In this sermon, Pastor Babij teaches on the second of The Doctrines of Grace: unconditional election. This doctrine is hard for many to accept because it challenges human pride and achievement. Pastor Babij explains how the Scriptures show that God’s sovereign desire, not human work, is what accomplishes salvation. Unconditional election truly is a measuring rod for all our beliefs about God and His character. We must submit to the biblical definition of God’s character and not to our own misguided, carnal ideas. Pastor Babij encourages believers to reap the benefits that come from embracing the biblical doctrine of unconditional election, benefits that include enriched worship and aggressive evangelism.
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okay this morning I am continuing to preach through the doctrines of grace now this may be the first time some of you ever heard about these doctrines and I don’t expect everyone to understand all what’s in these doctrines right away but they are a good place to start for us to really understand the character of God that’s really what is important in these trees the very character of God so I’m continuing to embark on the series of the doctrines of grace of course refer to historically refer to as the five points Calvinism and of course we’ve been looking at whether these truths are biblical can we make a scriptural case for these truths well I believe that these are biblical doctrines and they do matter very deeply and of course they are the core of the Christian faith where each of us stands on these five doctrines deeply affects our view of God man regeneration salvation assurance the nature of the atoning work of Christ worship evangelism missions in onward somewhere along the way at least for people who speak English the five points of Calvinism came to something trends are a total depravity which we looked at already last week radical radical corruption is another way of saying it unconditional election and that’s what I’m going to look at today limited atonement other another way of saying that is particularly demson irresistible grace another way of saying that is effectual call and of course the perseverance of the saints and of course another way of saying that is the preservation of the Saints so you have probably already discovered that when you’re reading and listening and learning the Word of God not everything sits easy in your soul some things are hard to understand the reason for this is that we are being exposed to the mind of God if you thought you were going to understand the mind of God at your first meeting reading you’re wrong it takes some time to understand the character of God so we are discovering treasure and learning things that will never be born in the mind of mere mortals like us so when so then when God reveals his mind and will it does not always come as a welcome surprise to all believers all at the same time some believers wrestle and struggle with the Word of God and at the same time when they continue to struggle they come to a place where they affectionately embrace that which they struggled with because they gained a great greater understanding of it as they continue the study of the word of God and there’s one particular doctrine that has been wrestled with maybe more than any other doctrine theological doctrine and that is the doctrine of election it was Robert Godfrey who said many people find it hard to understand or hard to accept this doctrine of unconditional election however however is it is – except because of its complexity or obscurity it is hard to accept because it is so it’s so fundamentally challenges human pride and intellect election forces us to acknowledge that the entire work of salvation is God’s work and his work alone who said this no doctrine is so detested by proud human nature as this one election he said also which makes nothing of the creature and everything of the Creator yay ad no other point is the emnity of the carnal mind so blatantly and hotly evident Arthur pink when preaching in different places he would stay when he preached on this particular truth to the congregation I am going to speak I’m one of the most hated doctrines of the Bible and that namely the doctrine of God’s sovereign election now this scripture right here without turning to it I want you to read it off the screen as I follow it now this this particular doctrine of the sovereignty of God simply assumes that God is in control and that he is utterly independent and is never a victim of anyone or anything the prophet Isaiah said this you are my witnesses declares the Lord and my servant whom I have chosen so that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he before me there was no God formed and there will be none after me I even I am the Lord and there is no Savior beside me it is I who have declared and saved and proclaimed and there is no strange God among you so you are my witnesses declares the Lord and I am God even from eternity I am he and there is none who can deliver out of my hand I act and who can reverse it that is a incredible statement about the character of God but that does offend people now who will fully understand this truth well you won’t right away but I tell you this you must come to terms with this doctrine in one way or another at some time or another and here’s some advice that I give you before I look at it don’t fight against it instead submit to the wisdom of God because the judge of all the earth shall do what is right and let me remind you that this doctrine started with the mind of God and eternity it did not start with us and I pray that everyone here will come to understand and love this doctrine because when you do it will inform every thought and shape everything you do one of the old Creed’s of the church hammered out a pretty clear definition of this doctrine and this is what it said it says that God saves from corruption and damnation those whom he has chosen from the foundations of the world not for any disposition faith or holiness that he foresaw in them but of his mere mercy in Christ Jesus his son passing by all the rest according to the ear reprehensible reason of his own free will and justice so