Please be turning to Ephesians
1 Ephesians 1 I'm going to read verses 1 through 6 Paul an apostle of Jesus Christ
by the will of God to the saints which are at Ephesus, and to
the faithful in Christ Jesus. Grace be to you and peace from
God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ. Blessed be
the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed
us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ. according as he hath chosen us
in him before the foundation of the world, that we should
be holy and without blame before him in love, having predestinated
us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according
to the good pleasure of his will, to the praise of the glory of
his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the blood. We read here in verse four, according
as He has chosen us. The He here is God, it's quite
clear. It says that God and the Father
of our Lord Jesus Christ. And I want to of course look
at election this morning. Election being the choosing of
those in Christ by God the Father. We see here that all spiritual
blessings are given to us according as God the Father has chosen
us in him. That is Jesus Christ before the
foundation of the world. So we have the following concerning
the election that I wanna go through this morning. Why did
God elect or choose? How did God elect or choose?
When did God elect or choose? Who did God elect or choose?
How do we know those chosen? The God of election and the elect. Why did God elect or choose? These things are really quite
simple. God Almighty was pleased to create
man, create the world, create everything in it, create the
heavens and all that there is to give glory to himself. He was pleased to give glory
to himself by coming down to this earth that he created and
coming as a man. He was the glory of God personified
in the Son of God. We see it said three times here
in this chapter that we're in. Ephesians 1 and 6, it first says,
to the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made
us accepted in the beloved. And in verse 12, it says that
we should be to the praise of his glory who first trusted in
Christ. And then in Ephesians 1.14 it
says, which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption
of the purchased possession unto the praise of his glory. God
Almighty has been pleased to do all things, including electing
a people in his son, Jesus Christ, because it pleased him to do
so and that he might glorify himself. The only one that has
the right to do so, God has said, I am that I am. It's really not any more deep
than that. If you are looking for more as
to why God chose a people in Christ, then I'm afraid what
you are looking for does not exist. He chose those for whom
he chose to give glory to his name because he was simply pleased
to do so. So how did God choose, how did
God elect or choose? Ephesians 1 and verse 5 in our
text here, it says, having predestinated us unto the adoption of children
by Jesus Christ to himself according to the good pleasure of his will.
Completely and solely based on his will. God Almighty did not
look down in time to see what man would do. God did look in
time to see what man was doing, and he was not pleased with man
at all. In Romans 3.12 we read, they
are all gone out of the way. They are together become unprofitable. There is none that doeth good.
No, not one. But we read again right here
in this chapter as to how God chose a people for his name.
He did this according to the good pleasure of his will. You
want to be concerned with will? Then this is a will that you
need to be concerned with. What is God's will? Thankfully,
we read here that He was pleased. In other words, it was His will
to choose a people in Jesus Christ the Lord, the Son of God. How
did He do it? By His will. When did God elect or choose? When it comes to God saying when,
it's really not even a valid way to say it, using the word
when, because God is. As I've said already, God said,
I am that I am. God is an eternal being. God has always been, and that's
not even the right way to say it. That's a word of time as
well. So how do we say it? Simply as the scripture does,
God is. But this God chose the elect,
his people, a specific number of people, and that does not
include everyone, but he chose these people before the foundation
of the world. Verse four here tells us that
very thing. According as he hath chosen us
in him before the foundation of the world. God chose us and
he did this from before the foundation of the world. Now who did God
elect or choose? Simply put, those he wanted to. God selected a people not based
on what they did or did not do. It was purely based on his choice. We know from scripture what it
was not based on. In Romans 9 through 11 through
13 we read, 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. It was said
unto her, the elder shall serve the younger. As it is written,
Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated. So these children
were not even born yet and had not done either good or evil.
They were still in Rebekah's womb. So they had not sinned
against God. They had not decided to follow
Jesus. They had not done anything. This
is saying here that God did not look at what they would do. It
had nothing to do with them, but it had everything to do with
the purpose of God according to choosing or election. God
said that he loved Jacob and hated Esau. Now these who God
has chosen do have a time when they are manifested. They do
have a time when they begin to manifest some of the characteristics
of a man chosen of God. God's people, even though you
might not see it all the time, but those chosen of God, when
he has been pleased to give them life, manifest a broken heart
and a contrite spirit. A spirit that tells them that
apart from someone else greater than fallen man, likened to themselves,
someone else intervening, they will surely perish. These people
have many other characteristics. These are all given by God as
they would not have them otherwise. They are given a new heart to
where they then are in a battle against this flesh, which continues
as long as God Almighty keeps them on this earth. Those vessels
that God has shown his mercy on were before prepared unto
glory. Vessels of mercy. Election. This is a doctrine that many
people do not want to talk about. They do not want to believe.
They do not want to acknowledge. There's been several here, I
believe, that's talked to pastors before, and they've been told,
I believe in election, but I cannot preach that because it will split
my church. Let's just look at that statement
for just a minute. The main phrase I wanna look
at is, it will split my church. But really, the first problem
with it is this, it starts with I. When you start off with I,
you're gonna go wrong from there on out, unless you say, I am
wrong. But second is thinking that it will split God's church.
