Ministers require guidance. They do not constitute a special class of Christians. The New Testament designates all believers as priests. There is no clerical caste and so nothing of the Roman notion of a priestly vocation. All Christians are under the sovereign direction of God. All therefore should aim to know his will in relation to their work and to the sphere where they are to do that work. Yet there are particular factors in a minister's situation which need to be borne in mind and should make the issue of guidance a particularly important one for him.

For one thing, his action affects not just himself and his family but a congregation, and in the case of a subsequent call, more than one congregation. Then again he is inevitably a public figure who in many realms teaches by what he does as well as by what he says. Sermons on seeking first God's kingdom, on submitting to the leading of the Holy Spirit, on denying self — all these are preached not only from the pulpit but by the minister's actions. Furthermore he will often be called on to advise others. One of the frequent topics for discussion, especially among thoughtful young Christians, is that of guidance. The counsellor must in all consistency aim to exemplify the lessons he imparts to others.

There are negative factors in the consideration of a possible call to some sphere of work. The contrast Jesus drew between the good shepherd and the hireling is appropriate here. The hireling is concerned for his own welfare rather than for that of the flock, and one of the snares of the ministry is a professionalism which thinks more of personal advancement and achievement than of the needs of a congregation. The repeated warnings of the New Testament about covetousness and the love of money, and the application of such warnings to elders, need to be emphasized. If we are thinking of a sphere where we think our gifts will be more adequately displayed or where there is likely to be more acclaim or acceptance, then we are thinking as ecclesiastical professionals rather than as pastors.

There is a more subtle danger. It is the application to spiritual issues of purely human considerations. This is a recurring peril in Christian conduct and it can intrude in this area. Ideas of strategy can so affect us that we can be unduly affected by what we judge to be strategic situations. It is clear from the Acts of the Apostles that Paul did not ignore this factor, but as we shall see later he was not so controlled by it as to be blind to the opening of another and unexpected door.

It is interesting to notice how in the great awakening of the eighteenth century God did not work in the first instance in the capital cities or the university towns — they also were included later — but in obscure places like Olney and Haworth, Madeley and Yelling, Everton and Llangeitho.

There is a further danger. It is that of impatience. We live in an age when evangelicals have in many ways succumbed to the hurry syndrome. We have speeded up methods of eliciting decisions, accelerated schemes of accentuating holiness. It is not surprising then, if some expect the acceptance of certain principles of guidance to produce a reasonably quick conclusion. But as one friend put it to me, 'Our God is not the God of panic'. Sometimes the answer is slow in coming. Or perhaps the conviction emerges as to the way ahead, but the implementing of that conviction seems painfully delayed.

Such delay, however, proves to be more profitable than the quickly acquired result of some push button method of finding answers. For one thing, in such a time of waiting and perhaps of great perplexity, we are driven to seek God in a new way. How many have found that such times of travail of soul have taught them more about prayer than many a book on the subject. Furthermore such a time of soul searching and delay makes the final conclusion all the more compelling. How valuable that can prove in later days of testing! There are times when a minister is facing great problems and is inclined to ask himself if he made a mistake in coming to his present congregation. The recollection of the past guidance of the Spirit and the providence of God which brought him there, can be a steadying factor when he feels like taking Elijah's route to some remote Horeb.

A further negative consideration is that we must not run contrary to the plain teaching of Scripture. No appeal to the leading of the Holy Spirit is valid if we are clearly violating what that same Spirit of truth has made known in the Scriptures. An illustration of this is Jesus' stern words to those who were prepared to neglect their plain duty to their parents by quoting the principle of Corban — 'if a man says to his father or mother, "whatever help you might otherwise have received from me is Corban" (that is, a gift devoted to God), then you no longer let him do anything for his father or mother. Thus you nullify the word of God' (Mark 7:11-13). I recall being faced with this issue. I was approached about the possibility of a call to a church overseas and was greatly drawn to go. But my father was around eighty years of age and I was the only son in this country. To transplant him was out of the question. To leave him behind to the care of others seemed such a clear violation of a basic biblical principle that I had no option but to decline.

On the positive side there is a basic principle in guidance which applies to every believer. It is the obvious truth and yet the often forgotten one, that God is our Father. The erstwhile rebel has by sovereign grace been adopted into the family of God Almighty. We can say with the intimacy of children affectionately addressing their father, 'Abba'. So our God cares for us, and indeed, such is his condescending grace, takes a delight in us. If we are concerned for our children's future how much more deeply is our heavenly Father for ours!

It is here that the devil lives up to his designation as the slanderer. He sows in our minds false notions of God. So we find ourselves subconsciously thinking of God as a heavenly inspector or examiner. Issues of guidance become examination questions, with perhaps the element of the particularly subtle question to test the unwary. The memory of knuckle rapping by an impatient teacher is sadly transposed to a different dimension. What we need to remind ourselves is that this is the devil's caricature of God. Our God is our Father.

