Title: God's Election
Contents
? God's choice? Ephesians 1:4-6
The saints have received spiritual blessings from God. What is that spiritual blessing? It is the fact that God the Father has chosen us (verse 4). Our salvation begins with God's election. Regarding salvation, what we must know is that the Triune God has planned and accomplished our salvation. What does it mean to be chosen by God? There is no basis for human beings to claim their merits before God. Salvation is a one-sided act of God. And to be chosen means to select only a part of at least two or more objects. So, if there is a selection, there are also objects that are not selected.
Election belongs to God's sovereignty. No one can follow. Only God's election is the result of love, grace, and mercy. It is not for us to judge whether God has chosen us or not. Also, it is not correct to think that even if you do not evangelize, if God chooses you, you will return. This is because God uses the foolish method of evangelism to call the elect. Evangelism is God's way of calling God's elect.
Then why did you choose it? This is so that we can stand before God as holy and without blemish. Because God is holy, we must also be holy to stand before him. God's election is to make us perfect before God. In this way, our existence and worth comes from God's election. But we should not confuse God's election with fatalism, which holds that all of our lives are predetermined. God's election and foreordaining is not fatalism. God has ordained us to call, justify, and glorify us (Romans 8:30).
Why does God lead us this way? Because He made us sons (5). God has ordained us to be his sons (children). Adoption means adopting a son who is not a son. God's election makes us sons of God, that is, adoption. What does it mean to be a child of God? First of all, nothing has ever tried to be a child. In addition, once you become a legal child, you cannot be excluded from the family register without parental consent. The identity of the son is determined by who the father is. A child's future and future depend on the relationship he has with his father. Also, the son resembles his father, and he is becoming more like him. Not only that, children are heirs.
The text says that the reason for adopting us came from the will of the Father. It is God's good will that God chooses us. We have become objects that bring joy to God. Through adversity and hardship, we work together for good.
God's election is through Christ. Elected in Christ (v. 4) and through Jesus Christ (v. 5). God has established Christ as our representative and has accomplished salvation for us through Christ. Therefore, anything that is not through Christ has no effect. Through him, he has perfected our qualifications as children of God who have chosen us. Therefore, our job is to respond to God's demands.
Whoever I am, God has chosen me. You were made a child through Jesus Christ. Please enjoy the privileges of being a child of God. God has blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heaven.