Those Whom God Foreknew Part Two Romans 8:29-30
Those Whom God Foreknew Romans 8:29-30 29 For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; 30 and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified.
I. Context For is from the Greek word hoti. It could also be translated as because. Romans 8:28 And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.
II. Does Foreknew Mean Prior Knowledge of Events? Proginōskō can mean to know something beforehand, to foreordain, or to know someone beforehand. Does the word foreknew refer to God knowing what we would choose to do and then choosing us on the basis of our choices?
II. Does Foreknew Mean Prior Knowledge of Events? That view seems to imply that God had to learn something about us before He could make any decision about us. Also, the Bible clearly tells us that, in our natural state, we stand completely in opposition to God and all that He stands for.
III. Foreknew Means Prior Intimacy The word foreknew isn t about God having prior knowledge of events in our lives. The passage doesn t say that God used foreknowledge of our lives to make any kind of decision concerning us. For those whom He foreknew In this context, foreknew has to be referring to the fact that God had a prior intimacy with certain individuals.
III. Foreknew Means Prior Intimacy Romans 8:29 For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son (New Living Translation) God knew us from before time began. He has always had an intimacy with His children, even before they existed.
IV. God and Time God exists outside of time. He existed before time began, He transcends time, and He is not bound by time at all. From before the beginning of time, God has always existed equally at every point in time.
IV. God and Time God exists equally in all places within His creation and He also exists at all places in time. The reason that God could have an intimate relationship with His children from eternity past is because He already existed in every point in human history.
V. Biblical Examples of Foreknew Jeremiah Jeremiah 1:5 Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, And before you were born I consecrated you; I have appointed you a prophet to the nations. God had an intimate relationship with Jeremiah before he was even conceived.
V. Biblical Examples of Foreknew God also said that He had a plan for his life. This isn t about Jeremiah s choices; it s about God s plan. before you were born I consecrated you. Before he was even born, God s sovereign choice was to set Jeremiah apart for His plan and purpose.
V. Biblical Examples of Foreknew Jacob & Esau Romans 9:10-13 10 And not only this, but there was Rebekah also, when she had conceived twins by one man, our father Isaac; 11 for though the twins were not yet born and had not done anything good or bad, so that God s purpose according to His choice would stand, not because of works but because of Him who calls, 12 it was said to her, THE OLDER WILL SERVE THE YOUNGER. 13 Just as it is written, JACOB I LOVED, BUT ESAU I HATED.
V. Biblical Examples of Foreknew God very clearly and directly says that His choice of Jacob over Esau had nothing at all to do with anything they did or even what He knew they would do.
V. Biblical Examples of Foreknew Paul Galatians 1:15-16 15 But when God, who had set me apart even from my mother s womb and called me through His grace, was pleased 16 to reveal His Son in me so that I might preach Him among the Gentiles
V. Biblical Examples of Foreknew God set Paul apart from birth to be a proclaimer of the very gospel that he opposed. It wasn t until God revealed His Son in him that he would come to Christ.
V. Biblical Examples of Foreknew Israel Romans 11:1-5 1 I say then, God has not rejected His people, has He? May it never be! For I too am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin. 2 God has not rejected His people whom He foreknew. Or do you not know what the Scripture says in the passage about Elijah, how he pleads with God against Israel?
V. Biblical Examples of Foreknew 3 Lord, THEY HAVE KILLED YOUR PROPHETS, THEY HAVE TORN DOWN YOUR ALTARS, AND I ALONE AM LEFT, AND THEY ARE SEEKING MY LIFE. 4 But what is the divine response to him? I HAVE KEPT for Myself SEVEN THOUSAND MEN WHO HAVE NOT BOWED THE KNEE TO BAAL.
V. Biblical Examples of Foreknew 5 In the same way then, there has also come to be at the present time a remnant according to God s gracious choice.
V. Biblical Examples of Foreknew 2 God has not rejected His people whom He foreknew Is this talking about the Nation of Israel as a whole? No Is this saying that God does not reject those He sees in advance will not reject Him? No
V. Biblical Examples of Foreknew The remnant is a result of God s gracious choice.
V. Biblical Examples of Foreknew Jesus 1 Peter 1:20 For He was foreknown before the foundation of the world, but has appeared in these last times for the sake of you It was God s predetermined plan for Jesus to die for sins.
VI. Conclusion Foreknew (or proginōskō), it s not about God making a choice that was based on the choice that He knew we would make. It has to do with the fact that God had an intimate relationship with His children before time began.
VI. Conclusion We know this because God knew them in advance, and he decided in advance that they would be conformed to the image of his Son. (The Common English Bible) God knew them before he made the world. And he decided that they would be like his Son. (The Easy-to-Read Version)
VI. Conclusion This is true because he already knew his people and had already appointed them to have the same form as the image of his Son. (GOD S WORD Translation) God knew them before he made the world, and he chose them to be like his Son. (The New Century Version)