"We should surrender ourselves to Christ and His service to the same extent that He surrendered Himself for our salvation." - Andrew Murray
This is the second book I've read by pastor and writer Andrew Murray (1828-1917). The first book being "Humility" and this second book being "Called By Christ." In "Humility" Murray addressed the need for Christians to recognize their low and solemn state as sinners before a righteous and holy God. In "Called By Christ" Murray addresses what Christians are to do in order to be developed as missionaries for God specifically within the foundational setting of a local church, as Murray wrote, "I have a deep burden on my heart for foreign missions. But I have an even deeper concern about the one thing on which missions most depends: the state of the home church." Murray stated that individual Christians must seek after and live out a holy and Christ-honoring life first within a local church before they can even begin to be fruitful on the mission field abroad. Concerning this important truth, Murray wrote, "There can be no forward movement in missions, no great offering of life, without a deepening of the spiritual life of the church leaders and a real spiritual revival among the church members."
This is the second book I've read by pastor and writer Andrew Murray (1828-1917). The first book being "Humility" and this second book being "Called By Christ." In "Humility" Murray addressed the need for Christians to recognize their low and solemn state as sinners before a righteous and holy God. In "Called By Christ" Murray addresses what Christians are to do in order to be developed as missionaries for God specifically within the foundational setting of a local church, as Murray wrote, "I have a deep burden on my heart for foreign missions. But I have an even deeper concern about the one thing on which missions most depends: the state of the home church." Murray stated that individual Christians must seek after and live out a holy and Christ-honoring life first within a local church before they can even begin to be fruitful on the mission field abroad. Concerning this important truth, Murray wrote, "There can be no forward movement in missions, no great offering of life, without a deepening of the spiritual life of the church leaders and a real spiritual revival among the church members."
In "Called By Christ" Murray points out the many callings that we have on our lives that are needed to be fulfilled in order to be true Ambassadors for Christ and Ambassadors of change in the world. Such callings include,
1. The call to have a healthy and vigorous prayer life - "The measure of prayer is the measure of power" - Andrew Murray
2. The call to be totally dependent on God for all things - "The secret of our strength for the work God has given us is absolute dependance on Him. God meant this to be an inconceivable privilege and honor. He intended for us to live in utter dependance on Him, just as His Son lived. Jesus, in fact, went to the grave to prove how surely God will work mightily for one who gives himself up completely to His will." - Andrew Murray
3. The call to live sacrificially as Jesus did - "Just as Jesus' love showed itself in a life of intense and unceasing action, so our love must be ready to wait on His will and to place our abilities at His disposal. We should constantly be on the lookout to see, not how much we can manage to keep for ourselves, but what we can find to give Him who has given His all so unreservedly for us." - Andrew Murray
May we all seek out, pay close heed to, and answer the call of Christ to be His disciples which will replicate His example on earth of complete and unselfish devotion to doing God's will for the specific purpose of furthering the advancement of His kingdom.
"Give God no rest until Christ has the place in your heart that He claims. Let devoted loyalty to His kingdom be the fruit of intense attachment to His person." - Andrew Murray, Called By Christ, Chapter 3, pg 31
