THE MOST HATED DOCTRINE

 

ELECTION VERSUS FREE WILL

If there’s one doctrine that causes the talons of anger to come out, it’s the Doctrine of Election versus man’s free will. The modern American church, whether Baptist, Methodist, or Charismatic, knows very little about Doctrines of Grace or Election in the biblical sense.  But, a century or more ago, the majority of Baptists believed in the Doctrine of Election.  Charles Spurgeon, the Prince of Preachers, believed and taught predestination and election.

As citizens of a country that was established upon the foundations of freedom, we tend to get a bit testy when it’s implied that our salvation has everything to do with God and nothing to do with us.  Here in America, we pride ourselves on individuality and being the masters of our own destinies.  We don’t like the idea we have no control over anything.

Go into any number of American churches today and you’ll hear the preacher plead with his congregation, “Jesus is waiting for you.  It’s up to you to decide for Christ.”

Yet in John 15:16 Jesus says:

“You did not choose me but I chose you, and appointed you that you would go and bear fruit, and that your fruit would remain, so that whatever you ask of the Father in my name He may give to you.” 

Now, the context of this verse is found in the account of Jesus and His disciples partaking in the Passover Supper just before He was betrayed by Judas, but we know when we surrender to and follow Christ, we, too, are His disciples.  So, this verse still applies to us in regards to salvation.

Notice the first few words in this verse: “You did not choose me but I chose you, and appointed you…”.  Simple and to the point.  No room for misinterpretation.

What about Acts 13:48?

“When the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord; and as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed.”  

The last part of this verse, “and as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed,” leaves no room for misinterpretation, either.  Those who had been APPOINTED to eternal life believed.

Who does the appointing?

When we read Ephesians 1:3, we find our answer:
 
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world.”

God chose, or appointed, if you will, who would believe before the foundation of the world.  Before He spoke the words, “Let there be light” He already knew whom He would choose to bring to salvation through Jesus Christ.

There are other examples found in Scripture of how we are chosen by God:

John 15:19 “If you were of the world, the world would love its own.  Yet because you are not of the world, but I CHOSE YOU out of the world, therefore the world hates you.” (All caps mine).

Mark 13:20 “And unless the Lord had shortened those days, no flesh would be saved, but for the elect’s sake, whom HE CHOSE, He shortened the days.” (All caps mine)

1 Thessalonians 1:4 “For we know, brothers loved by God, that HE HAS CHOSEN YOU.” (All caps mine).

Based on these verses it’s obvious what is being taught in churches today doesn’t line up with Scripture.

DEAD OR JUST SICK?

Ephesians 2:1 says “And you were dead in your trespasses and sins”.

Here’s something to contemplate. 

Mary and Martha’s brother, Lazarus, lay sick from an illness.  The sisters summoned Jesus to come heal him but He was delayed.  Lazarus died and had already been in the tomb four days by the time Jesus arrived.  We all know the story.  Jesus went to the tomb, prayed to the Father, then called out, “Lazarus!  Come forth!”  Can you imagine the look on the people’s faces when they saw Lazarus, still wrapped in grave cloths, stepping out of the tomb?  He was dead.  There was no way he was getting up by his own free will. 

He was dead.  No life.  Lazarus couldn't will himself to life.  It took a force outside of himself to bring him to life.

The same Jesus who spoke creation into existence, the same Jesus who brought life to this earth, called Lazarus by name and spoke life back into his body.

It’s the same with salvation.  All of us are born spiritually dead.  While we may have physical life, spiritually we’re dead.  There is no spiritual life within us to speak of.  We can’t bring spiritual life to ourselves.  Only Christ can do that.  And He accomplishes this through the work of the Holy Spirit who calls us by name.  Just as He called Lazarus out of the grave, He calls us from death unto life.  The story of Lazarus shows Christ doesn’t just have the power to raise the dead physically, but also gives life to the spiritually dead.

SLAVES TO SIN

The Bible says in Romans 6:6, 6:16, 6:17, and 6:20 that we were “slaves to sin”. How can we have “free will” if we are slaves to sin?  As a “slave to sin”, our master is Satan.  We are bound by our fleshly nature and we obey the desires of the flesh.  Through the sacrifice of Christ on the cross, the Elect are redeemed.  We are set free from the bondage of sin.  Now, instead of being held captive to sin and dead in our trespasses, we are made alive in Christ and, instead of obeying the desires of the flesh, we now obey Him and do His will.

The biggest argument is that God drags converts kicking and screaming to salvation, but this is not the case.  God, through the Holy Spirit, changes a person’s will, not forces them to act against their will.  But, apart from the supernatural work of the Holy Spirit, NO ONE can nor will decide of their own volition to come to salvation.  It requires a heart change as spoken of in Ezekiel 36:26-27.  Our cold, dead, hard heart is replaced by a soft heart of flesh, but only AFTER we receive this new heart can we respond to the gospel, not before.

I'm going to end this post with more Bible verses.  There's no mistaking what these verses mean.  Just know that each of us are born on the road to hell.  God didn't have to save any of us, but in His mercy and love, He selected a specific group of people before the foundation of the world to save.  He's the Potter and we are the clay.  He makes some as vessels of mercy and the rest as vessels of wrath.  The Potter chooses how He will make His own creation.  The clay has no say so in what it becomes.

*Romans 9:14-16 “What shall we say then? There is no injustice with God, is there? May it never be! For He says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.” So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs, but on God who has mercy.”

*Ephesians 1:11-12 “also we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to His purpose who works all things after the counsel of His will, to the end that we who were the first to hope in Christ would be to the praise of His glory.”

*2 Thessalonians 2:13 “But we should always give thanks to God for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God has chosen you from the beginning for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and faith in the truth.”