Beyond the Local Church by Sam Metcalf

Author:Sam Metcalf [Metcalf, Sam]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780830898893
Publisher: InterVarsity Press
Published: 2015-09-15T00:00:00+00:00

A Vocational Choice

Sodalities provide a vocational place for people with a second decision calling to live and minister with people similarly called. “There is also a difference about the joining patterns; the modal tends toward the self-inclusive; you join if you want to. The sodal is distinctly vocational, a call that will be tested by others, and in that sense, it is exclusive. Not everyone can join or should.”3

This can be problematic for those who are not keen on people in professional or vocational ministry or who uncritically advocate the priesthood of all believers, one of the foundational mantras of the Protestant Reformation. Believing that we are in (or should be in) a new “age of the laity” is a perspective that periodically sweeps through the greater Christian movement. But if we look at it closely, there should be no conflict between these values and second decision calling properly understood. Both are necessary and complementary.

The concept of people being set aside for vocational ministry is clearly evident throughout the Scriptures. The Levites were the priestly class and were specifically set aside for ministry in Israel. So were the prophets. The same is true for those ministering throughout the Old Testament, described in chapter one. This pattern continues into the New Testament.

While Jesus initially worked at a trade, his public ministry, begun at age 30, was a full-time vocation, and he and his disciples lived off of the generosity and gifts of others. It is hard to argue with the clear passages in Paul’s epistles (1 Corinthians 9, 2 Corinthians 8–9) that describe and justify people who are called into vocational ministry. And it is a strong statement that “the Lord has commanded that those who preach the gospel should receive their living from the gospel” (1 Corinthians 9:14).

The posture of living and working vocationally is not limited to those who pastor or shepherd local churches. As Paul explains, those who have made the move into apostolic ministry in a sodality are equally valid recipients of people’s giving. We see that in Scripture. It is also a logical deduction if we embrace the reality that sodalities are just as much a part of the church as modalities.

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