Todd's Ruth Grace Church would
like to invite you to listen to a sermon by our pastor, Todd
Neiber. We are located at 4131 Todd's Road, two miles outside
of Mattawa Boulevard. Sunday services are at 1030 a.m. and 6 p.m. Bible study is at
945 a.m. Wednesday services are at 7 p.m. Nursery is provided for all services. For more information, visit our
website at toddruthgracechurch.com. If you have a Bible, could you
open to Ephesians chapter 1? I'm asking this question, must
election be preached? The Bible teaches that God chose
who would be saved before time began. There's no question about
that. The word elect is found so many
times in both Old and New Testaments. The Bible does teach this. And the question I'm asking is,
must election be preached? Well, the short answer is, if
the Bible teaches it, yes, it must be preached. But in Lexington,
Kentucky, and I would say in the United States of America,
probably over 90% of the religious institutions called by people
churches would not preach election. that God chose who would be saved
before time began. And I think that would be generous
to say over 90% do not preach this wholly revealed truth. And the people who do believe
in election believe that you can preach the gospel without
preaching election. They call it a family doctrine,
something for the more mature believer, but it's not something
that must be preached. So I'm asking this question,
must the doctrine of election be preached? Now, I'm reading
from Ephesians 1, beginning in verse 3. I'm going to read verses
3 and 4. Blessed be the God and Father
of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual
blessings in heavenly places in Christ." Now, before I go
on reading, do you know the only kind of blessings there are are
spiritual blessings? Men think of temporal blessings,
such as being healthy, being wealthy, being wise. If you're
healthy, that is a good thing. But if you're sick, it may be
a better thing. And even if you're healthy now, something's going
to kill you. You're going to die. If you're wealthy, well,
it's nice to be able to pay your bills. It's nice to be able to
go on vacation. But if that wealth keeps you
from seeking the Lord, it's a curse rather than a blessing. You may
have wisdom in this world, the wisdom to achieve, but if you
live long enough, that wisdom will leave and you won't even
know your name. These temporal blessings that
the world seeks after may not be blessings at all, but the
true blessings are spiritual blessings. And when Paul gives
these spiritual blessings, the first blessing he mentions is
election. Look in verse 4, according as
He hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world,
that we should be holy and without blame before Him. Now, election. Who chose who? It says in our text, he chose
us. The Lord Jesus said to his disciples
in John chapter 15, verse 16, you have not chosen me, but I
have chosen you. If you believe it's not because
of a choice you made, it's because God chose you to salvation. Acts chapter 13 verse 48 says,
as many as were ordained to eternal life believed. And the belief
you have, the faith you have, is not the product of something
in you. It's the gift of God. By grace you save through faith.
And that not of yourselves, it's the gift of God. Not of works,
lest any man should boast. He chose us. Now, why did he
choose us? Who is the us? Well, everyone
who's chosen, the elect, those the Father gave Christ before
the world began. When it says He chose us, that
does not mean all men indiscriminately. It means all men He chose. Now,
why did He choose us? Many people say, well, He looked
down through the telescope of time and foresaw who would believe,
and He chose those whom He foresaw would believe. Now that is nonsense. That's not even reasonable. Of course He foresaw who would
believe because He ordained that they would believe. But to say
that His choice was based upon foreseen faith is to make salvation
dependent upon man and not God. No, He chose His people, as Paul
said in verse 6, to the praise of the glory of His grace. That's why He chose, to the praise
of the glory of His grace. Now, here's a third question.
When was that choice made? Well, it says in our text, according
as He hath chosen us in Him, before the foundation of the
world, before time began. That's when this choice was made,
before there was any creation at all. II Thessalonians 2.13
says, We're bound to thank God always for you, brethren beloved
of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you
to salvation. Do you remember what the Lord
said to the sheep? He said, come ye blessed of my
Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of
the world. 2 Timothy 1.9 says he saved us,
he called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but
according to his own purpose and grace, which were given us
in Christ Jesus before the world began. Now, how did he choose
us? Was it some kind of arbitrary
choice where God said, I'm going to pick this one out to save
and I'm going to damn that other one? Not at all. It says, according
as He hath chosen us in Him. God's elect have never been viewed
independently of the Lord Jesus Christ. That's why they're chosen.
