Ephesians 1:3-6 says:
3 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, 4 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, 5 having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.
What is your reaction to those highlighted words?
Is it pride (wow God chose me!), fear (what if I'm not chosen?), confusion (how do I wrap my mind around this?), anger (those dang Calvinists!), or maybe it makes you really struggle with your faith (what about the millions God didn't choose?).
The doctrine of election or predestination is such a debated subject in the church. There has been such division over the issue, so much so that churches have imploded over it.
But was that really God's desire for us when He shared with us some of the secrets of His will in salvation?
I personally believe that God's decision regarding who is saved is based on His foreknowledge (see 1Peter 1:2, Romans 8:29)- so in that I disagree with my Calvinist friends.
But is this really something worth dividing over?
Not a chance!
If the truth about election and predestination causes you to become angry and divisive, you have missed the point entirely.
Trust me, I would know. This was me for many years!
The fact that God chose us before the foundation of the world should give us joy. Not pride or arrogance. And not fear either.
Joy.
Why?
Because at the very least- salvation is something far greater than we think.
We did not choose God. He chose us.
We did not seek out and find God (He wasn't the One who was lost!), He found us.
We did not contribute anything to our salvation, God paid it all in Christ.
Salvation really is of the Lord.
How that all worked out before the foundation of the world we don't know for sure. There is so much more about salvation that we won't ever understand this side of heaven.
But this I know- God choosing and saving us before the world began should create wonder and joy in our hearts.
Not division. Not anger. This is a debate within the family of God and that is OKAY! This has been debated for 2000 years and won't be settled anytime soon this side of heaven. There have been much smarter people than you or I who have disagreed about this over the years.
And guess what? These people are in heaven now NOT debating the issue!
As we prepare our hearts to continue Ephesians this Sunday, let us consider our awesome God who has existed since before time began, who knew us before we were even born, and who saved us!
In Christ,
Pastor Kevin
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