There are two ways to be fooled. One is to believe what isn’t true; the other is to refuse to believe what is true. —Soren Kierkegaard. "…truth is true even if nobody believes it, and falsehood is false even if everybody believes it. That is why truth does not yield to opinion, fashion, numbers, office, or sincerity–it is simply true and that is the end of it" – Os Guinness, Time for Truth, pg.39. “He that takes truth for his guide, and duty for his end, may safely trust to God’s providence to lead him aright.” – Blaise Pascal. "There is but one straight course, and that is to seek truth and pursue it steadily" – George Washington letter to Edmund Randolph — 1795. We live in a “post-truth” world. According to the dictionary, “post-truth” means, “relating to or denoting circumstances in which objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than appeals to emotion and personal belief.” Simply put, we now live in a culture that seems to value experience and emotion more than truth. Truth will never go away no matter how hard one might wish. Going beyond the MSM idealogical opinion/bias and their low information tabloid reality show news with a distractional superficial focus on entertainment, sensationalism, emotionalism and activist reporting – this blogs goal is to, in some small way, put a plug in the broken dam of truth and save as many as possible from the consequences—temporal and eternal. "The further a society drifts from truth, the more it will hate those who speak it." – George Orwell “There are two ways to be fooled. One is to believe what isn’t true; the other is to refuse to believe what is true.” ― Soren Kierkegaard
Please join us as we fellowship in the Word of God, listen to Christian Music, Pray in Christ’s Name, and Praise the Lord Our God in our Hearts and Minds.
Before we begin, only if you are a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ (that is; you have believed [trusted] in Him for His promised gift of eternal life) John 3:16, John 6:47 as a few examples; it is very important to prepare yourself to learn God’s Word so the Holy Spirit can teach you as to what your reading or hearing is true or false. To be taught by the Holy Spirit you must be filled with the Holy Spirit which means abiding in Christ. To place yourself in fellowship with God the Holy Spirit [also called abiding in the Christ], take a moment to simply name, cite or acknowledge [confess] your known unconfessed sins privately to God (i.e.; with your thoughts directed only to God the Father). Why? Because you cannot grow spiritually if you’re not abiding in Christ [in fellowship with Him] when you take in bible truth.
1 John 1:9, says: “If we confess [meaning to simply name, cite or acknowledge to God the Father] our sins [known unconfessed sins], He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins [known sins] and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness [all unknown and forgotten sins];” NKJV (New King James Version); we call this REBOUND; read the full doctrine as to “why” we need to use 1 John 1:9 to grow spiritually. Left click the following link to learn more and fully understand the doctrine of Rebound; which answers the question, why do I need to keep confessing my sins all the time? REBOUND
If you have never personally believed in the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior (that is, believed in Him for eternal life), the issue for you is not to name your sins to God; the issue for you is to believe by faith alone in Jesus, The Christ alone for eternal life [salvation] and you will be saved [receive Eternal Life] the very micro second you believe in Him:
John 6:47 says: “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me [Jesus Christ] has everlasting life.” NKJV
Notice again what John 6:47 says, “he who believes in Me [Jesus Christ] has everlasting life.” It doesn’t say, “will have”; it says, “has.” Therefore, the very moment you believe Jesus Christ’s promise of everlasting life, you have it (it’s really just that simple), and it can never be lost or taken away from you (John 10:28-29). Furthermore, the gift of everlasting life (also called eternal life in scripture) is available to every human being; there are absolutely no exceptions.
John 3:14-18 says: “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness [Num 21:4-9], even so must the Son of Man be lifted up [the cross], that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” NKJV
Let us now bow our hearts and take a moment to prepare for learning God’s Word, if there is any known sin in your life, this is the time to just cite it privately to God the Father with your thoughts directed towards Him. With your head bowed and your eyes closed, you have total privacy in your mind and soul:
This ministry is non-denominational and is dedicated to teaching the Word of God from the original languages and making it available at no charge throughout the world.
Unlike the bible study, these notes are not just for reading without watching the video. These notes are more designed to follow along during the sermon and to bring up the “hover pop-up scripture references;” if just hover doesn’t work, do a “control-left-click,” if that doesn’t work then look them up in your Bible when the Pastor asks everyone to turn to that passage in their bibles.
Internet Church Service – August 20, 2023; The Angelic Conflict – Part 33 is in HD Audio ONLY; with hover pop-up scripture references in Notes.
The Angelic Conflict – Part 33 – Point 9. – The Importance of the Hypostatic Union –
Satan did everything in his power to try to destroy the humanity of Christ through temptation, attempted assassination, and to keep him from reaching the cross.
The first one is the temptation to rely on self rather than the ministry of Holy Spirit, Mat 4:1-4, Luk 4:1-4.
When a believer reaches spiritual maturity, Satan is permitted by God to cross examine every witness that God enters into the historical phase of the angelic conflict!
“tempted” = peirazo = to make proof of, test, scrutinize, examine, try to test one’s faith, virtue, or character by enticement to sin or to act independently of God.
If a conflict does not exist, why was an inferior creature, Satan, allowed to put our Lord through a test?
2Co 2:11 Make sure no advantage be taken of us by Satan; for we are not ignorant of his schemes.
If the humanity of Christ even sins once during this test then He cannot go to the cross and die for the sins of the whole world, so He will be tempted far beyond anyone of us!
Heb 4:15 For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things, yet without sin.
In evidence testing and the angelic conflict, God the Holy Spirit is not the one who puts us to the test, He is the one who leads us to the test!
James 1:13 Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone.
The devil is the agent who does the cross-examination in evidence testing!
This is Satan’s attempt through cross-examination to discredit those believers who reach spiritual maturity!
“Ei huios ei tou Theou” = “If you are the Son of God, and you are”
“you are” = pres-act-ind – eimi = Satan recognized that Jesus was the Son of God!
Will TLJC [The Lord Jesus Christ] use His power and operate independently of the power of the Holy Spirit, or rely on God to meet His needs?
If Jesus Christ used His deity and His own power to satisfy His hunger, then He has stepped outside of the PPOG [The Predesigned Plan of God for your life], the power system provided by God the Holy Spirit!
It is committing the same sin that Satan did originally – choosing self-will over God’s will.
By persuading the deity of Christ to act independently of the indwelling Holy Spirit and the PPOG, our Lord in hypostatic union would be acting independently of the plan of God the Father.
Kenosis = during the dispensation of the Hypostatic Union, our Lord Jesus Christ voluntarily restricted the independent use of His divine attributes in compliance with the Father’s plan.
During the First Advent, TLJC depended on the power of the Holy Spirit, Bible doctrine, and PSD’s [Problem Solving Devices], and gave up any independent exercise of certain divine attributes while living among men with their human limitations.
Being full of grace and doctrine (John 1:14), the humanity of Christ extrapolated from His own soul, problem-solving devices.
He concentrated on the problem-solving devices to prevent the conversion of the outside pressure of adversity into the inside pressure of stress in the soul.
The filling of the Spirit, the faith rest drill, grace orientation, doctrinal orientation, a personal sense of destiny, personal love for God the Father, impersonal love for all mankind, and sharing the happiness of God.
Our Lord did not depend on His deity to execute the Father’s plan, He depended on the One who provided the plan, on what the Father provided.
He refused to function independently of the Father’s plan.
The temptation to solve the problem of hunger by a miracle, rather than function under the doctrinal principle that the Holy Spirit led Him here and God the Father will provide for Him.
As long as God the Father has not removed the suffering, He intends for the humanity of Christ to bear it!
If God doesn’t remove it, He intends for you to bear it!
Would the humanity of Christ pass this test by refusing to use His own power independently of the plan of God?
You can leave the plan of God for your home, the details of life, marriage, business, social distraction, friends, pleasure, personal goals and ambitions, etc.
2Ti 2:4 “entangled in the affairs of everyday life” Luk 8:14 “choked with worries and riches and pleasures of this life and you bring no fruit to maturity.”
Spiritual maturity + passing evidence testing = glorification of God to the maximum in the historic extension of the angelic conflict.
Instead of performing miracles under His own power, our Lord used the greatest power ever known; He used Bible doctrine in all three parts of his testing.
When God performs a miracle, it requires only His sovereignty [will].
To apply Bible doctrine and advance in the plan of God through the use of that doctrine is the greatest power and the highest function that any member of the human race can attain.
Bible doctrine is the very thinking of Jesus Christ, 1Co 2:16, and it is the word of God, a reference to God Himself, John 1:1.
Robert R. McLaughlin Bible Ministries
All Rights Reserved
Robert R. McLaughlin 2001
Hymn #3
The following link is to a good-news message describing how one can receive eternal life: Ticket to Heaven, it was written for anyone not absolutely certain about their eternal future.
The entrance into a sheepfold, the place of safety and protection for weary sheep, was “the door of the sheep.” In this message, R.C. Sproul considers the teaching of Jesus from John 10 as He applied this image to Himself.
Question 12 brings up a subject that sounds obscure – but is essential to discovering why humanity is in the mess we are today – the covenant of works….
1:4 He chose us in him: The idea of divine election flows out of the important theme of spiritual union, for election is “in Christ.” The doctrine of election is one of the most central and one of the most misunderstood teachings of the Bible. At its most basic level, election refers to God’s plan whereby he accomplishes his will. The meaning of election is best understood as God’s sovereign initiative in bringing persons to faith in Christ, resulting in a special covenant relationship with him. This theme serves as a foundation to the entire opening section of Ephesians, which includes the phrases God “chose us” (v. 4); “predestined us” (v. 5); and “predestined according to the plan” (v. 11). Paul’s focus on the Christ-centered character of election is vitally important. God chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world. This indicates the centrality of the gospel in God’s plan for history. We are chosen to be holy and blameless. Holiness and blamelessness are the results, not the basis, of God’s election.[1]
1:4 he chose us in him. See “Election and Reprobation” at Rom. 9:18. Paul rejoices that God chooses people for a relationship with Himself (Rom. 8:29–33; 9:6–26; 11:5, 7, 28; 16:13; Col. 3:12; 1 Thess. 1:4; 2 Thess. 2:13; Titus 1:1). Some suggest “in him” means God foresaw who would have faith in Christ and elected them. Not only does this add a thought that is not in the text, but elsewhere Paul teaches that the very state of being “in Christ” is something to which one is chosen (1 Cor. 1:26–31). Paul says explicitly that the ground of God’s predestinating love is His own good pleasure (vv. 5, 10; cf. Deut. 7:7, 8), not anything we have done or will do (Rom. 9:11, 16). “In him” means that God’s choice always had in view a fallen people in union with their Redeemer (2 Tim. 1:9). See also 1 Pet. 1:18–21; Rev. 13:8.
holy and blameless. See 5:27; Col. 1:22. God intends to bring His elect all the way from spiritual death in sin (2:1–5) to the forgiveness of sins in Christ (1:7), and finally to the elimination of all sin from their experience (Rom. 8:29, 30).
In love. If “in love” belongs with the preceding phrase, it helps explain the nature of the holiness and blamelessness to which believers are called; this is consistent with the use of the phrase elsewhere in Ephesians (3:17; 4:2, 15, 16; 5:2). If it belongs with v. 5, the phrase explains predestination not simply as a matter of God’s decision, but as an act of His love (Hos. 11:1). This understanding is probably better. It is consistent with 2:4, 5.[2]
1:4he chose Here Paul applies to believers a concept that formerly applied to Israel alone (see Deut 7:6–8; compare Rom 9:11 and note; 2 Thess 2:13 and note). Just as God chose Israel as His treasured possession, He now elects believers to receive the blessings mediated through Christ.
foundation of the world Implies that God made His choice at some unidentified time in the past.
holy Refers to being dedicated to or set apart for God. See note on Eph 1:1.
blameless Refers to being without fault before God.[3]
1:4He chose us in him means that the Father chose Christians in the Son (Christ), and this took place in eternity past, before the foundation of the world. This indicates that for all eternity the Father has had the role of leading and directing among the persons of the Trinity, even though Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are equal in deity and attributes. God’s initiative in redeeming the believer from sin and death was not an arbitrary or whimsical decision but something God had planned all along “in Christ.” Since God chose his people in his love, they can take no credit for their salvation. God was determined to have them as his own (see note on 2:8). holy. God chose them with the goal that they be holy and blameless before him. This goal is not optional for Christians—it is the purpose of election. Holiness here expresses moral purity, while blamelessness expresses freedom from the guilt of trespasses and sins in which the Christian formerly walked (1:7; 2:1, 5). In love, at the end of 1:4, properly belongs to v. 5, describing predestination, though the ESV footnote indicates that “in love” can also be taken with the preceding phrase (“that we should be holy and blameless before him in love”). Versification was introduced into Bibles in the sixteenth century a.d. for convenience and is not part of the original inspired text.[4]
1:4 He chose us. The doctrine of election is emphasized throughout Scripture (cf. Dt 7:6; Is 45:4; Jn 6:44; Ac 13:48; Ro 8:29; 9:11; 1Th 1:3, 4; 2Th 2:13; 2Ti 2:10; see note on 1Pe 1:2). The form of the Gr. verb behind “chose” indicates that God not only chose by Himself but for Himself to the praise of His own glory (vv. 6, 12, 14). God’s election or predestination does not operate apart from or nullify man’s responsibility to believe in Jesus as Lord and Savior (cf. Mt 3:1, 2; 4:17; Jn 5:40). before the foundation of the world. Through God’s sovereign will before the creation of the world and, therefore, obviously independent of human influence and apart from any human merit, those who are saved have become eternally united with Christ Jesus. Cf. 1Pe 1:20; Rev 13:8; 17:8. holy and blameless before Him. This describes both a purpose and a result of God’s choosing those who are to be saved. Unrighteous persons are declared righteous, unworthy sinners are declared worthy of salvation, all because they are chosen “in Him” (Christ). This refers to Christ’s imputed righteousness granted to us (see notes on 2Co 5:21; Php 3:9), a perfect righteousness which places believers in a holy and blameless position before God (5:27; Col 2:10), though daily living inevitably falls far short of His holy standard. In love. This phrase belongs at the start of v. 5, since it introduces the divine motive for God’s elective purpose. Cf. 2:4; Dt 7:8.[5]
1:4. The first blessing is that God the Father chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world. In Ephesians the first person plural typically refers to the Church, Jews and Gentiles together in one body. Thus some suggest that corporate election is in view here.
There is so much misunderstanding and controversy concerning God’s choosing of believers. There are two aspects of salvation. There is the “God side” as He chooses those to be in Christ, and at the same time there is the “human side” as each person must believe in Christ for eternal life. Both are true. Because people like sheep have all gone astray (Isa 53:6) God brings people to Himself. In this section of Ephesians Paul is stressing the Godward side of salvation, that He chose people in Christ.
Regardless of what type of choosing (individual or corporate) is in view here, this does not remove the responsibility of every person to believe in Christ for eternal life. From the man side, each person must believe in Christ for eternal life in order to have it.
God chose people before the foundation of the world. This seems to be a figure of speech called anthropomorphism. Since God has always been omniscient, there never was a literal time when He chose anyone.
God chose people so they would be holy and without blame before Him. This could refer to their standing in Christ, or it could refer to their experience, in which case Paul is thinking of the Judgment Seat of Christ (cf. Col 1:21–23).[6]
1:4 The first is what is commonly known as election. Just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love.
