Paul said, "I was made a minister according to the gift of the grace of God given unto me by the effectual working of his power." God had called him to preach the gospel. He knew it. He was humbled by it. He rejoiced in it. And he trembled because of it. Only God himself can make a man a preacher. That man who is called of God to the work of preaching the gospel has a direct commission and call from Christ, and it is unmistakably clear. He knows that he has been sent of God. Any man who is called of God to this great work takes the work seriously and earnestly seeks a message from Christ as he stands to speak for Christ. God called men preach with urgency because they have experienced in their souls the message they preach. They carry in their souls "the burden of the word of the Lord." They preach with urgency because they know for whom they speak and because they know the serious consequences of their message.

Don Fortner
Grace Baptist Church of Danville
Danville, Kentucky