Whose choice – yours or God’s?
Posted on 16. Sep, 2009 by Dave Sheath in Blog
Don’t be afraid of the idea of predestination! It is one of the most comforting and wonderful truths in the Bible. But it is hard to wrap your mind around it! The term predestination occurs 6 times in the New Testament: Rom 8:29-20; Eph 1:5, 12; Acts 4:28. It refers to God’s mapping out of his plans ahead of time.
- God has a plan that has existed from the beginning of time (Eph 1:10; Acts 4:2)
- He organises things on a cosmic scale (Amos 9:7) and at the level of the individual according to his plan (Acts 17:26-27)
- The New Testament speaks of his eternal plan applying individually to believers. They are predestined to share in the blessings of Christ and come under his headship (Eph 1:1-10; Rom 8:28-30)
- God’s plans are fully God’s own choice and not dependent on the merit of the individual (Eph 2:8-10 – it is only by God’s grace we are saved)
- Some people have wrongly suggested that predestination refers to God’s divine foresight of those who will have faith. However, even faith is seen as a gift from God (1 Thess 2:13 – Paul thanks God for bringing about faith in the Thessalonian Christians).
- Predestination does not undermine human responsibility. The gospel includes a call to repentance (Mark 1:14-15; Acts 2). The Christian person is to “work out their faith with fear and trembling” (Phil 2:12)
- Predestination is a positive truth speaking of God’s favour in choosing people for salvation (Eph 1:5; Rom 8:28). However, the New Testament also speaks of God hardening people in unbelief (Rom 9 – eg. Pharaoh and Esau). It is clear that those who are hardened by God are fully responsible and culpable for there unbelief.
- Predestination gives the Christian person assurance that God is in control of their salvation and that nothing can separate them from love of God (Rom 8:31f.)
Here is a helpful illustration in thinking about predestination: becoming a Christian is like walking through a doorway. Above the doorway is an invitation…
“Choose life through Jesus”. To become a child of God and receive eternal life – we need to accept the invitation and enter. But once you enter you turn around and see that inside the door it says…
“Chosen before the creation of the world to be a holy and blameless son of God”. A decision we thought was ours alone, we find was in fact all God’s doing.