in simple terms God chooses certain people to be saved God did this before the foundation of the world and he did it solely on his sovereign will one example Scripture that I can give you just start off is this one in acts 1614 a woman named Lydia from the city of Thyatira a seller of purple fabrics notice a worshipper of God so in other words she was connected to Judy she believed the Jews had the true and living God but notice what it said and the Lord opened her heart to respond to the things spoken by Paul Paul the Apostle in other words Paul was giving the gospel and God opened her heart to respond to it in other words lydia even in and of herself could not respond to the things that were spoken by paul unless God did something so let’s look at some of the scriptural support of this particular doctrine but before I do that let’s pray father this morning as I come before you as your minister and preacher I prayed that you would just use me today Lord to lay out this particular truth that is so important for the believer found all over your word and I pray Lord as we do that we would begin to understand it we would begin to wrestle with it we would begin to ultimately submit to it because Lord it is your word and you are God and so I pray Lord that you would our just our thinking today about this particular truth and Lord even though we may not grasp it fully I pray Lord Jesus that you would give us a greater understanding of it than we had before and I pray it in Christ’s name Amen so in the New Testament you will find an abundance of text relating to God’s chosen for example in Matthew chapter 24 verse 22 and 224 it says unless those days had been cut short no life would have been saved but for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short and then it says in verse 24 for false Christ’s and false prophets will arise and show great signs and wonders so as to mislead if possible even the elect so this category of people is identified in Scripture and then in Luke chapter they’re 18 and verse 7 it says now will not God bring about justice for his elect who cry to him day and night and will he delay long over them and then in Romans chapter 8 and verse 33 who will bring a charge against God’s elect God is the one who justifies and Colossians 3:12 so as those who have been chosen of God and then second Timothy chapter 2 in verse number 10 it says this for this reason I endure all things for the sake of those who are chosen now what Paul is saying here is that listen I continue to minister for those who God chose an eternity but I don’t know they’re chosen yet until they receive the gospel and believe the gospel so for the sake of those who are chosen so that they also may obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus and with it eternal glory and then of course Titus chapter 1 verse 1 Paul a bondservant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ for the faith of those chosen of God so with a simple explanation what is election well it’s this God picked God called out God selected he chose certain people to be saved therefore it is the chosen that are the saved let me play me let me plainly say it like this there are four things to consider one that salvation did not originate in the will of man but in the will of God secondly that were it not so none would be saved or could be saved for as the result of the fall man has lost all desire and will for that which is good thirdly that even the elect themselves have to be made willing to believe acts chapter 13 verse 48 says and 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 and the Greek word appointed really means to place or to station to a point to a certain position or a lot taking one from an unsaved position to a safe position and then fourthly the Heavenly Father does the choosing see God selects those who will be saved and then gives them as a bride to his son in the high priestly prayer in John chapter 17 it says I asked in verse number nine I ask on their behalf I do not ask on behalf of the world but of those whom you have given me for they are yours and of course probably the more most pointed passage of scripture in the Word of God is in Ephesians chapter one in verse number four just as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world that we would be holy and blameless before him in love he predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to himself according to the kind intention of his will and then first Thessalonians tells us knowing brethren beloved of God his choice of you and then another pointed scripture found in 2nd Thessalonians chapter – in verse number 13 where it says but we should always give thanks to God for you brethren beloved of the Lord because God has chosen you from the beginning for salvation through the sanctification by the spirit and faith in the truth there was a preacher who died not too long ago who was a pastor not far from here and before his death he began to write a book called the doctrines of grace he died before he can finish the book and passed the task to his associate who did finish the book and published it the person I am referring to is dr. James Montgomery Boyce actually he was the very guy my son and I when we used to drive – Manville bakery to have Donuts on Sunday morning we would listen to James Montgomery Boyce had a real rough voice like this and but we he he taught the truth and and we listened to him and the Lord took him out early but he would had a significant impact in the world for the short time that he was here on this earth he said something about the doctrine of luck election that is worth repeating he says and I quote election is an important measuring rod for some one’s theology since an acceptance or rejection of this doctrine reveals at once whether a person is biblically correct on such other doctrines as the nature and the extent of sin the bondage of the will the full grace of God in Salvation and even the presentation of the gospel he said that election is that doctrinal measuring-rod for everything else you believe when I read that I thought about it and I said you know what he is right about that because this is these doctrines are the core of the gospel it