Sola Scriptura Ministries

3

Riches From The Father: Election

Ephesians 1:4-6

According as He hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him, in love. Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.

Just before I stepped into the pulpit to deliver the first of five messages on which this chapter was based, I was reminded of these words, spoken by Puritan Richard Baxter:

               I preach as though I will never preach again,

               A dying man to dying men.

After 30 years of preaching, I feel this way often, but never more than when I stand on the holy ground of the present text. I have never had the privilege to visit what has been rightly dubbed “hallowed ground” at Gettysburg, but as holy and as revered as it is, even it cannot compare with the passage before us. As we study this passage, we begin to understand the words God said to Moses, “Put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground” (Ex. 3:5).

We pointed out in our last study that this “song of praise” (vs. 4-14) divides itself into three stanzas. With that in mind, we are now ready to study the first stanza (vs. 4-6) and see what the Father has done in the past. It is indeed significant that Paul deals with this first. Most of us tend to think that blessing comes merely by believing on Christ. While this is true, this is not the starting point. Paul goes back to where our salvation began—According as He hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world. He goes back to what God did before the foundation of the world. The one underlying principle in understanding salvation is this: Salvation is of the Lord; God has done it all. And of all the spiritual blessings God has given us, this is the greatest of all. That’s why Paul begins here.

Several years ago, I was speaking to a young preacher who was struggling with a few matters concerning election. I simply asked him, “Who saved you?” His answer immediately was, “God did, of course.” My only response was, “There you go.” If we can just grasp and cling to the foundational truth that God saved us, and really understand that truth, we will have no problems with the doctrine of election or its related issues. Salvation is either of God or it isn’t. And if it’s not all of God, then none of it can be of God. Either all of it is of grace or none of it is of grace.

Before going on, we should define salvation. This might seem unnecessary, but without a proper understanding of this term we will quickly go astray as we confront the watered down Gospel being preached today. Salvation is no longer defined in narrow terms. It can mean anything you want it to mean. It can mean “believing in Jesus,” however ambiguous that is. Or it can mean “asking Jesus into your heart,” whatever that means. Or it can even mean “a deliverance from a poor self-esteem,” as Robert Schuller teaches.

First, salvation is not “reformation.” Many today think they can reform society, that they can reconstruct and renovate people much like they would remodel a building. Unlike that 100 year-old building we might buy and renovate, man is not a “fixer-upper.” We are not just run down and in need of minor repairs. A couple of coats of paint and new windows will not do the job. No, we are beyond renovating. But this is exactly what many believe. They think that if they simply change a man’s environment, then the man himself will be better. This is, in fact, the whole foundation for America’s welfare system, but it simply doesn’t work. Reformation changes only the outward appearance, leaving inward problems unsolved.

Second, and worse yet, salvation is not “religion.” All religion is based on one thing: works. Religion is always what man in his efforts tries to do to please God. Cain (Gen. 4) was the first religious man. We could call him the founder of “Cainism,” which still exists today. His approach was to bring the fruit of his own labor as an offering to God. Millions are still doing it. They go to church, they give a little money, they say a prayer, they participate in a sacrament, and they do good works. But religion is a stench in the nostrils of God (Is. 64:6, where “filthy rags” speaks of a menstrual cloth).

Third, then, what is salvation? The Greek word translated “salvation” in the New Testament (e.g. Rom. 1:16; 10:9-10; Eph. 1:13; Heb. 5:9; etc.) is soteria, which means safety, deliverance, and preservation from danger or destruction. To hear the “Gospel” preached in many churches today, you would never know they were talking about salvation. Deliverance from destruction? Few preachers mention such an offensive concept. Today’s “Gospel” says just “come to Jesus and He will take care of all your problems,” or “He will make you a better ball-player,” or “He will give you all you want.” But the Word of God clearly reveals how sinful man is and how great God is. It clearly explains that God, solely through His grace, mercy, and love reached down to save a dead race, a race that hated Him. As Lamentations 3:22 declares: “It is of the LORD’S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.” Why would Jeremiah us the word consumed? Because God is “consuming fire” (Deut. 4:24; 93; Heb. 12:29). Salvation is deliverance and safety from the judgment and wrath of God.

So, in contrast to the definition of salvation offered by the “new theology” of today, which is, “liberation from the oppression of this world’s structures”¹ (whatever that means), I would offer this one, which I believe is soundly based on the Word of God:

Salvation is the sole act of God whereby He by His mercy and grace eternally redeems His elect believers and delivers them from their sin and the resultant spiritual death through the once-for-all redeeming work of Jesus Christ on the cross.

Any other doctrine than this should be cursed. As Paul told the Galatians:

Though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.

Indeed, we are today hearing false gospels everywhere, and everyone of them should be exposed and cursed for what they are.

This brings us to consider a doctrine that many dread to mention, much less study—the doctrine of election. I appreciated a comment I read by John Stott: “The doctrine of election is a divine revelation, not a human speculation.”² I appreciated even more commentator Kent Hughes’ elaboration on Stott’s words:

This [doctrine] is primary truth . . . It was not dreamed up by Martin Luther or John Calvin or St. Augustine, or by the Apostle Paul for that matter. It is not to be set aside as the imagination of some overactive religious minds, but rather humbly accepted as revelation (however mysterious it may be) from God. We must never allow our subjective experience of choosing Christ water down the fact that we would not have chosen him if he had not first chosen us. (Cf. John 6:44, John 15:16, 2 Thessalonians 2:13, 1 Peter 1:2, 1 Thessalonians 1:4–7.) The doctrine of election presents us with a God who defies finite analysis. It is a doctrine which lets God be God.³

I am convinced that most of the problems and controversies that arise when dealing with the subject of election and related subjects come from two causes.

First, much of the problem comes from an inadequate foundation. Often pastors and other teachers fail to show Christians how to look at these doctrines, that is, what attitudes to hold as they consider them. It is this that we need to examine in this first study. In my series on the Doctrines of Grace a few years ago, I shared these attitudes in detail, so I’ll just mention them briefly here.⁴

We must first consider these doctrines Biblically, that is, according to the plain text of Scripture. For example, when Ephesians 2:8-9 says, “For by grace [you have been] saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, Not of works, lest any man should boast,” that is exactly what It means. These two verses alone tell us that salvation is all of grace. Meditate on what those three words really mean. Every aspect of our salvation from beginning to end is of God and His grace alone. Salvation is either all of grace or none of it is of grace. As we will see when we return to this verse, it does not say “your faith.” Yes, faith is the channel of our salvation, but grace is the cause. And, as we’ll also see, God even gives us the faith to believe. Anything less than this is salvation by works.

We must also consider these doctrines Humbly. When tempted to rebel against the thought of election and God’s sovereignty, may we remember what God said to Job:

Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding . . . He does great things past finding out . . . (Job 38:4; 9:10).

And as Paul wrote to the Romans to head off any questions they might raise:

Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out! For who hath known the mind of the Lord? or who hath been his counselor? (Rom. 11:33-34).

So, when we are temped to say excitedly, “Well, I just don’t get that, so I don’t believe that!” may we just calm down and humble ourselves before a sovereign God. Who are we to think that we can understand God and His ways? This leads to two other principles.

We must then approach these doctrines Believingly, that is, we must accept them by faith. And finally, we must approach these doctrines Prayerfully. Prayer is primarily, communion with God; it is a dependency upon Him; it is a conforming and submitting to His will. If we are, therefore, in prayer as we study, we will be totally submitted to the will of God, and we will have neither the time nor the inclination to argue. If we are in prayer as we study, we will be totally open to the Holy Spirit’s teaching.

Second, difficulty also arises on the subject of election because of an inadequate view of God and an elevated view of man.⁵ God is often dragged down to man’s level and man is lifted up to God’s level. We elevate man to be what he never was and drag God down to be what He has never been.

Much of the problem comes from the fact that God is no longer God. In the minds of many, God is not an absolutely sovereign God who controls all things. He’s no longer a God Who had a sovereign plan from before the foundation of the world and is now providentially executing that plan. Basically, sovereignty means that since God is the Creator of all things, He then owns all things and therefore rules all things. To say that God is sovereign is to say that He is supreme. To say that God is sovereign is to say that He is the Most High. To say that God is sovereign is to say that He does everything according to His will, His purpose. To say that God is sovereign is to say that He is the Ruler over all things. To say that God is sovereign is to say that no one can defeat His plan, thwart His purpose, or resist His power. In short, to say that God is sovereign is to say that God IS God! As I spend countless hours reading and studying, I hate anything that lessens who God is. Why? Because it’s blasphemy. And it seems that the first thing to go is God’s sovereignty.