Notice first the positive fact of election in the words, He chose us. Then there is the positional aspect of the truth, in Him: it is in the Person and work of the Lord Jesus that all God’s purposes for His people are brought to pass. The time of God’s election is indicated by the expression, before the foundation of the world. And the purpose is that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love. This purpose will not be completely realized until we are with Him in heaven (1 John 3:2), but the process should be going on continually in our lives down here.
Prayer: “Lord, make me holy now,
since this is Your eventual
purpose for me. Amen.”
DIVINE ELECTION
The doctrine of election raises serious problems in the human mind, so we must consider more fully what the Bible does (and does not) teach on this subject.
First, it teaches that God does choose men to salvation (2 Thess. 2:13). It addresses believers as those who are “elect according to the foreknowledge of God” (1 Pet. 1:2). It teaches that people can know whether they are elect by their response to the gospel: those who hear and believe it are elect (1 Thess. 1:4–7).
On the other hand, the Bible never teaches that God chooses men to be lost. The fact that He chooses some to be saved does not imply that He arbitrarily condemns all the rest. He never condemns men who deserve to be saved (there are none), but He does save some who ought to be condemned. When Paul describes the elect, he speaks of them as “vessels of mercy which He had prepared beforehand for glory” (Rom. 9:23); but when he turns to the lost, he simply says, “vessels of wrath prepared for destruction” (Rom. 9:22). God prepares vessels of mercy to glory, but He does not prepare men for destruction: they do this for themselves by their own unbelief.
The doctrine of election lets God be God. He is sovereign, that is, He can do as He pleases, though He never pleases to do anything unjust. If left alone, all men would be lost. Does God have the right to show mercy to some?
But there is another side to the story. The same Bible that teaches sovereign election also teaches human responsibility. No one can use the doctrine of election as an excuse for not being saved. God makes a bona fide offer of salvation to all people everywhere (John 3:16; 3:36; 5:24; Rom. 10:9, 13). Anyone can be saved by repenting of his sins and believing on the Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, if a person is lost, it is because he chooses to be lost, not because God desires it.
The fact is that the same Bible teaches election and free salvation to all who will receive it. Both doctrines are found in a single verse: “All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out” (John 6:37). The first half of the verse speaks of God’s sovereign choice; the last half extends the offer of mercy to all.
This poses a difficulty for the human mind. How can God choose some and yet offer salvation freely to all men? Frankly, this is a mystery. But the mystery is on our side, not on God’s. The best policy for us is to believe both doctrines because the Bible teaches both. The truth is not found somewhere between election and man’s free will, but in both extremes. W. G. Blaikie summarizes:
Divine sovereignty, human responsibility and the free and universal offer of mercy are all found in Scripture, and though we are unable to harmonize them by our logic, they all ought to have a place in our minds.‡[7]
1:4. The apostle first told when God’s work of election took place: before the Creation of the world. The word for at the beginning of this verse is not as literal a translation of the Greek adverb kathōs as “even as” (asv, rsv) or “just as” (nasb). “As” suggests that the way God blesses believers (v. 3) is through the threefold work of the Trinity. But the adverb can also have a causal sense, and may be rendered “since,” “because,” or “insofar as” (cf. 4:32). The idea is that spiritual blessings (1:3) for believers are because of or on the basis of the work of the Trinity: God blesses believers because of the Father’s electing, the Son’s dying, and the Spirit’s sealing. Both concepts seem to be included: spiritual blessings are the work of the three Persons of the Trinity, and the work of the Trinity is the basis of all a believer’s spiritual blessings.
Spiritual blessings begin with and are based on election (He chose us), of which God is the subject and believers are the object. Election is God’s sovereign work of choosing some to believe (cf. Rom. 8:30; Eph. 1:11; 1 Thes. 1:4; 2 Thes. 2:13; Titus 1:1). Salvation is God’s doing, not man’s (Eph. 2:8–9). Though it is an act of grace (Rom. 11:5–6; 2 Tim. 1:9), based on His will (Eph. 1:5, 9, 11), a person is responsible to believe (v. 13). “God chose you to be saved … through belief in the truth” (2 Thes. 2:13).
In Him indicates the sphere (cf. “in Christ” in Eph. 1:3) of election, as He is the Head and Representative of spiritual humanity (vv. 10, 22; Col. 1:18). The time of election is in eternity past, and the purpose of election is that believers will be holy and blameless in His sight for eternity. What God has begun in the past will be accomplished and completed in the future. Christians are “holy” (hagious; cf. hagiois, “saints,” Eph. 1:1), that is, set apart to God, which is the purpose of His electing grace. In addition, the purpose of His election is to make Christians “blameless.” This word amōmous, “without blemish,” is used eight times in the New Testament (v. 4; 5:27; Phil. 2:15; Col. 1:22; Heb. 9:14; 1 Peter 1:19; 2 Peter 3:14; Rev. 14:5). In the Septuagint it is used of sacrificial animals; only those without blemish could be offered to God.
What does the phrase in love modify? Some agree with the NIV that it modifies the word “predestined” (Eph. 1:5). If so, then God’s love is seen in predestination. More likely, it modifies the words “to be holy and blameless in His sight” for these reasons: (1) In this context the modifying phrases always follow the action words (vv. 3–4, 6, 8–10). (2) The other five occurrences of “in love” in Ephesians (3:17; 4:2, 15–16; 5:2 [“of love”]) refer to human love rather than divine love. (3) Love fits well with holiness and blamelessness, for this would denote a balance between holiness and love. God is love and believers, because of God’s electing love, should manifest love with holiness.[8]
1:4. First, we have received the blessing of being chosen by God and adopted by him as his spiritual children. Chose raises the question of election or predestination, a deep and profound mystery which must be handled carefully. The Bible in some places seems to teach that God chooses those who will be saved and at least implies that he does not choose those who will not be saved. On the other hand, some verses seem to teach human freedom and responsibility. This question is dealt with more fully in the “Deeper Discoveries” section of this chapter.
This marvelous choice makes us holy and blameless in his sight. Because we have believed in and received Jesus as our Savior, all our sins are forgiven in him. This does not mean that true Christians never sin. It means our sin is paid for by the death of Christ. Jesus was holy and blameless. We are in Jesus; therefore, we are holy and blameless in God’s sight.
This takes us beyond our understanding, but the final consequence is easy to grasp: In Christ, we have his righteousness imputed to us at the moment of salvation; and the day will come when, standing before God holy and blameless, we will be totally separated, freed, and redeemed from any vestige of sin.[9]
1:4 “He chose us” This is an AORIST MIDDLE INDICATIVE which emphasized the subject. This focused on the Father’s choice before time. God’s choice must not be understood in the Islamic sense of determinism nor in the ultra Calvinistic sense of some versus others, but in the covenantal sense. God promised to redeem fallen mankind (cf. Gen. 3:15). God called and chose Abraham to choose all humans (cf. Gen. 12:3; Exod. 19:5–6). God Himself elected all persons who would exercise faith in Christ. God always takes the initiative in salvation (cf. John 6:44, 65). This text and Rom. 9 are the biblical basis for the doctrine of predestination emphasized by Augustine and Calvin.
God chose believers not only to salvation (justification) but also to sanctification (cf. Col. 1:12)! This could relate to (1) our position in Christ (cf. 2 Cor. 5:21), or (2) God’s desire to reproduce His character in His children (cf. 2:10; Rom. 8:28–29; Gal. 4:19). God’s will for His children is both heaven one day and Christlikeness now!
The PRONOUNS in this passage are ambiguous. Most refer to God the Father. This whole passage speaks of His love, purpose and plan to redeem fallen mankind. However, in context it is obvious that the pronouns in vv. 7, 9, 13 & 14 refer to Jesus.
The term “blameless” (amōmos) or “free from blemish” is used of (1) Jesus, (cf. Heb. 9:14; 1 Pet. 1:19); (2) Zacharias and Elizabeth, (cf. Luke 1:6); (3) Paul (cf. Phil 3:6); and (4) all true Christians (cf. Phil. 2:15; 1 Thess. 3:13; 5:23). See Special Topic at Col. 1:22.
God’s unalterable will for every believer is not only heaven later, but Christlikeness now (cf. Rom. 8:29–30; Gal. 4:19; 1 Pet. 1:15). Believers are to reflect God’s characteristics to a lost world for the purpose of evangelism.
4. Paul continues, just as he elected us in him before the foundation of the world.
Election
(1) Its Author
The Author is “the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,” as has been indicated (see on verse 3). This, of course, by no means cancels the fact that all the activities which affect extra-trinitarian relationships can be ascribed to Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Nevertheless, it is the Father who, as here shown, takes the lead in the divine work of election.
(2) Its Nature
To elect means to pick or choose out of (for oneself). Although the passage itself does not indicate in so many words the mass of objects or individuals out of which the Father chose some, this larger group is, nevertheless, clearly indicated by the purpose clause, “in order that we should be holy and faultless before him.” Accordingly, the larger mass of individuals out of which the Father chose some are here viewed as unholy and vile. This interpretation suits the context. It supplies one of the reasons (see Synthesis at end of chapter for more reasons) why the soul of the apostle is filled with such rapture that he says, “Blessed (be) the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who … elected us.” He means: us, thoroughly unworthy in his sight! He does not try to explain how it was possible for God to do this. He fully realizes that when men are confronted with this manifestation of amazing grace their only proper response is adoration, not explanation.
(3) Its Object
The object is “us,” not everybody. This pronoun “us” must be explained in the light of its context. Paul is writing to “saints and believers” (verse 1). He says that the Father has blessed “us,” that is, “all saints and believers” (here with special reference to those at Ephesus) including Paul (verse 3). Therefore, when the apostle now continues, “just as he elected us,” this “us” cannot suddenly have reference to all men whatever, but must necessarily refer to all those who are (or who at one time or another in the history of the world are destined to become) “saints and believers”; that is, to all those who, having been set apart by the Lord for the purpose of glorifying him, embrace him by means of a living faith.
It is for this contextual reason (and for others also) that I cannot agree with the contention of Karl Barth that in connection with Christ all men whatever are elect, and that the basic distinction is not between elect and non-elect but rather between those who are aware of their election and those who are not.
(4) Its Foundation
The foundation of the church, of its entire salvation from start to finish, hence surely also of its election, is Christ. Paul says, “He (“the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ”) elected us in him.” The connection between verses 3 and 4 hinges on this phrase. One could bring this out in the translation as follows, “God the Father blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as in him he elected us.…” In other words, in time the Father blessed us in Christ, just as from all eternity he elected us in him. Though some maintain that this “just as” denotes no more than correspondence, in the sense that there is perfect agreement between the blessings and the election, for both are “in Christ,” it may well be asked whether this interpretation exhausts the meaning of the word used in the original. Aside from a point of grammar (for which see the footnote), it is the teaching of Paul that election from eternity and the further steps in the order of salvation are not to be considered as so many separate items but rather as links in a golden chain, as Rom. 8:29, 30 makes abundantly clear. Election, then, is the root of all subsequent blessings. It is as Jesus said in his highpriestly prayer, “… that to all whom thou hast given him he might give everlasting life” (John 17:2). See also John 6:37, 39, 44; 10:29. Hence, since election is from eternity, and since it is the foundation of all further blessings, and since it is “in him,” Christ is not only the Foundation of the church but its Eternal Foundation.
The question must now be answered, “How is it to be understood that it was in Christ that saints and believers were chosen?” The answer that is often given is this, that it was determined in the counsel of God that in time these people would come to believe in Christ. Though, to be sure, that, too, is implied, it is not a sufficient answer and fails to do justice to all that is taught by Paul and other inspired writers with respect to this important point. The basic answer must be that from before the foundation of the world Christ was the Representative and Surety of all those who in time would be gathered into the fold. This was necessary, for election is not an abrogation of divine attributes. It has already been established that in the background of God’s decree is the dismal fact that those chosen are viewed as being, at the very outset, totally unworthy, having involved themselves in ruin and perdition. Now sin must be punished. The demands of God’s holy law must be satisfied. The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ does not, by means of election, cancel his righteousness or abolish the demands of his law. How then is it ever possible for God to bestow such a great, glorious, and basic blessing as election upon “children of wrath,” and to do so without detriment to his very essence and the inviolability of his holy law? The answer is that this is possible because of the promise of the Son (in full co-operation with the Father and the Spirit), “Lo, I come; in the roll of the book it is written of me; I delight to do thy will, O my God; thy law is within my heart” (Ps. 40:7, 8. Cf. Heb. 10:5–7; Gal. 4:4, 5; Phil. 2:6–8). “In Christ,” then, saints and believers, though initially and by nature thoroughly unworthy, are righteous in the very sight of God, for Christ had promised that in their stead he would satisfy all the requirements of the law, a promise which was also completely fulfilled (Gal. 3:13). This forensic righteousness is basic to all the other spiritual blessings. Therefore,
“To thee, O Lord, alone is due
All glory and renown;
Aught to ourselves we dare not take,
Or rob thee of thy crown.
Thou wast thyself our Surety
In God’s redemption plan;
In thee his grace was given us,
Long ere the world began.”
(Augustus M. Toplady, 1774; revised by Dewey Westra, 1931)
(5) Its Time
This election is said to have occurred “before the foundation of the world,” that is, “from eternity.” Moreover, since it occurred “in him,” this is altogether reasonable, for he is the One who and whose “precious blood as of a lamb without blemish and without spot” were foreknown even before the foundation of the world (1 Peter 1:19, 20). The fixity of God’s eternal plan with respect to his chosen ones was not a Pauline invention. It was the teaching of Jesus himself. It was he who referred to those whom he loved as the given ones (see John 6:39; 17:2, 9, 11, 24; cf. 6:44). The fact that from all eternity he had promised to make atonement for them may well have been an element that entered into the Father’s love for him; cf. the words of the highpriestly prayer, “Father, I desire that they also, whom thou hast given me be with me where I am, in order that they may gaze on my glory, which thou hast given me, for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world” (John 17:24). In such and similar passages (see also Matt. 13:35; Heb. 4:3) the universe is viewed as a building, and its creation as the laying of the foundation of this building.
The point that should be emphasized in this connection is the fact that if already before the foundation of the world those destined for everlasting life were elected, then all the glory for their salvation belongs to God, and to him alone. Hence, “Blessed (be) the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!” See 2:5, 8–10.
(6) Its Purpose
The purpose of election is found in the words, that we should be holy and faultless before him. It is worthy of special note that Paul does not say, “The Father elected us because he foresaw that we were going to be holy,” etc. He says, “that [or: in order that] we should be holy,” etc. Election is not conditioned on man’s foreseen merits or even on his foreseen faith. It is salvation’s root, not its fruit! Nevertheless, it remains true that man’s responsibility and self-activity are not diminished even in the least. When the divine decree unto salvation is historically realized in the life of any individual it does not operate by means of external compulsion. It motivates, enables, actuates. It impels but does not compel. The best description is probably that which is found in Canons of Dort III and IV. 11, 12:
“Moreover, when God accomplishes this, his good pleasure, in the elect, or works in them true conversion, he not only provides that the gospel should be outwardly preached to them, and powerfully illuminates their minds by the Holy Spirit, that they may rightly understand and discern what are the things of the Spirit of God, but he also, by the efficacy of the same regenerating Spirit, pervades the innermost recess of man, opens the closed, softens the hardened, and circumcises the uncircumcised heart, infuses new qualities into the will, and makes that will which had been dead alive, which was evil good, which had been unwilling willing, which had been refractory pliable, and actuates and strengthens it, that, as a good tree, it may be able to bring forth the fruit of good works.… Whereupon the will, being now renewed, is not only actuated and moved by God, but being actuated by God, itself also becomes active. Wherefore man himself, by virtue of that grace received, is rightly said to believe and repent.” See Phil. 2:12, 13 and 2 Thess. 2:13.
