ELECTION (Ephesians 1:3-10)

"he chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless before him in love. He destined us for adoption as his children through Jesus Christ, according to the good pleasure of his will," (Ephesians 1:4-5)

John Calvin says:

“We call predestination God’s eternal decree, by which he compacted with himself what he willed to become of each [person]. For all are not created in equal condition; rather, eternal life is foreordained for some, eternal damnation for others. Therefore, as any[one] has been created to one or the other of these ends, we speak of [them] as predestined to life or death.” (Institutes of the Christian Religion, 926)

The doctrine of election, brothers and sisters, is a controversial doctrine, but it is a thoroughly biblical doctrine.

The pattern of God’s activity in scripture, I believe, overwhelmingly reveals that God is a God who elects unconditionally…who chooses his people according to nothing more than the good pleasure of his will...that God calls and people are compelled to respond to his call. The pattern of God’s activity in scripture reveals that before we chose God, God chose us. “He chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless before him in love. He destined us for adoption as his children through Jesus Christ, according to the good pleasure of his will” (Ephesians 1:4-5).

Brothers and sisters, we are saved by grace, and grace is God’s power, freely and unconditionally wielded…not out of constraint, obligation, or duty…not because we deserve it or have earned it…not because God foresaw that we would come to believe in Christ…because then it would no longer be grace, but because God loves us and because it pleases him to do so. God freely chose us in Christ from before the foundation of the world to be his children.

Being elected for salvation by God is how salvation begins. In the order of salvation, election comes first, brothers and sisters, because salvation is always, always, always initiated by God. God’s election of his people is the first step in the process of how we receive the grace of God, come to faith in Jesus Christ, and are saved by God.

God chooses us.