Because if it is in fact God's church, it is because it is for
their good. Because we know all things work
together for good to them that love God, who are the called
according to his purpose. So if it splits God's church,
he wanted it to. If he wants it to come back together,
he will bring it back together. But last of all is thinking that
it is your church. The church is not a product of
man. If it is your church, it needs
splitting into several parts until there's nothing left. But
the church of God the Father is just that, his church. The
church is a group of called-out ones First of all all we know
that the church is no man's church Save Jesus Christ because no
man could choose a sinner and no man calls out a sinner God
alone calls out a sinner. It is clear from Scripture But
Christ himself says the church is his and this is just one example
of a scripture where it said Christ says the church is his
in Matthew 16 18 we read and I say also unto thee that that
thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church,
that's Jesus Christ, and the gates of hell shall not prevail
against it. So I think it's clear from scripture
that the church of God, church, is God Almighty's church, and
he will do with it as he pleases, and what he does will be there
to their utmost benefit. God adds to the church daily
as he sees fit. But men have trouble with election
as they think they can choose. But let's read of a choosing
by men that we read in scripture. If you would, turn with me to
Joshua 24. Joshua 24. If I can find it, yeah. Joshua 24 and starting in verse
15. And if it seemed evil unto you
to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom ye will serve,
whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other
side of the flood, or the God of the Amorites in whose land
ye dwell. But as for me, Joshua says, in
my house we will serve the Lord. And the people answered and said,
God forbid that we should forsake the Lord to serve other gods. For the Lord our God, he it is
that brought us up and our fathers out of the land of Egypt, from
the house of bondage, and which did those great signs in our
sight, and preserved us in all the way wherein we went, and
among all the people from whom we passed. And the Lord drave
out from before us all the people, even the Amorites which dwelt
in the land. Therefore will we also serve
the Lord, for he is our God. And Joshua said unto the people,
Ye cannot serve the Lord, for he is an holy God. He is a jealous
God. He will not forgive your transgressions
nor your sins. If ye forsake the Lord and serve
strange gods, then he will turn and do you hurt and consume you,
after that he hath done you good. And the people said unto Joshua,
Nay, but we will serve the Lord. And Joshua said unto the people,
Ye are witnesses against yourselves, that ye have chosen you, the
Lord, to serve him. And they said, We are witnesses. What is the moral of the story
they say? You choose God, then you're a witness against yourself. Did they worship God and God
alone? No, they cannot. Our choice to serve God if it
does not come from God, that is to say if God did not choose
us and purpose to save us and give us a new heart that can
serve him, then we will not or never serve God by our choice. How do I know this is true? We've
already read it, Romans 3.12. They are all gone out of the
way. They are together become unprofitable. There is none that
doeth good, no not one. So who are those that have been
chosen of God? Simply put, it is those whom
he was pleased to choose, elect, select, pick, or any other verb
that means this very same thing. You can also say those whom God
loves. But also those that God loves
and has chosen will, in his good time, come to possess certain
characteristics, as I've already stated. We know that whom he
hates were before fitted to destruction. God did not have to do anything
to fit them unto damnation. They were fitted to that in the
fall of their daddy Adam. But those whom he chose were
before prepared unto glory. Those whom he chose, God Almighty
prepared them unto glory. How do we know those chosen?
Basically this they hear the word and believe Turn with me
now to first Thessalonians 1 first Thessalonians 1 Verses 1 through 4 first less
Thessalonians 1 and Paul and Silvanus and Timotheus
and to the Church of the Thessalonians, which is in God the Father and
in the Lord Jesus Christ, grace be unto you and peace from God
our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. We give thanks to God
always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers. remembering
without ceasing your work of faith, and labor of love, and
patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of
God and our Father, knowing, brethren, beloved, your election
of God. So we see here Paul speaking
of himself. He's saying, you know, we know
your election. when he says, here we know it,
but he says he knows of their election, but how does he know
that? The same way that we know it, and he goes on to tell us
in verses five through six. For our gospel came not unto
you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost,
and in much assurance, as ye know what manner of men we were
among you for your sake. and ye became followers of us
and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction with
joy of the Holy Ghost. Because the gospel, that message
of Jesus Christ and him crucified, came to them not in word only,
had it come to them in word only, they would have left empty. but
it came to them in power and in the Holy Ghost and much assurance. What was the result of this?
They received the word that they, that is Paul and others, spoke
in much affliction with joy of the Holy Ghost. So then they
became followers of those who spoke the truth and of Jesus
Christ. If you believe God, you will
follow others who you know are following after Jesus Christ.
If not, then the gospel came to you in word only. The gospel
to a believer causes them to love Christ and his people. So
this is how we know those chosen of God. But you also read in
here those spiritual blessings that we received, Joe, in verse
six. And ye became, nope, not there
in our text, Ephesians six. to the praise of the glory of
his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved. And
I think I've got the wrong passage here. Verse three, blessed be
the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed
us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ. First of all, these praises are
to the glory of his grace. This is not so that we can boast
in ourselves because it had nothing to do with us or our choice.