From the stated purpose it is evident that election does not carry man half-way only; it carries him all the way. It does not merely bring him to conversion; it brings him to perfection. It purposes to make him holy—that is, cleansed from all sin and separated entirely to God and to his service—and faultless—that is, without any blemish whatever (Phil. 2:15), like a perfect sacrifice. Nothing less than this becomes the conscious goal of those in whose hearts God has begun to work out his plan of eternal election. It is their goal in this present life (Lev. 19:2), and it attains ultimate realization in the hereafter (Matt. 6:10; Rev. 21:27).
The absolute and undiminished perfection of the ethical goal is given added emphasis by the phrase “before him,” that is, before God in Christ. Not what we are in the estimation of men but what we are in the sight of God is what counts most.[11]
Ver. 4. According as He hath chosen us before the foundation of the world.—
Election:—
I. Let us consider the cause, fountain, origin of the blessings of salvation—“according as He hath chosen us.” The blessings which we enjoy, the apostle affirms, are in consequence of God’s having chosen us, that we might become partakers of them in all their extent and fulness. To this source alone are they to be traced. How comes it that the Church of God’s “saints and faithful” thus stands distinguished from the ungodly world, in the blessings it enjoys, the favours reserved for it, and the eternal glory it shall inherit? 1. It is a matter of fact concerning which this question is raised. Whatever may be the solution of the question, or difficulties connected with it, there is no denying or concealing the fact itself, that there has been, is, and will be, a distinction among men—a difference—a separation—as respects their state and character before God, and their ultimate destiny. 2. This fact cannot be accounted for by any reference to individual or personal distinctions of character or worthiness. 3. We reach the only reasonable account of the matter when we adopt the Scriptural explanation, and ascribe “all spiritual blessing in the heavenlies” as enjoyed by God’s people to His free-electing love, “according as He hath chosen us.” If you wished to explore the true source of some majestic river, which in its course beautifies and blesses the earth, as it flows through thousands of miles to the great ocean, you would not pause at some expanding lake which it fills and empties, nor ascend the route of some acceding tributary which helps to swell its volume; but, keeping by the main channel, and leaving behind you the verdant plain and the smiling hamlet and the sleeping lake, you ascend high up the mountain steep, and there hidden in the cleft of the rock you discover the little bubbling spring that marks the origin and fountain and true rising-place of that noble stream. So, taught and guided by God’s Word, when you would trace to its true fountain the stream of spiritual blessing which blesses you “in the heavenlies,” you pause not at any works or deeds of yours, you point not to any superiority natural or acquired over others, you fix not even on “faith” and “repentance” (as if these all did not need to be accounted for!), but, in all humility, yet with all thankfulness, you rest in the elective love of God, as the original and actual cause of all. You hear Paul saying, and you must echo the acknowledgment, “according as He hath chosen us,” whilst with John you gaze on that “pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.”
II. We come now to consider the second thing in our text, viz.: How this electing love of God—the cause or fountain of salvation—comes into being and operation—“hath chosen us in Him,” i.e., in Christ. A virtual or representative union was formed by God, between sinners of mankind and Christ, when He purposed their salvation. A covenant was entered into between God, of the one part, and Christ constituted the head of the Church and its representative, of the other part. In terms of this covenant Christ was to do the will of God; i.e., fulfil the requirements of law, suffer its penalty and perform its duties, in room and stead of His people; and God, on His part, was to confer on them His Spirit, work holiness in their natures, and at last receive them into eternal mansions.
III. In the third place we are here taught when the election took place, viz., “before the foundation of the world.” This surely must be allowed to carry us far back, beyond the operation of human merit or agency. 1. There is no room, then, for chance, uncertainty, or hazard. God’s plans are complete, and His purposes definite. Doubtless He has chosen, on the whole, the greatest good of the universe as His object; and, in “the election unto grace,” only displays a part of His glorious and all-comprehending plan. 2. Again, we are taught in this not only God’s wisdom, but also His sovereignty. This, at least, is a precious truth—that the Lord God Omnipotent reigneth. What comfort, otherwise, would there be in contemplating a scene where sin abounds and agents of darkness are abroad on the earth?
IV. This suggests to us the fourth topic in our text, viz., Why, or for what end God hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world—“that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love.” It is an old saying: “God does not find, but makes men holy.” It is evident, indeed, that none are chosen because they are holy or blameless, but some are chosen in order that they may become so. (W. Alves, M.A.)
The doctrine of election:—
I. The Spiritual blessing. 1. The term election is sometimes used for that election which is made in temporary execution of God’s purpose; (1) whether it be a separating of men to the state of grace, which makes them as the chosen first-fruits of the creation (John 15:19; 1 Pet. 1:2); or (2) a separating of them to any office and dignity. Saul, Judas. 2. But here it means that choice which God made with Himself from all eternity. From this flow all the blessings we receive, even as the body and boughs and branches of the tree issue from the root. What a cause for thankfulness is here!
II. The persons. Those who have true faith and holiness. As we may know faith, so we may know election. If we see in any a faith unfeigned and true endeavour after holiness, we may charitably judge that such are elected.
III. The order of election. 1. Christ, the Head. 2. From Christ it descends to us His members.
IV. The time. Before all worlds (2 Tim. 1:9; John 17:24).
V. The end. 1. God has of grace chosen us to the supernatural life. 2. He has not only chosen us to this supernatural life, but to the perfection of it. 3. He has called us to this life, that we may live for ever in His presence. (Paul Bayne.)
God’s elective grace:—It would be a narrow and superficial view of these words to suppose them to refer only to the enjoyment of external privilege, or to imagine that they are meant to level Jewish pride, and that they describe simply the choice of the Gentiles to religious blessings. The purpose of the election is, that its objects should be holy, an end that cannot fail, for they are in Christ, and “in Him they are complete.” Yet the sovereign love of God is strikingly manifested even in the bestowment of external advantage. Ephesus enjoyed what many a city in Asia Minor wanted. The motive that took Paul to Ephesus, and the wind that sped the bark which carried him, were alike of God’s creation. It was not because God chanced to look down from His high throne, and saw the Ephesians bowing at the shrine of Diana, and worshipping “the image that fell from Jupiter,” that His heart was moved, and He resolved to give them the gospel. Nor was it because its citizens had a deeper relish for virtue and peace than masses of the population around them, that He sent among them the grace of His Spirit. “He is of one mind, and who can turn Him?” Every purpose is eternal, and awaits an evolution in the fulness of the time, which is neither antedated nor postponed. The same difficulties are involved in this choice to the external blessing, as are found in the election of men to personal salvation. The whole procedure lies in the domain of pure sovereignty, and there can therefore be no partiality where none have any claim. The choice of Abraham is the great fact which explains and gives name to the doctrine. Why then should the race of Shem be selected to the exclusion of Ham and Japheth? Why of all the families in Shem should that of Terah be chosen? and why of all the members of Terah’s house should the individual Abraham be marked out, and set apart by God to be the father of a new race? As well impugn the fact as attempt to upset the doctrine. Providence presents similar views of the Divine procedure. One is born in Europe with a fair face, and becomes enlightened and happy; another is born in Africa with a sable countenance, and is doomed to slavery and wretchedness. One has his birth from Christian parents, and is trained in virtue from his earlier years; another has but a heritage of shame from his father, and the shadow of the gallows looms over his cradle. One is an heir of genius; another, with some malformation of brain, is an idiot. Some, under the enjoyment of Christian privilege, live and die unimpressed; others, with but scanty opportunities, believe, and grow eminent in piety. Does not more seem really to be done by God externally for the conversion of others who live and die in impenitence, than for many who believe and are saved? And yet the Divine prescience and predestination are not incompatible with human responsibility. Man is free, perfectly free, for his moral nature is never strained or violated. Foreknowledge, which is only another phase of electing love, no more changes the nature of a future incident, than after-knowledge can affect an historical fact. God’s grace fits men for heaven, but men by unbelief prepare themselves for hell. It is not man’s non-election, but his continued sin, that leads to his eternal ruin. Action is not impeded by the certainty of the Divine foreknowledge. He who believes that God has appointed the hour of his death is not fettered by such a faith in the earnest use of every means to prolong his life. And God does not act arbitrarily or capriciously. He has the best of reasons for His procedure, though He does not choose to disclose them to us. (John Eadie, D.D.)
God the author of the plan of salvation:—Christians have no grounds for self-felicitation in their possession of holiness and hope, as if with their own hand they had inscribed their names in the Book of Life. Their possession of “all spiritual blessing in the heavenly places” is not self-originated. Its one author is God, and He has conferred it in harmony with His eternal purpose regarding them. His is all the work, and His is all the glory. And therefore the apostle glories in this eternal election. It is cause of deep and prolonged thankfulness, not of gloom, distrust, or perplexity. The very eternity of design clothes the plan of salvation with a peculiar nobleness. It has its origin in an eternity behind us, and its consummation in an eternity before us. Kindness, the result of momentary impulse, has not and cannot have such claim to gratitude, as a beneficence which is the fruit of a matured and predetermined arrangement. The grace which springs from eternal choice must command the deepest homage of our nature. (Ibid.)
Salvation an eternal provision for human need:—The eternity of the plan suggests another thought. It is this—salvation is an original thought and resolution. It is no novel expedient struck out in the fertility of Divine ingenuity, after God’s first purpose in regard to man had failed through man’s apostasy. It is no afterthought, but the embodiment of a design which, foreseeing our ruin, had made preparation for it. (Ibid.)
The object of the Divine election:—In the words “That we should be holy and without blame before Him,” we have the object of the Divine election declared, and the co-operation of the elect implied, by the inseparable connection of holiness with election. There is an instructive parallel in Col. 1:22, “He hath reconciled you in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy and unblamable, and unreprovable in His sight.” The word “without blame,” or “unblamable,” is properly without blemish; and the word “unreprovable” more nearly corresponds to our idea of one unblamable—i.e., one against whom no charge can be brought. Here God is said to have “chosen” us, in the other passage to have “presented” us (comp. the sacrificial use of the word in Rom. 12:1), in Christ, to be “holy and without blemish.” It seems clear that the words refer not to justification in Christ, but to sanctification in Him. They express the positive and negative aspects of holiness; the positive in the spirit of purity, the negative in the absence of spot or blemish. The key to their interpretation is to be found in the idea of Rom. 8:29, “whom He did foreknow, He did predestinate to be conformed to the image of His Son.” The word “without blame” is applied to our Lord (in Heb. 9:14; 1 Pet. 1:19) as a lamb “without blemish.” To Him alone it applies perfectly; to us, in proportion to that conformity to His image. The words “before Him” refer us to God’s unerring judgment as contrasted with the judgment of men, and even our own judgment on ourselves (comp. 1 Cor. 4:3, 4; 1 John 3:20, 21) (A. Barry, D.D.)
The antiquity of our final humanity:—The word foundation. (καταβολὴ) suggests a descent, or letting down. But since we were chosen in Christ “before the foundation of the world,” let us joy with reverence over the priority of our original nature, and not confound ourselves with any of the products of time. We are clothed upon with temporal nature, but we are not children of time. We are fallen into time, but we are from eternity. From of old, God loved us with an everlasting love. There is nothing in the world that represents to us either what we were, or what we shall be. Long before the geological eras began, long before the great chaotic age, and long before that first of all the sad changes, namely, the angel-fall, God beheld His final human race, perfect in His Son. Whatever we have become through the two great falls, in heaven, and in earth, in Christ Jesus we are the holy children of eternity. Our right home is in our Father’s house, amid the first-born eternal glories. It is not strange, therefore, that there should be a spirit in us which refuses to rest in anything under the sun, as our final condition. That which was “elect and precious,” before the foundation of the world, lingers in us. (John Pulsford.)
Election and holiness:—God elected us as well to the means as to the end. Note this. For as they (in Acts 27:31) could not come safe to land if any left the ship, so neither can men come to heaven but by holiness. (John Trapp.)
Predestination to holiness:—It would be a poor proof that I were on my voyage to India, that with glowing eloquence and thrilling poetry, I could discourse on the palm groves and spice isles of the East. Am I on the waters? Is the sail hoisted to the wind? and does the land of my birth look blue and faint in the distance? The doctrine of election may have done harm to many, but only because they have fancied themselves elected to the end, and have forgotten that those whom Scripture calls elected are elected to the means. The Bible never speaks of men as elected to be saved from the shipwreck, but only as elected to tighten the ropes and hoist the sails and stand at the rudder. Let a man search faithfully: let him see that when Scripture describes Christians as elected, it is as elected to faith, as elected to sanctification, as elected to obedience; and the doctrine of election will be nothing but a stimulus to effort. It will not act as a soporific. I shall cut away the boat, and let drive all human devices, and gird myself, amid the fierceness of the tempest, to steer the shattered vessel into port. (H. Melvill, B.D.) Of election to everlasting life:
I. Our first business is, to show what election is. It is that decree of God whereby some men are chosen out from among the rest of mankind, and appointed to obtain eternal life by Jesus Christ, flowing from the mere good pleasure of God; as appears from the text. So the elect are they whom God has chosen to everlasting life (Acts 13:48).
II. I proceed to show who are elected. Who they are in particular, God only knows; but in general we say, that it is not all men, but some only. For where all are taken, there is no choice made.
III. The next head is to show what they are chosen to. 1. They are chosen to be partakers of everlasting life. Hence the scripture speaks of some being “ordained to eternal life” (Acts 13:48), and of “appointing them to obtain salvation” (1 Thess. 5:9). God appoints some to be rich, great, and honourable, some to be low and mean in the world: but electing love appoints those on whom it falls to be saved from sin, and all the ruins of the fall; its great view is to eternal glory in heaven. 2. They are chosen also to grace as the mean, as well as to glory as the end. God’s predestinating them to eternal blessedness includes both, as in the text; and it further appears from 2 Thess. 2:13. Hence faith is held out as a certain consequent of election (Acts 13:48). “As many as were ordained unto eternal life, believed.” The man who intends to dwell in a house yet unbuilt, intends also the means by which it may be made a fit habitation. And therefore there is no ground from the decree of election to slight the means of salvation.
IV. Let us consider the properties of election. 1. It is altogether free, without any moving cause, but God’s mere good pleasure. No reason can be found for this but only in the bosom of God. 2. Election is eternal. They are elected from all eternity (Eph. 1:4), “chosen before the foundation of the world;” (2 Tim. 1:9). All God’s decrees are eternal (Eph. 1:11). Because God is eternal, His purposes must be of equal duration with His existence. 3. It is particular and definite. 4. It is secret, and cannot be known till God is pleased to discover it.