I Chron. 29:11-12 defines this sovereignty. These verses are actually part of David’s prayer of thanksgiving:

Thine, O LORD, is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty: for all that is in the heaven and in the earth is thine; thine is the kingdom, O LORD, and thou art exalted as head above all. Both riches and honour come of thee, and thou reignest over all; and in thine hand is power and might; and in thine hand it is to make great, and to give strength unto all.

May we examine our hearts and ask, “When was the last time I prayed like that? Then again, have I ever prayed like that?” On the contrary, today we hear “the prayer of Jabez,” with its emphasis on “Oh, God, bless me.” Our prayer life is often wholly self-centered when primarily it should praise God and manifest total submission to His sovereign will.

Man, on the other hand, is elevated from one who was totally depraved and unable to respond to God in any way to an only partially sinful being who has a totally free will to choose or reject God. As mentioned earlier, man is simply a “fixer-upper.” Pastor and commentator James Montgomery Boice writes this profound statement:

When people have trouble with election—and many do—their real problem is not the doctrine of election, although they think it is, but with the doctrine of depravity that makes election necessary.”⁶

How right he is! We just can’t accept the idea of how sinful man is. As we will study in great depth, Paul later writes in Ephesians:

And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins: Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. (2:1-3)

Likewise, beginning in Romans 1:18 and going through 3:20, Paul paints a picture of man’s depravity, bleakness, and deadness in graphic detail. The Word of God could not be clearer on what man is outside of Christ—he is spiritually dead. A dead man can’t do anything. In the fall, man was so affected by sin that he has lost all will or ability to any spiritual good. Just as a drowning victim cannot do CPR on himself, God must intervene and save the lost sinner. And intervene He does through His love, mercy, and grace.

Turning to our text, Paul declares in verse 4: According as He hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world. To study this great truth, we need to examine five points concerning election: its Reality, its Reasons, its Root, its Results, and its Repercussions.

I. The Reality of God’s Election (vs.4a, 5a, 6b)

According as He hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world . . . Having predestinated us . . . wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.

One view of election says: “God chose certain individuals for salvation before the foundation of the world based on His foreknowledge that they would believe. God chose for salvation those whom He knew would, of their own free choice, choose to believe in Christ.” What this ultimately says is that election is not based on God choosing us but us choosing God. In the final analysis, then, salvation is not based solely on God’s grace but on our faith.

But the Apostle Paul says something quite different. In fact, the most outstanding and striking feature of this verse and its context is that everything here is what God alone has done. Man is nowhere to be found in this passage. Only God is doing something here. With that fact firmly entrenched in our minds, let us note three specific acts of God in Eph. 1:4-6: God Has Chosen Us (v. 4a), God has Predestined us (v. 5a), and God has Made Us Acceptable (v. 6b).

God Has Chosen Us (v. 4a)

According as He hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world;

The word chosen is all-important here. It is the Greek eklego, which carries the basic meaning “to pick out, choose, select for one’s self.” Most importantly, however, is the fact that this is in the Aorist Tense and the Middle Voice. The Aorist Tense is used for simple, undefined action. When used in the indicative mood, as it is here, it usually denotes a simple act occurring in the past. We can best understand the Middle Voice by contrasting it with Active and Passive Voice. While the Active Voice pictures the subject of the verb doing the acting, and the Passive Voice pictures the subject being acted upon, the Middle Voice pictures the subject acting in its own interest, that is, it receives the benefit of the action. So, the Aorist Middle here shows that God did the choosing independently in the past and did so primarily for His own interest, that is, His glory. As J. Sidlow Baxter puts it: “Think of it—chosen out of the world, once for all, to be God’s own as a peculiar treasure!”⁷ Verses 6, 12, and 14 bear this out, for they all emphasize the words “His glory.”

This alone is sufficient to show the fallacy of our foreseen faith being the basis for election. The word “election” here speaks only of an action done by God in the past, not on man’s faith in the future.

Another important point concerning eklego is that while it speaks of choosing for oneself, it does not necessarily imply the rejection of what is not chosen. A common criticism of the doctrine of election is that God’s choosing of certain ones to salvation means that He, therefore, chooses the rest to condemnation. But there is no foundation for this accusation. Nowhere does the Word Of God teach that God chooses (or predestines) unbelievers to eternal damnation. This has been called “double-predestination,” but again, it is not Biblical. A person goes to hell for one reason: he rejects God and His way of salvation. A person is condemned by his own unbelief, not God’s predestination. As the Puritan Anthony Burgess put it:

For no man is damned precisely because God hath not chosen him, because he is not elected, but because he is a sinner, and doth willfully refuse the means of grace offered.⁸

At this point, many have a problem with God’s election and man’s “will” or “choice.” The trouble only comes, however, when we fail to differentiate between man’s responsibility and man’s will. Just because man’s will is enslaved and no longer free, he is still responsible before God. Why? Because each one of us was in the Garden of Eden and sinned with Adam (Rom. 5:12; I Cor. 15:22). Each of us is responsible for his or her own sin. Is God responsible for sending anyone to hell? No! Each individual is responsible for sending himself to hell. What sends him to hell? His failure to believe. In the words of our Lord:

He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God (Jn. 3:18).

While man’s will is in bondage, his mind is still free to choose. He is still responsible for his decisions and actions. This seems contradictory to the finite human mind, but it makes perfect sense to the sovereign, omniscient God of the universe. Again, how arrogant we are to think we can comprehend God and His ways. Does God anywhere tell us that He expects us to comprehend His ways? For example, in a moment we shall consider Abraham. Does the Word of God say in Romans 4:3 (as well as in Gal. 3:6 and Jas. 2:23) that, “Abraham comprehended God and it was counted unto him for righteousness?” No, it says that Abraham believed God. He had no idea where he was going or what God had in store. He simply believed.

Notice also that Paul specifically uses the word us. He is not speaking of nations, as some argue about election, rather he speaks of individuals. It also emphasizes that the elect are a special group, indeed a family, as Paul will speak of in the word adoption in verse. 5.

Paul then adds that God did all this before the foundation of the world. The Greek for foundation is katabole. It is derived from the verb kataballo, which means to fling down, and was originally used of throwing down the seed of plants and animals, as well as laying down a foundation.

Think of it! Before the law, before the covenants, before the Fall, before creation itself, God sovereignly chose us in Christ. We belonged to God even before time began. As Paul taught Timothy, “[God] hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began.” Indeed, as Rev. 13:8 declares, “Our names were “written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world” (Rev. 13:8).

So, we see that election is all of God. This truth is born out all through the Word of God. We could look at many of these, but we’ll mention only a few here.⁹

First, consider God’s Call of Abraham. Some have trouble with the principle that God chooses some but not others. But few of those critics stumble over the fact that God called Abram out of the heathen land of Ur but left the others to die in their paganism. Why didn’t God call all of those in Ur? We do not know. God calls according to His own purposes.

Second, consider God’s choosing of Israel. Why did God choose Israel over all other nations? Why not choose a nation that already existed? Why create another? Was it because of something in them? Was it because they were already special? Certainly not! Deuteronomy 7:7-8 is clear:

The LORD did not set his love upon you, nor choose you, because ye were more in number than any people; for ye were the fewest of all people: But because the LORD loved you.

A common criticism of the doctrine of election is that it is cold and unloving, but as we will study later in verse 4, God’s love is at the very root of His election. Why does God love any person? We do not know.

Third, consider the case of Moses and Israel. A typical protest against the whole concept of election is, “This is not just! It’s not fair!” And to this we answer, No, it certainly isn’t justice; it’s grace. A principle that is missed by many is that justice would demand that God favor no one! That is precisely the argument Paul says many of his readers would have, as we read in verses 14-16:

What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? God forbid. For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that showeth mercy.

The words “God forbid!” translate the Greek me genoito, which Paul uses some ten times in Romans. This is the strongest Greek negative and gives the idea of, “Certainly not,” or even, “No, no, a thousand times no.” To even think that God is unjust is blasphemous. Again, the point here is not justice, but grace. I thank God that He did not deal with me according to justice, but according to His incomprehensible grace.

This clearly shows us that all this is God’s prerogative. Why? Because He is the sovereign God. Paul reminds his readers that God is not bound to have mercy and compassion on anyone. He bestows these on whomever He chooses. No one can demand God’s grace, but that is, in fact, precisely what many do in essence. Since God chooses us based on our foreseen faith, the conclusion is that we are demanding grace based on the fact that we believed, and that God is obligated to grant it. But such a thought destroys the entire concept of grace.