That's why they're beloved. According as He hath chosen us
in Him before the foundation of the world. Now, that's the
doctrine clearly stated. God chose who would be saved
before time began. That choice was made in Christ,
and everybody He chose to be saved is saved, must be saved,
and will be saved. This is God's sovereign choice. Every one of these people will
believe, they will repent, and they will end up in that great
choir when time will be no more, singing, worthy is the Lamb that
was slain. Now, what I want to do is show
how crucial election is to the preaching of the gospel. Now,
listen to me carefully. The gospel of Jesus Christ cannot
be preached if election is not preached. Someone who God has
called to preach the gospel will preach election, every single
one of them. And a man that does not preach
election, God's sovereign choice of His people before time began,
was never called of God to preach the gospel. Now, I like what
one man said about election. He said, election is so. It's
not deep. It's so. There's nothing hard
to understand about it. What's hard to understand about
this? You have not chosen me, but I have chosen you. Everybody
understands that. Now, you might not like it. As
a matter of fact, you may hate it, or you may hate the implications
that election obviously brings. You know, there is in the mind
of the natural man a natural prejudice against election, but
election is true. Now, election, God's choice of
his people before time began, is a declaration of the character
of God. You cannot preach the character
of God and not preach election. Election is God being God, and
there are no apologies for that. Whatever He does is right, and
according to the Holy Scriptures, He chose who would be saved before
time began. And remember, God's eternal.
He's not bound by space or time, and everything He does is eternal. He said, Before I formed thee
in the belly, I knew thee. This election of God speaks of
His eternality. He's not bound by space or time.
God is sovereign. He doeth according to His will.
He saves whom He will. It's called His glory. When Moses
said, I beseech you, show me your glory. He said, I'll make
my goodness pass before you. I'll proclaim my name before
you. And I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious. And
I will show mercy to whom I will show mercy. Election is a declaration
of God's independence. He doesn't have to have a reason
to respond to anything. That's why election is called
unconditional election. His reason for saving the elect
is found only in himself. He's utterly independent. He's immutable. His affection
cannot change toward his elect. God is love. Behold, I've loved
you with an everlasting love, therefore with loving kindness
have I drawn thee. Election is a declaration of
the character of God Almighty. You can't really preach His character
and not preach election. God is a purpose. Listen, He's
a God of purpose for the children, Romans 9-11, for the children
being not yet born. neither having done any good
or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might
stand, not of works, but of him that calleth." That's God's purpose,
that salvation might not be of works, but of him that calleth. You cannot preach the character
of God, and you cannot preach the true character of man. and
not preach election. Now, if somebody leaves election
out of the gospel, they have man having some ability to contribute
to his salvation. The message is something like
this. God wants to save you. He desires your salvation, but
he can't save you unless you do something to enable him to
save you. You've got to let him save you.
You've got to come up with the faith. You've got to come up
with the repentance. You've got to change your life.
You need to fill in the blank. And it's a denial of what the
Scripture teaches about man dead in trespasses and sins. Now,
this is all man's fault. We can't say, well, I can't help
it. God can't hold me responsible
because I'm dead in trespasses and sins. No, it's an evil death.
But men are by nature dead in trespasses and sins, and cannot
come to Christ. The Lord said in John 6, 44,
that no man can come to me except the Father which has sent me
draw him. Now what election does, it comes
to a man where he is, dead in sins, and quickens him, and gives
him life, and causes him to call upon the Father, causes him to
believe the gospel, all that God elected, they're going to
be given life. But if I deny election, I'm saying
man is not dead in sins, and man has some ability to contribute
to his own salvation. And if you say that, you take
away the glory from God in salvation. Now, without election, there
is really no understanding of the cross. Now hear me very carefully. Without election, there is really
no understanding of the cross. The vast majority of what goes
on under the name of Christianity teaches what is known as universal
redemption. Now, simply stated, that is saying
that God wants every man, woman, boy, and girl in the world to
be saved. That's his desire. So he gave
Christ to die for the sins of all humanity and make a payment
for all humanity. But as to whether or not you're
saved, it's up to you. It's up to whether or not you
accept what he did for you or whether or not you reject what
he did for you. The determining factor of your
salvation is in your hands. God wants to save you. God loves
you. Christ died for you. But as to
whether or not you're saved, it's up to some kind of decision
you make as to what you're going to let God do. Now, there's not
a drop of gospel in that message. That's a message of salvation
by works. And if that's what you believe,
you've not believed the gospel yet. I pray that God will grant
you repentance. Now, when we talk about the death
of Christ, here's a scripture. First Corinthians 15.3, it's
how that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures. Now, when Paul made that statement,
he's talking about the Old Testament Scriptures. It's the Old Testament
Scriptures that define to us what the death of Christ actually
is, who He is, who He came for, and what He accomplished. Now,
let me give one example of the death of Christ from the Old
Testament Scriptures. I could give hundreds, but let me just
give this one, the Passover. Most of you have heard of the
Passover, I suppose. That's the 10th plague when God
was going to pass through the land of Egypt and destroy all
the firstborn. But for Israel, they were to
kill a lamb without spot and without blemish, picturing the
perfect Lamb of God, the Lord Jesus Christ, and take that blood
and put it over the lintel and doorpost of the house. And God
said, when I see the blood, I will pass over you. Now, let me ask
four questions. Was the blood over everybody's
door in Egypt? The answer is no. There were
many who cried out that night at the death of their firstborn.