V. The next thing is to show, that all the elect, and they only, are in time brought out of a state of sin and misery into a state of salvation. 1. All the elect are redeemed by Christ (John 10:15). None other but the elect are brought into a state of salvation; none but they are redeemed, sanctified, and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ (John 17:9).
VI. I come to show by whom the elect are saved. It is by Christ the Redeemer. Hence the apostle says (Tit. 3:4, 5, 6). 1. Before the elect could be delivered from that state of sin and misery into which they had brought themselves, a valuable satisfaction behoved to be given to the justice of God for the injury done by sin. It is evident from Scripture that God stood upon full satisfaction, and would not remit one sin without it. Several things plead strongly for this: As, (1) The infinite purity and holiness of God. (2) The justice of God. (3) The wisdom of God. (4) The truth and veracity of God. He must be true to His threatenings as well as to His promises. 2. As satisfaction to justice was necessary, and that which God insisted upon, so the elect could not give it themselves, neither was there any creature in heaven or earth that could do it for them (Isa. 63:5). This is the desperate and forlorn condition of the elect by nature as well as others. God pitched upon Christ in His infinite grace and wisdom as the fittest person for managing this grand design. 4. Christ accepted the office of a Redeemer, and engaged to make His soul an offering for sin. He cheerfully undertook this work in that eternal transaction that was between the Father and Him. 5. Christ satisfied offended justice in the room of the elect, and purchased eternal redemption for them. “He became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross” (Phil. 2:8). Thus the elect are saved by the Lord Jesus Christ. I shall conclude all with a few inferences. 1. Behold here the freedom and glory of sovereign grace, which is the sole cause why God did not leave all mankind to perish in the state of sin and misery, as He did the fallen angels. 2. This doctrine should stop men’s murmurings, and silence all their pleadings with or against God. 3. This is ground of humility and admiration to the elect of God, and shows them to what they owe the difference that is between them and others, even to free grace. (T. Boston, D.D.)
On election:—
I. State the doctrine itself. The word rendered “predestinated” denotes simply predetermined, or fore-ordained (See Acts 4:27, 28). 1. It proceeds on the assumption of the fact that man is in a state of guilt, condemnation, and ruin: that, in himself considered, he is without any claim on the Divine favour, without help and without hope. 2. In maintaining the doctrine under consideration, it is assumed that a sufficient, complete, and glorious redemption has been accomplished and revealed. 3. This salvation is proclaimed to all men, without restriction; and all are freely invited to receive its blessings. Is not the blessed God sincere, in all the proffers of His mercy? Can there be any secret counsels at variance, in reality, with the overtures of His grace? 4. All men, if left to themselves, disregard the overtures of mercy, and neglect the great salvation. 5. That grace which God now communicates to the hearts of men, He has resolved and decreed, from all eternity, to communicate.
II. Remove misconceptions. Let it be observed—1. That the leading object of our present inquiry regards not an abstract truth, involved in metaphysical obscurity, but a matter of fact, to be determined by scriptural testimony. 2. That the proof of the fact and of the doctrine of election, does not rest on a few insulated texts of Scripture. A minister of the gospel, lately deceased, who was distinguished by no common share of mental energy, discovered, on one occasion, that he had armed against himself the strongest prejudices of a very intelligent hearer, by preaching the doctrine of election. In his private writings he thus records the conversation which ensued:—“I told her that I had no choice; the doctrine was not mine; nor did the evidence rest on the words ‘elect and election.’ I advised her to read the fifth and sixth chapters of the Gospel of John, in which the word election does not once occur, but which are full of the doctrine itself. She followed my advice, and in a few days she was confirmed in the belief of this truth. I then advised her to read the seventeenth chapter of John; and she acknowledged, that it was full of the same truth. I asked her, to what conclusion her experience led her on the subject;—whether she had chosen Christ as the Saviour of her soul? ‘Yes,’ she exclaimed. ‘And do you think He has chosen you?’ ‘Yes, I do,’ she replied. ‘If you chose Him first,’ I rejoined, ‘you made yourself to differ, and salvation is of works: if the Divine choice was first, your choice of Christ was the effect of it, and salvation is of grace.’ ‘This,’ she added, ‘is the fact.’ ‘Then,’ I concluded, ‘fact, matter of fact, establishes the doctrine of election.’ Her ‘peace now flowed like a river, bearing all objections before it, and her blessedness was as the waves of the sea.’ ” 3. The doctrine does not in the least restrict the free invitation of the gospel. God has given these invitations in full sincerity. He has given them on the finished and accepted redemption of His Beloved Son. The only barrier between the sinner and salvation is his cherished unbelief. 4. This doctrine does not in the slightest degree affect man’s obligation to repent and to believe the gospel. Man’s responsibility arises out of his rational and moral nature, and his relation to the God that made him. He does not cease to be accountable, because he has made himself sinful; for were this the case, a man would only have to become a depraved and abandoned transgressor, in order to exonerate himself from all further obligation to obey the Author of his existence. 5. This fact—that there is a Divine election—does not create an obstacle to the salvation of any human being. From the remarks already made, it is apparent, that if any man perish, he must perish in consequence of his own unbelief. In the investigation of the Word of God, I discover no traces of any decree involving an appointment to wrath irrespective of guilt. Throughout the Bible, the perdition of the soul is ascribed, not to God’s decree, but to man’s transgression. No human being will be condemned at the last day, on the ground of not being included in the election of grace. 6. This doctrine, rightly understood, has no tendency unfavourable to the interests of practical religion.
III. The effects which a correct view and a cordial reception of this doctrine are calculated to produce on the mind and heart of the believer. 1. The belief of this doctrine is calculated to extend and to elevate our views of the character of God. 2. This doctrine presents the most vivid exhibition of the certainty of the final salvation of all who truly believe in the Divine Redeemer. 3. This doctrine is adapted to produce the deepest humility. Every truth associated with this doctrine is a humbling truth. We are reminded, at every step of our researches, of some trait in our own character, or in the character of the blessed God, which is calculated to humble the heart. We are reminded, that we are, by nature, children of wrath—that by unmerited grace alone we can be saved. “Where is boasting then? It is excluded; that no flesh should glory in His presence; that according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.” 4. Finally, The subject under consideration is designed and adapted to call forth the most grateful and adoring praise. (H. F. Burder, D.D.)
Good men the subjects of Divine thoughts from all eternity:—Every true Christian, then, as a member of Christ’s body, is thus an elect and predestinated person, and as such has been, along with Christ Himself—the Head of that body—an object of thought to the Almighty Lord of Life during the eternity bygone. But now what an awful dignity is thus seen at once to gather around the existence of a predestinated soul, around one whose appearance and character are both the subject and result of the never-commenced meditations and resolves of the Omniscient and Eternal Mind. We look, if at all given to such reflections, with a feeling of profound interest upon a stone, which has been agitated for ages on the sunken floor of the ocean, and which is at length cast up by the sounding sea, rounded by the attrition of the sea bottom, and by the currents of unnumbered centuries—an agate or carnelian, that was being rolled and polished by the billows before the old empires of antiquity were founded, or before the deluge, or before the creation of man. We gaze awestruck upon these everlasting hills, whose summits were standing above the universal waters before some of the other continents were made, and whose stratified contents, rich with the fossils of successive worlds, and the deep-lying beds of molten and crystallized porphyry and granite below them, indicate an era of upheaval that is lost in the mists and twilights of remotest eld. But what are such feelings of awe and wonder at such immeasurable antiquity, compared with those which fill the soul when we look upon a Person older than all geological chronology, older than the stars, whose “goings forth have been from everlasting.” On Christ, whose countenance, whose aspect, “marred more than any man’s,” whose history, instinct with miracles, whose words, full of grace and truth, were the manifestations of a Divine purpose as ancient in the darkness, that all the works of the visible universe—rock-systems and the deepest foundations of the mountains, and constellations that have already shone through cycles which would defy even archangelic arithmetic to measure, are comparatively of yesterday. “Before Abraham was, I am.” Before the universe was, I was in the bosom of the Infinite. And all good men were chosen in Him. The names of all who believe in God were written “before the foundation of the world,” in the Lamb’s Book of Life. They have from eternity been there recorded by Divine love as members of Christ—of His Body, of His flesh, and of His bones. Every Christian has thus been, in ideal vision, a subject of blissful Divine thought from before all worlds. (E. White.)
The saving purpose of God in earthly realization:—
I. Its spiritual character (vers. 3, 4). 1. Bestowing spiritual gifts. 2. Contemplating a moral change in its objects. It is not because they are already better than other men that believers are chosen, but in order that they may become so.
II. Its pre-determining influence. (vers. 4, 5, 9–11). 1. It works from afar. Through eternity and time—“from before the foundation of the world.” 2. Bestowing provisional advantage. It does not appear that by the “adoption” here spoken of, final salvation is implied, but rather that the Gentiles being “brought nigh” through the blood of Christ, are put in the way of being saved. It is well for us to consider the limits as well as the vastness of spiritual privilege. 3. Ordaining the means of salvation. “In Christ.”
III. Its cyclic completeness (vers. 4–14). 1. Engaging successively the several Persons of the Blessed Trinity. In the progress of revelation and the history of the Church there seem to be discernible an age of the Father, an age of the Son, and an age of the Holy Ghost. 2. Perfecting human salvation. There are indicated three stages of the process of salvation, viz., election, justification through the blood of Christ, and, finally, sanctification by the Spirit. The cycle of redemption, as evolved in this passage, recalls that of Rom. 8:28–30. 3. Consummating the order of the universe. In Christ all things are “summed up,” i.e., He is the Head and Representative of time, creation, humanity, &c. They gather about Him as their true Centre and Lord.
IV. Its resultant glory (vers. 6, 12, 14). (A. F. Muir, M.A.)
The electing love of God:—
I. As expressive of the Divine character. Paul labours by variety and accumulation of phrases to show that in its entire manifestation it is of God and not of man. He calls attention to—1. Its absoluteness. It is “according to the good pleasure of His will,” i.e., an absolutely free impulse and act. No cause external to the Divine Being can be discovered to account for it. 2. Its sublime consistency and harmony.
II. As affecting human destiny. 1. It reveals itself in a gracious act, viz., the choice or adoption of men as its objects. 2. It sets before itself a grand moral aim. 3. It exerts a transforming power.
III. As evoking grateful adoration (ver. 6). The objects of saving grace realizing the benefits it confers, 1. Bless God with their lips. 2. Glorify Him in their lives. (Ibid.)
God’s purpose in election:—What was God driving at in His electing some out of the lump of mankind? Was it only their impunity He desired, that while others were left to swim in torment and misery, they should only be exempted from that infelicity? No, sure; the apostle will tell us more. “He hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy.” Mark, not because He foresaw that they would be of themselves holy, but that they should be holy; this was that God resolved He would make them to be. As if some curious workman, seeing a forest growing upon his own ground of trees (all alike, not one better than another), should mark some above all the rest, and set them apart in his thoughts, as resolving to make some rare pieces of workmanship of them. Thus God chose some out of the lump of mankind, whom He set apart for this purpose, to carve His own image upon them, which consists in righteousness and true holiness; a piece of such rare workmanship which, when God hath finished, and shall show it to men and angels, will appear to exceed the fabric of heaven and earth itself. (W. Gurnall.)
Election:—1. The elector is the Father, to whom it belongs to originate all things. The purpose of eternal love flows directly from the Divine mind, as its heavenly source (Rom. 8:29; 2 Thess. 2:13) 2. The person in whom the election is made is the Son. We are chosen in Him as the Divine Mediator, and predestinated Election-Head, in whom, by means of our union with Him, we find a supply for all our wants, strength for our weakness, joy for our sorrow, light for our darkness, and eternal life for our all-sufficient portion at last. 3. As to the date of this election; it is before the foundation of the world (comp. Matt. 13:35; John 17:4; Luke 11:50; Matt. 14:34; 1 Peter. 1:20). This is the same as the expression, “Before the ages or worlds” (1 Cor. 2:7; comp. Eph. 3:9; Col. 1:26; 2 Tim. 1:9, and Rom. 16:25). This is the ancient love of God to His people of which the Scriptures are so full, and on which the believing soul delights to dwell. His love is no impulsive feeling, varying with the changes of the creature, but the steady, irreversible purpose of His grace, based on the life and death, the doing and dying of the Mediator. 4. The purpose of this election is very clearly stated in one passage—“That we should be holy and without blame before Him in love.” Holy means separated, consecrated, devoted to God. He would have a loving, devoted, holy, people, and for this end He elects them. (W. Graham, D.D.)
God’s choice and desire:—
I. Let us observe the first outflow of these heavenly blessings. The fountain of eternal love burst forth in our election—“According as He hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world.” Consider these words one by one. 1. The first is, “He hath chosen:” God has a will and a choice in the matter of salvation. Is man’s will to be deified? Is the whole result of the scheme of salvation to depend upon the creature’s choice? God forbid. 2. Carefully note that election shapes everything: the Father has blessed us with all spiritual blessings, “According as He hath chosen us in Christ.” All the grace of earth and the glory of heaven come to us in accordance with the eternal choice. There is not a single boon that comes from the blessed hand of the Divine Redeemer but is stamped with the mark of God’s electing love. We were chosen to each mercy, and each mercy was appointed for us. 3. The next word is, “He hath chosen us.” Herein is grace indeed. What could there be in us that the Lord should choose us? Some of us feel ourselves the most unworthy of the unworthy, and we can see no trace of a reason for our being chosen. So far from being choice men in our own esteem, we feel ourselves by nature to be the very reverse. But if God has chosen us, then let our hearts love Him, our lips extol Him, our hands serve Him, our whole lives adore Him. 4. Then we are told, he has chosen us in Christ Jesus. He first chose Christ as the head, and then looked through Christ upon us, and chose us to be members of Christ’s mystical body. 5. The time when this choice was made—“Before the foundation of the world,” the earliest conceivable period. The choice is no sudden act.
II. The designed result of all this blessing. 1. It is God’s eternal design that His people should be holy. When you grow in grace, and faith, and hope, and joy, all that growth is towards holiness. There is something practical in every boon that comes from the Father’s hand, and you should pray to Him that you may by each one conquer sin, advance in virtue and perfect holiness in His fear. The ultimate end of election is the praise of the glory of Divine grace, but the immediate and intermediate end is the personal sanctification of the chosen. 2. The Father chose us to Himself that we might be without blame before Him in love. He would have us blameless, so that no man can justly find fault with us; and harmless, so that our lives may injure none, but bless all. 3. But notice where and what kind of holiness this is: holy and blameless before Him. It would be something to be perfect before the eyes of men who are so ready to criticize us; but to be blameless before Him who reads our thoughts and sees our every failure in a moment—this is an attainment of a far higher order. To conclude, we are to be holy and blameless before Him in love. Love is the anointing oil which is to be poured on all the Lord’s priests; when he has robed them in their spotless garments, they shall partake of the unction of love. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
God’s election of men in Jesus Christ:—
I. That God, before He made the world, chose some persons of His own free grace to become His children, or to be made holy and happy. 1. There is a manifest difference between the children of men in this world. 2. This difference between men, or this distinction of the righteous from the wicked, is not ascribed in Scripture, originally and supremely, to the will and power of man, as the cause of it, but to the will and power of God, and to His Spirit working in them. 3. The distinction that is made by this work of God in the heart of men, is attributed in Scripture, not to any merit in man, which God foresaw, but to the free grace of God toward His people, and His special choice or election of them, to be partakers of these blessings. 4. This choice of persons to sanctification and salvation by the grace on God is represented in Scripture, as before the foundation of the world, or from eternity.
