The Blessings of Election and Adoption

The Blessings of Election and Adoption

 

Ephesians 1:3-6

 

 

I feel like this message should have a warning label on it: we are going into deep theological waters this morning!

 

I was reading this week about the Roadrunner supercomputer built by IBM for Los Alamos National Laboratory. It was fired up this past May and is the fastest computer in world, able to perform a thousand trillion operations per second or in, geektalk, one petaflop per second.

 

To help put into perspective what this computer can do: if each of the 6 billion people on earth had a hand calculator and worked together on a calculation 24 hours per day, 365 days a year, it would take 46 years to do what Roadrunner would do in one day.

 

In light of that it would obviously be foolish for anyone to think they could match the Roadrunner's capabilities for making calculations. Its capacity is greater by a factor of trillions! Yet the Roadrunner is a finite instrument dealing with finite amount of information, created by finite beings. God is infinite and eternal, all-knowing and all-wise. To God the Roadrunner is the equivalent of a child counting using their fingers. So when we come to matters of who God is, what He has done, and how He does it - a little humility goes a long way.

 

It is important to keep in mind as we consider this passage in Ephesians, where Paul takes us into the corridors of eternity past and into the eternal counsels of God Himself before the world was even created.

We need to accept there will be mystery. There will be things we cannot understand or comprehend about God and about what God has done or how He does it.

 

"I worship a God I never expect to comprehend. If I could grasp him in the hollow of mine hand, I could not call him my God ; and if I could understand his dealings so that I could read them as a child reads his spelling book, I could not worship him..." ~ Spurgeon

 

I.                   Praise God for His eternal plan of salvation

 

Under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Paul takes us to incredible theological heights. It's like we are standing on this mountaintop where we can see this panoramic view of what God did in eternity past and the glorious things He is doing now in our lives. And then we see the glorious eternal future hope of the believer - not surprisingly there are things we see that we can't understand. We bump up against mystery.

 

But Paul's purpose in taking us to this height isn't to fuel controversy or argument. It is to fuel our worship. As Paul considers God's great plan of salvation, his heart is filled with worship and praise for God. In fact, we can't see this in the English, but in the Greek, verses 3-14 are one long, emotionally charged sentence. Paul doesn't stop for breath as he pours out all the blessings that God has given to those who trust in Him.

 

II.                God has blessed us...with every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies

 

God the Father has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies. These are not worldly,

temporal blessings, but belong to the eternal kingdom of Jesus Christ. In part, through the work of the

Holy Spirit, we enjoy a foretaste - a down payment - of these blessings now. But the best is yet to come!

 

1. Salvation is only found in the Person of Jesus Christ

 

Notice that Paul emphasizes that all these blessings are only found in Christ:

 

vs 3 - blessed us in Christ

vs 4 - chose us in Him

vs 5 - through Jesus Christ

vs 6 - in the Beloved

 

It makes me think of Noah's ark. In fact, Peter compares baptism in Christ to Noah's ark. As God was about to judge the world for its sin and corruption, there was an ark of safety that eight people found shelter in and were carried to safety. So for lost sinners there is an ark of safety from God's judgment: it is Christ. Only in Christ are we saved from the wrath that sinners deserve.

 

God has blessed us with every blessing. Paul names six blessings - we will look at two this morning.

 

III.             The blessing of election (vs. 4)

 

Election means that God chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world. He chose us to be made holy (positive righteousness) and blameless (cleansing of guilt and sin) before time began. This teaching that God knew and even chose who would be saved before time began is not unique to this passage.

 

...and all who dwell on earth will worship it (speaking of the first beast), everyone whose name has not been written before the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb that was slain.  Rev. 13:8

 

There was a book before the world was framed and names were written in it. More than that, the execution of the spotless Lamb - Jesus Christ - for sin was planned by God before the Fall. This could lead us to think that the world and history are simply fatalistically programmed to do certain things - yet the Bible would declare that that's not true: men make real choices that shape both history and their eternal destiny. God isn't the programmer of robots, nor is this some cosmic play being played out - only have to look at the cross to realize that sin has real consequences that even God had to suffer in order to provide salvation.

 

So how can God be sovereign over all of history and plan the cross and the salvation of specific names, yet our choices be real and we be held completely responsible (and rightfully so) for them? We can only peer so far into this and we bump up against mystery. Mystery continues with the next blessing:

 

IV.              The blessing of adoption

 

Again Paul looks down the corridors of eternity past - before the world was formed - and sees that God predestined us for adoption. He chose us and adopted us as His sons and daughters.

 

I have spoken to fathers and mothers who have adopted children who have told me how they emphasize that they chose their little son or daughter to be theirs. A natural child is not chosen, but an adopted child is.

Steven Curtis Chapman and his family recently lost their five year old adopted daughter Maria. I was moved to hear him tell how he and his wife knew they were going to adopt Maria as their own. They had returned from a tour to China, and opened an e-mail containing a picture of him saying goodbye to a little orphan girl. This is how he describes what he saw:

"As [the e-mail] opened, it was this picture of me kissing Maria goodbye in that parking lot in China about two weeks earlier," said Chapman. "And it was instant. I knew that that was a picture of a daddy kissing his little girl. It wasn't just a guy with a little child that needed a home, it was a daddy and a little girl. It was just so clear when I saw it."

 

They knew they were returning to adopt Maria. It was the love of a daddy for a little girl that was not his girl, but who would be his by the precious act of adoption. That is the precious and tender picture we see in this passage: in love He predestined us for adoption through Jesus Christ.

 

This was not an impersonal God making an impersonal choice in eternity past. This was a Daddy seeing His sons and His daughters - choosing in love to adopt us as His and traveling the vast distance from heaven to earth - paying the indescribable cost of dying on the cross to purchase our souls back from sin to holiness.