It was all in Jesus Christ our Lord. We were made accepted. We have redemption, the forgiveness
of sins. He has made known unto us the
mystery of his will. And I can add one more now that
Joe's message done, peace. For this purpose that we might
be gathered together in one in Jesus Christ the Lord. God chose
us because had He not chose us, we would have never come to Him.
Choosing is not salvation. Choosing or election is not coming
to Christ, but He chose us unto salvation. And He does this through
sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth, whereunto
He called us by His gospel. 1 Peter 1 and 2 testifies to
this. elect according to the foreknowledge
of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience
and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ, grace unto you
and peace be multiplied. But also a familiar passage,
2 Thessalonians 2.13. But we are bound to give thanks
all the way to God for you, brethren, beloved of the Lord, because
God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification
of the Spirit and belief of the truth. Had God not chosen us,
we would never be sanctified by the Holy Spirit that is set
apart. We would never hear his gospel
and so never believe his gospel. Those that believe God must do
it in spirit and in truth. The natural man cannot do this.
This election, this choosing by God was unto this end. So if you do not come to believe
in the God who elected, then you will never come to believe
him. In that not happening, that is you coming to believe Jesus
Christ, you will die in your sins and perish forever. So the God of election and the
elect. God in whom all light dwells
is the only one that can choose to love. Scripture says that
God is love. Whatever love is, then you have
to define that by who God is. because he is love. Remember
in scripture that it says, we love God because, if we love
God is because of something, what does the scripture tell
us? Because he, God, loved us first. In 1 John 4, 19 it says,
we love him because he first loved us. Had he not loved us,
we would never have loved him. God Almighty chose to love us. He did this even though we would,
in time, spit in His face, trample on the name of Christ, who is
the only begotten of the Father, and anything else that is an
abomination to God. But because He wanted to glorify
His name, He was pleased to choose some people that would come to
believe Him and bow down to Him in time, at His appointed time. He did this in the only begotten
Son who is the elect. Christ is the elect. This is the one where it says
in the chapter we started with that He first trusted in Christ. God the Father trusted that Jesus
Christ's Son would honor the Father and magnify His name.
This Jesus Christ was the firstborn among many brethren. Those chosen
in Him are a product of Jesus Christ the Lord. The only reason
we were ever elected or chosen of God the Father is because
of His elect, Jesus Christ the Son of God, that we might be
to the praise of His glory. His glory is Jesus Christ the
Lord. Isaiah 42 one says, behold my
servant, whom I uphold, mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth. I have put my spirit upon him,
he shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles. That one that
we read in first Peter two verses four and six as being the chief
cornerstone, elect, precious. But again in our text, in verse
12, we read that we should be to the praise of his glory who
first trusted in Christ. That is, God the Father trusted
Jesus Christ the Son to carry out what was needed. Christ the
elect accomplished this completely and satisfied the justice of
a thrice holy God. So let me just say this. You
can know the doctrine of election, but still not know the God of
election, and not believe the elect. But you can know the elect,
Jesus Christ, and believe the elect, and not know the doctrine
of election. If you do know the elect, he
will teach you of the doctrine, because he is the God of election,
and you will learn of him. But if all you have, if all you
care about is the doctrine, then that is all you have and it's
not enough. If you hate the doctrine of election,
then you hate the God of election because he is the God who elected. God Almighty chose those for
whom he would love. Love is a choice with God. Christ tells us himself that
he chose us. In John 15 and 16 we read, you
have not chosen me, but I have chosen you and ordained you that
you should go and bring forth fruit and that your fruit should
remain that whatsoever you shall ask of the father in my name,
he may give it to you. He may give it you. And then
again in John 15 and verse 19 we read, if ye were of the world,
the world would love his own. But because ye are not of the
world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the
world hateth you. There's also those who will mock
the elect, Jesus Christ I'm talking about, the God of election. Just
as those did at the cross, they do today. In Luke 23, 35 we read,
And the people stood beholding, and the rulers also with them
derided him, saying, He saved others, let him save himself,
if he be Christ, the chosen of God. There are those, also those,
There are also those who say God chose us based on what we
will do. But what does the scripture say
right here in our passage? He chose us and predestinated
us according to his own will. In verse 11. Clearly, election
is in the Bible. It's all over the place. Even
talking objectively, if you do not believe it is in there, you
either have not read the Bible or you don't understand English.
But if you know the elect, he will in time show you that he
elected and chose some people and predestinated them to the
adoption of children to God. All because of his will and nothing
to do with man or his fallen will. Doctrine without Christ
is a sounding brass or a tinkling cymbal. But knowing the God of
the doctrine is the beginning of wisdom. Mason, will you lead
us in prayer, please? Holy and righteous eternal God,
Father in heaven, we call upon you this day to thank you, Heavenly
Father, for the high privilege of being able to meet together
in thy name. Heavenly Father, lead God and
direct us by thy Holy Spirit in all that we do. do and say
that it may be found in the praise and the honor of thy holy son,
Christ Jesus, in whom is our hope. In his name, amen.