II. That God from the beginning appointed His Son Jesus Christ to be the medium of exercising all this grace, and gave His chosen people to the care of His Son, to make them partakers of these blessings. 1. Let us consider what it was that Christ undertook, as the chosen Saviour of His people (John 1:18 and 17:5; John 16:28; Phil. 2:7; Heb. 2:14; Gal. 4:4; Rom. 8:3; Eph. 5:30). 2. Let us take a brief survey of the articles of this covenant on God the Father’s side. Whatsoever powers, or honours, or employments He bestowed on His Son, we have reason to suppose it was in pursuance of this original covenant of grace and salvation. First then, we may justly conclude, that God engaged to employ Him in the work of creation, as a foundation of His future kingdom among men; by Him God made angels, and they shall be His ministering Spirits, for the men who shall be heirs of his salvation; by Him God created mankind, and He shall be Lord of them all; by Him the Blessed God made His own people, and He shall save them. Again, We may suppose it was agreed by the Father, that He should be the King of Israel, which was the visible Church of God, as a type of His kingdom, and the government of His invisible Church; that He should fix His dwelling in a cloud of glory, in His holy hill of Sion (Psa. 2:6, 7), and should govern the Jewish nation by judges, or priests, or kings, as His deputies, till He Himself should appear in the flesh. God the Father undertook also to furnish Him with everything necessary for His appearance and His ministry here upon earth, to prepare a body for Him (Heb. 10:5), to give Him the Spirit without measure (John 3:34; Esa. 11:2), to bear Him up through all His sufferings, to accept His sacrifice and atonement for sin, to raise Him up from the dead, to exalt Him not only to the former glory which He had with Him before the world was, which He asks for as a matter of agreement (John 17:4, 5), but to honour Him at His right hand with superior powers. 1. Since we are chosen to be holy, as well as happy, we may search and find out our election by our sanctification, and make it sure and evident. 2. Let those who by a sincere search have found the blessed marks and evidences of their election in Christ Jesus take the comfort of it, rejoice in it, and walk worthy of so Divine a privilege. See that you keep your evidences of grace ever clear and bright by holy watchfulness, that ye may have a strong defence in every hour of temptation. In conclusion: 1. I infer that there are some doctrines wherein the reason of man finds many difficulties, and which the folly of man would abuse to unhappy purposes, which yet are plain and express truths asserted in the Word of God. Among these, we place the great doctrine of the election of sinners in Christ to be made holy and happy. 2. However this doctrine may be opposed by the reasonings of men, and even ridiculed by a bold jest, yet, if it then appear to be a Divine truth, as the Scriptures now seem to teach us, the blessed God will not be ashamed of it in the last great day; then shall He unfold all the scheme of His original counsels, and spread abroad His transactions towards mankind, before the face of all His intelligent creatures. I cannot think, that any of the cavils of wit against this doctrine will stand before the light of the great tribunal. 3. The whole chain and current of our salvation, from the beginning to the end, arises and proceeds all the way from the free grace of God, through the mediation of His Son Jesus Christ. God and His Son must have the glory, and pride must be hid from man for ever. (Dr. Watts.)[12]
4. The journey into blessing began in eternity past, in the choice made in Christ for us to be holy and blameless. God the Father chose those who belong to him from before the foundation of the world. This was a programme designed from before the creation, rooted in the mind and character of God. An array of terms in these verses shows God’s initiation and direction of his plan: ‘predestining’, ‘pleasure’ and ‘will’ in verse 5; ‘will’, ‘good pleasure’ and ‘set forth’ in verse 9; and ‘claimed’, ‘predestined’, ‘purpose’ and ‘will’ in verse 11. God’s directive action is in view throughout this call to praise. The basis for how it works is hidden in the recesses of his person and revealed in Christ. It is all appreciated through the Spirit. There is an echo of his choice of Israel (Deut. 7:6–8). There was nothing Israel did to generate his choice of them, and the same is true of us. There is no entitlement in grace. It is a gift graciously given, undeserved.
The link to verse 3 is that God blessed us even as he elected us. This election is a choice to pick someone out for oneself. It makes God a relational God, interested not just in submission but in relationship with those he created. That election took place in him, in Christ, the one who mediates all the blessings of salvation (all of Gal. 3). The remark suggests pre-existence for Christ (Col. 1:15). This connection stands in contrast to merely being in the world, in Adam (Rom. 5:12–21). It is what makes the church a specially called group. They are the ‘in Christ’ people. Their position in Christ leaves them holy and blameless because the work of Christ, which is about to be described in verses 7–11, has cleared the way for them to be set apart and regarded as unblemished (Eph. 5:27; Col. 1:22). Sacrifices in the Old Testament were regarded as acceptable when they were without defect (Exod. 29:1). We are morally cleansed by Jesus’ work; this is about the result of Jesus’ work for us and the surety of our position before God. Best correctly speaks of the cultic sense of these terms. Some debate whether ‘in Christ’ points to the sphere into which we are elected (in Christ) or the means by which we get there (by means of Christ). In one sense, both are implied, but here God is praised for the benefits we receive, while verses 7–11 will tell how we get them, so sphere is probably better in the light of the book as a whole since our position in Christ is the point of the letter. The position implies a moral call to be what God has given to us.9
So we stand before God (before him) in love. It was out of love that God chose us and brought us into the blessing that leaves us holy and blameless in Christ. Love is the sphere that emerges from God’s act of election, and it is not a mere emotional response but a moving towards another with his or her best interests in mind. It may be misleading to ask if this is God’s love or ours as it may be that the expression speaks of both, but the stress is on God’s initiative. Most assume that we are speaking of human love by linking this expression to holy and blameless. Others argue that it refers to God’s love if we attach it to either the concept of ‘chose’ in verse 4 or ‘predestined’ in verse 5, something that is discussed as to which is the better point of connection. Philippians 1:9–10 and 1 Thessalonians 3:12–13 exhort believers to love in the context of their being called holy. That call points to human love, just as most other uses of ‘love’ in Ephesians point to human love (4:2, 16; 5:2). The point of being a child of God is to reflect his character and attributes through the Spirit he gives us. The result is to model that love as a reflection of God’s own love and enablement by the Spirit. God becomes the initiator of everything in this praise context. So love works in the same way as God’s forgiveness and mercy; it mirrors his attributes (Luke 6:36: be merciful as he is merciful; 11:4: forgive because we are forgiven; Gal. 5:22: love as a fruit of the Spirit; Rom. 5:8; Eph. 3:17 speak of being rooted and grounded in love, which probably is not a reference to human love). The position we have is a result of love, and the way we are to respond is rooted in our loving. As 1 John 4:19 says, ‘We love, because he first loved us.’ As was just noted, there is a debate whether the phrase in love belongs in verse 4 or verse 5. The phrase could perhaps be connected to the opening phrase he chose us in verse 4, but that is too distant to be the likely referent. The interpretation, however, whereby the results of election, holiness and blamelessness are seen to take place in a context of God’s love is little different from the option in which love is seen as broad. One could also argue that the phrase goes with ‘predestining’ in verse 5, introducing the next participle. That is unlikely structurally, as the other participles in the praise string have no modifiers before them. A foreordination taking place in love as the subtheme of an election leading to holiness and blamelessness in love also says something little different, so in one sense these are options of interpretation that make little difference. Paul’s point is that we, as the product of God’s choice from long ago, are morally cleansed and bathed in love from start to finish, from God’s love to our loving. Appreciation and love are to be the products of receiving God’s love. In other words, the placement of ‘love’ in the Greek at the end of verse 4 serves as a bridge and should be seen as intentionally broad in scope.[13]
4. The purpose of God is shown to be not of this earth but of heaven by the fact that it existed before the foundation of the world. Election, as Calvin said, is ‘the foundation and first cause’ of all blessings. And the doctrine of election runs through the whole Bible. Israel was chosen, not for any merit, but to be the means of the fulfilling of the eternal purpose of God (see Deut. 7:6–8; Isa. 42:1; 43:20–21). In the New Testament the principle of election is confirmed, but there is no longer a national limitation—a truth that this letter later develops and expounds. This doctrine of election, or predestination, is not raised as a subject of controversy or speculation. It is not set in opposition to the self-evident fact of human free will. It involves a paradox that the New Testament does not seek to resolve, and that our finite minds cannot fathom. Paul emphasizes both the sovereign purpose of God and our free will. He took the gospel of grace and offered it to all. Then to those who had accepted the gospel he set forward the doctrine of election for two reasons, both of which we find linked similarly together in John 15:16; Romans 8:29; 2 Thessalonians 2:13; 2 Timothy 1:9 and 1 Peter 1:2. Firstly, Christians need to realize that their faith rests completely on the work of God and not on the unsteady foundation of anything in themselves. It is all the Lord’s work, and in accordance with his plan, a plan that reaches back before the foundation of the world. There is, therefore, no place for human boasting. Secondly, God has chosen us that we should be holy and blameless before him (cf. 5:27 and Col. 1:22). Election is not simply to salvation, but to holiness of life. We were ‘created in Christ Jesus’, 2:10 is to express it, ‘for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them’. We were ‘predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son’ (Rom. 8:29).
The ideal and goal of the Christian life, therefore, is perfect holiness (cf. Matt. 5:48), expressed in its positive aspect as dedication of life (see on v. 1), and negatively as freedom from every fault. Behind the word amōmous, used similarly in Philippians 2:15, and here translated blameless (rv ‘without blemish’), lies a use in connection with Old Testament sacrifices. Only a perfect animal could be offered to God (e.g. see Lev. 1:3, 10). So, as Hebrews 9:14 puts it, Christ offered himself morally and spiritually ‘without blemish’ to God (cf. 1 Pet. 1:19). The life of the Christian is also to be ‘without blemish’, not merely by human standards but before him who is the witness of all that anyone does, and thinks, and says. (For this same emphasis of the apostle on human life lived every moment in the sight of God, see Rom. 1:9; 2 Cor. 4:2; Gal. 1:20; 1 Thess. 2:5.)[14]
4. According as he hath chosen us. The foundation and first cause, both of our calling and of all the benefits which we receive from God, is here declared to be his eternal election. If the reason is asked, why God has called us to enjoy the gospel, why he daily bestows upon us so many blessings, why he opens to us the gate of heaven,—the answer will be constantly found in this principle, that he hath chosen us before the foundation of the world. The very time when the election took place proves it to be free; for what could we have deserved, or what merit did we possess, before the world was made? How childish is the attempt to meet this argument by the following sophism! “We were chosen because we were worthy, and because God foresaw that we would be worthy.” We were all lost in Adam; and therefore, had not God, through his own election, rescued us from perishing, there was nothing to be foreseen. The same argument is used in the Epistle to the Romans, where, speaking of Jacob and Esau, he says, “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.” (Rom. 9:11.) But though they had not yet acted, might a sophist of the Sorbonne reply, God foresaw that they would act. This objection has no force when applied to the depraved natures of men, in whom nothing can be seen but materials for destruction.
In Christ. This is the second proof that the election is free; for if we are chosen in Christ, it is not of ourselves. It is not from a perception of anything that we deserve, but because our heavenly Father has introduced us, through the privilege of adoption, into the body of Christ. In short, the name of Christ excludes all merit, and everything which men have of their own; for when he says that we are chosen in Christ, it follows that in ourselves we are unworthy.
That we should be holy. This is the immediate, but not the chief design; for there is no absurdity in supposing that the same thing may gain two objects. The design of building is, that there should be a house. This is the immediate design, but the convenience of dwelling in it is the ultimate design. It was necessary to mention this in passing; for we shall immediately find that Paul mentions another design, the glory of God. But there is no contradiction here; for the glory of God is the highest end, to which our sanctification is subordinate.
This leads us to conclude, that holiness, purity, and every excellence that is found among men, are the fruit of election; so that once more Paul expressly puts aside every consideration of merit. If God had foreseen in us anything worthy of election, it would have been stated in language the very opposite of what is here employed, and which plainly means that all our holiness and purity of life flow from the election of God. How comes it then that some men are religious, and live in the fear of God, while others give themselves up without reserve to all manner of wickedness? If Paul may be believed, the only reason is, that the latter retain their natural disposition, and the former have been chosen to holiness. The cause, certainly, is not later than the effect. Election, therefore, does not depend on the righteousness of works, of which Paul here declares that it is the cause.
We learn also from these words, that election gives no occasion to licentiousness, or to the blasphemy of wicked men who say, “Let us live in any manner we please; for, if we have been elected, we cannot perish.” Paul tells them plainly, that they have no right to separate holiness of life from the grace of election; for “whom he did predestinate, them he also called, and whom he called, them he also justified.” (Rom. 8:30.) The inference, too, which the Catharists, Celestines, and Donatists drew from these words, that we may attain perfection in this life, is without foundation. This is the goal to which the whole course of our life must be directed, and we shall not reach it till we have finished our course. Where are the men who dread and avoid the doctrine of predestination as an inextricable labyrinth, who believe it to be useless and almost dangerous? No doctrine is more useful, provided it be handled in the proper and cautious manner, of which Paul gives us an example, when he presents it as an illustration of the infinite goodness of God, and employs it as an excitement to gratitude. This is the true fountain from which we must draw our knowledge of the divine mercy. If men should evade every other argument, election shuts their mouth, so that they dare not and cannot claim anything for themselves. But let us remember the purpose for which Paul reasons about predestination, lest, by reasoning with any other view, we fall into dangerous errors.