We should strongly emphasize Romans 9:15 again, in which Paul cites Exodus 33:19. After the Israelites’ sin of worshipping the golden calf, God said to put about 3,000 men to death. But think a moment. But wait, would not God have been perfectly just in putting everyone to death? Yes, but he sovereignly chose to show mercy on most. Fairness would have demanded the death of all, but grace spared those God chose to live.

Indeed, one of the most commonly overlooked principles is that God doesn’t have to save anyone; He doesn’t have to be merciful and gracious. That’s what makes grace so precious. Those who try to mix works with grace don’t understand grace. Those who reject the security of the believer simply don’t understand grace. If He has to be merciful and gracious, then it’s no longer grace. We are sinners, filthy, wretched sinners who deserve death, but God chooses to be merciful. If He were to be merciful and gracious to only one, that would be just as undeserved as if He were merciful and gracious to a billion.

So, may I say again, No, this doctrine of election is most certainly not fair; it’s grace. If God were fair, we would all die in our sin.

May I illustrate this way. While the governor of a state has the power to pardon a condemned murderer, is he under an obligation to do so? Does he have to pardon him? Also, if he pardons only one murderer out of a hundred, would anyone have a right to complain that he doesn’t pardon the remaining ninety-nine as well?

Or, may I put it another way. If a man enters an orphanage with the intent of adopting a child, do we think him unloving if he does not adopt all the children in the orphanage?

Our illustrations are obvious, so why isn’t it obvious that a sovereign God can choose whom He wills? If He pardoned only one, if he adopted only one, He would still be merciful, gracious, and loving.

Let’s consider one more example.

Fourth, consider the words of Luke in the early days of the Church. When Paul and Barnabas preached the Gospel in Antioch in Pisidia, the Jews opposed them. In response, Paul announced that they were turning then to the Gentiles because the Gospel is for all men. What was the result of that announcement?

And when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad, and glorified the word of the Lord: and as many as were ordained to eternal life believed. (Acts 13:48).

Did everyone there have a so-called “free will” to choose in and of themselves to believe? Obviously not. This verse, in fact, is a tough one for those who try to skirt the doctrine of election. There is simply no other way to read this verse except that, as one commentator puts it, “divine ordination to eternal life is the cause, not the effect, of any man’s believing,”¹⁰ Each believed because of God’s election.

The reason this truth is so plain is that the Greek word for “appointed” is tasso, a military word meaning “to arrange” or “to assign.” Luke used it here to show that God’s elective decree included Gentiles.

Consider also why they were glad. As the same commentator writes: “[They were] glad to perceive that their accession to Christ was a matter of Divine arrangement . . . ”¹¹ Are you not glad for the salvation God has granted you? Are you not overjoyed to understand what God has done for you? Further, does it not cause you to want to “glorify the Word of the Lord?” To think that God reached down to a hopeless, wretched race and, only by His love, mercy, and grace, saved those whom He chose before the foundation of the world. I find no doctrine in Scripture more humbling than that. I find no doctrine in Scripture more assuring than that. I find no doctrine in Scripture more blessed than that.

But alas, there are those who have trouble with that. I certainly did for many years. But may we submit, that is what God’s Word says. It matters not if we have difficulty sorting it all out, or comprehending the depth of it, or understanding the implications of it. What matters is that it is what God says.

May we understand that God’s sovereignty, God’s grace, and man’s choice are never in contradiction. On the contrary, they are so inseparable that we cannot possibly comprehend where one leaves off and the other begins. Theologian J.I. Packer writes this insightful comment in his book Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God:

All Christians believe in divine sovereignty, but some are not aware that they do, and mistakenly imagine and insist that they reject it. What causes this odd state of affairs? The root cause is the same as in most cases of error in the Church—the intruding of rationalistic speculations, the passion for systematic consistency, a reluctance to recognize the existence of mystery and to let God be wiser than men, and a consequent subjecting of Scripture to the supposed demands of human logic. People see the Bible teaches man’s responsibility for his actions; they do not see (man, indeed, cannot see) how this is consistent with the sovereign Lordship of God over those actions. They are not content to let the two truths live side by side, as they do in the Scriptures, but jump to the conclusion that, in order to uphold the biblical truth of human responsibility, they are bound to reject the equally biblical and equally true doctrine of divine sovereignty, and to explain away the great number of texts that teach it. The desire to over–simplify the Bible by cutting out the mysteries is natural to our perverse minds, and it is not surprising that even godly men should fall victim to it. Hence this persistent and troublesome dispute. The irony of the situation, however, is that when we ask how the two sides pray, it becomes apparent that those who profess to deny God’s sovereignty really believe in it just as strongly as those who affirm it.¹²

Confusion in men’s minds occurs when they try to reconcile truths that they think are contradictory. We don’t like mysteries or paradoxes, so we “make adjustments” so that everything fits neatly into our system. But this is presumptuous and arrogant and ultimately dishonors God and His Word. We must embrace all these doctrines and trust God on how they operate.

Another author puts this succinctly when he writes:

Divine sovereignty, human responsibility, and the free and universal offer of mercy are all found in Scripture, and, though we are unable to harmonize them by our logic, ought all to have a place in our minds.¹³

The truth does not lie on “some middle ground” or “somewhere in between,” as many teachers try to compromise. But that is nonsense. The truth lies, in fact, in both extremes.

A. W. Tozer also challenges us to the correct attitude when we are confronted with seeming contradictions:

All Truth is one and the many truths revealed in the Holy Scriptures are but various facets of the one truth. The follower of Christ is called upon to embrace all truths and every truth. That is, he must open his heart to God’s truth, and having done so he must be prepared to accepts all truths and reject none. Where one truth seems to contradict another the wise Christian will not make his choice between them but will believed both and wait for the day of Christ to resolved what appears to be their differences.¹⁴

The bottom line is, that there are many explanations that will simply have to wait until we get to Heaven. As Paul writes, “For who hath known the mind of the Lord?” (Rom. 11:34). Likewise, Isaiah declares God’s own words:

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts” (Is. 55:8-9).

May we stop being arrogant. May we stop trying to make things agree that don’t disagree in the mind of God.

It is also a good rule that whenever we are perplexed by a particular doctrine, to consult the rock solid theologians and other Bible teachers down through Church History. We should thank God for such men. The greatest names in Church History believed what God said, embraced these doctrines, and waited for final understanding when they got to Heaven: Augustine, John Wycliffe, John Huss, Martin Luther, John Calvin, Ulrich Zwingli, John Knox, George Whitefield, Jonathan Edwards, John Owen, Charles Spurgeon, and many others. This is a tremendous comfort.

Harry Ironside, that beloved pastor of Moody Church in Chicago from 1930 to 1948, had a way of making difficult truths easier to understand. He used to illustrate the truth of election by describing a door. The sinner is standing outside the door and reads above it, “Whosoever will, let him come.” He believes God’s promise, steps through the door, and is saved. He then turns around and reads above the inside of the door, “Chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world.”¹⁵

While you might still be temped to say, “I still don’t get it,” may I say, “You will.”

That brings us to the second specific act of God in Ephesians 1:4-6.

God has Predestined us (v. 5a)

Having predestinated us . . .

As we’ll see later in this verse, the Result of election is adoption. That is, in fact, what we are predestinated to—our destiny is that of being adopted as sons of God. But we first need to understand what predestination is. Here is another term that causes many people to become defensive. When the term is mentioned, some react with words such as, “Oh, that whole predestination thing. Let’s not go there!” But we do, indeed, need to “go there,” for there we find wondrous truth.

While we will not exposit the passage in depth, we at least need to look briefly at what has been called “The Golden Chain of Salvation” in Romans 8:29-30:¹⁶

For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified.

This passage lists five links that are absolutely unbreakable, five acts God alone has done in the past (since all the verbs are in the Past Tense) to provide and secure our salvation. As in Ephesians 1, only God is in view here, only God is doing something. To introduce man is arrogant presumption.

First, God foreknew His people. A common belief is that “foreknowledge” simply means “prior knowledge,” just knowing something before it happens. But that simply is not so. The Greek word behind it (proginosko) also carries the idea of foreordination. A good example is Acts 2:23. Peter is preaching on the Day of Pentecost and reminding the Jews about Jesus: “Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain.” Now, is Peter saying that God foreknew in eternity past that Christ would die on the cross? Is he saying that God simply looked down through time and said, “Oh, yes, I see that they will put my Son to death.” The thought is absurd, is it not? Obviously, what Peter is saying is that Christ died on the cross because God purposefully sent Him to do so. The Greek construction of the verse further bears this out. “Determinate” is from horizo (from which is derived our English word “horizon”) and carries the idea of setting up limits or boundaries. “Counsel” is from boule, which in Classical Greek referred to an officially convened, decision-making counsel. Both terms, therefore, convey the idea of willful intention. God, Who is His own “decision-making council,” purposefully set up boundaries in which men could act.

