"He Chose Us!" (Ephesians 1:4)

As a Christ follower, do you rejoice in the doctrine of God's sovereign election? Do you deem it to be a very precious blessing from Him? Paul, writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, surely did! When Paul said (1:3), "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ," the very first blessing Paul mentions is found in the next verse (1:4), "just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him." Reading both verses in context, we see that Paul is saying: "One of the greatest spiritual blessings that we have from God is that HE CHOSE US in Christ before the foundation of the world, to be holy and blameless before Him!" Paul begins to enumerate our blessings of being in Christ by telling us that God chose us and He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ (1:4-5)! As Christ followers, we must understand and embrace the fact that the doctrine of God's choosing us for salvation indeed is one of His greatest blessings because it guarantees our salvation! According to Wayne Grudem (Systematic Theology [Zondervan], 1994, pg 670, election is defined as: "An act of God before creation in which He chooses some to be saved, not on account of any foreseen merit in them, but only because of His sovereign good pleasure." The Greek verb translated "chose" means, to pick or select for oneself." In other words, no one is ever capable or even inclined to choose God unless God first chose him! Our Lord Jesus plainly stated "All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out" (John 6:37). Jesus also said "no one can come to Me unless it has been granted him from the Father" (John 6:65). The phrase "no one can" means exactly what it says, no one is able! We don't come to the Lord because we chose Him, we come to the Lord only because He chose us! Praise God forevermore! According to the words of Jesus, the Father's choosing of us is what guarantees our salvation....it can never, ever be lost or taken away from us! Examine John 6:65 again, and notice the phrase, "I will certainly not cast out." What is that statement in reference to? It's speaking about those who come to Jesus because the Father chose them to do so! This is great news and we can begin thanking God for what we can never lose, our salvation! Your move. Be encouraged!