Not …"

“ But the Lord said unto him, Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel: For I will show him how great things he must suffer for my name's sake … As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called And when they had fasted and prayed, and laid their hands on them, they sent them away.” – Acts 9:14-15; 13:2-3;

“But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother's womb, and called me by his To reveal his Son in me, that I might prezzzach him among the heathen; immediately I conferred not with flesh and blood.” – Galatians 1:15-16

Paul’s testimony is one of being sanctified by God for God’s purposes. Our stories are not different in that regard. Paul’s progresses from that point. Some of us fail to move beyond the starting place. Paul, however, recognized his separation unto God’s calling and responded immediately with submission and obedience.

God had something in mind for Saul from day one. He would transform his life that he might be set apart for a particular service. It was woven into the purposes of God that Saul would be lifted from his cultural identity and become the apostle to the Gentiles (thus the Greek name, Paul).

He would be sent forth into the world as a missionary and an apostle. Two words are synonymous and mean, "one who is sent."

Submission for Paul meant being what God had called him to be, going where God had called him to go, and doing and saying what God had called him to do and to say. It is no different for us.

We surrender our absolute self-will when we come to Christ and we need constant reminders that such surrender is at the heart of holiness. Submission to God opens countless doors of opportunity and becomes to very fount of joy and fulfillment once we have dealt with the artificial pain of surrender. Immediacy means no hesitation when God calls. Is He calling you today?

What will your response be?

The Commission

Luke 10:3 – Go your ways: behold, I send you forth as lambs among wolves.

The costly commission to follow Jesus and to go forth as His ambassadors is so controversial as to appear adversarial. Jesus warns us to expect hostility and opposition. He does not say this to discourage us, but to encourage us. He does not intend to frighten us away, but to have us brace ourselves in the embrace of His grace and power.

“Go your ways,” He says, knowing that each of us has a path that is uniquely and wondrously ours. No two paths are exactly the same though they often intersect and frequently follow parallel courses. We may hesitate to go our ways because it is less risky to continue as we have been, sitting at the feet of Jesus in the cloistered environs of our religious retreats. But we must go. It is His commission.

“I send you,” He says and that gives us courage to go forth, knowing that we have been authorized and mandated we bear His Name and represent His kingdom. It gives us confidence and joy to know that we are not staggering through the darkness of meaningless humdrum. We have been sent.

“I send you forth as lambs,” He says. We are like baby sheep. We still need our shepherd. As we go from Him, we develop a new relationship with him. We discover that He has come along in a new way.

“Lo, I am with you always,” He assures us.

“… as lambs among wolves.” This is the scary part. It is dangerous out there to the extent that we really could lose some things along the way. And if the things we can potentially lose are dearer to us than the commission, we could lose everything. However, if we have relinquished our hold on the things of earth so that they “grow strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace,” then we have absolutely nothing to lose. We have died, as the scriptures say, and our lives are hidden with Christ in God.

Don’t be afraid of the wolves. Beware of them, but don’t let them stop you. Whatever you do, don’t miss the mission.