Deeper and more blessed, however, is the fact that the root of proginosko (ginosko) means “to know by experience” and often has a much more significant meaning that is practically synonymous with love and intimacy. Matthew 1:25, for example, says that Joseph “did not know” Mary before Jesus was born, that is, they had not yet been physically intimate. Jesus used the same word in Matthew 7:23 where He speaks of those who have professed to be believers but are not: “And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.”

This is exactly what we see in I Pet. 1:1-2:

Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father.

Some insist this just means prior knowledge, but now notice verse 20: “[Christ] verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you.” This is significant because the Greek for foreordained is the same word for foreknowledge in verse 2. Therefore, it’s obvious that this doesn’t mean that God simply foresaw that Christ would be manifested. Rather, He was, as we are, foreordained and foreknown by an intimate relationship before the foundation of the world.

Second, Paul tells us in Rom. 8:29 and Eph. 1:4 that God predestinated us. While foreknowledge looks at the beginning of God’s purpose in the whole sphere of election, predestination looks at the end. Indeed, it follows directly from foreknowledge.

The Greek word for “predestination” (proorizo) is a fascinating one, indeed. Its simple meaning is “to designate before,” but we see the real depth of it in the fact that it’s a compound word. Pro, of course, means “beforehand,” but horizo, which we mentioned earlier, speaks of a “boundary or limit,” and is actually where our English word “horizon” comes from. So, just as the horizon marks a limit between what we can and can’t see, God has placed us within a certain limit, a certain “horizon.” He has put us in a place where we can see and comprehend many things but where many other things are hidden from our sight and comprehension, many things that are beyond our horizon. Further, even if we walk closer to the horizon, and understand things we never understood before, a new horizon appears. We will never understand it all this side of Heaven.

This word graphically demonstrates that God has marked out something for each of His elect; He has marked out a destiny. Much of this destiny is hidden from us; it is beyond the horizon. But, praise be to God, he reveals more of it with each new step we take towards it.

What is that destiny? What is that purpose? While we don’t know it all, we do know some of it. The primary purpose in God’s predestination is, “that [Christ] might be the firstborn among many brethren” (Rom. 8:29), that is, that Christ might be made preeminent. Scripture reveals that the firstborn always had pre-eminence. God’s ultimate object, therefore, is to glorify His Son. Further, as we’ll see in the Result of God’s election a little later, Ephesians 1:5 likewise tells us that God predestined us to adoption, making us Christ’s brethren. Think of it! Each of us is either a brother or sister to our dear Savior. Then in Ephesians 1:11 we read that we are predestined to an inheritance, that is, spiritual riches, in Christ. That is our destiny.

So, may I submit that no controversy is warranted. Predestination is simply God’s marking out a destiny befitting His foreknown people.

Based upon God’s foreknowledge and predestination, Paul goes on to say in Rom. 8:30 that we have been called, justified, and glorified. God’s calling is the inward call of the Holy Spirit that draws the elect one to God. As our Lord declared in John 6:44: “No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him.” The word “draw” translates the Greek helkuo, which denotes an irresistible force. It was used in ancient Greek literature to picture a desperately hungry man being drawn to food.

A modern illustration of this is the huge electromagnets used by salvage yards. When activated, the magnet generates an enormous magnetic force that draws all the iron based metals that are near it, but has no effect on other metals such as aluminum and brass. Similarly, God’s elective will draws to Himself those who belonged to Him before the foundation of the world. Does the sinner respond to God’s grace against his own will? No, he responds because God’s grace makes him willing to respond. If God did not do so, no man would or could respond because he is spiritually dead (Eph. 2:1-3).

Justification is a legal term that means “to declare or pronounce righteous and just, not symbolically but actually.” We are righteous not because we are not guilty. On the contrary, we who were once under condemnation are now declared to be righteous because of Christ.

Finally, part of God’s purpose is that we be glorified along with the Son. This is actually part of being conformed to His image.

That brings us to the third specific act of God in Eph. 1:4-6.

God has Made Us Acceptable (v. 6b)

wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.

The words “made us accepted” translate the verb echaritosen, which comes from the noun charis, which means “grace.” May we mention in passing that the English Revised Version (RV) and the New American Stand Bible (NASB) really err here by translating this “freely bestowed.” The New International Version (NIV) is even worse, “freely given.” They all miss the point.

This verb appears in only one other place, Luke 1:28, where Mary is said to be “highly favored.” We could, therefore, render Ephesians 1:6 this way: “He has highly favored us in the beloved.” This was necessary because we were before totally unacceptable and inable. For this reason, the doctrine of election as we have presented it here is not only Biblical, but it follows of necessity. If anything could be done, God had to do it. Religion, in any form you wish to consider, tries to do something in itself. But only God could do something about the problem of sin. And, praise be to His name, He did do something. He highly favored us in Christ before the foundation of the world.

II. The Reasons For God’s Election (v.4b)

that we should be holy and without blame before him

Why did God choose us before the foundation of the world? One of the false accusations leveled against the doctrine of election is that it weakens morality. Some argue, “If you’re chosen, then you can live any way you want to.” But nothing could be further from the truth! As Paul appallingly gasped to the Romans, “Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein? (Rom. 6:1-2). Indeed, the point of salvation is deliverance from sin and holiness of life.

In much of Evangelical Christianity today, sin is not made to be the issue in Gospel preaching. Concepts such as “just believe in Jesus, “just ask Jesus into your heart,” “just accept Jesus and He will take care of your problems and give you everything you want,” are heretical because they deny the real issue. The reason for salvation is to deliver us from sin and death and to make us holy. The doctrine of election actually strengthens morality because holiness is the reason for election. Paul reveals that there are two sides to this holiness.

That We Should Be Holy (Our Position)

The main reason God chose us was because of His holiness. In fact, God is so holy, He is so absolutely pure, nothing unholy may come into His presence, and He, therefore, demands holiness from us. But, because we are not holy, His holiness demands that He impart holiness to us.

The tendency today is to elevate God’s love over His holiness and to say that God’s love is His supreme characteristic. A catch phrase of many today is “God is love,” so much so, in fact, that ultimately love becomes God. Today we constantly hear the syrupy, melodramatic phrase, “God is loooooove.” In this scheme, false teachers take a Moral Attribute (how God deals with man) and elevated it over a Natural Attribute (what God is by nature). The result, then, is that God deals with mankind primarily according to His love over any other attribute. But this is truly one of the subtlest lies ever propagated by Satan, for the exact opposite is true: God’s love is rooted in His holiness. God’s holiness, His absolute purity, is His supreme quality. In the words of that great Puritan, Thomas Watson: “Holiness is the most sparkling jewel of His crown; it is the name by which God is known.”¹⁷ And as another Puritan, Stephen Charnock, writes in his classic work, The Existence and Attributes of God:

. . . This attribute hath excellence above His other perfections . . . None is sounded out so loftily, with such solemnity, and so frequently by angels that stand before His throne, as this . . . [and] it is the glory of all the rest.¹⁸

Why did those great Puritans write such things? They sure don’t coincide with today’s view. But may we submit that they were absolutely correct. Of all the attributes of God, holiness is the one that most uniquely describes Him and in reality is a summarization of all His other attributes. The word holiness refers to His separateness, His otherness, the fact that He is unlike any other being. It indicates His complete and infinite perfection. Holiness is the attribute of God that binds all the others together. When this is properly understood, it will revolutionize the quality of our worship.

There is a fascinating truth about the use of the word holy in Scripture. In English when we wish to express something in superlative degree, we add “–est” or the word most. For example, we use the words slowest or most quickly. If we wanted to set God apart from all other beings concerning holiness, we would say “He is the holiest of all.” In Hebrew, however, the superlative is expressed by saying something three times. For example, the dreadful judgment of God is declared in the book of Revelation by the eagle in midair who cried with a loud voice: “Woe! Woe! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth. . . .”

It’s, therefore, interesting that when the angels exalted God they, didn't say, “Eternal, Eternal, Eternal,” or “Faithful, Faithful, Faithful,” or “Wise, Wise, Wise,” or “Mighty, Mighty, Mighty,” or “Love, Love, Love,” or even “Grace, Grace, Grace.” They said, “Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory” (Is. 6:3). Again they said, “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord God, the Almighty” (Revelation 4:8). This shows us that His holiness is the crown of all that He is.

