1 THE DOCTRINE OF ELECTION A sermon by Jeremy Tan, Pastor, Amazing Grace Baptist Church Singapore. Election is quite possibly the most debated and divisive doctrine for as long as people have studied the Bible. This doctrine has given rise to questions such as these: Why would God choose some for salvation and leave others to be condemned for their sins? If God in His sovereignty chooses people for salvation, does Man have any responsibility? What is the point of evangelism, if God has already made His choice? What good does it do to pray for people to be saved and to witness to others, if God has already chosen those He would save? These are some of the tough, even troubling questions, about the doctrine of election. Many people have strong reactions to this doctrine. There are those who have called this doctrine a heresy. Some say that it is the most hated doctrine in the Bible. Those who contest this doctrine think that God is unfair to save some and condemn the rest. Then others avoid it completely because it is a controversial subject. But controversy is no excuse to ignore a doctrine that is clearly mentioned in the Bible. Furthermore, we must be careful that we do not approach God s Word with our own understanding. Else, we will create a God according to our fallen reasoning and finite mind. Let me remind you of what God said in the book of Isaiah. Isaiah 55:8-9 8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. 9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. Let me begin our study by giving you a list of events that theologians have worked out about the process in which God applies salvation to the sinner. This list of events, which may be called the order of salvation, is as follows: 1. Election (God s choice of people to be saved). 2. The Gospel call (proclaiming the message of the Gospel). 3. Regeneration (being born again). 4. Conversion (faith and repentance). 5. Justification (right legal standing with God). 6. Adoption (membership in God s family). 7. Sanctification (right conduct of life). 8. Perseverance (remaining a Christian). 9. Death (going to be with the Lord). 10. Glorification (receiving a resurrection body)*. *(John Murray discussed the order of events in this list in his book, Redemption Accomplished and Applied).
2 Election appears first in the order of salvation. Without election, or God s choice of people to be saved, all of the other events in the order of salvation will not occur. Therefore, election is a very important doctrine in the Bible. Christians and Bible scholars have debated this doctrine for centuries; surely we will need much patience and time to study it. Our study is not intended to be exhaustive. In fact, we will not be able to answer all the questions about election. Instead, our approach in this study will be to cite a number of passages from the Bible that discuss election. After all, the best method of Bible study is through comparing spiritual things with spiritual (1 Corinthians 2:13)! Let us begin with I. The Definition of Election. Wayne Grudem has written a good definition of election. In his definition, Election is an act of God before creation in which He chooses some people to be saved, not on account of any foreseen merit in them, but only because of His sovereign good pleasure. (Systematic Theology, p. 670). Let us read some verses that help us to define election. First of all, we turn to the letter that the apostle Paul wrote to the Christians in Ephesus. Paul reminded the believers of their election in Ephesians 1:4 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: In this verse, we learn that God made His choice to save people through His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, even before the foundation of the world, i.e. before He ordered creation into existence. Some have criticized the doctrine of election by saying that it makes God to be a monster. But Paul wrote that God chose those whom He would save in love. Paul gave the same reminder of election to the Christians in Thessalonica in 1 Thessalonians 1:4 Knowing, brethren beloved, your election of God. Paul used the word knowing in reference to their election. Question: how does a person know if he/she is one whom God has elected? How do we know if we have been elected or not? The answer is provided in the following verses 1 Thessalonians 1:5-6 5 For our gospel came not unto you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance; as ye know what manner of men we were among you for your sake. 6 And ye became followers of us, and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction, with joy of the Holy Ghost:
3 The fact that these Thessalonians believed the Gospel and followed the Lord Jesus after Paul had preached to them proved that God had chosen them. When they responded in faith toward the Lord Jesus Christ, Paul knew that God had chosen them. Likewise, when a sinner believes the Gospel and puts his faith in the Lord Jesus Christ as his personal Saviour, that act of faith is proof that God had elected him. In 2 Thessalonians, Paul expressed his confidence in their election. 2 Thessalonians 2:13 But we are bound to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth: Peter also spoke about election in his letter in 1 Peter 1:1-2 1 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, 2 Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied. The apostle knew that the believers in these different places were God s elect people. Then in John s vision in the Revelation, he wrote about those who worshipped the beast during the tribulation period. Those who worshipped the Antichrist are those whose names are not written in the Lamb s book of life. Revelation 13:7-8 7 And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations. 8 And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. The people that worshipped the beast are certainly the non-elect. Their names are not written in the Lamb s book of life. In contrast, those that refused to bow down to the beast are the elect, and their names are in the Lamb s book of life. Let us compare this with Revelation 17:8 The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is. These verses in Revelation 13 and 17 reveal that there are only two groups of people in the world: God s elect and the non-elect. Notice that God wrote the names of the elect in the Lamb s book of life from the foundation of the world. In other words, God had already made His choice!