 

The blessings of election and predestination for adoption are wonderful and glorious. We praise and worship and stand in awe. And we cannot empty them of mystery. We must simply accept God's inspired revelation about Himself. This is a spiritual petaflop! A thousand trillion spiritual operations that are beyond our capacity - if we were spend lifetime - or a thousand lifetimes. We must accept mystery.

 

But I realize that there can be confusion and even damaging conclusions that Christians can come to by misunderstanding and misapplying the doctrine of election and predestination. As we close, let's look at four implications to these truths.

 

V.                 Implications

 

a.                      God chose us apart from anything we did or are

 

By locating our salvation before the foundation of the world, Paul removes it from the reach of our works or efforts. Salvation is not a cooperative work between God and man, where each have their part. It is all of God. In chapter two he confirms this; we are saved by grace (undeserved favor) of God, not of works lest anyone should boast. No one will boast because no one will have had any part in their salvation.

 

Some have tried to explain why God chooses some by saying that God foresaw those who would have faith and based on that foreknowledge predestined them. I understand this explanation because I once believed it. There are problems with this explanation though:

 

The question is, how did we come to have faith? Where did saving faith come from? If it is something that originated within us - ultimate source is our hearts - and God simply saw it from eternity past, then it means there is something inherently better about those who believe than those who don't believe. Say, "not any work, only faith" but still means character quality (having a heart that would respond in tender faith) in one person that is better than another person (having a heart that is hard and does not believe) and in fact results in their being saved. If that quality originates with us then we are (in that way) better and then we would have something to boast of.

 

The religious implications of this are profound, for either a person thanks himself for his faith, because it

resulted in his election, or he thanks God for his election, because it resulted in his faith. ~ Sam Storm

 

Paul says in chapter two that even our faith is the gift of God. We can't even take credit for that. That humbles us - salvation is all of God and we have nothing to boast of.

 

b.                      God freely chooses and men freely choose

 

What election does not teach is that people are lining up to enter the kingdom of heaven and God chooses some to be saved and some not to be saved. The opposite is true. All men freely choose to live in rebellion against God, to hate God and God's kingdom. We don't want God, and we don't want His kingdom. Some want religion, but no one wants the living God, apart from grace.

 

God in His mercy reaches out to touch some people's hearts so that they freely and joyfully of their own volition choose Him. God does not coerce or violate their will, but He causes our hearts to freely choose Him.

 

All men freely choose. What Bible says is that apart from grace, we would never freely choose God. CS Lewis put it this way:

 

There are only two kinds of people - those who say "Thy will be done" to God and those to whom God in the end says, "Thy will be done." All that are in Hell choose it. Without that self-choice it wouldn't be Hell. No soul that seriously and constantly desires joy will ever miss it.

 

Hell is eternal separation from God, and that is what those in hell freely choose. They don't want God and in the end God simply gives them what they want. Would be the desire of all our hearts apart from grace. This is why we pray for people to come to Christ - because it must be a work of God in their hearts.

 

c.                      Election motivates us to evangelize

 

A biblical understanding of election does not paralyze evangelism but rather motivates and energizes it with confidence that it will be fruitful. That's why many of the greatest evangelists of history have believed in election. Charles Spurgeon, William Carey, Hudson Taylor, Jonathan Edwards, and many others have dedicated their lives, traveled across oceans and even sacrificed their life for sake of the gospel.

 

Listen to Paul speaking to Timothy about his passion to preach the gospel:

 

Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they also may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory.  2 Tim. 2:10 (ESV)  

 

He endures everything (suffering, mockery, hardship, even death) for the sake of the elect. He would do anything to see the elect come to salvation. No passivity there! For sake of the gospel: the gospel promises that "whoever believes [in Jesus Christ] shall not perish but have eternal life" "Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved" Gospel promise and it is true! We offer the gospel freely to everyone because God is calling everyone to turn from sin and come to Him. It is not God's will that any should perish but that all should reach repentance.

 

How these two intersect is mystery, but this might help: Picture the kingdom of heaven's gate as having

this promise written across the banner of gate: "Whosoever believes in Jesus Christ may freely enter". When we believe in Lord Jesus Christ and enter kingdom by grace, we look back on banner over the gate and read, "Chosen before the foundations of the world." Mystery is how the two intersect.

 

Preach the gospel loud and clear: anyone who comes to Christ will find He comes to you. He has never turned away anyone who has come to him for mercy. Anyone.

 

d.                      Election declares that we are loved by God

 

Election declares that we are loved. Each of you are loved. If you have been saved, it is no accident and your life is no accident. He knew you by name before you were ever born. Loved like no child has ever been loved on earth. No matter what your earthly family history was or is like, you are loved by God your Father. In love He adopted you to be His son or daughter. Your whole life and all its history is enveloped in God's love. The world, though fallen, isn't a cold, bitter place for those who know the love of God.

 

If you aren't a Christian, I have a message for you as well. You are loved by God. He gave His beloved Son to die on the cross to pay for your sins and give you a way to eternal life and eternal relationship with Him. He could not do more to show His love to you. Calls to you and He promises you - whoever believes in Jesus Christ will not perish but have eternal life. Jesus is the resurrection and the life - he who believes in him shall never truly die.

 

You have a choice. You can ask Jesus Christ to be your Lord and Savior. Give your life to him and trust him to save you and give you eternal life as a free gift. Or you can turn away and say, "no thanks." You can reject God's gift of life through Jesus Christ actively or you can reject His gift of life passively by simply ignoring it. The choice is yours.

 

The Bible says that only way to be saved - the only way - is to believe in Jesus Christ and yield life to Him as Lord and Savior. Won't you do that today? God loves you, more than you know - please respond to that love and receive Him today as your Lord and Savior.

 

Let's pray