Before him in love. Holiness before God (κατενώπιον αὐτοῦ) is that of a pure conscience; for God is not deceived, as men are, by outward pretence, but looks to faith, or, which means the same thing, the truth of the heart. If we view the word love as applied to God, the meaning will be, that the only reason why he chose us, was his love to men. But I prefer connecting it with the latter part of the verse, as denoting that the perfection of believers consists in love; not that God requires love alone, but that it is an evidence of the fear of God, and of obedience to the whole law.[15]
Ver. 4.—Even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world; literally, he chose us out, or selected us (ἐξελέξατο) for himself (middle voice). The Father chose the heirs of salvation, selected those who were to be quickened from the dead (ch. 2:1) and saved. He chose them in Christ—in connection with his work and office as Mediator, giving them to him to be redeemed (John 17:11, 12); not after man was created, nor after man had fallen, but “before the foundation of the world.” We are here face to face with a profound mystery. Before even the world was founded, mankind presented themselves to God as lost; the work of redemption was planned and its details arranged from all eternity. Before such a mystery it becomes us to put the shoes from off our feet, and bow reverently before him whose “judgments are unsearchable and his ways past finding out.” That we should be holy and without blame before him in love. This is obviously the design of God’s electing act; εἶναι ἡμᾶς cannot denote the ground, but the purpose, of the choice. God did not choose some because he foresaw their holiness, but in order that they might become “holy and without blame.” These two terms denote the positive and negative sides of purity: holy—possessed of all the fruits of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22, 23); without blame, or blemish—marked by no stain or imperfection (see ch. 5:27). The terms do not denote justification, but a condition of sanctification which implies justification already bestowed, but goes beyond it; our justification is a step towards our complete final sanctification. This renewal being “before him,” must be such as to bear the scrutiny of his eye; therefore not external or superficial merely, but reaching to the very heart and centre of our nature (1 Sam. 16:7). The expression further denotes how it is of the very nature and glory of the new life to be spent in God’s presence, our souls flourishing in the precious sunshine which ever beams out therefrom. For, when thus renewed, we do not fly from his presence like Adam (Gen. 3:8), but delight in it (Ps. 42:1; 63:1). Fear is changed to love (1 John 4:18); the loving relation between us and God is restored. It has been much disputed whether the words ἐν ἀγάπῃ ought to be construed with the fourth verse or with προορίσας in the fifth. The weight of authority seems in favour of the latter; but we prefer the construction which is given both in the Authorized and the Revised Version, first, because if ἐν ἀγάπῃ qualified προορίσας, it would come more naturally after it; and second, because the scope of the passage, the train of the apostle’s thought, seems to require us to keep ἐν ἀγάπῃ in ver. 4. We never could come to be holy and without blemish before God unless the loving relations between us were restored (comp. ch. 3:17, “Rooted and grounded in love”). The spirit of love, trust, admiration, directed to God helps our complete sanctification—changes us into the same image (2 Cor. 3:18).[16]
1:4 / The first specific blessing mentioned is what is known in theological circles as election or predestination. Basically, this doctrine affirms that God has taken the initiative in the “electing” or “choosing” process. In the ot, God chooses Israel from among all the nations of the earth to be his covenant people (Deut. 4:37; 7:6, 7; Isa. 44:1, 2); in the nt, God chooses people to become members of the new covenant, the church (John 15:16; Rom. 8:29; 9:11; Eph. 1:4, 5; 2 Thess. 2:13; 2 Tim. 1:9; 1 Pet. 1:2); and individuals such as Jeremiah (1:5) and Paul (1 Cor. 15:9–11) believed that even their vocation was destined by God.
Unfortunately, the Christian church has become polarized into theological camps over this doctrine. Some (namely, the Calvinists) have placed all the emphasis upon the sovereign grace of God in matters of salvation; others (namely, the Arminians) have emphasized human free will in the salvation process. Since the Bible does not attempt to harmonize this apparent paradox, it continues to remain one of the more divisive and speculative “mysteries” of the Christian faith.
When dealing with this issue, one should avoid the extremes in theory and practice that so often characterize adherents of one view or another. Election to salvation does not imply that God, therefore, predestines the rest of humanity to damnation; nor should election lead to spiritual pride among the elect. Election simply affirms that personal faith rests upon the prior work (grace) of God, so that, with respect to salvation, God has taken the initiative to claim a people for himself. An individual is free to choose God only because God has already decided for such a person from eternity. Likewise, election should not lead to spiritual complacency; it is a privilege and responsibility that is unto holiness of life and for good works (1:4; 2:10).
The author indicates that God’s intention for the salvation of humanity precedes the creation of the world and the historical process (for he chose us in him before the creation of the world). When Paul, a member of the church and a chosen apostle to the Gentiles, reflects upon the doctrine of election, he may be reasoning in the following way: “How did I, a Pharisee and a former persecutor of Christians, get to be what I am? How is it that the Jews—and now the Gentiles—have become part of God’s family? Surely it is not because of some national merit or personal attainment through faith or good works! This had to be God’s doing. He knew from eternity how he would work in me and in the world; it was not a last-minute decision that the Gentiles were to become heirs of salvation” (3:6). When the apostle writes to the Corinthians about their new existence in Christ, for example, he states: “All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ” (2 Cor. 5:17–19).
Stott makes a helpful comment by drawing attention to the relationship of the three pronouns in the phrase he chose us in him. God chose us, even before we were created, to be redeemed through the work of Christ that had not yet taken place (Stott, p. 36). Such, however, is the marvel of God’s elective grace toward the human race.
The goal of election is that the believer be holy and blameless before God. This phrase is similar to Colossians 1:2 and may be part of the ot sacrificial language that the nt uses on other occasions (cf. 5:27; Heb. 9:14; 1 Pet. 1:19; Jude 24). In some cases, the doctrine of predestination has led to moral license rather than personal holiness. Not a few believers have reasoned that since they are “eternally secure,” their ethical life is no longer of concern to God or to other people. This reasoning, however, is unfortunate, because the believers’ standing before God and election (the indicative) are demonstrated by the kind of life that they live ethically (the imperative).[17]
Christ’s Sanctity (1:4)
The apostle says that God “chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight” (Eph. 1:4). Paul’s wording reveals God’s purpose. God chose us to be “holy and blameless in his sight.” This dual description relates to us the tandem benefits of our union with Christ in terms of our sanctification before God. We have something removed from us and something supplied.
By virtue of our union with Christ we have our blame removed. What shames us and justly condemns us is not held against us any longer. As Christ is without spot, so also we are “blemishless” (the origin of the word “blameless”) by virtue of his work in our behalf.8 Paul will explain this process later in the chapter, but for now he identifies the results of the Savior’s work: our guilt and shame are taken away; we are made blameless.
The effects of shame and blame can be amazingly real and long-lasting. Recently a pastor confided that he discovered that he was great at doing funerals—but he added a strange confession. He said, “I have a knack for being able to distill the character of a person and tie it to the gospel, but I hate visiting the family afterwards. The visit cannot be scripted, and I know that I run the risk of looking bad. This discovery made me realize that I am more concerned with impressing people than helping them.”
The discovery of his need to impress led the pastor to seek wise counsel. And in the course of the conversation with that confidant the pastor said, “The need to impress people became acute in my life after fourth grade. I was always the best student in class, but in fourth grade I got sick and missed material needed for a math quiz. I did poorly on the math quiz, and the teacher wrote my name on the blackboard as one who needed remedial work. When she wrote my name on the board, I got physically sick. My teacher had to take me home, thinking that I was ill, but the problem really was that I blamed myself for being unprepared, and I worked never to be so shamed again.”
Life will not allow any of us to be free of shame. Our weaknesses, the world’s uncertainties, and our sin, all have the potential to shame us before those in earth and heaven. But the glory of the gospel is that our heavenly Father has erased our names from the blackboard—the handwriting that was against us, he took away and nailed it to the cross (Col. 2:14). He no longer blames us for what shames us.
Not only does our union with Christ remove our blemishes; it also supplies his righteousness. We are “holy” and blameless before the Father. The righteousness that was Christ’s through his perfect obedience is imputed to us. The holiness that God requires, he also supplies not by our works, but by our union with his holy Son who shares with us his own status of holiness. This is cause for amazement: God sees me as being as holy as his own Son. Not only do I have my debt wiped away; I have the riches of Christ’s righteousness applied to my account (see also 2 Cor. 5:21). God does not pay our debt and then leave us with a zero balance. Rather than have us destitute, he opens the vaults of heaven to give us the benefits of the storehouse of his grace made full by Christ’s obedience. The Bible says, “He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?” (Rom. 8:32). Having removed our sin, God also supplies whatever is needed out of his entire creation—present or future—to bless us in the best way possible with the riches of the righteousness of his Son. But we question, how could this be since we are so unworthy of such riches? The answer is that God not only gives us the benefits of Christ’s sanctity, he also gives us the status of Christ’s Sonship.[18]
4 It was in Christ, then, that God chose his people “before the world’s foundation.” This phrase (or a similar one) appears a number of times in the NT, but here only in the Pauline corpus.29 It denotes the divine act of election as taking place in eternity. Time belongs to the created order: believers’ present experience of the blessings bestowed by God is the fulfilment on the temporal plane of his purpose of grace toward them conceived in eternity. As the fulfilment is experienced “in Christ,” so it is in him that the purpose is conceived. If, as Col. 1:16 affirms, it was “in him” that all things were created, so, we are here assured, earlier still it was “in him” that the people of God were chosen. He is the Chosen One of God par excellence; it is by union with him, according to the divine purpose realized in time, that others are chosen. Less than justice is done to the present language when it is debated whether Christ is the foundation or origin, or merely the executor of election. He is foundation, origin, and executor: all that is involved in election and its fruits depends on him.
Calvin regards the phrase “in Christ” as a “second confirmation of the freedom of election” (the first being that it took place before the world’s foundation). “For if we are chosen in Christ, it is outside ourselves. It is not from the sight of our deserving, but because our heavenly Father has engrafted us, through the blessing of adoption, into the Body of Christ. In short, the name of Christ excludes all merit, and everything which men have of themselves; for when he says that we are chosen in Christ, it follows that in ourselves we are unworthy.”
There is a dominant ethical quality about the divine election, as is inevitable in view of the character of the electing God. In 1 Peter 1:15–16, where the wording of our present text is echoed, this lesson is pointed with a quotation from the OT law of holiness: “as he who called you is holy, be holy yourselves in all your conduct; since it is written, ‘You shall be holy, for I am holy.’ ” No other way of life is fitting for those who are “chosen and destined by God the Father and sanctified by the Spirit for obedience to Jesus Christ” (1 Peter. 1:2). So here, the purpose of God’s choosing his people in Christ is that they should be “holy and blameless” in his presence, both here and now in earthly life and ultimately when they appear before him. The perspective is the same as in Col. 1:22, where the purpose of Christ’s reconciling work is the presentation of his people “holy, blameless, and irreproachable in his presence.” There they appear in the presence of Christ, while here they appear in the presence of God; but it is one and the same appearance: for Paul the tribunal of Christ (2 Cor. 5:10) and the tribunal of God (Rom. 14:10) are the same tribunal. The “holiness without which no one will see the Lord” (Heb. 12:14) is progressively wrought within the lives of believers on earth by the Spirit, and will be consummated in glory at the parousia, the time of the “redemption” anticipated in Eph. 1:14; 4:30. If “holiness” expresses the positive quality, “blamelessness” expresses its negative counterpart: freedom from blemish or fault.
If the phrase “in love” is attached to what precedes (as it is in the Greek text followed in this commentary), then it adds a specific quality to holiness and blamelessness: the consummation of holiness is perfect love. The preposition is best understood as having “comitative” force: the purpose of God is that his people should be marked by holiness and blamelessness, coupled with love.[19]
4 Paul starts with the conjunction kathōs, which means “even as” (NIV, “for”), probably expressing some causal sense. We know that God has blessed us in Christ because he chose us in him and accomplished all the following actions. Paul uses the common word eklegomai (GK 1721), which means to pick out, select, or choose something or someone (cf. BDAG, 305). Of course, it has deep theological meaning in both Testaments, growing out of God’s selection of Israel as his covenantal people: “But you, O Israel, my servant, Jacob, whom I have chosen, you descendants of Abraham my friend, I took you from the ends of the earth, from its farthest corners I called you. I said, ‘You are my servant’; I have chosen you and have not rejected you” (Isa 41:8–9, emphasis added). As with God’s choice of the nation Israel, Paul expresses believers’ election in corporate terms: God chose us in Christ. Or to put it another way, Christ is the elect one in whom the church is included. Paul does not teach that our “souls” preexisted in the heavens with Christ (a Platonic idea), nor that we as individuals were present physically in some mythological sense prior to creation (as in later Gnostic teaching). Rather, as Schnackenburg, 53, puts it, “If God made his plan of salvation in (the preexistent) Christ, he also included us ‘in Christ’ in his plan.”
In keeping with the dominant theme of unity of Jews and Gentiles in the church, Paul sees the entire body of Christ as the object of God’s pretemporal election. This is not to deny that election is personal: certainly every member of the church shares its election. Paul does not, however, assert here particular or individual election, i.e., that God has selected specific individuals for inclusion in the church. He underscores the church’s corporate election in Christ, who is God’s elect one (Lk 9:35; 23:35). Being incorporated in Christ, the church attains its identity, all of its blessings, and its chosen position. God devised this strategy to bless the church in Christ even before he created the world. “World” (kosmos, GK 3180) here means created universe. There is a more sinister meaning below in 2:2, where I discuss its meanings more carefully.
The goal of God’s choosing appears in the next phrase: “holy and blameless in his sight” (cf. 5:27). These adjectives have a rich background in the OT and describe God’s requirements for animals to be used in sacrifices. “Holy” (recall Paul’s description of the readers as “holy ones” in v. 1) implies separated to God for his purposes. By extension, holy connotes moral purity, an idea brought out more clearly in the companion term. “Blameless” (see Ex 29:1, 37–38; Lev 14:10; 23:18) conveys the senses of sound, whole, without defects, innocent, and pure. God determined in choosing the church in Christ to establish a spotless people (see 5:27 of Christ’s bride) who accomplish his purposes.
The final two words in v. 4, “in love,” could go with either the prior affirmation, “he chose us … to be holy and blameless before him in love” (UBS, 4th ed.; NRSV), or with the next one, “In love he predestined us” (NIV, NASB). Both options make theological sense, so it is treacherous to presume certainty. On balance the former is slightly more likely in Ephesians: the goal of God’s election is a holy, blameless people who live lives characterized by love (4:2, 15, 16; 5:2; cf. 3:17–19).[20]
[1] Dockery, D. S. (2017). Ephesians. In E. A. Blum & T. Wax (Eds.), CSB Study Bible: Notes (p. 1870). Holman Bible Publishers.
[3] Barry, J. D., Mangum, D., Brown, D. R., Heiser, M. S., Custis, M., Ritzema, E., Whitehead, M. M., Grigoni, M. R., & Bomar, D. (2012, 2016). Faithlife Study Bible (Eph 1:4). Lexham Press.
[8] Hoehner, H. W. (1985). Ephesians. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 2, pp. 616–617). Victor Books.
[20] Klein, W. W. (2006). Ephesians. In T. Longman III & D. E. Garland (Eds.), The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Ephesians–Philemon (Revised Edition) (Vol. 12, pp. 48–49). Zondervan.
Albert Einstein is attributed with the quote: “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, but expecting different results.”
Revelation 9:20-21 is one of the saddest passages in the book of Revelation. At the sound of the seven trumpets the Lord poured out His wrath on the human race. The price of sin is death. Earthly devastation, demonic torment, and widespread death all fall upon the earth. But the human race does not change. They see the fruit of their actions yet, in the terrifying words of Revelation 9:20-21, they do not repent.
This hardness of heart is by nature present in each and every one of us. Have you ever seen a little child, caught in a lie, refusing to acknowledge the truth? The heirloom is broken on the floor, the rogue ball lies at their feet, no one else is home but they adamantly maintain it was the neighbour’s cat?
The tragedy is not merely that we sin; the tragedy is that we sin and do not repent. We think things will improve without the need to humble ourselves and turn to God. This is insanity, and yet it lives in each of us apart from the redemptive work of Jesus.
Where are we refusing to repent? Right now, God in His grace may be seeking you out. Don’t follow the pattern of this world. Return to the God who does not despise a broken and contrite heart!
Suggestions for prayer
See if there is any wicked way in me and lead me in the way everlasting.
