The Call
“The Call” is an allegorical painting inspired by the Biblical scripture found in John 10:27 – “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.” It depicts hearing and discerning the voice of God, even in the unexpected places and times of our lives and following his voice.
The woman in white is in an “unexpected” place where one would not expect to hear God calling. The bar is a metaphor for such a place. She hears his voice and is rising from her seat – drawn away from the deceitful enticements around her.
The bartender and the enticing, fruity drink are inspired by 2 Corinthians 11:14, which says this, “But I am not surprised! Even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.” One of his greatest weapons is deception, where he convinces people that what is bad is actually good. Bibleref.com puts it like this, “By coating lies in a veneer of truth, it’s much easier to fool people into accepting what is false.”
The woman looking over her shoulder also hears and discerns God’s voice, but in that moment decides to not follow. She is lukewarm - turning her back. But Revelation 3:15-16 says, “I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth.”
The man with the mobile device is distracted. Being in a state of constant distraction is also a scheme of Satan. If he can keep us focused or distracted away from God’s leading, even if we aren’t doing anything “wrong”, then he is succeeding in keeping us from being a blessing to others. Not being “present” to hear God’s call stops or slows our progression towards his purpose for our lives.
Other scriptures represented in “The Call” include John 15:16, Galatians 5:16-17, and Ephesians 2:2.