Calling

Calling in the New Testament refers both to God's sovereign summons to salvation and to the social station or vocation in which a believer is found when converted. Paul instructs each person to remain in the calling in which they were called (1 Corinthians 7:20), cautioning against the assumption that conversion requires a change of social position. The fuller sense of calling — the "high calling of God in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 3:14) — encompasses the entire life of discipleship and ultimate glorification. There is "one hope of your calling" binding all believers together (Ephesians 4:4), and Paul repeatedly urges believers to walk worthy of it (Colossians 1:10; 1 Thessalonians 2:12). The concept thus integrates divine initiative, present vocation, and eschatological destiny.