Election an Predestination

The issue of predestination often raises the question of whether God has determined ahead of time who will be saved and spend eternity with Him and who will be condemned and forever banished from His presence. That is to say, has God already decided who goes to heaven and who goes to hell? The Bible is clear about the fact that God is omniscient (He knows everything), and He is actively involved in people's lives and in the world He created. The Bible is equally clear, however, that people have a choice whether or not they will spend eternity with Him. The fact that God knows all possibilities and the eventual outcome of any given situation does not mean that He causes the outcome. God is aware of everything that has taken place in the past and everything that will happen in the future, yet this does not mean that God causes everything to happen that He knows will happen - including our choices and actions. God created us with a free will to make our own decisions, which means that people are still responsible for their choices and the consequences that result.

Election: God's choice of those who accept Christ by faith is a foundational teaching of the apostle Paul. Election refers to God's choice to claim for Himself a people based on their choice to accept His forgiveness and yield their lives to Jesus Christ. In accepting the sacrificial work of Christ and the cleansing power that it brings, each person is choosing to remain spiritually pure and reserved for His special purposes. Paul sees this choice as an expression of God's love in that God willingly receives as His own all who willingly receive His Son, Jesus. Simply put, God chooses to accept those who willingly choose to accept Christ's leadership and authority in their lives.

"Election" is Christ-centered. Jesus is, first of all, God's "elect" - His chosen One. For this reason, Christ is the foundation of our election as part of God's chosen people. Only as we are united with Christ - in a personal relationship with Him - do we become members of God's elect. No one is part of God's elect unless and until they have willingly accepted Christ and committed their lives to Him.

Election in Christ is a broad term, referring mainly to His choosing of an entire people. In this way, election involves the entire community of those who become God's people. This community includes individual people only as they identify and associate themselves with the body of Christ - through a personal faith in Christ.

God will always have a people who are spiritually saved. But the certainty of election for individuals as part of that body remains conditional. It depends on their personal faith in Christ and their ongoing devotion to Him as Lord and highest authority in their lives. God's elect are being led by the Holy Spirit toward sanctification and holiness - holy and blameless (Eph. 5:27). Paul states this clearly: "Christ will present you holy and blameless in His sight" only if we continue in the faith.

Predestination:

Predestination means "decide before hand" and applies to God's purpose that will be realized as a result of election. Predestination is what God has determined will happen to His people; it is the outcome, or result, of their choice to follow and serve Him. Predestination, like election, refers to the body of Christ as a whole and becomes a reality for individuals only as they become part of that body through a living and active faith in Jesus Christ.

Summary:

Concerning election and predestination, we might use the example of a great ship on its way to heaven. The ship (the church) is chosen y God to be His very own vessel. Christ is the Captain and Pilot of this ship. All who desire to be part of the journey to heaven must know the ship's Captain personally. They must entrust their lives to Him if they want to board the ship. As long as they are on the ship, in the company of the ship's Captain, they are among the elect and on their way to heaven. If they choose to abandon the ship and its Captain, they cease to be part of the elect. Election is dependent on one's personal relationship with the Captain and one's place on His ship. Predestination tells us about the ship's final destination and what God has prepared for those who remain on the ship. God invites everyone to come aboard the elect ship through faith in Jesus Christ.