So, what is the reason for election? Why did God choose us before the foundation of the world? Why were we born? Why did He draw us to Himself? Why did we believe? So God could make us holy so that we could one day enter His presence.

May we, therefore, see that God’s love is rooted in his holiness; He will never violate His holiness for the sake of His love or anything else; no matter how much He might love man, His very nature cannot allow sin in His presence. In light of this, think of John 3:16: “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” As that great theologian, William Evans, points out, this verse speaks of much more than God’s love:

Here God’s holiness is seen in that He loves righteousness in the life of His children to such a degree that He gave His only begotten Son to secure it. The cross shows how much God loves holiness. The cross stands for God’s holiness before even His love. For Christ died not merely for our sins, but in order that He might provide us with that righteousness of life which God loves.¹⁹

How often we’ve heard the words, “Oh, Christ died for us because He loved us.” Yes, but primarily Christ died because God demands holiness and demands that we must be holy before we can enter His presence.

May we interject here that this principle buries the no-lordship teachers and the easy-believism that is corrupting Christianity today. Some of these teachers go so far as to say sin really isn’t an issue in salvation, that we really don’t even need to mention it when witnessing to the lost. That is, in fact, the result of no-lordship teaching when taken to its logical conclusion. Some say, “Just believe in Jesus now and dedicate your life later.” But that is absurd for it ignores the issue of sin and holiness. Ephesians 1:6 declares that the reason God chose us was to make us holy. That is why the preaching of holiness is an essential part of evangelism. What does “being saved” mean? It means being saved from sin and unto holiness.

This principle also shows the fallacy of the idea that election is based on our foreseen faith. As Puritan pastor and commentator Matthew Henry puts it: “Observe here one great end and design of this choice: chosen—that we should be holy; not because he foresaw they would be holy, but because he determined to make them so.” We could never be holy without God’s direct intervention. Only when we understand the depravity of man can we truly understand salvation.

This phrase speaks of positional sanctification; that is, since our position is “in Christ” (v. 3), then we are positionally holy. This does not mean we are perfect, nor does it mean that we are absolutely righteous. On occasion we will sin (Rom. 7), but sin is no longer the rule of life. Holiness is the new rule of life. We are now a new creature, in which all the old things have passed away and all things have become new (II Cor. 5:17). We have been “created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness” (Eph. 4:24).

The second reason for our election flows right from the first and complements it.

That We Should Be Blameless Before Him (Our Practice)

First we have positional holiness; now we see that we also have practical holiness. Practical holiness (or sanctification) simply means that we live out our position; since we are holy in Christ, we, therefore, live like it. One expositor puts the contrast this way: “‘Holiness’ denotes a state of inward or internal purity; ‘without blame’ means an outward or external condition of purity.”²⁰

The word blameless is amomos which means “without blemish; spotless; free from faultiness.” The word shows that a Christian lives above reproach; that is, no one can look at his life and see an unholy, ungodly life. This word is used in the Septuagint (the Greek Old Testament) in Leviticus 22:21 to show that a sacrificial animal was to have no spot or blemish. This is how we are to live—pure in attitude and action. This is the force of I Peter 1:16: “Be ye holy for I am holy.” That is, indeed, a tall order. Peter commands, quoting the Old Testament (Lev. 11:44-45), that we are to be holy, just as God is holy. Why did God choose us in Christ before the foundation of the world? So we could be and would be holy in position and practice.

Harold Ockenga, a pastor and founder president of Fuller Seminary, put this truth clearly:

If God has elected us He has not elected us to remain sinners but to become holy. It is an anomaly or an error to speak of the elect living in sin. God never chose us to continue in sin. We are created in Christ Jesus unto good works which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them. Therefore, the test of our election is the holiness of our lives. Christ “gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.” We ought not to delude ourselves into believing that we belong to the elect of God if we are not living holy lives before Him.… The proof of this is that we become holy, that we approximate the character of our Lord Jesus Christ. Thus John was able to say, “Whosoever sinneth hath not seen him, neither known him.… He that committeth sin is of the devil . . . Whosoever is born of God doth not commit [practice] sin.”²¹

We’re reminded again of those who offer salvation without an emphasis on sin. They preach a false Gospel because sin is the issue. The point of salvation is to make us holy.

Yes, as the Apostle John tells us in His First Epistle (2:1) and Paul tell us in Rom. 7, there will be times when we sin, but these will be the exception, not the rule. The person who lives a life of habitual sin is not believer. Since the Spirit rules, we will live purely. How is that possible? Because we are in Christ.

One other thought: Why must we live holy? The answer is found in the words of our text before Him. Our whole lives are lived before God; we are an open book before Him. The Greek here (katenopion autou) literally means “to see down in.” This pictures the searching, penetrating gaze of the Spirit of God into our lives. But this is not so much negative as it is positive. The greatest significance of this is the intended closeness and intimacy with the Father that He desires for us to have. Furthermore, this foreshadows the time when the elect will literally stand before the Throne of God (Rev. 7:15). The same word for before is used there as in our text. At that future time we will literally be before Him, but even now we are spiritually before Him. We might be tempted to say, “Well, I can do this certain thing because no one will see me,” but we should then remember that God sees because we live before Him; He sees down in.

So, may we sum up this way: God not only has made us holy; He has also given us the capacity to live holy. He does not expect us to do it in the flesh; rather He empowers us to live out holiness. We’ll continue these thoughts in our next point, but the challenge to us now is to live holy, for this is why God elected us before the foundation of the world.

III. The Root Of God’s Election (vs.4c, 5c)

in love . . . according to the good pleasure of his will.

One of the most violent attacks on the doctrine of election as I have presented it here is the accusation that it is cold and hard and ultimately makes a mockery of the love of God. “This view,” it is charged, “makes God look like He’s just sitting on His throne spinning the wheel, arbitrarily picking and choosing people as if He were choosing up sides for a ball game.” On the contrary, Paul tells us that love is at the very root, the very heart of God’s election. As Leon Morris writes:

. . . [Rom. 1:7; II Thes. 3:5; Tit. 3:4] show that love and election belong together, and this link is found elsewhere (e.g., Rom. 9:25; 11:28; Col. 3:12; I Thes. 1:4; II Thes. 2:13). People do not always notice this, and some see election as a grim process whereby God arbitrarily predestined certain people to be damned eternally. But, as Paul understood it, God’s election is a device for rescuing people, not for condemning them. It is the outworking of God’s love. And it is effective . . . God’s purpose is mercy (Rom. 9:15).²²

It has been debated what the words “in love” refer to. Grammatically, there are three possibilities.

·           Some say, “chosen us in love,” referring love to election.

·           Others say, “in love predestined us,” love referring to predestination.

·           Still others prefer the rendering of the King James Version, “holy and without blame before Him in love.”

According to theologian Charles Hodge and others,²³ there seems to be the most evidence for the King James reading.

In the final analysis, however, are not all three true? Since all three are possible grammatically, is it now possible that God, in His providence, has made these words fit in all three possibilities?

First, truly has God “chosen us in love.” Perhaps the best translation of the Greek agape (love) is “a self-emptying self-sacrifice.”²⁴ God does not deal with us only according to His sovereignty and holiness; if He did, we would be hopelessly doomed. He also deals according to love. We’ll come back to this thought in a moment.

Second, it is equally true that “in love He predestinated us to adoption.” Remember, we are looking at riches from the Father in verses 4-6, and the Father’s love shows a family relationship; because the Father loved us, He adopted us.

Third, the words “we should be holy and without blame before Him in love” are also true. There is a perfect balance of love and holiness with God; love flows from God and, because of His electing love, we should then manifest love by living holy. As one expositor puts it, “The ultimate end and object of God’s choice of us, of our election, is that we should become people of [holy] character.”²⁵

Consider also how this compares with the holiness spoken of earlier in verse 4. We pointed out there that the tendency today is to elevate God’s love over His holiness, but now we turn around and speak of love. How do we reconcile this? There is no need for reconciliation, for the two are already inseparable partners. Each complements the other. The reason God chose us was because of His holiness, while at the very root of this election was His love for us. Once again we stand amazed at why God would love us.

Now notice verse 5, which says that all of this was according to the good pleasure of His will. Here is another stumbling block for many, some even thinking that this implies that God acts according to His whims. But the stumbling comes from a lack of understanding of the words good pleasure. The Greek here is eudokia, which means “good will, good intent, benevolence, a gracious purpose.” Does that sound whimsical? Does that sound arbitrary? Does that sound misdirected? On the contrary, from where can this come if not from His love? Conversely, where can we find love except in God’s grace? We don’t see much true love in our world today. You will not find it in philosophy, psychology, or sociology. You find it only in the eternal, sovereign grace of God.

