People get into trouble with the doctrine of predestination because they look in the wrong direction. They lower their eyes from the God of all grace to themselves. They try to wrap the arms of their reason around this rich teaching only to end up with more questions than answers. Why does God choose some and not others? Are some better, easier to bring to faith, more willing to cooperate in their conversion? Did God choose some for salvation and others for damnation? How the devil must chuckle when people look down from God’s grace and love in Christ to themselves and their own supposed merits and capabilities. For such the doctrine of predestination becomes one rife with speculation. For us it is rather a doctrine rich in grace.

Elected in eternity

When my wife and I married, we had no idea if any or how many children would be in our family. We ended up with four, all precious gifts from the Lord.

How different with God’s heavenly family. He hasn’t been wondering all these years how large his family would be. Way back in eternity, before there was any dirt on earth to shovel or any angel in heaven to sing his praise, God had his family made up. In his mercy he chose those “individuals whom he would in time convert to the gospel of Christ and preserve in faith to eternal life” (This We Believe, p. 16). He planned to send his Son to redeem fallen mankind. In addition, his will was to have children with him in heaven. And already in eternity he chose them.

Elected in Christ Jesus

Listen to Paul, “For [God] chose us in [Christ] before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves” (Ephesians 1:4-6). See where the focus is and must always be. On God! He “chose” us, he “predestined” us—both meaning to pick out of a large number. And this wasn’t some random selection. Individually God chose you and me out of the whole mass of humanity to be sons and daughters in his heavenly family.