The blood was not over everybody's door. Remember, Christ died for
our sins according to the scriptures. Now, the second question is,
was there anybody in one of the houses where the blood was over
the door that was destroyed anyway? Perhaps that very day they'd
committed some horrible secret sin. If they were in the house
with the blood over the door, were they destroyed anyway? The
answer is absolutely not. Everybody in the house with the
blood over the door, God passed by in mercy. Third question,
what was God looking for? He said, when I see the blood,
I will pass over you. Not when I see your faith or
your repentance or your sincerity or how you've straightened up
your life and turned over a new leaf and you've given up all
your sins. No, he didn't say anything like that. He said,
when I see the blood, I will pass over you. Now that's gospel,
my friend. And the fourth question I want
to ask is who had to see the blood? He didn't say when you
see the blood. He said, when I see the blood,
I will pass over you. Now you go into the New Testament,
Matthew 121, thou shalt call his name Jesus for he shall save
his people from their sins. He said in John 6 39, this is
the will of him that sent me that of all which he had given
me. I should lose nothing, but raise it up again. At the last
day, I lay down my life for the sheep, not goats, for the sheep. Husbands, love your wives as
Christ loved the church and gave himself for it. Acts 28, feed
the church of God, which he purchased with his own blood. Now understand
this, on Calvary's tree, Christ was not making salvation available. or potential. He wasn't throwing
it out there, it's up to your acceptance or rejection. His
death on Calvary's tree was an accomplishment. When He said,
it is finished, the salvation of all of the elect was accomplished. Now, if I see the death of Christ
as simply trying to make a way for God to save, I'd miss the
entire meaning of the death of the Lord Jesus Christ. There
is no understanding of the cross of Christ apart from election. And you cannot preach the life-giving
work of God the Holy Spirit without election. You can't really understand
the work of God the Holy Spirit in regeneration without election. Now, understand this. Giving
of life, men are dead in sins, and there is such a thing as
the giving of life, spiritual life, is attributed to God the
Father. And you hath he quickened who
were dead in trespasses and sins. It's attributed to God the Son.
The Son quickeneth whom He will. It's attributed to God the Holy
Spirit. The flesh profits nothing. It's
the Spirit that gives life. The flesh profits nothing. Now,
God the Holy Spirit comes to those that God elected and Christ
died for. And because God elected them
and Christ died for them, he says, live. And they are given
spiritual life. They're born of the Spirit. They're
born again. They're given spiritual life.
And they now see the beauty of the gospel. They see the beauty
of Christ crucified. They see the beauty of what Christ
accomplished on the cross. They rest in Him and Him alone. They look nowhere but Christ.
That's because they've been born of the Spirit. And there is no
understanding of the work of God the Holy Spirit apart from
an understanding that He is doing what He's doing for the elect. The wind blows where it wills,
you hear the sound thereof, and can't not tell whither it come
or whither it goes, even so is every one that is born of the
Spirit. And this happens through the
preaching of the gospel and believing the gospel. It's the gospel that's
the power of God unto salvation. Paul said, I'm not ashamed of
the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation. Now, the issue of the lecture,
listen real carefully, You can't preach the character of God without
preaching election. You can't preach the character
of man without preaching election. You can't preach the cross, what
the Lord actually did with that election. You can't preach the
work of God, the Holy Spirit, without some understanding of
the doctrine of election. The issue of election is grace. It is impossible. to preach grace, salvation by
grace, salvation all of grace, and not preach election. If a preacher does not preach
election, he does not preach grace. And if a preacher believes
election and covers it up or preaches it or presents it in
such a way as to try to not offend the natural man, Shame on him. He is not preaching the grace
of God. Election is salvation by grace. Now, take away the letter G from
grace, and you're left with race. Only the swiftest and the strongest
win. But thank God for election, because
in election, the chief of sinners can be saved. You see, the only
thing that will prevent a man from delighting in election is
self-righteousness. You think it's wrong, you think
it's unfair, and you don't see that you're a sinner. You don't
see that God's holy, and you don't see that you're a sinner.
