The teaching that God from eternity, before the world was even created, chose a definite number of people to be saved comes from the pen of the Apostle Paul. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love,having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His willµ (Eph. 1:3-5). This statement is amazing and merits our close analysis. We are told that God the Father has blessed us, that is, Christians or believers, with every spiritual blessing. These blessings are designated spiritual because they are derived from the Holy Spirit who applies Christ•s perfect work of redemption to our souls. When Paul says every spiritual blessing...in Christµ he means that every aspect of redemption that Jesus accomplished for His people (justification, sanctification, adoption,glorification) is ours (i.e. true believers).
In verse four we come to the section of Paul•s statement that is controversial. Paul says that all the blessings of salvation that believers have, have their source in the electing love of God the Father. Divine election is the source or origin of every Christian•s salvation. The word chose (Greek, exelexato) means to elect. God elected us in Christ. This word is frequently avoided or redefined in evangelical churches because if God elected some (i.e. everyone in Christ) then by logical implication others are not elected. That is, they are left by God to perish in their sins. Because many professing Christians don•t think such a view is democratic or fair, they turn this passage upside down and teach that God only chooses men who first choose Him. This view will be considered in a moment. Note that election is in Christ. The elect are chosen to be in Jesus. Everyone chosen by God will be united to the Savior (their federal head and representative) and thus will receive everything merited for them by the Mediator (regeneration, the gift of the Holy Spirit, justification, definitive sanctification, perseverance, glorification). Thus,
we see that the ultimate ground of our federal union with Christ is not our faith in Jesus, but rather, our faith in the Savior is ultimately rooted in our federal union with Christ.Although we are not actually justified until we lay hold of Christ by faith in space and time, the gifts of regeneration (Jn. 3:8; Ac. 11:18) and faith (Eph. 2:8) would not be bestowed by Christ without first the divine election of particular sinners.
Paul then gives us the time when election took place. He chose us in Him before the foundation of the worldµ (v. 4). Before time began, before the universe even existed, in eternity God chose those who He wanted to save in Christ. This statement tells some very important things regarding God•s plan of salvation. We see that everything relating to the salvation of sinners is worked out in exhaustive detail in God•s mind before the world even exists. There are no areas or pockets of chance in God•s universe. He works everything according to the counsel of His own will. Nothing that happens can or will take God by surprise. What this all means is that in the salvation of particular sinners, the elect ones, there cannot be failure. Their salvation is certain. Thus, salvation is from the Lord (Jonah 2:9). Christians are not saved by anything they have done. They are not ultimately saved because they made a choice; but, because God chose them. In other words, according to His great love and mercy He saved us. What a blessed gospel! God reaches out and saves those who cannot save themselves.
This teaching is supported by verse 5 which says that God predestined us to adoption as sons [i.e. to be part of His own family] by Jesus Christ…according to the good pleasure of His will.µ The word predestined (Greek, proorisas) means to predetermine or to determine beforehand. In context the word beforehand can only mean before the foundation of the world. The word predestined repeats the same idea as contained in verse four: He chose us…before the foundation of the world.µ God decided before creation began exactly who would be a part of His saved people. Therefore, the number of the elect was set in granite before any humans even existed. To argue otherwise is to say that either God is not sovereign or that Paul writing by divine inspiration made a mistake. Such ideas are obviously unchristian and demonic.
God•s choosing, election or predestination of those people who are to be saved is said to be according to the good pleasure of His willµ (v. 5). This means that God•s choice of the elect has absolutely nothing to do with anything outside Himself. It is not based on the foreseen faith of those who would choose Christ as Wesley proclaimed. Indeed, it cannot be based on what man does because: (a) man is dead in trespasses and sins (Eph. 2:1), spiritually blind (1 Cor. 2:14), hostile to God (Rom. 8:6-8) and completely unable to choose spiritual good (Rom. 8:6-8; Jn. 15:5; Ps. 14:3). Therefore, God must take the initiative in saving a people for Himself and that is exactly what He does when He chooses a people in Christ. Because election has everything to do with what God does and is not at all based on man•s initiative, theologians refer to it as unconditional election. The ground of election is God•s sovereign will, not the will or choice of men who are spiritually dead and unable to believe in Christ.
The purpose or goal of divine election is that we should be holy and without blame before Him in loveµ (v. 4). Commentators are divided over whether or not the word holiness in verse 4 is subjective and designates sanctification or is objective and refers to justification (i.e. Christ•s perfect righteousness imputed to believers). If one believes it refers to sanctification the word blameless would refer to a person•s sinless perfection at the final resurrection. Whatever interpretation one follows, one thing is crystal clear. Election does not open the possibility of salvation, but guarantees its actual accomplishment. Election does not make salvation possible nor does it take men part of the way to heaven; rather, it takes sinners all the way to paradise to behold the face of God. It does not merely bring him to conversion; it brings him to perfection. It purposes to make him holy that is cleansed from all sin and separated entirely to God and to his service and faultless that is, without any blemish whatever (Phil. 2:15), like a perfect sacrifice.3 Election is a God glorifying doctrine that ought to be precious to every Bible-believing Christian.
Extracted from the article of Brian Schwertley entitled Chosen by God: The Doctrine of Unconditional Election. You can download and read the whole article HERE in PDF format or in DOC format HERE.
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