(upbeat music) In the last episode, you talked to writers, and I want you to talk to writers one more time. Talk to those of us who write or who aspire to serve the church as writers. Talk to us about calling. Most Christian writers, it seems, write to self-express, not from a conscious conviction that God has called them to write, and certainly not in a formal sense of calling to ministry like a pastor maybe has.

So speak to writers. How would I know if God is calling me to this work? God's calling in the New Testament is mainly our calling out of darkness into light. You know that, everybody, I suppose. Well, lots of people know that. Our calling in conversion. So when we speak calling, that's the way the New Testament mainly talks about it.

But it can also refer to our life work, like 1 Corinthians 7:15. When it does, it may mean the place God has put us whether we like it or not. In other words, it's not driven by our desires like slavery. Paul deals with that in 1 Corinthians 7. If you're stuck in the horrible position of slavery, that's your calling in the moment, whether you want it or not.

It may also mean what you're able to choose, like freedom from slavery, which he also addresses in 1 Corinthians 7. So in that latter case, when we have some freedom to choose our life work, which most people in the world, by the way, do not have, and they still have a calling.

I want to make sure I say that because I think sometimes we Westerners who have so much incredible options, like we're 15, we're dreaming about 10 things we might be when we grow up. Most people in the world do not have that kind of freedom, but they have a calling.

Wherever they are, they can have a calling. However, I'm addressing us who have some measure of freedom in which we can discern among possibilities of things to do. And so my understanding of this kind of calling is that it's a work of God in our minds and hearts and abilities and relationships that results in a recurrent, not temporary, long-term, not short-lived, compelling, not merely interesting, benevolent, not selfish, Christ-exalting, not self-exalting, desire to write, which proves fruitful in the lives of others.

Now, that's a long... That's my definition of a calling to write. I'll say it again. It is a recurrent, not temporary, long-term, not short-lived, compelling, not merely interesting, benevolent, not selfish, Christ-exalting, not self-exalting, desire to write, which proves fruitful in the lives of others. So let me illustrate the emergence of this calling through levels of impulse to write that many of us pass through.

It is good to write for the sake of discovery. We learn as we write, and we write as we learn. This is good. It is one of the main reasons for keeping a journal, say, when you're younger or older, an idea notebook where you can work out your ideas and your thoughts.

This impulse, however, is not yet God's calling to write. If that impulse is on you, you don't know yet whether you have a divine calling to be a writer. Second, it is good to write for the sake of craftsmanship or beauty. Human beings love to create things. Some create delicious meals, beautifully served.

Some create homes of beauty with everything decorated in a pleasing way, and some create machines that accomplish amazing things. Some create lesson plans for teaching. Some create paintings, carvings, songs, patios, porches, decks, and on and on and on. We are makers by nature. It is properly satisfying to create things, and many people aim to make something beautiful by writing, something interesting, something compelling, and that's good, and that is not yet a divine calling to write.

Just to have that impulse is not a calling. Then there is the impulse to write, not only to learn and not only to create something beautiful or interesting or compelling, but also the impulse to instruct and awaken and delight and transform people into obedient worshipers of Christ. When this impulse takes hold of a person, they are experiencing a call from God to write.

Then the impulse to write, to discover and learn is never enough. It's good, it's real, but it won't satisfy. The impulse to make something beautiful and interesting and compelling is never enough. It's real, it's good, but it won't satisfy the person that has a divine calling from God on his life to write.

A divine calling to write is a calling from God, through God, and for God. Until the writing is for God, it's not a calling from God. So we move from truth discovery through writing to creative expression through writing to the role of a servant in writing, which I described earlier like this.

The impulse to instruct and awaken and delight and transform people into obedient worshipers of Christ. Instruct in the infinite expanse of truth. Awaken to the glory of God, radiant through all that he's made. Delight with craftsmanship of poetry and diction and style and story and transform people into those who enjoy God with us and walk in a way that pleases God.

All of which means that the calling to write is by all means a calling to influence and transform, awaken, instruct, delight. And it is a calling, therefore, to pray and trust God because we can't do that by writing. Writing must become an instrument in the hand of the Holy Spirit and his miracle working power.

So the person with a calling from God to be a writer is a person called to do in the lives of others through writing what only God can do. - That is very helpful. Thank you, Pastor John. And if you have a question for Pastor John or if you wanna listen to our recent episodes or if you wanna find a list of the most played and popular episodes of all time, you can do all of that from our landing page.

Go to desiringgod.org/askpastorjohn. Well, being a Christian in this world calls for an emotional complexity. And that's exactly what John Piper will explain for us tomorrow on the Ask Pastor John podcast. I'm your host, Tony Reinke. Thanks for listening. (upbeat music) (upbeat music)