Discussion Jumpstarter
Study leader reference - not a definitive answer
Question 3
Joy strongly challenged the common language of “calling,” saying, “If you have decided to follow Christ, you have already been called,” and argued Scripture doesn’t tell us to wait until God shows an individualized plan; where does that collide with how you’ve been taught to make major decisions, and what view of God’s guidance (and our responsibility) is Joy trying to recover?
Another way to ask: Joy says if you follow Jesus, you’re already “called,” so you shouldn’t wait for a special personal plan from God. How does that clash with how you were taught to make big decisions, and what is she saying about God’s guidance and our responsibility?
Discussion Jumpstarter
Direct Answer
Joy’s teaching collides with decision-making that waits for a special, individualized message from God before acting. She’s trying to recover a view where God guides primarily through what He has already said in Scripture, and we carry responsibility to obey, evaluate opportunities, and choose wisely.
- She repeats: “If you have decided to follow Christ, you have already been called.”
- She argues God’s will is laid out in Scripture and says, “We don’t see… language… about trying to figure out God’s will… we’re not instructed to… wait to do anything until God speaks to us.”
- Her anchor is John 14:15: “If you love me, you will keep my commandments,” urging focus on what God “has already said.”
- She lists many commands of Jesus (repent, follow me, seek first the kingdom, watch and pray, make disciples, love one another).
- Her practical approach: first “go to Scripture,” then ask if an opportunity aligns with commands, evaluate “interest… gifts… need,” and “then I choose.”
- She says God cares more about “sincerely seeking to follow the commands” than the exact form it takes.