4 Now, please understand that God did not write the name of every person in the Lamb s book of life, and their names remain in the book or are erased depending on how they lived. Listen: God wrote the names of His elect from the foundation of the world. This means that the names of all the elect throughout history are permanently recorded since God chose them. We have no prior knowledge of the names, but God knows every name because He chose each one and He wrote them in His book. So the doctrine of election is defined on the basis of these verses that we have read. Now let us move on to study II. The Doctrine of Election. As we have already seen, the writers of the New Testament clearly affirmed the doctrine of election, which is that God chooses a number of people to be saved. But this doctrine of God s sovereign choice is not found only in the New Testament; God s sovereign choice is seen throughout the Bible. Notice: 1. God chose Israel. In the Old Testament, God chose a nation for Himself. There were many nations in the world, such as the Egyptians, Amalekites, Edomites, Canaanites, and so on; but God chose Israel. In Deuteronomy, Moses told the children of Israel about God s choice of them as His people. Deuteronomy 7:6-7 6 For thou art an holy people unto the LORD thy God: the LORD thy God hath chosen thee to be a special people unto himself, above all people that are upon the face of the earth. 7 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: As early as in Deuteronomy, the fifth book of the Bible, God revealed the existence of His sovereign election. In the book of Isaiah, God repeatedly made His sovereign choice clear: He called Israel His elect (Isaiah 42:1; 45:4; 65:9; 65:22). So how do we know that God elects to save some people and not others? We know that God elects because He chose Israel for Himself but called for the destruction of the Canaanites. In New Testament terms, we know that election exists because God chose believers in Christ to be saved. God did not choose every person in the world to be saved. 2. God chose Jacob. Romans 9:11-13 11 (For the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works, but of him that calleth;) 12 It was said unto her, The elder shall serve the younger. 13 As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated.
5 In this passage, Paul wrote about God s choice of Jacob. God chose Jacob not because of anything that Jacob or Esau had done, but simply for His purpose of election to be accomplished. Notice in verse 11 that election is not based on human works; the choice of Jacob over Esau was not based on any good or evil they had done. Instead, election is based on the call of God. Consider Jacob. Jacob was a deceiver. He had cheated Esau of his birthright. Esau was no match for Jacob s craftiness. Why then did God choose Jacob? The answer is the grace of God. God chose Jacob over Esau because of His grace. What is grace? Grace is undeserved and unmerited favour. 3. God chose Jeremiah. Jeremiah 1:4-5 4 Then the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, 5 Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations. Here is an amazing truth about God s foreknowledge and election. God s choice of Jeremiah as His prophet proves that God chooses people from the foundation of the world. Before the prophet was even formed in his mother s womb, God knew Jeremiah, had set him apart, and ordained him as His prophet. The example of Jeremiah teaches us that God made His choice before we were even born. Now think: the fact that God knew and chose Jeremiah before he was even formed in his mother s womb negates the need for God to look ahead to see what Jeremiah would do in the future. From eternity past, God knew everyone of us, including His plans for us! 4. God chose New Testament believers. In His teaching to the disciples, the Lord Jesus Christ underscored the reality of God s election of them. John 15:16 Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you. The Lord Jesus said that He chose the disciples; they did not choose Him. How many times have we read that it is God who chooses people! In Acts 13, when Paul had preached in the synagogue in Antioch of Pisidia, we read about the result in Acts 13:48 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.