But if you ever see that you're a sinner and that you deserve
to be sent to hell, you're going to say, thank God for election.
As a matter of fact, it's only when you're confronted with election
that you'll cry for mercy. You're going to find out that
salvation doesn't have anything to do with your works. Only then,
when you find out that salvation has nothing to do with your works,
and you can't save yourself, will you cry out for mercy. You really can't even preach
faith without preaching election. As many as were ordained to eternal
life believed. Repentance is the gift of God.
It's not something worked up by the natural man. Now, there
are a lot of objections people will bring against this holy
truth. Somebody says, well, this doctrine
will lead to an indifference toward holiness. What can I do? There's nothing I can do. Therefore,
there will be an indifference toward holiness. But what does
the text say? According as He hath chosen us
in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should
be holy. The only way there will be holiness
is because of this holy truth of the doctrine of election,
God's choice of His people to be holy, to be just like His
Son. So you can't use this as an argument
against holiness. God in electing mercy is the
cause. of holiness. Somebody says, but
election will destroy a zeal for evangelism. If you believe
that God has an elect people, you won't bother to evangelize
and witness. That's just not so. Paul said,
I endure all things for the elect's sake, that they may also obtain
the salvation which is in Christ Jesus. Paul knew everywhere he
would go, he would be beat whipped, thrown into jail for his preaching,
but he was willing to do it all because he knew God had an elect
people and that they were going to be brought to hear the gospel. I think of what the Lord said
to Paul in a vision by the night, in the night in Acts chapter
18, be not afraid Paul, Hold not thy peace, for I have much
people in this city." And that's what inspired Paul to continue
to preach the gospel there. I think of what God said to Ananias. He said, you go to Paul, and
Ananias said, I know what kind of man he is. He was afraid.
And God said to Ananias, he's a chosen vessel to me. He's one
of my elect. And so when Ananias comes to
Paul, the first thing Paul heard was, The God of our fathers hath
chosen thee, that thou shouldst know his will, hear his voice,
and see that just one. You see, election is the great
stripping doctrine. People say, well, you shouldn't
preach election to unbelievers. That's exactly what they need
to hear, that they cannot save themselves and that they're in
the hands of a sovereign God who can do with them whatsoever
He's pleased to do. You know, it's only when you
see that, that you'll cry for mercy. Otherwise, you'll think
salvation comes to you because of something you do. But when
you see it can't come to you by something you do, only then
will you cry for mercy. And if someone says, but it seems
unfair for God to choose some and pass by others. Now, the
only reason you would say it's unfair is self-righteousness.
You're standing in judgment on God. You're saying, I wouldn't
do this. God's wrong in doing this. God's
right, and me and you are wrong. God's always right, shall not
the judge of the earth do right? And there's nothing unfair about
it. You see, election doesn't cause people to be damned who
might have otherwise been saved. Election causes people to be
saved who would have most certainly otherwise been damned had God
not chose them and given them to his son, and his son suffer
and die for them. And you know, in the early church,
Election with common conversation. When Peter wrote his general
epistle, he wrote to those who were elect according to the foreknowledge
of God the Father. And when he closed the epistle,
he said, the church of Babylon elected together. Salute you.
John wrote to the elect lady and said, the children of thy
elect sister greet thee. This was just the common conversation
of the early church. Now, can the gospel be preached
and you not preach election? The answer is no. Now, we have
this message on DVD and CD. If you call the church right
or email, we'll send you a copy. This is Todd Nyberg praying that
God will be pleased to make Himself known to you. That's our prayer.
Amen. To request a copy of the sermon
you have just heard, send your request to messages at toddsroadgracechurch.com. Or you may write or call the
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