That God’s election flows from His love is apparent throughout the Scriptures. Again, why did God choose Israel? “The LORD did not set his love upon you, nor choose you, because ye were more in number than any people; for ye were the fewest of all people: But because the LORD loved you” (Deut. 7:7-8). Why did He love that stiff-necked people (Deut. 31:27; Jer. 17:23)? More importantly, why did He love me, who is just as stiff-necked, depraved, rebellious, and self-centered. We don’t know.

Christian friend, why did God choose you? Because He loves you. Likewise in Deuteronomy 10:15 we read: “Only the LORD had a delight in thy fathers to love them, and he chose their seed after them, even you above all people, as it is this day.” This is clearly implied in John 15:19: “If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.” But does not even a simple verse such as I John 4:19, “We love Him because He first loved us,” show us this wonderful truth?

What a blessed truth, indeed! God loved us before the foundation of the world. He loved us according to His gracious purpose, His good pleasure.

IV. The Results Of God’s Election (vs. 5-6)

Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself according to the good pleasure of his will, To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.

What are the results of all this? We see two results of God’s election, one that is Immediate and one that is Ultimate.

The Immediate Result: Sonship (v. 5b)

Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself of children by Jesus Christ to himself,

The immediate result of election, that is, the result from the human perspective, is sonship. Here is one of the most thrilling truths concerning our salvation: we have been adopted into the family of God by the good pleasure, the benevolence, the gracious purpose of His will. Let us consider five principles concerning the Biblical doctrine of adoption.

The Meaning of Adoption

The Eastern concept of adoption goes deeper than our Western concept. Only Paul uses this word in the New Testament. He no doubt borrowed it from Roman culture since the Jews knew nothing of it.

The Greek (huiothesia) literally means “son-placing.” Under Roman law a father had patria potestas (Latin, the father’s power) over his children, and that power was absolute. He could make a child a slave, scourge him, even kill him. A child possessed nothing. All he had or received became the father’s property. Any inheritance willed to him, or even any gift given to him, became the property of his father. It did not matter how old the son was, or to what honours and responsibility he had risen, he was absolutely in his father’s power. This certainly does not infer that all Roman fathers were evil monsters, rather it simply reveals the position of a child.

During the teenage years, however, there was a public ceremony declaring a child to be an official member of the family. After this “son-placing,” he had full privileges and responsibilities. The important truth here is that this was not necessarily a change in relationship—for a Roman father could be just as loving as any other father, and no doubt many fathers had a close relationship with their children. Rather what we see here is a change in position. He was no longer a child; he was a son.

This adoption also occurred between a man and a child who was not his by birth. William Barkley describes this ritual:

The ritual of adoption must have been very impressive. It was carried out by a symbolic sale in which copper and scales were used. Twice the real father sold his son, and twice he symbolically bought him back; finally he sold him a third time, and at the third sale he did not buy him back. After this the adopting father had to go to the praetor, one of the principal Roman magistrates, and plead the case for the adoption. Only after all this had been gone through was the adoption complete. When the adoption was complete it was complete indeed. The person who had been adopted had all the rights of a legitimate son in his new family and completely lost all rights in his old family. In the eyes of the law he was a new person. So new was he that even all debts and obligations connected with his previous family were abolished as if they had never existed.

That is the picture of the adopted child of God. We were of our father the devil (Rom. 8:44; I Jn. 3:8-10). Under him we were, indeed, slaves, slaves to sin, under a sentence of death, already dead in trespasses in sin (Eph. 2:1-3). But we have been adopted into the family of God. We are members of a new family, all the old debts are paid, and we are new people with anew Father.

The Method of Adoption

The method God used in securing our adoption was predestination. By His own power and purpose, God predestinated us to adoption in eternity past. As we recall, predestination is God’s marking out of a destiny befitting His foreknown ones. What is this destiny?—membership in the family of God.

The Means of Adoption

For many decades liberal Christianity has advocated the “Universal Fatherhood of God and Brotherhood of Man.” The teaching is, “All people are God’s children and all men are brothers. It doesn’t matter what you believe or what name you give ‘God,’ we are all one.” But that is a lie of the Devil. There is a very specific means by which we are adopted in God’s family and it is the only way. That means is by Jesus Christ. This takes us back to Romans 8:29, which refers to Christ as “the first born among many brethren.” And it reminds us of the very narrow words of our Lord in Jn. 14:6: “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” Those who do not come to God in this way remain not His children, but children of their “father the devil,” as Jesus told his attackers in John 8:44.

It is important to point out that Scripture never uses adoption regarding Christ, since He is “the only begotten son” (Jn. 3:16). Tragically, some modern translations remove “begotten.”²⁶ This is a serious error, however, because Jesus is not the only Son of God, rather the only begotten Son, the only physically born Son of God. The rest of us are children only because of the sovereign act of God in adoption. It is only through Jesus, our elder brother, that we have been brought into God’s family and are considered sons and daughters.

May we also add that while the word “Father” is not in our text, it is certainly implied. It’s extremely significant that in 39 books, the Old Testament writers referred to God as “Father” only fourteen times, and most of those refer to the nation and not individuals. But Jesus reversed that attitude. In contrast, He addressed God only as Father more than 60 times in the Gospels. Except when quoting Psalm 22 on the cross, He never used any other term. This would have amazed the Jews of His day. No one in their history had spoken or prayed like that.

But this was made all the more amazing by what word He sometimes used for “Father.” In Mark 14:36, for example, He said, “Abba, Father, all things are possible unto thee; take away this cup from me: nevertheless not what I will, but what thou wilt.” Not only did He use the formal word “Father” (pater), but the intimate word “Abba.” That would have astounded the Jews! It was a common Aramaic word that children used to address their father and would be equivalent to our words “Papa” or “Daddy,” and it’s quite possible that Jesus used it often. Jews would never have used this term, thinking it to familiar and inappropriate. But Jesus showed that the true Believer, as a son or daughter, does, indeed, have an intimate relationship with the Father. Paul captured this when he too used the term in Rom. 8:15-16 and Gal. 4:6.

May we interject that there are those today who have taken this truth too far. There are many who speak of and to God in too familiar a tone and terms, and who drag God down to human level. But as long as we do it reverently, God is, indeed, our Papa. What a thought it is that we are children of God!

The Motive of Adoption

All this comes because of the good pleasure of His will. As we saw earlier, all this flows from His love, His good will, His good intent, His benevolence, His gracious purpose. Was it because He looked down through time and saw some goodness in us? No, it all came about only because of His benevolence and grace. The late Greek scholar M. R. Vincent tells us that this phrase infers two truths.

First, God brought us into His family because it pleased Him to do so. Think of that! It pleased the infinite, sovereign God of the universe to make us part of His family. Every parent can understand this by remembering how thrilled they were when their child was born or when the adoption became final. It’s a joy we can’t describe.

As I pondered this truth, the question occurred to me, “Why would it please the holy, righteous God of the universe to bring a wretch like me into His holy family?” The answer immediately came that once he saved me I wasn’t a wretch anymore; He first made me holy before He adopted me into His family. Why he did any of it, I don’t know, but I am thankful that He did.

Second, Vincent points out that God did this because of the kindly and friendly feeling He had toward us, as implied in the earlier expression in love. How can we read this and think God to be some kind of tyrant, an accusation often leveled against this view of election?

The Manifestations of Adoption

Ephesians 1 is about riches and blessing. As we, therefore, ponder adoption, we discover several privileges that it brings.²⁷

First, we are members of God’s family. There are Christians who are alone in this world. For some, all their family members have died. For others, all their family members have forsaken them because they are Christians. But as Paul writes later in Ephesians, “Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints, and of the household of God” (2:19). Our real home is in Heaven, and our real family consists of the saints of God’s household.

Second, we are family heirs. As Romans 8:17 declares: “And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.” The last will and testament has already been written and we await our inheritance when we get to Heaven.

Part of that heirship is also that we will aid in judgment. Revelation 2:26-27 and 3:21 declare that resurrected saints will aid in judging the world during the Millennium. I Corinthians 6:2-3 adds that we will even judge angels. What privilege and honor that will be!

Third, we have family privileges. In Rom. 8:15, Paul encourages us, “For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.” Being a member of God’s family brings a peace that nothing else can provide. This is “the peace of God, which passeth all understanding,” and which “[keeps] [our] hearts and minds through Christ Jesus” (Phil. 4:7).

Being a member of God’s family also gives us the privilege of access to the Father. As Paul also wrote to the Galatians, “And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father” (4:6). We may approach Him at any time and for any reason. We must be submissive to His will in prayer (I Jn. 5:14) and all other matters, but we have the assurance that He always listens to us and lovingly cares for us, because He is truly our Father and we are truly His children.

