“In the first place, we need to be clear that the Spirit does not do his work in isolation, not merely from the Father, but equally of the Son. It is the call of God in the voice of Jesus that the Spirit uses to call his chosen ones to new birth, faith and repentance. All too often in what is written about calling – not least in light of the debate we have mentioned – theologians have managed to overlook the role of Jesus in the call of his people. Yet he is the one who calls his people by his gospel (Jn 10.27).”

When the Banner of Truth Trust published the second volume of his Collected Writings in 1977, John Murray’s views on effectual calling sparked off animated debate in Reformed circles at that time. He challenged the formulation found in the Westminster Shorter Catechism that defines effectual calling as ‘the work of God’s Spirit’ (Q.31), preferring instead to see it as ‘the act of God the Father’ (p.166). The new generation of ‘Precisionists’ who were revelling in the rediscovery of Reformation and Puritan literature in those days were eager for the argument and lapped up this latest insight in the desire to sharpen their thinking.

There is no doubting the fact that Professor Murray was right to raise his query of the Westminster formularies, but with hindsight one cannot but wonder if, in correcting one theological imbalance, he actually created another. The danger in the precision involved in any attempt to systematise theological truth is that we can so focus on particular detail that we ‘cannot see the wood for the trees!’

It is no bad thing in our theological perambulations, therefore, to stroll around the forest as a whole from time to time to remind ourselves of the beauty and balance of the trees in their totality and not just in their individual detail. That is what I want us to do as we revisit this great biblical doctrine that lies so close to the heart of genuine Christian experience. As we do so, we will very quickly discover that although there are indeed particular facets of this teaching that relate to both the Father and the Spirit, we can only appreciate both its full weight and practical impact when we grasp it in Trinitarian balance. This begins to crystallise as we analyse what Scripture says about calling under five different headings.

Roots

Arguably the most significant contribution John Murray made to the whole discussion of calling, was to underline firmly where its roots lie: firmly in God’s eternal decree. God the Father – the great initiator and architect of salvation – is the ultimate source of the call that brings salvation.

Why does that need to be said? Because God the Father is so often misperceived in the mind of his people. Many are inclined to think of him as being reluctant to save. They see the Son not merely as the One who had to shed his blood in order to redeem his people, but also as the One who has to persuade his Father to accept them. Nothing could be further from the truth!

The Father who reveals himself in Scripture is the God who is, yes, sovereign, just and holy; but he is also loving, wise and gracious. Every facet of his character is woven in to all that is involved in his unfolding purpose. Therefore God the Father is in no sense detached or disengaged from the salvation of his people at any stage of its planning, procurement or application.

An even deeper strand of significance in all this is the fact that the idea of ‘call’ that is uniquely linked to God – especially in the Old Testament – has connotations of irresistible authority. So when he ‘calls’ to Adam and Eve in the garden (Ge 3.9), they cannot but respond to his voice and answer at his command. This carries through into many other examples of that same force at work in the spoken words of God and leads in New Testament language to the people of God’s being described as ‘called’ again and again (Ro 1.6-7; 1Co 1.2; Ga 1.6; Eph 4.1,4; Php 3.14-15; Col 3.15; 2Th 1.11).

When we discover that the roots of our being called into the privileges and joys of salvation are traced back to the irresistible purpose of our heavenly Father, it fills our hearts with loving adoration and with the settled assurance that his sovereign purpose cannot be thwarted.

Means

How does a call that is planned in by God in heaven before time began translate into our personal experience in life? Well, the men of the Westminster Assembly put their finger on it when they said it was by ‘the work of God’s Spirit.’ He provides the live interface between what God the Father has planned, God the Son has accomplished and those to whom salvation is applied. Hence when Lydia hears the call of God through the gospel in Philippi for the first time, she is converted because ‘the Lord opened her heart’ (Ac 16.14). How did that happen? – By the regenerating work of his Spirit.

However, even that simple statement forces us to back up and make a number of clarifying comments as to the means God uses to effect his call in the salvation of men and women.

In the first place, we need to be clear that the Spirit does not do his work in isolation, not merely from the Father, but equally of the Son. It is the call of God in the voice of Jesus that the Spirit uses to call his chosen ones to new birth, faith and repentance. All too often in what is written about calling – not least in light of the debate we have mentioned – theologians have managed to overlook the role of Jesus in the call of his people. Yet he is the one who calls his people by his gospel (Jn 10.27). Peter brings this home in a way that is reminiscent of the day that he himself was called by Jesus on the shores of Galilee when he speaks of ‘him who called us by his own glory and goodness’ (2Pe 1.3).

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