Pastor Greg Bylsma is a graduate of Mid-America Reformed Seminary, and he is currently serving at the Living Water Reformed Church in Brantford, Ontario. Get this devotional delivered directly to your phone each day via our RP App. It is also available in print, for purchase, at NTGDevotional.com.
There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. (Hebrews 4:9)
God has provided a Sabbath, and some must enter into it. Those to whom it was first preached entered not in because of unbelief; therefore, that Sabbath remains for the people of God. David sang of it; but he had to touch the minor key, for Israel refused the rest of God. Joshua could not give it, nor Canaan yield it: it remains for believers.
Come, then, let us labor to enter into this rest. Let us quit the weary toil of sin and self. Let us cease from all confidence, even in those works of which it might be said, “They are very good.” Have we any such? Still, let us cease from our own works, as God did from His. Now let us find solace in the finished work of our Lord Jesus. Everything is fully done: justice demands no more. Great peace is our portion in Christ Jesus.
As to providential matters, the work of grace in the soul and the work of the Lord in the souls of others, let us cast these burdens upon the Lord and rest in Him. When the Lord gives us a yoke to bear, He does so that by taking it up we may find rest. By faith we labor to enter into the rest of God, and we renounce all rest in self-satisfaction or indolence. Jesus Himself is perfect rest, and we are filled to the brim in Him.
“The Rock, his work is perfect, for all his ways are justice. A God of faithfulness and without iniquity, just and upright is he.” (Deut. 32:4).
I watched the final episode of the Netflix docuseries Quarterback recently and was amazed at what I saw and heard. This series followed three National Football League quarterbacks throughout the 2022-2023 season—and one of them was Minnesota Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins.
For those who don’t know me on a personal level, I am a huge Vikings fan. I truly ride or die with them (and it’s mostly a die). But I particular appreciate Kirk Cousins, not just for his football skills, but because I know he’s a committed follower of Jesus Christ.
What made me so joyful watching this episode was, as Cousins was tucking child into bed, he sang a beautiful hymn. “On Christ the solid rock I stand; all other ground is sinking sand; all other ground is sinking sand.” Mind you, this was after losing their playoff game. I’m sure he was discouraged and upset. Yet, it thrilled my soul to see someone be devoted to the Lord while dealing with the pain of a big loss.
But it also made me think. I quickly told myself I should be doing this with my kids, specifically Jovi, my oldest. So tonight I sang that hymn to her and she absolutely loved it. She’s already singing along! She loves to sing the last part, “All other grounding sinking sand.”
I was trying to explain what it meant, and I said, “Jovi, Jesus is our rock!” She looked at me confused, so I realized she thought I meant literally. “Oh, no, Jovi. Jesus is not a literal rock. Jesus is our rock in the sense of, if we trust in Him, everything will be okay. He will never let us down, come what may.”
Singing this song more and more made me ponder its message. Jesus is our solid rock, and all other ground is sinking sand. What does that mean?
He Will Never Let us Down
Jesus will never let us down, forsake us, or disappoint us. We will never have to be upset (nor should we) that Jesus didn’t come through for us. As our “solid rock,” Jesus is our steadfast hope, our constant companion, our current and future prize.
Our spouses will let us down; our children will let us down; our job, our pastors, our friends, our parents will let us down. That’s not an indictment on all of those people, but the simple fact that they’re all sinners. We will let people down. But Jesus, our solid rock, will never let us down. If our trust is in Him, we can know for certainty that He will keep His word and never go back on it.
We don’t have to wonder whether Jesus has our back—He does. We don’t have to worry about if Jesus is praying for us—He is. We don’t have to ponder the possibility of Jesus giving up on us—He won’t.
He Doesn’t Change
Jesus is our “solid rock” because He never changes. The theological term is immutable. God is immutable—He “is the same yesterday and today and forever” (Hebrews 13:8). Because of this, we can be assured that our trust in Him will not be in vain.
We may place our hope in a friend who eventually backstabs us. Perhaps we will trust a longtime family member who, all of the sudden, decides to betray our trust. Maybe we have a career that is flimsy and it’s difficult to trust anyone your work with or for.
We don’t get that treatment from the Son of God. He will always be there for us. He will always be by our side, through the good and the bad.
Our character and personality traits may change, leading us to do things that are not in keeping with how we have behaved in the past, but the Lord is unchanging in His character.
We can trust God’s character because we can trust God won’t change. If God were to change, He wouldn’t be trustworthy in the slightest.
He is our Salvation
Finally, our Lord is our solid rock because our salvation rests in Him.
Psalm 89:26 says, “He shall cry to me, ‘You are my Father, my God, and the Rock of my salvation.’”
We don’t have to look within ourselves for eternal rest—for that is our deepest issue—but we must only trust in Christ, and Christ alone. We know that once we place our genuine faith in the person and work of Jesus, God will see to it that we are glorified. As our rock, Jesus will continue to pray for us and make us more like Him through the Spirit of Christ inside us.
Caves and rocks were often refuge for the Israelites (1 Samuel 13:6), and for David all the while fleeing from Saul (1 Samuel 24:3). In the Psalms, David uses this language even more. “Truly he is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will not be shaken,” he wrote in Psalm 62:6-7. “My salvation and my honor depend on God: he is my mighty rock, my refuge.” David has a deep, abiding trust in the rock of our salvation—and we can too.
We need not fret when times get tumultuous or frightening. We need not get anxious when life gets scary. If we are in Christ, we are secure in Him.
“Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing.” John 15:5 (NLT)
I have come to find that my efforts alone are worthless when it comes to achieving anything I set out to accomplish. I fail time and time again when I try to do things on my own. If it were not for the grace of God, I would not be able to go forward successfully in what God has called me to do.
Even when I get lost in finding my way through everyday routines — fighting to remain focused on the goals I have set? I find that I can do nothing without Him. I often struggle because I am a “doer” by nature. My works often get me wrapped up in a performance mentality. I find myself doing enough just to get by rather than producing what I am capable of through His grace. Can you relate?
We are to commit and trust our works to the Lord. As it says in Proverbs 16:3, then He will cause our thoughts to become agreeable to His will and our plans will be established and succeed. This has become one of my go-to-scriptures when I am feeling overwhelmed. It puts me back into focus and helps me get out of my own way again. I recognize that I don’t have to have everything be perfect, I just need to relax and trust Him.
I encourage you today to rest in God’s grace upon your life. Rest in knowing that He will help you overcome every challenge you will ever face.
Prayer: Father, we take so much pride in doing what we know is best. We get lost in our own ability and neglect the help you have freely given. Teach us to value your grace in our everyday life. Teach us to recognize the grace you have given us to accomplish what you have called us to. I pray that every day we will commit our works to you so that you will establish our thoughts. May our eyes be open to the countless rewards that await us when we do it your way and not our own. In Jesus name, amen.
Thought: Is there something you just can’t seem to get right on your own? Write it down and present it to God. Ask for His help. Then remain in the trust that He will, in time, provide what you need.
Evacuations Precede Hilary Hurricane Hilary has not yet made landfall in the US, but California officials already are calling for evacuations. The storm has weakened but accelerated, forecasters said, and probably will be downgraded to a tropical storm by Sunday, … But they still warn of “catastrophic and life-threatening flooding.” Los Angeles County urged people on Catalina Island to evacuate, saying the island could be in for extended power outages. Sheriff’s officials also called for evacuations in parts of San Bernardino County because of the possibility of flooding.
Russia’s Luna-25 spacecraft suffers technical glitch, space agency says An “abnormal situation” occurred at Russia’s Luna-25 spacecraft on Saturday as it was preparing to transfer to its pre-landing orbit, Russia’s national space agency Roskosmos said. “During the operation, an abnormal situation occurred on board the automatic station, which did not allow the manoeuvre to be performed with the specified parameters,”
Hurricane Hilary barrels towards Baja California peninsula, southwest US Hurricane Hilary hurtled towards Mexico’s Baja California peninsula on Saturday, a U.S. government agency said, blanketing the region with heavy rain amid warnings of catastrophic and life-threatening flooding on the peninsula and the U.S. Southwest. “Dangerous to catastrophic flooding is expected,” the NHC said.
British Columbia wildfires intensify, doubling evacuations to over 35,000 Forest fires in Canada’s western province of British Columbia intensified further on Saturday, doubling the number of people under an evacuation order to 35,000 from a day earlier, as authorities warned of difficult days ahead. The province declared a state of emergency on Friday, to access temporary authoritative powers to tackle fire-related risks, as out-of-control fires ripped through interior British Columbia and partially shut down some sections of a key transit route between the Pacific coast and the rest of western Canada, and destroyed many properties.
In Contentious Religious Freedom Debate, Congressman Insists It’s ‘Too Far’ For Christians To Call Jesus ‘The Only Way’ Tuesday night, a contentious debate over religious freedom broke out on Twitter between a Republican congressman and a former Trump campaign staffer. To make matters even more interesting, a Democratic congresswoman joined the fray, offering a strong defense of America’s First Freedom. Although the congressman eventually apologized for his comments, the debate shed light on how the nature of religious freedom can be misunderstood.
Roman-era aqueduct collapses in central Israel Ancient Caesarea’s water arch collapsed, putting its preservation at risk; The 1,870-year-old structure, built by Emperor Hadrian, was renowned for its precise design and impressive attention to detail at the time
Palestinian terrorist murders Israeli father and son in Huwara in West Bank shooting attack Two Israeli citizens were shot and murdered by a terrorist in the Palestinian town of Huwara in the West Bank on Saturday afternoon. The 60-year-old father and his 29-year-old son were murdered in a car wash station in the town. The terrorist fled after the murder, and the IDF is currently searching for him and is operating roadblocks throughout the area. In addition, the IDF is analyzing the video footage from road cameras in the vicinity of the town of Huwara.
Canadian wildfires prompt evacuation of 20 000 as flames approach Yellowknife Multiple wildfires in Canada’s northern territories have forced thousands to evacuate their homes, especially in Yellowknife. As the flames approached, the 20 000 residents of the city were instructed to evacuate by Friday, August 18, 2023.
Biden sells border wall parts to thwart GOP push to use them The Biden administration is quietly auctioning off millions of dollars’ worth of unused parts from former President Trump’s border wall for peanuts – in an apparent end-run around pending legislation in Congress.
YouTube to Censor Content Contradicting WHO Guidelines YouTube has introduced a new “medical misinformation policy” that will censor any medical or health-related content that doesn’t align with claims made by the World Health Organization (WHO).
1,000 Christians forced to sleep rough after mob violence in Pakistan A thousand Christians have fled their homes and are now sleeping rough after they were targeted by rampaging mobs. Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) reports that the level of destruction in Jaranwala, near Faisalabad, has been “down to the last lightbulb”.
We’ve already been over everything you need to know about “Eris” here. Long story short, “Covid” is just another made up name for the flu, and the “variants” are coats of paint they slap on the narrative to try and keep it looking fresh.
In that same article I theorised Eris’ existence was a need to keep Covid alive, and that is part of it…but I also missed something obvious: The next round of Covid “vaccines” hits the shelves next month.
For those who have lost count, I think we’re up to six or seven shots now.
This “updated vaccine” is nothing to do with Eris, of course, as much as the language in the headlines implies it’s been “adapted” for the latest variant, it hasn’t.
It was in the works before Eris was even said to exist.
Moderna had the brass neck to claim that they did a “trial” showing their updated vaccine protects against Eris. Considering Eris first hit the headlines just a few weeks ago it looks like Moderna may have broken their own record in terms of speedy “trials”.
It’s just the same old slop it always was.
Hell, let’s be honest, it could be water. It could be ANYTHING.
The content of the syringe was never the important part.
After all, what you were being injected with wasn’t the point, the point was that you got injected because they told you to.
It was about forcing obedience, setting the vaccine mandate precedent and seeing how effectively people could be gaslit into taking a shot that they’d already been told they don’t need and doesn’t work.
Well, that and governments handing over VAST amounts of cash to pharmaceutical companies, obviously.
But they already have the money, and most people (allegedly) took the vaccine…so why are they still going?
You have to appreciate the huge amount of effort that went into hypnotizing millions – maybe billions – of people into acting against their own best interests, it’s a spell that’s easier to maintain than restart.
If they start letting people forget, then soon they’ll have to begin the ritual all over again.
And the magic is already wearing off.
Consider that, allegedly, over 200 million Americans took the first dose in 2021, and that by the time boosters were coming out in the fall of 2022 it was down to 50 million. That’s a 75% drop-off in only a year.
The power is slipping away, and as they scramble to get it back you can probably expect “Eris” to get a lot worse.
The CIA warned US Secretary of State Antony Blinken that “the Ukrainian offense was not going to work,“ reports veteran journalist Seymour Hersh. The end of the Biden Regime’s “murderous and failing war policy in Ukraine” is near, Hersh wrote.
Hersh cites an unnamed intel official who said that SecState Antony Blinken “has figured out that the United States” and Ukraine “will not win the war” against Russia. On Thursday, the Washington Post reported the U.S. intel community realizes the Ukrainian offensive will fail to achieve its key goal of taking the southeastern city of Melitopol, a strategic Russian logistics hub.
“The word was getting to (Blinken) through the Agency that the Ukrainian offense was not going to work. It was a show by Zelensky and there were some in the administration who believed his bullshit,“ Hersh’s source said.
“Blinken wanted to broker a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine as Kissinger did in Paris to end the Vietnam war,” according to the official.
Hersh’s source said that the recent peace conference in Saudia Arabia was National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan’s “baby,” planned as a crowning achievement after a successful Ukrainian counter-offensive. Instead, the Jeddah Peace Conference without Russian attendance fizzled.
Sullivan “planned it to be Biden’s equivalent of (President Woodrow) Wilson’s Versailles. The grand alliance of the free world meeting in a victory celebration after the humiliating defeat of the hated foe to determine the shape of nations for the next generation. Fame and Glory. Promotion and re-election. The jewel in the crown was to be Zelensky’s achievement of Putin’s unconditional surrender after the lightning spring offensive. They were even planning a Nuremberg type trial at the world court, with Jake as our representative. Just one more fuck-up, but who is counting?”
The CIA had warned SecState Blinken that the Spring counter-offensive “was going to be a big lose,” Hersh writes. “Blinken found himself way over his skis. But he does not want to go down as the court jester.”
When war hawk Blinken was “suddenly having doubts,” CIA director Bill Burns “made his move to join the sinking ship,” Hersh writes. Burns may have been jockeying to replace “a disillusioned Blinken,” according to Hersh, but only got “a token promotion: an appointment to Biden’s cabinet.”
At the same time, “ultra-hawkish” Victoria Nuland was promoted by Biden from Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs to Acting Deputy Secretary of State ”over the heated objections of many in the State Department,” Hersh writes. “She has not been formally nominated as the deputy for fear that her nomination would lead to a hellish fight in the Senate. “
“Tony Blinken, who publicly vowed just a few months ago that there would be no immediate ceasefire in Ukraine, is still in office and, if asked, would certainly dispute any notion of discontent with Zelensky or the administration’s murderous and failing war policy in Ukraine,” Hersh writes. The White House’s “wishful approach to the war, when it comes to realistic talk to the American people, will continue apace,” Hersh said. “But the end is nearing, even if the assessments supplied by Biden to the public are out of a comic strip.”