test if one’s theology is God and scripture centered or man and world centered that’s what it does so I invite you to rest comfortably in the fact that God has been and is at work concerning the salvation of souls and that he is sovereign in salvation and he makes no mistakes now saying that though there are questions that come up when you consider a doctrine like this and one of the first questions it is why do some receive the gift of faith and others do not well to answer that we would have to ask some other questions and the other questions would be at least the first one is the cause of belief something in man well first we must start with understanding that there are two kinds of people and there’s two causes for their condition the first kind of people are unbelievers all of us were at one time unbelievers know what nobody’s born a Christian you can be born into a Christian home but that doesn’t mean you’re Christian right the cause of unbelief is in man not in God sinners exercised their rebellious wills to resist God and to reject his son but at the same time God does offer the free gift of faith of salvation where it says in Ephesians 2:8 for by grace you have been saved through faith and that not of yourself it is a gift of God so we already have learned from last time that man is depraved he’s totally depraved that he is dead in bondage to sin so whatever he does it’s in the realm of being in slavery to sin so then all sinners in themselves just God unbelievers only have only themselves to blame for their unbelief everybody in other words is on a when they’re born they’re heading to hell everybody’s heading the hell that’s where you’re going a second kind of people is believers the cause of their beliefs belief is either something in themselves some goodness in them some wisdom that they have some willpower that they have to resist or believe the offer of grace or on the other all other way to look at it is it because somebody who is not saved or saved is it because they are too sinful and depraved no for the Apostle Paul himself wrote it is a trustworthy statement deserving full of full acceptance that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners among whom I am foremost of all I’m the chief of sinners see Paul understood his position is it because that some are to stony-hearted to be one to God no because the most stony-hearted people at of all time is written like this in Scripture and I will give them one heart and put a new spirit within them and I will take the heart of stone out of their flesh and give them a heart of flesh I mean God will give us a moldable pliable heart to receive the things that he has for us is it because the majority refused to believe well that is true but only in part from the human side it is true but there is a divine side which needs to be stressed see the unsaved are lost because they refuse to believe others are saved because they believe but there is a vital question why do these others believe what is what is it that caused them to put their trust in Christ is it because some are more intelligent and discerning and discerned their need of salvation while others are not not at all really to answer that question we have to say that the cause of belief is something in God not in man see the core of the doctrine of unconditional election is right here it’s about God as it says in Ephesians 1:11 it says also we have obtained an inheritance having been predestined according to his purpose who works all things after the counsel of his will you see from Scripture God works all things after the counsel of his will he doesn’t ask us for counsel according to his will God graciously softens the hearts of the elect however resistant they may be and inclines them to believe in other words God overcomes the sinners resistance and effectively gives the gift of faith in his son to that person it is God Himself who makes the difference between the elect and the non elect for it is written also in the Word of God in first John chapter 5 verse 20 and we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding who’s the US the elect so that we elect may know Him who is true and we are in him the elect who is true in His Son Jesus Christ this is the true God and eternal life so faith is a gift of God and God does not bestow that gift upon all people so who does he bestow this saving gift on the scriptural answer is this upon his own elect upon those he has chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world again as many as believed were appointed her it says in Scripture as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed the appointing comes before the belief so then God is just to save some while he leaves the non elect in his just judgment to their own wickedness and sin now how does God accomplish this and what has God put in place for sinners to be saved well he’s put at least generally four things in place first God has decreed in eternity to give the gift to some and not to others out of the simple sinful lump of humanity secondly God sends his son to die for sinners to pay the penalty for sin and satisfy the father’s justice thirdly God sends his preachers to make the son salvation known how will they know without a preacher and he effectually draws them and caused them by the Word of God and the Spirit of God and then he sends his spirit and what does the Spirit of God do the Spirit of God softens the hearts and irresistibly moves their will so that his chosen ones will believe in other words the necessary condition that must be satisfied before one can come to Jesus Christ for salvation is regeneration right to be born again the work of the Holy Spirit and the Bible tells us very clearly the flesh profits nothing for Paul already said in Romans because the mind set on the flesh is hostile to God it does not subject itself to the law of God for it is not even able to do so and those who are in the flesh cannot please God now you may be sitting here today and thinking this teaching is offensive and terrible but these truths show us the character of God and that’s the problem the problem is that we don’t know God as we ought to in his leaving some sinners in their sin he shows