6 Notice the sentence structure. As many as were ordained to eternal life believed. God first ordained people before they believed. To be ordained to eternal life simply means that God had elected people for salvation. The election of these Gentiles are revealed to the world only when they believed the Gospel they had heard. There are many, many verses in the Bible that teach the election of God. Acts 13:48 alone is sufficient proof that this doctrine exists! 5. God chose the Tribulation saints. The Lord Jesus spoke about the people who would be saved during the tribulation period, and He called them the elect. Matthew 24:22-24 22 And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect s sake those days shall be shortened. 23 Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not. 24 For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect. Then the Lord Jesus said in Matthew 24:30-31 30 And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 31 And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. Think about it. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, revealed the existence of God s elect in a future tribulation period. Even now in our present time, the tribulation period is yet future. Since we do not know when the tribulation period will begin, it is possible that these saints who will live through that time are not even born today. But God knows every one of them. He has chosen them from the foundation of the world, and their names have been recorded in the Lamb s book of life. III. The Debate on Election. Many people take positions on the doctrine of election and they debate about it without studying it carefully. They even criticize the doctrine with strong language and very unwise statements. Now, we cannot answer all the questions about election because there are paradoxes in the doctrine. But a paradox in the Bible does not mean that something is not true. For example, how is it possible for the Lord Jesus Christ to be born of a virgin, that He has a human mother but not a biological father? How is it possible for God to create the world in six 24-hour days? These are paradoxes that the finite human mind has no capacity to fully understand. Nevertheless, we believe these paradoxes by faith because God said so!
7 Likewise, there are some points of truth about the doctrine of election that we have a difficult time understanding in all of its length and breadth. But let me try to deal with the debate on election by answering some common objections to it. 1. The doctrine of election means that we have no choice in whether we accept Christ or not. An appropriate response to this objection is: Who chose whom? Did God choose the sinner? Or did the sinner choose God? The simple answer is that God chose the sinner because the sinner will never choose God. How can the sinner choose God when he is spiritually dead? The Biblical profile of the sinner is given in Romans 3:10-18. Read the passage, and ask yourself if that unflattering profile is that of every unsaved person, or is it a picture of some people? The all s in Romans 3 means every person, without exception. So how do people respond to God and the Gospel if we are all rebels and rejecters of Christ? A spiritually dead person is like dead Lazarus. If the Lord Jesus did not call Lazarus to come out of the tomb, Lazarus would still be dead. Therefore, sinners cannot make a choice for God in their fallen condition. Sinners cannot respond to the Gospel in their own strength. Sinners can only remain the way they are: spiritually dead! A corpse does not come back to life on its own! Nevertheless, sinners accept Christ or reject Him because their decision is what they want to make. Understand that spiritually dead sinners will always behave according to Romans 3:10-18. They will always act according to their natural inclinations, which is against God. But for the sinners who accept Christ as their personal Saviour, they choose Him only because God s electing grace drew them in faith toward the Lord Jesus. According to Ephesians 2:8-9, faith to believe Christ is a gift of God. Friend, if God did not elect people to be saved, none would ever be saved! 2. The doctrine of election means that our choices are not real choices. Our choices are real choices because it is only when we respond in faith to the Gospel that we are saved. Although the choice to be saved is not made independently but with God s gift of faith and the convicting work of the Holy Spirit, it does not mean that people do not make real choices. Let me show you an example to prove that people make real choices. Acts 18:9-10 9 Then spake the Lord to Paul in the night by a vision, Be not afraid, but speak, and hold not thy peace: 10 For I am with thee, and no man shall set on thee to hurt thee: for I have much people in this city. Paul was in Corinth and his life was in danger because he was preaching the Gospel. But the Lord encouraged the apostle with His promise of protection. The Lord also said, I have much people in this city.