In November, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley said that a victory by Ukraine may not be achieved militarily and that Kiev should look for a diplomatic solution to the crisis. “We may have missed a window to push for earlier talks,” a US official told Politico, admitting that “Milley had a point.”
The governor of Zaporozhye region, Yevgeny Balitsky, claimed “mass desertions” are taking place among Ukrainian conscripts, stating that that approx. 500 Ukrainian soldiers had fled the fighting on the Zaporozhye front. “I just received information that two of the three airmobile battalions of the Armed Forces of Ukraine refused to participate in offensive operations in the direction of our positions due to their low moral and psychological state,” Balitsky wrote on Telegram.
Pro-Russian news channels are currently being censored, making it harder to get a more balanced point of view to contrast with Biden Regime-controlled media. On August 11, YouTube terminated the account of former US intel analyst Scott Ritter and deleted all of his videos. On August 18, the domain of pro-Russian website Southfront.org was taken down internationally “without any advance notice and explanation,” SouthFront writes on Telegram. It has now been replaced with southfront.press. SouthFront has also been censored from YouTube, Facebook and Twitter and its volunteers interrogated by the FBI, the pro-Russian platform writes.
On day one – The Biden regime opened the US southern border on day one of the administration. They also ended all construction of the Trump border wall on the US Southern Border.
For years the excess parts and segments of border wall lay in the desert collecting dust.
During that same time period over 7 million illegal aliens have walked across our open US southern border.
As The Gateway Pundit reported in June – The total number of ILLEGAL aliens who entered the US under Joe Biden and Mayorkas’s watch is over 7 million individuals.
On Saturday the Daily Caller reported that the Biden regime was selling off Trump border wall materials. The left hates walls – unless they are protecting their own property.
As previously reported, the Biden administration has literally given permission for illegal border crossings by ignoring a makeshift bridge.
Last month Ben Bergquam, host of Law and Border on Real America’s Voice was at the southern border in Yuma, Arizona to report on the invasion by illegals and drugs supplied by the cartel.
On Sunday Maria Bartiromo announced that the Biden regime sold the Trump border wall parts worth $300 million for $2 million.
It will be interesting to find out what lucky Democrat-connected group won that government deal!
This is pure corruption that will be ignored by the mainstream lapdogs.
No one in the media elites today is alarmed at a revolving door between the “objective media” and partisan politics. Politics seems more like a qualification than a disqualification.
NBC News announced on air that legal correspondent Laura Jarrett was going to be a co-host of their Saturday “Today” news program. She’s the daughter of Valerie Jarrett, the closest White House aide to Barack and Michelle Obama, and who is now a senior adviser to the Obama Foundation.
Laura Jarrett is also the daughter-in-law of Bas Balkissoon, a former Liberal Party member of the Canadian Parliament. She first revolved into the “objective media” at CNN in 2016, and just transferred to NBC this January. She has routinely appeared on “Today” and “NBC Nightly News” to opine on Trump scandals.
She’s replacing White House correspondent Kristen Welker on Saturday mornings, because Welker is moving to Sundays and hosting “Meet the Press.” Welker registered as a Democrat in Rhode Island and then Washington, D.C., and her mother and father, Julie and Harvey Welker, have donated tens of thousands of dollars to Democratic candidates.
It’s close to $20,000 to Barack Obama alone. They’ve also donated $3,300 for President Joe Biden’s 2020 campaign and $2,100 for Hillary Clinton’s 2016 run against Trump. Her mother unsuccessfully ran in the Democrat primary for Philadelphia City Council in 1999.
Current “Meet the Press” host Chuck Todd came to NBC through Tim Russert, who worked for New York Democrats Mario Cuomo and Daniel Moynihan before joining NBC. Todd worked for former Democrat Sen. Tom Harkin’s 1992 presidential campaign in his college years.
Todd’s wife, Kristian Denny Todd, is a direct-mail fundraiser and strategist for Democrat candidates. Her firm earned about $2 million from the Sen. Bernie Sanders presidential campaign in 2016, but Todd never mentions that when Bernie Sanders sits down with Todd on Sundays.
MSNBC is becoming the home of former Biden-Harris spokespeople. Former White House press secretary Jen Psaki hosts a show on Sunday, and former Kamala Harris spokeswoman Symone Sanders has a show on Saturday. Alicia Menendez, the daughter of Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J., has a show on both weekend days. Rev. Al Sharpton never actually revolved – he keeps his racial ambulance-chasing job on weekdays.
CNN must be jealous. They just hired Biden communications director Kate Bedingfield right out of the White House, and also picked up Jamal Simmons from the Kamala Harris press shop. CNN reported in February that Bedingfield was “expected to be a consultant to Biden’s anticipated reelection campaign,” but they talked her into a different kind of public relations.
Republicans do this, too, but differently. Bush White House press secretary Dana Perino joined Fox News – after George W. Bush left office. Trump White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany joined Fox News – after her president left office. All these newly arriving Bidenites are salted in cable news to share the Democrat talking points while their Biden-Harris team runs for reelection.
In a speculative tripartite electoral scenario, Former President Donald Trump emerges as the front-runner, surpassing President Joe Biden and the Green Party presidential contender, Cornell West, as indicated by a nationwide survey conducted by Emerson College. The poll findings, disseminated on a recent Saturday, underscore that 42 percent of registered voters would extend their support to Trump under the given circumstances, positioning him marginally ahead of Biden who garners 41 percent. Notably, West secures the allegiance of five percent of the respondents, whereas a notable fraction, comprising thirteen percent, remains ambivalent in their preferences.
In an alternate theoretical configuration involving a head-to-head electoral contest, Trump commands a delicate and statistically non-significant lead of 0.7 percentage points prior to rounding; however, for the purposes of rounding, their respective tallies equate at 44 percent. This particular scenario highlights the presence of twelve percent of respondents who are situated in an undecided position.
Amusingly, Emerson College, known for its commendable performance metrics among pollsters on platforms like FiveThirtyEight, has undertaken an inquiry into a three-way electoral race encompassing Trump, Biden, and the prominent pop luminary, Taylor Swift. The results of this experiment substantiate that the bedrock of Trump’s support exhibits a greater degree of potency in comparison to that of Biden, as elucidated by Spencer Kimball, the Executive Director of Polling at Emerson College.
Notably, Trump’s electoral backing retains its magnitude at 42 percent, while the renowned vocalist behind the hit track “Love Story,” Taylor Swift, diverts a portion of support from Biden, causing his share to recede to 39 percent. Furthermore, Swift surpasses West in terms of appeal, securing a commendable eight percent of the hypothetical vote.
Kimball astutely underscores, “The Swift paradigm underscores the relative fragility of Biden’s support base when juxtaposed with that of Trump’s, the latter’s adherents displaying a more resolute commitment. Biden’s susceptibility to alternative third-party alternatives, such as West, becomes evident, especially given the proclivity of West’s platform to resonate with Biden’s constituency to a greater extent than with Trump’s.”
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You know, if they had discovered that Trump was using an alias when dealing with his son’s businesses and foreign countries it would be all we hear about for … heck, years. Can you IMAGINE? Trump with an alias?! Instead, we have a media that’s more concerned with pushing fear p0rn about a new variant of COVID while of course cheering the multiple indictments against the former president.
In my book, The Tyranny of Good Intentions (2000), I discussed the weaponization of law in order to easier convict criminals. Once this process begins, it expands. In the 21st century we have witnessed a remarkable expansion in the weaponization of law. For example, the use of weaponized law against Trump rally attendees and against President Trump himself. The weaponization of law has brought no protests from law faculties, bar associations, Congress, media, or federal judges.
Consequently, we have become a society in which the function of law is to get someone or to achieve an agenda that cannot be achieved legislatively. The person doesn’t have to be guilty of a crime. Merely being demonized or disapproved of suffices. Law now serves not justice but political and ideological emotions and the agendas of the powerful.
That the entire legal profession and all of its institutions have stood aside for this transformation of law indicates that freedom is no longer a value. Consequently, Constitutional protections are less and less enforced. White Americans have suffered discrimination in university admissions, hiring, and promotion for more than a half century. Government and its agencies have used print, TV, and social media to censor and control explanations. Spying on citizens without court approved warrants is widespread. The US has declared its law to be enforceable worldwide, even applicable to foreign national journalists such as Julian Assange, and to the President of Russia.
Any reader of alternative news can make a long list of arbitrary unaccountable power being used to negate legal and Constitutional protections. Republican President George W. Bush declared he could hold American citizens in prison indefinitely in defiance of habeas corpus. Democrat President Obama declared that he could execute American citizens on suspicion alone without due process of law. Neither were held accountable for these crimes and violations of oath of office. Getting presumed “terrorists” was considered more important than the US Constitution.
Civil liberty and the rule of law that civil liberty requires are always in jeopardy. Lawyers, prosecutors, and judges are poor defenders of a rule of law. Lawyers and prosecutors are always trying to get around the law or to come up with a novel interpretation of what the law means, a new theory of the law’s purpose in order to turn the law to the service of their agendas. Judges welcome novel interpretations as they break up the monotony of the law. Prosecutors are after convictions–their success indicator–not determination of innocence or guilt. Novel interpretations mean that the defendant finds himself on trial for a crime he didn’t know existed. Even President Trump finds himself in this situation. Trump did not know that it was a felony to doubt the honesty of Biden’s election and attempt to do something about it.
Just the constant additions to law make it unknowable. More than a decade ago Harvey Silverglate, former head of the Massachusetts ACLU, wrote a book, Three Felonies A Day: How the Feds Target the Innocent. Law is so vast and complicated that Americans can easily commit three felonies daily without knowing it.
In America passing a law is the solution to everything. We have all heard the common refrain, “There ought to be a law against it.” The unintended consequences of these laws are never addressed.
Prosecutors are less respectful of law than are criminals. Criminals merely break the law. Prosecutors corrupt it. Prosecutors withhold exculpatory evidence from defendants, bribe witnesses with dropped charges, suspended sentences and money for perjured testimony against the defendant.
In both New York and Texas, and undoubtedly other states, there have been scandals in which police evidence of illegal drugs used to convict large numbers of people turned out to be ground up wallboard. When the governor or state attorney general attempted to release those falsely convicted people, the prosecutors fought the release. In one case the prosecutors indicted and convicted the governor on false charges.
Prosecutors will simply not admit false convictions. When victims of false convictions are released, prosecutors blame “liberal judges who are soft on crime,” not their own crooked methods of prosecution.
In my opinion, there is seldom a reason to trust a prosecutor’s case. Just look at the railroading of Officer Derek Chauvin. Chauvin was tried and convicted in the media, not in a court of law. The media insured Chauvin’s conviction by showing repeatedly a video taken by a black teenager from a distance and an angle that resulted in perspective distortion making it appear that Chauvin had his knee on George Floyd’s neck, whereas the close up police videos without perspective distortion showed Chauvin’s knee on Floyd’s shoulder, an approved hold.
Chauvin was holding Floyd still in an effort to save Floyd’s life. Chauvin recognized that Floyd’s life was threatened by overdosing on fentanyl, confirmed by the lab report that Floyd’s blood had more than twice the lethal dose of fentanyl. Chavin or his fellow officers had called emergency ambulance. As Floyd had complained of breathing difficulties while sitting in the police car and asked to lie down, he was restrained in order to conserve his oxygen from exertion. If Chauvin wanted to kill Floyd, why call emergency ambulance?
The facts were presented at the trial, but by that time the facts were too late. The jurors, even if they were amendable to the facts, knew that Chauvin was already convicted and that if they did not ratify the conviction, they would be denounced as a “racist jury” by the whore American media and have their neighbors, Antifa, and Black Lives Matter on their lawn and no police to protect them.
This is what happens when law is abandoned. And the consequences mount. Today police avoid enforcing law against blacks. So do Democrat cities, such as San Francisco where legislation was passed that freed blacks of felony charges for thefts under $950 per incident. One result has been mass black raids on stores, and the exit from San Francisco of many businesses. At the present time the California legislature is passing a law that blacks must be punished less for the same crimes than whites.
Fentanyl has now become a drug of choice. Police know that arresting a drug user may leave them with a fentanyl death on their hands like George Floyd. Consequently, police shy away from drug arrests. Consequently, from San Francisco to Philadelphia streets are littered with spaced out drug users, an impressive advertisement for “exceptional, indispensable” America.
Today the absence of law in the United States presents the United States to the world as an insane asylum in which either American voters are so incompetent as to elect and reelect a hardened criminal to the Presidency, hardly a recommendation for democracy, or the Democrats are so lawless that they will not permit an honest election to keep them from power and, therefore, weaponize law in order to destroy their political opponent.
Looking at the Democrat operatives and prosecutors, what do you see? Utterly stupid people, people who believe that the rest of the world will accept their claims that while President of the United States, surrounded by White House Counsel and a Department of Justice, President Trump committed multiple felonies resulting in four felony indictments, including racketeering worthy of a RICO indictment. A RICO indictment means that the incompetent Fani Willis in Atlanta can seize Trump’s assets and prevent his defense. Fani, of course, is too incompetent to know this, but what about the crook Biden appointed Attorney General of the United States?
When will we read that Trump’s assets have been seized to prevent his defense?
The most frightening aspect of the Trump indictments is that the legal profession is willing to take them seriously. Perhaps this willingness reflects the bias against Trump. Perhaps it indicates entertainment value in he indictments. Perhaps it is curiosity if prosecutors can create new laws by precedent and get Trump by broadening the interpretation of existing laws. Certainly the First Amendment has been so deprecated and trodden down that it is a weak reed for a defense.
I am amazed that judges overseeing these cases haven’t thrown them out. What it tells us, I think, is that the legal profession prefers a circus to the rule of law.
House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer (R-KY) demanded Thursday that the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) hand over all documents and communications in which then-Vice President Joe Biden used pseudonyms such as “Robert Peters,” “Robin Ware,” and “JRB Ware.”
Comer listed the pseudonyms in a letter to NARA in which he demanded access to then-Vice President Joe Biden’s documents and communications regarding official duties that overlapped with his son’s activities in Ukraine.
One email, which Comer says the committee has already seen, includes an attachment with the vice president’s schedule, indicating that he had spoken by phone to then-Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko. The email was sent to a “Robert L. Peters” and cc’ed to the vice president’s son, Hunter Biden.
Joe Biden was the designated foreign policy point person to Ukraine during the Obama administration. The House Oversight Committee argues that Joe Biden threatened to withhold U.S. aid to Ukraine in 2015 until the president of Ukraine fired prosecutor Viktor Shokin, who had jurisdiction for an investigation into the Ukrainian energy company Burisma Holdings.
Burisma paid Hunter Biden $83,000 a month for a board position to obtain the Biden “brand,” as Biden business associate Devon Archer described the arrangement.
Years later, in 2018, Joe Biden bragged about the firing of Shokin, which he pushed for during an official visit to Ukraine in 2015.
“I said, ‘I’m telling you, you’re not getting the billion dollars.’ I said, ‘you’re not getting the billion. I’m going to be leaving here in, I think it was about six hours,'” Biden told the audience. “I looked at them and said, ‘I’m leaving in six hours. If the prosecutor is not fired, you’re not getting the money.’ Well, son of a bitch. He got fired.”
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