his righteousness and justice in giving the gift of faith to some sinners he shows his love and mercy in my reading for this message I came across this statement that I had to give a hearty Amen to and this is what it said it said this election assures believers that their salvation did not originate with them and does not finally depend on them God planned their salvation in eternity and sent his son to die for them and here’s the real comfort God saves us from beginning to end no one not even I he says can finally pluck me from the saviours hand if I belong to him I didn’t embrace the doctrine of election right away myself I wrestled with it and studied it and grappled with it until I couldn’t circle the runway anymore I had a land in fact it was 1983-84 I began to study on the foreknowledge of God an election and then when I came here to every one of the first books I began to preach through his Ephesians and when I came to Ephesians chapter 1 verse 4 I had to totally submit to the doctrine of unconditional election I could no longer fight against it resist it and when I did it was a great it has been from that day till this day a great blessing to me and it is in Scripture now I’d like to take your Bibles and turn to Romans chapter 9 because in Romans chapter 9 we we get the sense of there are certain difficulties when this doctrine is presented to mankind but the subject matter in Romans chapter 9 is the sovereignty of God we often need a reminder if you and I are going to fully trust God then we must get rid of any carnal thoughts of God God is not like man he is completely sovereign infinite and wisdom perfectly just and perfect in love in Psalm 50 and verse number 1 the psalmist says these things you have done and I kept silent and then God says you thought I was just like you and I’m not because God is the absolute ruler at times his ways of working out his plan are frequently beyond our ability to fathom and understand in God’s plan of salvation there are ways we are not going to fully grasp like God’s election and God’s predestination what we must learn is to trust God even when we don’t fully understand in fact as we think of that that the Word of God teaches that in Romans chapter 9 about God’s righteous choice is actually defended here in this passage of Scripture and that choice has to do with different individuals that we know are in the Bible all right now if you look down to verse number 8 of Romans chapter 9 you’ll find this it says that is it is not the children of the flesh who are children of God but children of the promise are regarded as descendants so it’s talking here about God’s electing and reprobate in purpose who are the individuals well if you go up to verse number 6 you’ll see it’s talking about Isaac and Ishmael one was a child of promise the other a child of the flesh it says in verse number six but it is not as though the Word of God had failed for they are not all Israel who are distant descended from Israel nor are they all children because they are Abraham’s descendants but through Isaac your descendants will be named in verse number eight that is it is not the children of the flesh who are children of God but the children of the promise are regarded as descendants for this is the word of promise at this time I will come and Sarah shall have a son so in other words that as we consider these individuals Isaac was consider to be the child of promise while Ishmael was considered to be the child of the flesh in other words Isaac is elect Ishmael is not now there’s also a choice that comes between another group of people in this text Jacob and Esau and if you notice in verse ten of Romans chapter nine now here we see here their – the twins are children of the same mother and father and yet Jacob was the child of promise and Esau was the child of the flesh verse 10 it says and not only this but there was Rebekah also when she had conceived twins by one man our Father Isaac for through the twins were not though the twins were not yet born and had not done anything good or bad so that God’s purpose according to his choice would stand not because of works but because of him who calls it was said of her the older will serve the younger now the dim the discrimination between these two was a matter of election it occurred before they were born before they had done anything good or bad in reference to these two unborn persons both were equally corrupt in Adam’s sin but not yet there was not a difference made also by any personal sin see Paul cites Malachi when he says in verse number 19 of Romans chapter 9 the older worse will serve the younger just as it is written Jacob I loved an Esau I hate it so in other words Jacob was elect Esau was reprobate he was a child of the flesh Jacob was loved by God and then we have Moses in verse 15 through 24 and this is an illustration of God’s mercy so God’s mercy is really God’s compassion on people God mercy is not giving something to you that you deserve right and what do you deserve you deserve to stay on the road heading to hell right God’s mercy is what he has on people that he chooses to have and that he calls people by His mercy to either to of course to salvation now if you notice in verse 15 it says for he says to Moses I will have mercy on whom I have mercy and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion verse 16 so then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs but on God who has mercy verse 17 for the scripture says a pharaoh for this very purpose I raised you up to demonstrate my power in you and that my name might be proclaimed throughout the whole earth verse 19 or verse 18 so then he has mercy on whom He desires and he hardens whom He desires the verse number 19 says you will say you will say verse number 19 you will say to me then why does he still find fault for who resists his will on the contrary who are you O man who answers back to God the thing molded will not say to the molder why did you make me like this will it or does not the Potter have the right over the clay to make from the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another for common use verse 22 for if God although willing to demonstrate his wrath and to make his