Of course he lets us make our mistakes, just as we are prepared to let our toddlers learn to walk by way of painful tumbles and cut knees. But we would not let that same toddler step off the pavement in front of a bus. Surely we can believe that our all-wise Father, while he may let us learn through our painful misjudgments, will keep his restraining hand on us in the face of the possibility of a disastrous wrong decision. We go astray, not when we are honestly aiming to know and do God's will, but when by precipitate or self-willed action we go along a path of our own choosing with little reference to God's authority. Then the chastening may be more severe and the consequences much more painful, but even then it is our Father who acts. He may have to hurt us deeply before our sinfulness or stubbornness is checked. But his love remains constant.

One of the hallmarks of the regenerate man is that his understanding has been enlightened. Formerly he was darkness but now he is 'light in the Lord' (Ephesians 5:8). The god of this world had blinded him, but now 'the God who commanded the light to shine out of darkness has made his light shine in our hearts' (2 Corinthians 4:6). The evidence of the increasing transformation is 'the renewal of your minds' (Romans 12:2). So we have access to a wisdom which formerly was beyond us.

It is true that we share in the general wisdom which common grace still apportions to fallen men. Their defacement of the image of God has not totally effaced their reflection of the all wise God who created them. But we also have a new wisdom. It is the enlightenment which is ours through the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit. He is described by Jesus as 'the Spirit of truth' and as such he leads us to an understanding of what the mind of God is in a particular situation. James has a similar thought in mind when he gives us a clear promise,

If any of you lack wisdom he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.James 1:5

So we do not face the questions of where we should go or what action we should take by recourse simply to common sense or rational judgement — though these certainly have their place and a spurious spirituality ignores these at our peril — we have a deeper source of guidance. It is the inner wisdom which the Spirit of God imparts to those whom he has regenerated.

There is also the more immediate working of the Spirit when on the one side he imposes a restraint upon our spirits and on the other he gives a constraint. In the one case we feel deeply unhappy about a course of action which on other grounds we might well feel was the correct one. In the second there is an inner peace and indeed a compelling assurance that moves us from hesitant doubt to firm action. A notable illustration of this restraining and constraining activity of the Holy Spirit is seen in Acts 16. Paul with his missionary concern and his eye for the population centres was obviously considering Asia as an evangelistic opportunity, but they were 'kept by the Holy Spirit from preaching the word' there.

The next possible place to reach was Bithynia. It seems clear from Luke's description that Paul and the others must have assessed the situation there and in fact come to the conclusion that they should go forward — 'they tried to enter Bithynia'. But while considered judgement indicated this as the door they were to go through 'the Spirit of Jesus would not allow them to'.

There is a general principle here. When faced by the possibility of a new sphere of work we will endeavour to assess the situation. We will take advice from friends. We will ask ourselves searching questions about our own suitability for this task. But we must always be prepared for the restraint of the Spirit. Guidance is not simply a dispassionate conclusion reached after a careful and logical consideration of the pros and cons. It has also an element of divine compulsion. We may indeed reach a considered judgement, as Paul did, that a certain course seems the way forward and yet there may come such a powerful dissuasive from the Spirit's pressure upon us that we cannot proceed. We must not ignore this restraint. Not even the claim and needs of Asia and Bithynia with their unreached crowds could overrule the Spirit's prohibition. God had his own purposes of grace and these would yet include both Asia and Bithynia (see Acts 19:10 and 1 Peter 1:1) but for Paul and the others this was not the time.

One of the most perplexing experiences in this matter is to find an avenue unexpectedly closed when every indication of providence, biblical principle, and personal conviction pointed in such a direction. I recall a young minister and his wife who faced before God the issue of serving him in Africa. A particular need had been made known and Christians were praying that it would be met. There were remarkable indications of what seemed to be God's will both in their own Bible reading, which in no way was manipulated to get a favourable text, and also in the providential removal of an expected parental disapproval. Yet within a short time of leaving for overseas the mission cancelled the whole scheme because of questioning from overseas as to the rightness of attempting to fill the particular need — this advice was later indignantly queried by another missionary source! It was all quite traumatic and forced very serious appraisal of the whole matter of guidance.

One very pertinent passage was the preparation which David made to build the temple. Doubtless to his great disappointment, the Lord informed him that he was not to go ahead. The exercise had not however been wasted. The initial preparations had been made which Solomon could continue. Furthermore there was the divine reassurance, 'You did well to have this in your heart' (2 Chronicle 6:8). So God sometimes leads us along a path which he himself will block in order to test our willingness to face costly decisions, and our readiness to submit to his sovereign disposal of our lives. Our God delights in such obedience as, clearly, he delighted in David's readiness to serve him. Furthermore, having led us not merely to a theoretical readiness, but to the crucial point of actual commitment to a course of action, he enriches our ministry to others. To have faced and responded to a call to a difficult choice is to be prepared for a ministry in which we may summon others to painful decisions, knowing that, by God's grace, we ourselves have not opted for the easy course.