8 You see, unbeknownst to Paul, God had many of His elect people in Corinth. God s elect were waiting for the Gospel to be preached to them, so that they could believe and be saved. For this reason, Paul stayed in the city for a long time and preached the Gospel. The point is this: God s elect must hear the Gospel, and make a real choice to be saved! So we read in Acts 18:11 And he continued there a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them. Why did the Lord give His Great Commission to the Church (Matthew 28:18-20)? Why did He command Christians to go ye into all the world, and preach the Gospel to every creature (Mark 16:15)? The reason is that God has His elect in the world, and they need to hear the Gospel so as to respond in faith and be saved! For us, we have to preach the Gospel to every creature because we do not know which creature is one of the elect! Look at Paul. Did he know the identity of the elect in Corinth? No, he did not. But when he obeyed the Lord and preached the Gospel, he was blessed to see the results of many people coming forward to be saved. Likewise, missionaries and preachers do not know the names of the elect ahead of time. But God will call His elect unto salvation when His Gospel is preached. Our personal decisions concerning Christ are real choices because they have eternal consequences for our lives. This is why the preaching of the Gospel makes a difference in the lives of people. We proclaim and preach the Gospel so that people can choose. We know for sure how God s elect would choose! 3. The doctrine of election makes us puppets or robots, not real persons. Believers in Christ are not puppets or robots at all. They have to hear the Gospel, repent of their sins, and receive Christ by faith as their personal Saviour, before God saves them. One common objection to election is that without free will, people would be dragged, kicking and screaming, into Heaven. Friend, you will not find any person in Heaven kicking and screaming because God dragged them there against their will! Think of it. If you are a true believer in Christ, did you believe in Christ kicking and screaming? Of course not, there is no force whatsoever in genuine salvation. Believers are saved because God regenerated them, and He gave them faith to believe in Christ. 4. The doctrine of election means that unbelievers never had a chance to believe. The blame for unbelief always lies with the unbelievers, never with God. In Romans 1, Paul wrote that God had revealed Himself to Man through His creation; therefore, Man is without excuse (Romans 1:20). Unbelievers have the chance to believe God, but they choose to worship idols of their own making, when they changed the glory of the incorruptible God into images
9 of their own vain imaginations (Romans 1:23). Even an atheist is an idolater because he worships himself, or whatever takes the place of God in his life. When the Gospel of Jesus Christ is presented, that is the chance for people to believe. Bear in mind that God will not be accused of being unjust. 5. The doctrine of election is unfair. The answer to this objection is this: How can God be unfair when He chose the undeserving to be saved? Listen to Paul s argument in 1 Corinthians 1:26-29 26 For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called: 27 But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; 28 And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are: 29 That no flesh should glory in his presence. God calls the undeserving ones to be saved. God chose the undeserving, the foolish, the weak and those that are despised, so that no person can boast that he deserves to be saved. If salvation is a human work, we will become proud, just like the Pharisee who thought himself superior to the publican (Luke 18:10-14). Why do Christians thank God for their salvation? Christians thank God for their salvation because they acknowledge that salvation is God s work from beginning to end. The truly saved person will not credit himself for being wise, intelligent or deserving of salvation. People are saved because God chose them. Now, people do not make their choices independent of God. Think about it. When we pray to God to save someone, who are we asking to do the work? Obviously, we are asking God to save! Even though each person has to make a choice, it is God who does the work of salvation. It is God who draws sinners to Himself. So is election unfair? No! Salvation is not a matter of justice; it is a matter of God s grace. If God decided to create some to be saved and others not to be saved, it is His sovereign choice. Creatures have no basis for questioning the choice of the Creator. In Romans 9, after Paul had discussed God s choice of Jacob over Esau, he wrote about God s sovereign choice by using the illustration of the potter and the clay. Romans 9:14-23 14 What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? God forbid. 15 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. 16 So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy. 17 For
10 the scripture saith unto Pharaoh, Even for this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I might shew my power in thee, and that my name might be declared throughout all the earth. 18 Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth. 19 Thou wilt say then unto me, Why doth he yet find fault? For who hath resisted his will? 20 Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus? 21 Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour? 22 What if God, willing to shew his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction: 23 And that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy, which he had afore prepared unto glory, Who is the clay to argue with the potter? The potter decides whatever he wants to do with the clay! He does not have to consult the clay or ask for permission. So the point is this: God is entirely sovereign in His choices. As a just God, He is also fair in His choices. Instead of condemning all sinners to punishment in hell, God showed mercy to those whom He will show mercy. Who are spiritually dead people to argue with God? 6. The Bible says that God wills to save everyone. Is it God s will to save every person? Is it God s plan for the whole world to be saved? The answer is no. How do we know? We know that God did not plan to save everyone because not everyone is saved. Then how do we answer verses such as the following? 