God loves us dearly. He showed us this love by giving Jesus Christ as the perfect sacrifice to redeem us back to Him. He has also shown His love through the gifts and calling of God we each have over our lives.
God created each of us with a unique purpose. He has called us for a specific assignment and given us gifts through which we can accomplish them. However, it our responsibility to discover the gifts and calling of God for us and pursue them.
God’s Gifts and Calling are without Repentance
The Word of God makes us understand that the gifts and calling of God are so well planned out and unique that God will not revoke them for any reason. In Romans 11, we are told:
“For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance.” – Romans 11:29
This scripture is a reaffirmation of God’s decision to choose us and endow us with His gifts and grace. God did not make a mistake when He created you! He has built into you the “tools” you need to pursue and accomplish His purpose. These tools that he has given each of us are what the Bible refers to in Romans 11:29 as Gifts and the purpose for which He gave them to us is what is referred to as the Calling of God.
In Romans 12, Paul gives us further explanation on how the Gifts of God operate. The bible says:
“Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith; Or ministry, let us wait on our ministering: or he that teacheth, on teaching;” – Romans 12:6-7
We therefore understand that God gives all of us different gifts that operate uniquely based on the grace of God each of us have. The difference therefore is the grace of God.
Let’s take a deeper look at what the Gifts and Calling of God are.
What are the Gifts of God
The Gifts of God made reference to in Romans 11:29 is an endowment or anointing of the Spirit upon an individual to perform a specific task or assignment. They are divine abilities chosen and given to us by God to accomplish His purpose. Let’s take note that these gifts are not the same as the Gifts of the Holy Spirit which are a completely different type of gift.
An example of the Gifts of God is seen in the story of Bezaleel and Aholiab in the Old Testament. God called these people and used them for the specific purpose of building the Tabernacle. This was in the Old Testament, during the time of Moses. The bible explains this in Exodus 31:
“See, I have called by name Bezaleel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah: And I have filled him with the spirit of God, in wisdom, and in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship, To devise cunning works, to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass, And in cutting of stones, to set them, and in carving of timber, to work in all manner of workmanship. And I, behold, I have given with him Aholiab, the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan: and in the hearts of all that are wise hearted I have put wisdom, that they may make all that I have commanded thee;” – Exodus 31:2-6
Bezaleel was gifted by God to “device cunning works, to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass, And in cutting of stones, to set them, and in carving of timber, to work in all manner of workmanship”. This was Bezaleel’s gift. The bible also explains that God gave him these gifts so he could design and lead the other gifted men in the design of the Tabernacle. This was his calling.
Hence, we see that the Gifts of God are given to accomplish a purpose or calling. In other words, they are the tools God gives us to accomplish His purpose over our lives.
What is the Calling of God
The Calling of God is God’s appointment of an individual to a specific Office that could be in Ministry or not. For example, a Ministry based calling of God for example is to one of the Five-fold Ministry Offices. These Ministry Offices are Apostle, Prophet, Evangelist, Pastor and Teacher. These are outlined in Ephesians 4:
“And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ:” – Ephesians 4:11-13
The Calling of God is God’s sovereign decision. That decision is a function of His sovereign will and not based on what we do.
Not everyone is called to the Five-fold Ministry Offices. Bezaleel and Aholiab as seen in Exodus 31 for example were not prophets. Yet, God Himself said He had filled them with the Spirit of God in wisdom, understanding and knowledge. Therefore, we know that God also calls His people into different ventures of life such as business, academics, administration, politics, etc.
What God expects us to do about His Gifts and Calling
Discovering what God has called us to is vital to accomplishing His purpose and reaching the full potential of His gifts. As believers, it is our responsibility to discover what gifts God has given us and what His calling on our lives is. It is an awesome responsibility to have the Call of God on our lives. God hold us accountable for how we use gifts and whether we fulfill His call. As such, we must take the time to seek God in prayer to know what his purpose for our lives is and how we are to fulfill it.
God expects us to receive direction from Him on what steps to take as we pursue our destinies. When we follow His direction, He provides and protects us and the work He has given us.
We are also expected to be faithful in the assignment God has given us. He expects us to use every gift endowed upon us by His grace to fulfill that destiny because we will account for the gifts. God’s gifts are not toys but tools.
Growing in Grace and fulfilling God’s Call
As we remain faithful to God and His Call on our lives, He gives us more grace. As we saw in Romans 12:6, greater grace will release greater gifts to accomplish His call on our lives.
I believe you have not come across this message by mistake today. If you do not know Jesus Christ as your Lord and savior yet, you cannot have access to the Gifts and Calling of God for your life. We invite you to surrender your life to Jesus Christ today. Simply pray the prayer of Salvation on our Salvation Message page to receive Him into your heart today.
We also invite you to share your comments with us at the bottom of this page. You are also welcome to share a prayer request or testimony of God’s goodness in your life. If you would like to learn more about the gifts and calling of God, there is a wonderful mini-book authored by Rev. Kenneth E. Hagin on the subject. You can purchase the book from the Rhema Bookstore here.
It is our earnest prayer that as you seek God for the revelation of His purpose and direction in your pursuit, He will open the windows of Heaven and grant you grace to accomplish it, in Jesus name. Amen
David Adeniji is the Founder and President of The Behold File, a teaching ministry founded in 2003. The Behold File provides a platform through which the Holy Spirit opens the eyes of men to see Jesus so they can be changed to be like him.
Comments 1
Thank God for using you as His living vessel to share this wonderful truth and transforming message.