The further question may be raised — how do you distinguish between this inner lack of assurance, this unhappiness of soul at the proposed action, and on the other hand the blend of hesitation, fear and doubts which can lead to a condition of virtual paralysis? It is difficult to reply to that question with clearly formulated answers. We are, after all, in the area of personal relationships and such, even at the human level, are not susceptible of rational analysis. To walk with God, to be filled with the Spirit, is to move in an area where we learn to detect the operation of the Spirit upon our spirits.

We are aware that an important element in our doctrine of assurance is the conviction that 'the Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children' (Romans 8:16). Similarly our acceptance of the authority of Scripture has an important factor, the inner witness of the Spirit. It is not simply that we have the objective truths with their compelling authority, but there is also the inner impact as the Spirit stirs us to receive them. Of course we will endeavour to remain alert to dangers. We will be aware of our own temperament, especially if we normally find it difficult to come to a decision. That can easily lead to a rationalizing of our own timorous hesitancy by pleading the restraint of the Spirit. Then again our natural aversion to some particular task to which other considerations point us could lead us to make an appeal to the Spirit's restraining work which is really an excuse for avoiding a call to a demanding task. But with these qualifications firmly in view, and with a submission to the principles of Scripture, we must also take fully into account the inner working of the Spirit. Without his clear mandate we dare not proceed. In face of his prohibition we must not force our own way forward.

Such an experience which may at the time be perplexing if, like Paul, we are moving in a particular direction, must not lead to a state of passive acquiescence, much less of drift. Guidance came to Paul and his friends as they continued along the route they were already following, still doubtless waiting on God for clearer light concerning the future. When the Spirit firmly closes a door then it is for us to continue faithfully in the tasks in which we are already involved and await further directions.

There is another matter to be considered. Paul clearly recognized the difference between the restraint of the Spirit and the hindering work of Satan. In the matter of Bithynia he recognized that God had shut the door, and he accepted that as closing the issue. Yet he could write in a different vein to the Thessalonians:

We made every effort to see you. For we wanted to come to you — certainly I, Paul, did, again and again — but Satan stopped us.1 Thessalonians 2:17-18

So there is the restraint of the Spirit which is to be accepted, and the restraint of Satan which is to be resisted. Again we are in the realm of inner spirituality, and the recognition of the difference between the authentic voice of God and the deceiving utterances of the father of lies. This means that a check upon us may be the Lord's firm 'No', but it may also be engineered by Satan, and we must not be unaware of his devices. The restraint may thus be a final one which we must accept. But it may be an attempt by Satan to thwart the purposes of God, and such is a call to us to seek the Lord with renewed earnestness that he will show us the way forward, and remove from us whatever obstacle Satan may be putting in the path.

This brings us to the other side of the coin. The Holy Spirit having restrained them at Bithynia then constrained them at Troas. Certainly there was a remarkable factor in that God graciously gave Paul a vision. This, however, was a quite momentous occasion. It was the first stage of the evangelization of a new continent. We should not expect that God will always intervene in such a dramatic way, but we certainly should expect to enjoy the same constraint of the Spirit as they had when, in Luke's words, they were 'concluding that God had called us'. The verb used here (sumbibazo) suggests the bringing together of various elements. So everything fell into place. This was the way forward! It is a great moment when the perplexity and turmoil of mind, the questionings and the hesitations, all give way to a deep and settled persuasion that this is the way ahead.

There is another element in guidance which is also important; it is the advice of fellow believers. This is not simply because any sensible person will check his ideas of what he should do by consulting others. Rather it is linked to the guidance of the Holy Spirit. He is, after all, the Spirit who dwells within the Church which is his temple. He is the one who animates the body of Christ. He is it who gives gifts to the different members that by using these gifts they may build up the body. So in turning to fellow believers for advice we are not turning from the Spirit to merely human counsellors. They are the divinely appointed partners with us in the fellowship of the redeemed. They have a responsibility to us as we to them to help one another.

Clearly we will use wisdom as to whom we consult. We are not expected to make a personal issue a matter of public debate in the church. Nor would we consult the spiritually immature or the obviously worldly. As ministers we may consult a fellow elder or we may turn to a trusted friend in the ministry. Their advice will not be viewed as the decisive factor, though there can be occasions when an impassioned Farel can be a major influence on a reluctant Calvin! But the advice of an experienced man of God who knows the Scriptures, knows his God, and also knows us personally, should not lightly be set aside.

The ultimate aim for the Christian is to know God. For the apostle Paul with his driving passion to preach the gospel, to edify the churches and to resist error, there was a supreme ambition — it was to know Christ. It is important that we should aim to know and to do the will of God. The fruitfulness of our ministry and the blessing of many people are linked intimately with this knowledge of his will. Yet in the final analysis it is the knowledge of God himself which is the ultimate goal. The heart searching, the consulting with friends, the frustrations and perplexities, the travail of soul, the disappointments, the providential openings — all these are subordinate to the increasing realization of the chief aim, to know and love and adore God himself.