1 Timothy 2:4 Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth. Or 2 Peter 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. These verses seem to contradict the doctrine of election. How is it that God is not willing for any person to perish, yet He chose some to be saved and not others? Specifically, the all men in 1 Timothy 2:4 does not mean every person, but it means all kinds of men as in their class, race, and so on. For 2 Peter 3:9, the meaning is that God is not willing that any of His elect should perish. If we interpret any to mean every person without distinction, we have erred because many do, and will, perish. Even now, God has His elect waiting to hear the Gospel to be saved, and He will not have any of them to perish. Now, let me address the matter of God s foreknowledge. When God s foreknowledge is discussed, one common explanation is that God looks into the future to see how a person would respond to His Gospel. If God sees a person responding in faith toward His Son Jesus Christ, then God records that person s name in the Lamb s book of
11 life before the foundation of the world. God is able to see a person s future acts because He is eternal. God is not locked into past, present and future, as we are. However, this explanation of God seeing a person responding in faith before He chooses is not correct. Why? First, we have to understand the meaning of foreknowledge in the Bible. We read in 1 Peter 1:2 that believers are elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father. The common interpretation of foreknowledge is that it is the ability to know ahead of time, or knowledge of an outcome before it happens. But this is not the meaning of foreknowledge in the Bible. Think again about Jacob and Esau. Both had not yet done anything, either good or evil (Romans 9:11). Yet God chose Jacob. This significant fact proves that a person s predestination is not based on God s foreknowledge of his/her faith. Rather, God s foreknowledge is that of His saving relationship with the elect. God foreknew those whom He chose. If foreknowledge means looking and knowing ahead, what do you think God would see of the human condition? There would have been absolutely no change at all; people are as spiritually dead and depraved as described in Romans 3! Furthermore, if God chose Jacob before the twins had done anything good or bad, does the popular idea of foreknowledge matter? Of course, faith is vital for salvation, but we must realize that our faith is a gift from God. Spiritually dead people cannot produce faith, unless God gives them spiritual life (Ephesians 2:1-9). The Arminian position is that a person s choice is the determining factor in whether a person is saved or not. Even when the Arminian admits to the sovereignty of God, he insists that God cannot override human free will. Friend, if we believe that God elects us based on our own choice to accept Christ, then we deserve credit for our salvation. However, to claim credit for making the right choice means that we are robbing God of His glory! Election unto salvation is God s sovereign choice, which is entirely of His good pleasure. Even our free choice to have faith in Christ is not an independent choice. God must give us the faith to believe in His Son! Since it is God who gives faith to His elect, the popular but erroneous meaning of foreknowledge is unnecessary. God gives faith, and He does not need to see ahead to know those whom He gives faith! 7. Election is conditional. As we have discussed, if the ultimate determining factor in salvation is our decision to accept Christ or reject Him, then we should have the credit for making the right choice. But God chose us for salvation because He decided to bestow His love upon us. God did not choose us because of any foreseen faith or foreseen merit in us.
12 The Biblical doctrine of election is unconditional election. Election is unconditional because it is not conditioned upon anything that God sees in us that makes us worthy of His choice. Conclusion Election is a hard doctrine, but it is Biblical truth. Election rightly understood gives us reasons for comfort, to praise God, and an encouragement to evangelism. First, election gives us comfort because God s choice to save sinners is made before the foundation of the world. Thus, God s elect people can always have hope in His providential care. God chose His elect, and He will not abandon any one of them! Is this not a comforting truth? Second, election is a reason to praise God because salvation is God s work from beginning to end. An understanding of this doctrine will remove any proud idea that we have contributed something to our salvation. The right understanding of election should drive us to humility before a gracious and merciful God. Third, election will encourage us to preach and teach the Word of God boldly. We do not have to adjust the Gospel to avoid offending people because we know that God will use His truth to reach those He had chosen. Far from discouraging Christians, this doctrine should spur us to proclaim and preach the truth of God s Word with courage because we know that God has His elect. Friend, do you know if you are one of God s elect people? You will know the answer if you have believed on the Lord Jesus Christ as your personal Saviour, and you are now following Him in obedience to His Word! Please visit our website at www.amazingracebc.org to learn more about the doctrines of grace. Soli Deo Gloria!