26 For you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called.27 But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; 28 and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, 29 that no flesh should glory in His presence. 30 But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God–and righteousness and sanctification and redemption– 31 that, as it is written, “He who glories, let him glory in the LORD.”1 Corinthians 1:26-31 (NKJV)
There are a few things in seeing our calling. Most important is recognizing that it is about His kingdom, not us. The next is the expression, ‘The Lord doesn’t call the qualified, He qualifies the called.’ This runs counter to our culture. I used to work in HR and we were taught to hire the most qualified candidate for the position. That was the practice, though my own focus was always ‘hire to character, train to content and if you get both great.’ I would rather hire someone I need to train but can trust than someone with great skill whose character I am not comfortable with.
In the same way Jesus looks at our hearts first. He also puts us in places where we need to trust Him. Think about Paul the highly educated Pharisee. He was a perfect fit to take the gospel to the Jews. Where was His primary calling – to the Gentiles (Acts 9:15).
One aspect of seeing our calling is going where Jesus sends us. The second is that a calling implies a future commissioning. We may know where we are called but Jesus commissions us once He sees our hearts are ready. When we are ready others recognize His work in our lives. Our commissioning may be a formal ceremony, a sense of release in our spirit or an informal acknowledgment from others who recognize the anointing we carry but it will happen if we are found faithful (1 Cor. 4:2).