The Ultimate Result: Glory (v. 6)

To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.

In contrast to the human perspective, the future, ultimate result of election, this one from God’s perspective, is His glory.

Why did God do all that He has done? Why did He elect us and adopt us? What is the ultimate result? It is all to the praise of the glory of His grace.

When that statement struck me several years ago, it changed my life. It changed my theology. It even changed my philosophy of and emphasis in ministry. Everything is to be to the praise of the glory of His grace.

No one has said this better than Martyn Lloyd-Jones: “The first and greatest truth concerning salvation is that it is a revelation of the glory of God.”²⁸ In contrast, many today think that the first and greatest truth concerning salvation is that we get to go to heaven. On the contrary, the greatest truth, the greatest end of salvation is that God is glorified by it.

Some commentators view this phrase as a Hebraism, that is, simply Paul borrowing a concept from the Hebrew to praise God’s grace in general. But as Greek commentator John Eadie put it around 1861, that is a “feeble exegesis.” In our modern language, this would be equivalent to, “That’s just silly.” It’s not God’s grace in general that’s being praised, “but this one special element of that grace” that is being praised.²⁹ In other words, Paul is specifically praising the aspect of God’s grace that brings salvation.

Paul uses this phrase no less than three times in his “song of praise” (vs. 12, 14). The obvious reason is that he wanted to emphasize the significance of this truth. God did not save us just because He loved us, but He saved us, first and foremost, to bring glory to Himself. This is not “divine arrogance” as some have irreverently suggested, for God is totally worthy of praise. The word glory (doxas) came to mean “brightness, splendor, and majesty.” All that God does is designed to further manifest His brightness, splendor, and majesty.

Modern evangelism is permeated by the idea of telling people what salvation can do for them: it will solve all their problems, make them rich, make them better athletes, and a mountain of other such man-centered nonsense. But rarely do we ever hear a pastor or so-called “evangelist” talk about the glory of God being the ultimate result of salvation. In light of all that he has said about what God has done, Paul proclaims that all of it is primarily for His glory, not just our benefit.

May we notice the last phrase of verse 6—wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved. A more literal translation would be “which [grace] He freely bestowed upon us in the Beloved.” The words “freely bestowed” actually translate the Greek root charis (grace). Therefore, we could render the phrase “which grace He graced us,” or “He has begraced us.” God has heaped grace upon us!

Moreover, He did all this in the [sphere of] the beloved.” One of man’s basic needs is to be accepted. Many people will do anything to be accepted. Young people do it by wearing certain clothes or acting a certain way. Adults are often just as bad, only more subtle. But what pop psychology calls “an emotional need” is actually just a spiritual need—the need to be accepted by God. People also do everything under the sun to get God to accept them, but Paul declares that only in the beloved are we accepted by grace. Only in the person and work of Christ could God’s grace operate to its fullest.

So, the final result (or goal) of God's election and adoption of us is that we will praise Him. This is the reason for Paul's words, To the PRAISE of the GLORY of His GRACE! This is Paul’s attitude throughout his “song of praise.” This is not the praise of the worshipper of a pagan god, who worships to appease his god, to keep him happy so he won’t punish his subjects. Neither is this praise to man, for man can do nothing worthy of praise. Rather this is genuine adoration for what God alone has done. A footnote in the Geneva Bible of 1599 reads:

The uttermost and chiefest final cause is the glory of God the Father, who saves us freely in his Son. That as his bountiful goodness deserves all praise, so also it should be set forth and proclaimed.

Oh, Dear Christian, do you see this marvelous truth? God chose us and adopted us so that we will praise Him. Are you praising Him? As John Calvin writes: “God is duly glorified and His high praise maintained, when we acknowledge that He has freely elected whom He willed.³⁰ When we freely and humbly acknowledge that salvation is totally of God from beginning to end, not based on something we might do or believe in the future, it is then that we bring glory to Him.

Matthew Henry likewise encourages, “We should live and behave ourselves in such a manner that his rich grace might be magnified, and appear glorious, and worthy of the highest praise.” Are we doing this?

Ponder a moment that it is not our belief that saves us; it is the grace of God bestowing salvation that saves us. We only believe what glorifies God. Oh, what riches we have in the Father! May we praise Him for all He has done. Why? Because He has chosen us and adopted us “before the foundation of the world.” As Paul challenged the Corinthians, “Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God” (I Cor. 10:31). As one expositor writes:

Let this stir us up to glorify Him in regard of His grace to us. Even as waters come from the sea, and return again to it, so from this Divine Ocean comes every blessing, and every benefit should, by praising this grace, be duly acknowledged with thankfulness.³¹

Everything proceeds from God’s grace.

Many times during the preparation of these studies, I stopped to meditate on these words, To the praise of the glory of His grace. As a result, the Holy Spirit burned them into my heart and mind and forever changed me. Before going on, I would like to encourage you to stop here, put the book down, and simply meditate for a few minutes. Let the words ring in your mind, sing to your heart, roll off your tongue, and permeate your life. Further, stop during your workday and ponder them for a few moments. Praise be to God—our salvation is all of grace.

V. The Repercussions Of God’s Election

The Merriam Webster Dictionary defines the word repercussion as “a widespread, indirect, or unforeseen effect of an act, action, or event—usually used in plural.” In other words, while we see the results of election in the text, there are some other results that many people don’t see or don’t think about. There are at least four repercussions that this great doctrine bestows upon us.

The Doctrine of Election Humbles Us

The last thing any of us want by nature is to be humbled. That is why many rebel against the doctrine of election. They do not want to acknowledge that everything concerning salvation has been God’s doing from the foundation of the world.

Ironically, the doctrine of election has been accused of being an egotistical and arrogant viewpoint, as in the prideful statement, “God chose me!” But this is a total misrepresentation. The believer in this doctrine doesn’t say it that way at all. On the contrary, he says it in an incredulous tone, “God chose me?” What is arrogant or prideful about saying, Even in my wretched depravity God chose me? Indeed, there is nothing more humbling than realizing that God chose us in spite of us, that he chose us totally by His love and grace. The Biblical doctrine of election obliterates any grounds for bragging on what we have done for salvation.

The Doctrine of Election Assures Us

A hallmark of all false teaching is that works, either in part or in total, are what ultimately save us. As a result, there is no assurance whatsoever, no certain knowledge that salvation has been attained.

But the doctrine of election gives absolute security because the work is entirely God’s doing. Later in Ephesians 1:13-14, Paul writes:

In [Christ] ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.

As we’ll see, this refers to the ancient custom of sealing a letter using a signet ring that had a distinctive mark. This historical example pictures four realities: Acquisition, Absolute Ownership, Authenticity, and Assurance. Frankly, I have yet to find a more assuring truth than this sealing of God.

Likewise, on the heals of his statement about the “Golden Chain of Salvation” in Rom. 8:29-30, Paul immediately follows it up with a lengthy statement about our security in Christ:

What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth. Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (vs. 31-39)

That is real security. The sorriest and the saddest Christian of all is the one who rejects the security of the believer. And the reason is because they do not understand grace. Isn’t it “ironic” (and I say that with reverence) that in both passages that God deals with these great Doctrines of Grace (here in Ephesians and in Romans 8), he then immediately deals with assurance? How wondrous it is!

The Doctrine of Election Confirms Us

Peter declares in II Pet. 1:10: “Brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall.” But how do we do that? As we’ve seen, Paul declares that the reason God elected us is that we should be holy and without blame before him. As he writes later in 4:23-24: “Be renewed in the spirit of your mind; And . . . put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.” He likewise wrote to the Thessalonians, “For God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness.” Besides obedience to God’s Word (Jn. 14:15, 23; I Jn. 2:1-5), there is nothing that confirms our election more than holiness of life.

The Doctrine of Election Commissions Us

A common criticism of the doctrine of election is that it destroys evangelism. It is argued, “If the elect will be saved no matter what, then there is no need to evangelize them.” But this misses the fact that God ordains the means as well as the end. To illustrate, God purposes that the farmer will reap a harvest, but He also purposes that to do so the farmer must not only plant but he must also cultivate. Likewise, when God foreordains a person’s salvation, He also foreordains that he will hear the Gospel from someone, believe, and repent all by His sovereign grace.

Those who argue against God’s sovereignty in salvation say this destroys a desire to serve, but may we submit that it actually produces a greater desire and challenge. Why? Because it is thrilling to know that God is making us a part of the chain of events, making us a part of His purpose and plan. What a privilege!

