Make Your Calling An Election Sure

“Make Your Calling an Election Sure”

By

Bishop Melvin L. Maughmer, Jr.

OPENING: - On Tuesday night I found myself, like probably many of you, up late watching CNN or whatever your favorite news outlet is. I finally went to sleep in the early hours of the morning praying asking God to work this situation out according to my will, I am just being honest. When I got up literally just a few hours later, I was hesitant about turning on the Television because I wasn’t sure what the outcome was going to be. I was nervous that is was going to be a repeat of 4 years ago. I like millions of other people had cast my Vote for my favorite candidate, yet I wasn’t sure what the outcome was going to be. Even as the morning progressed and the day began to pass by hour by hour, I was not sure of what the outcome was going to be. I knew how I voted, I knew what my desire was, I know what I asked for, but I couldn’t be sure of what it was going to be. As time continued to pass by, I still wasn’t sure of what the outcome was going to be. As hours turned to days, I still wasn’t sure what the outcome would be.

Let me inject this right here - We can and we should Vote, it is a right that belongs to everyone, people have lost their lives just so we can have the right to Vote; although, the right to is a sure thing; however, the Vote itself is not a sure thing.

The word sure according to Webster’s Dictionary On-Line means confident in what one thinks or knows; having no doubt that one is right, certaintly.

The Bible says in 2 Peter 1:10 “Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall”. We can Vote and watch our votes fall, we can elect and be dissatisfied with the election, we truly do not have control over that, but we can make our calling and election sure if we are diligent and do a few things.

Today I want to talk about Making Your Calling an Election Sure.

PRAYER: -

Over the past month I taught on Faith During Uncertain Times, I came from the book of Habakkuk and in that 4 part sermon we traveled from Tested Faith, which was when God doesn’t seem to answer our prayers, to Putting Faith into Action, which is writing the vision which is God’s preferred future for your life, waiting for the vision to come to fruition, and remembering the things God has already done in the past. Then we went into The Just Shall Live by Faith, which is we don’t currently see it, but we live our lives trusting and believing God that it will happen because His Words are true, and He cannot lie. Then we ended up with Triumphant Faith which was being able to give God a YET PRAISE in the midst of the storm regardless of what it looks like, despite what we are currently facing I am going to YET PRAISE God and give Him the glory because I know He has everything under control. Now we come here in 2 Peter 1 and we are going to add character / characteristics to our faith.

WATCH THIS: - Character is the distinctive qualities of an individual whereas reputation is the general opinion of others of a person. Reputation is what people say about you Character is what God says about you. Character takes years to build whereas reputation is built in a very short period. Character is who you are internally, but reputation is how the society sees you externally. Gideon was a scaredy-cat, a chicken that was is reputation because he hid from the midianites threshing wheat, he even considered himself weak, but God said He was a mighty man of valor Judges 6:12 that is character. The widow with the two mites was poor that’s reputation but Jesus said of her character she has given more then them all because of her attitude which is character of giving Mark 12:41-44. People may say they are a good person or a bum that is reputation but what God says they are faithful, honorable, more than a conqueror that is character. So today we are going to add character to our faith.

So, let us dive into this lesson.

SCRIPTURE: - 2 Peter 1:1-10. “Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ. Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord; According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue: Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity. For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins. Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall”.