Do you hear God calling your name? Are you up for a challenge? The latter is a question often used when difficulties lie ahead. In scripture there are number of examples where someone is not only called, their name is repeated.
11 But the Angel of the LORD called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham, Abraham!” So he said, “Here I am.” Genesis 22:11 (NKJV)
2 Then God spoke to Israel in the visions of the night, and said, “Jacob, Jacob!” And he said, “Here I am.” Genesis 46:2 (NKJV)
4 So when the LORD saw that he turned aside to look, God called to him from the midst of the bush and said, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” Exodus 3:4 (NKJV)
10 Now the LORD came and stood and called as at other times, “Samuel! Samuel!” And Samuel answered, “Speak, for Your servant hears.” 1 Samuel 3:10 (NKJV)
41 And Jesus answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. Luke 10:41 (NKJV)
31 And the Lord said, “Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat. Luke 22:31 (NKJV)
4 Then he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” Acts 9:4 (NKJV)
In the case of Abraham, in obedience to a previous call he is about to sacrifice his son Isaac, trusting the Lord to raise Isaac back to life. The Father stops Abraham and expresses His pleasure at Abrahams faith and obedience. In the case of Jacob, the Father is reassuring him it is okay to take his family to Egypt and that he will in fact see his long lost son Joseph there. In the case of Moses, he is about to be given an overwhelming task, leading a nation out from under bondage to another nation, then leading them into the wilderness to learn to worship.
With Samuel, the call is to a ministry that will judge a nation and anoint kings. With Martha, Jesus is correcting her and pointing her away from her agenda to His. With Simon (Peter) Jesus is seeking to prepare him for the most significant challenge of his life to that point. With Saul (Paul) his rebellion against the Lord is being confronted in preparation for a ministry that will shake the then known world.
We see a pattern in the repetition, generally it is preparation for a challenge that is coming. In each case it signals a need for preparation, change, or both. Each of the individuals above responded with varying degrees of faithfulness. While we may not be called to anoint kings or shake nations, we are called to follow Jesus and hear His voice. As we hear Him calling us, I pray we are up to the challenge and respond with faithfulness.
NOTE the link below is to a just released podcast where I am interviewed about my Worldview book. https://www.faithbeyondbelief.ca/podcast/randy-baker-worldview-truth-scripture?mc_cid=b818ab8118&mc_eid=eb6eb4697f