If I may be so bold as to use myself as an example, never in my years of ministry did I have a greater desire to evangelize than I did when I saw the truth of this doctrine. Why? Because I then knew that God is doing it all. No longer was it my methods, my ideas, my convincing arguments that persuaded someone to believe. It is God’s sovereign working.

We should add that this objection also misses another point, namely, that when we go out to evangelize, we are not going out to “save” anybody, for we can’t save anybody. We evangelize to proclaim the truth and bring glory to God. Most contemporary evangelism is success-driven. It measures success by how many souls people and churches “win” in a year. This attitude has produced the pragmatic approach to evangelism that we see today. Any method, any program, any gimmick is okay as long as it gets results. But what a blasphemous insult this is to God. In essence, it says that He needs man’s puny help in drawing His own to Himself. As Paul wrote the Corinthians:

Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers by whom ye believed, even as the Lord gave to every man? I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase. So then neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase (I Cor. 3:5-7).

Finally, this objection also overlooks the fact that God commands our exertion in evangelism. This should be enough. Just obey! Isn’t it enough that God says, “Yes, I have foreordained who will be believe, but I also chose you to be involved and be a witness?” It doesn’t matter if we comprehend it or not. We just trust God for it.

What a challenge God has given his elect!

* * *

To close our study of the doctrine of election, I’d like to recount a conversation that took place on December 20, 1784 between Charles Simeon and John Wesley. These two men were on opposite ends of the controversy about election. Simeon was a Calvinist, and Wesley was an Arminian. The conversation went like this.

Simeon:       Sir, I understand that you are called an Arminian; and I have sometimes been called a Calvinist; and therefore I suppose we are to draw daggers. But before I consent to begin combat, with your permission I will ask you a few questions . . . Pray, Sir, do you feel yourself a depraved creature, so depraved that you would never have thought of turning to God, if God had not first put it into your heart?

Wesley:       Yes, I do indeed.

Simeon:       And do you utterly despair of recommending yourself to God by anything you can do; and look for salvation solely through the blood and righteousness of Christ?

Wesley:       Yes, solely through Christ.

Simeon:       But, Sir, supposing you were at first saved by Christ, are you not somehow or other to save yourself afterwards by your own works?

Wesley:       No, I must be saved by Christ from first to last.

Simeon:       Allowing, then, that you were first turned by the grace of God, are you not in some way or other to keep yourself by your own power?

Wesley:       No.

Simeon:       What, then, are you to be upheld every hour and every moment by God, as much as an infant in its mother’s arms?

Wesley:       Yes, altogether.

Simeon:       And is all your hope in the grace and mercy of God to preserve you unto His heavenly kingdom?

Wesley:       Yes, I have no hope but in Him.

Simeon:       Then, Sir, with your leave I will put up my dagger again; for this is all my Calvinism; this is my election, my justification by faith, my final perseverance: it is in substance all that I hold, and as I hold it; and therefore, if you please, instead of searching out terms and phrases to be a ground of contention between us, we will cordially unite in those things wherein we agree.³²

Why is there such a debate over the Doctrines of Grace? Why does the war continue to rage? Instead of arguing over terms and phrases, let us all unite over one thought: Salvation is of the Lord.

The beloved J. Vernon McGee tells this story:

A black boy in Memphis, Tennessee, wanted to join a conservative, fundamental church, and the deacons were examining him. They asked him, “How did you get saved?” He answered, “I did my part, and God did His part.” The deacons thought they had him, so they asked him what was his part and what was God's part. He said, “My part was the sinning. I ran from God as fast as these rebellious legs would take me and my sinful heart would lead me. I ran from Him. But you know, He done took out after me ‘til He done run me down.” My friend, there is nothing in a theology book that tells it as well as that. God is the One who did the saving. Our part was the sinning.

Oh, what riches we have in God the Father! But Paul is not even near being done yet. There are more spiritual riches yet to come.

1 Cited in James Montgomery Boice, Foundations of the Christian Faith (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 1986 revised edition), p. 674. I should point out that Boice does not agree with this definition. On the contrary, he criticizes it and shows how the church has fallen into "secularism."

2 John R. W. Stott, God’s New Society (Downers Grove: IL: Intervarsity Press, 1979), p. 37.

3 Kent Hughes, The Mystery of the Body of Christ.

4 For the detailed discussion of these, see Chapter 1 of the author’s book, Salvation is of the Lord.

5 For the detailed discussion of these, see Chapters 2 and 3 of the author’s book, Salvation is of the Lord.

6 Boice, p. 16.

7 Explore the Book, Vol. 6, p. 165 (emphasis in the original).

8 Cited in I. D. E. Thomas, The Golden Treasury of Puritan Quotations (Carlisle: The Banner of Truth Trust, 1989 Reprint), p. 88.

9 For the detailed discussion, see Chapter 4 of the author’s book, Salvation is of the Lord.

10 Jamison, Fausset, and Brown, A Commentary Critical, Experimental, and Practical.

11 Ibid.

12 J. I. Packer, Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God (Chicago: Inter-Varsity Press, 1961), pp. 16–17)

13 Blaikie, Pulpit Commentary.

14 A. W. Tozer, God Tells the Man Who Cares (Harrisburg, PA: Christian Publications, 1970) p. 131.

15 Ironside, Ephesians, pp. 27-29. Ironside’s only flaw was his view of election being based on the Arminian error that God “foresaw all who would put their trust in Christ” (p. 32). This, however, does not detract from my affection for that dear preacher.

16 For a more detailed discussion of this passage, see Chapter 4 of the author’s book, Salvation is of the Lord.

17 Thomas Watson, A Body Of Divinity. London: The Banner of Truth Trust, 1965, p. 82.

18 Stephen Charnock, The Existence And Attributes Of God. Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1979 (from the 1853 edition), Vol. II, pp. 112-113.

19 William Evans, Great Doctrines of the Bible (Chicago: Moody Press).

20 Lloyd-Jones, God’s Ultimate Purpose, p. 96.

21 Harold Ockenga, Faithful in Christ Jesus (NY: Revell, 1958), p. 33.

22 Leon Morris, New Testament Theology (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1986), p. 31.

23 Hodge writes, “If the words in love are to be linked with the preceding clause, it indicates the meaning, ‘We are chosen to be holy and without blame in love.’ This is a state of moral excellence which consists in love. That is, we are elected to no mere external consecration to God, as was the case with the Jews, nor any mere ceremonial freedom from blemish. This is altogether the most natural meaning of the words, and no one would have thought of departing from it if it had not been assumed that the words holy and blameless refer to sacrificial purification. To connect in love with he chose would give the sense, ‘has chosen us in love’; but the order of the words forbids this. To connect them with the word which follows would give the sense, ‘in love having predestined us.’ But this also is unnatural; and besides, the word predestined has its limitation or explanation in the following clause: in accordance with his pleasure and will (verse 5). It would be a tautology to say, ‘He has predestined us in love in accordance with his pleasure and will.’ The majority of commentators, therefore, adopt the construction followed by our translators” (Ephesians). See also Lloyd-Jones, God’s Ultimate Purpose, p. 98-101.

24 See Chapter 11 for a detailed discussion of agape.

25 Lloyd-Jones, God’s Ultimate Purpose, p. 100.

26 For example, NIV, NRSV, NCV, NLT, CEV, and GWT. The NIV and NCV compound the error with “one and only Son.”

27 Adapted from several observations by Lloyd-Jones, God’s Ultimate Purpose, p. 113-116.

28 God's Ultimate Purpose, p. 129.

29 See Eadie’s discussion on p. 36.

30 Sermons on Ephesians, p. 43.

31 The Biblical Illustrator.

32 Horae Homileticea, Preface: I. xviif. Cited in and adapted from J.I. Packer, Evangelism and the Soverignty of God, p.13-14.

I. The Reality of God’s Election (vs.4a, 5a, 6b)

God Has Chosen Us (v. 4a)

God has Predestined us (v. 5a)

God has Made Us Acceptable (v. 6b)

II. The Reasons For God’s Election (v.4b)

That We Should Be Holy (Our Position)

That We Should Be Blameless Before Him (Our Practice)

III. The Root Of God’s Election (vs.4c, 5c)

IV. The Results Of God’s Election (vs. 5-6)

The Immediate Result: Sonship (v. 5b)

The Meaning of Adoption

The Method of Adoption

The Means of Adoption

The Motive of Adoption

The Manifestations of Adoption

The Ultimate Result: Glory (v. 6)

V. The Repercussions Of God’s Election

The Doctrine of Election Humbles Us

The Doctrine of Election Assures Us

The Doctrine of Election Confirms Us

The Doctrine of Election Commissions Us