power known known endured with much patience vessels of Wrath prepared for destruction verse 23 he did so to make known the riches of his glory upon vessels of Mercy which he prepared before beforehand glory in other words we’re really talking here about another word that is talked in Scripture or in theology called reprobation and there’s really two elements of reprobation the first element is the passing over of some sinners leaving them in their sin they themselves are responsible for the rebellion and sin we all are and then of course the second element is that they are not condemned because they have been passed over by God’s mercy they are condemned because they are sinners they already condemned and the only thing that can save us from God’s condemnation is God’s mercy so when we think of all that together what we see here is that Ishmael is the child of the flesh Esau is hated by God and Pharaoh to Moses God gave mercy to Pharaoh he gave no mercy so in these scriptures we definitely see the point being made that the Lord has a prerogative right he’s the Potter he has a lump of clay and what’s the lunker of clay all of humanity and he can take that lump of clay and make some and give mercy to some and not to others and why can he do that because he’s God you understand that this doctrine makes God God we have nothing to say about it it’s something that’s very important in Scripture and that’s the whole argument in Romans chapter 9 that of course God is the potter he can make vessels of Honor or vessels of dishonor and of course there’s that scripture again highlighting for you the vessels for honorable use and the vessels for common use and then the vessels for Wrath and the vessels for mercy see God can do that because he is God and has every right to do that and he will do that and he has done that and we know why we have nothing to say about it but I have to say this when we consider a doctrine like this things come up questions come up and what’s the question is God fair is that fair is that fair that God should elect some and not others these scriptures certainly do show that God’s election proves that the promise he made the Israel didn’t fail but what usually happens at this particular point is the question that rises to the surface and if you notice in Romans chapter 9 and verse 14 what it says it says what shall we say then is there is there is no injustice with God is there may it never be see because people will say well wait a minute if God did this he can’t be fair he can’t be just that’s just not fair that’s not the way we think as human beings everybody has to be treated equally everybody has to be treated fairly but we don’t have the mind of God our mind is faulty it’s leaky it’s sinful there’s no way we can fully understand these things but what I’m saying to you is that in Scripture they’re there they scream out of the passage at us and we would come up with the same question it’s got fair is God fair well here’s the answer God is absolutely just when he discriminates between sinners showing mercy on one and hardening the other he has every right to do that in in other words God the master Potter has every right to do whatever he pleases with the clay if you are tempted to say under your breath that God is not fair I advise you to put your hand over your mouth and try to realize who is speaking for it is for it just goes to show that we are seeing something that we had not known before something of a divine side of salvation that we cannot fully comprehend and it’s at this point that we should stop and confess our ignorant and smallness and frailty and worship our great God and Savior for so great salvation that he bestowed upon us we really saw in the scripture there that God is viewed as a Potter and God can mold the lump of clay into whatever he wants to God is not pictured as creating some men righteous for heaven and some men’s sinners for hell again he is pictured here as the Potter with the clay he makes no man a sinner but takes the clay as he finds it and the clay here is man in sin the only hope for the sinful clay is the Potter that is the mercy of the Potter and the mercy comes from God even when you come to Romans chapter 12 verse number 1 where we’re told in Scripture to give ourselves over to be a living sacrifice holy acceptable to God because it’s our reasonable service you know that passage it says this why do we do this here’s the motive because of God’s mercy you know there’s that’s why we do something why because God had mercy on you why did he had mercy on you I don’t know I don’t know why I had mercy on you and not someone else will never answer that question 9 on this side of eternity I don’t even know if I’m the next we’re gonna be learning about God when we pass from this earth into his presence for all eternity because God so vast and great but nonetheless these doctrines are true in Scripture and they do bring us to the place we have to face ourselves that we don’t have the answers in humanity I don’t know why the Lord always does things in Scripture he doesn’t always give us the answer why he doesn’t have to answer why he’s God but I do say this there’s another question that comes up which I don’t really have time right now to deal with and it’s this how then can God find fault with those who do not believe well of course the answer to that is I already gave it to you because we can’t find fault with God at all whether we can answer these questions at all yes or no we can’t find fault God God is the one who has the decision in the matter and he is a God who doesn’t change his mind who can’t be coerced by human beings that’s why Paul had to give up in Romans in Romans about the the goodness and the vastness and the greatness of God and he says Lord how unsearchable are your ways and how how your ways are passed finding out and what does he do he he he gives glory to God because he doesn’t have the answers he gives glory to God and he trusts God that for the results of everything that takes place without all the answers see this is trust in the true and living God and I kind of like to look at one passage before we close and that’s in the Ephesian passage let’s go back to that one ephesians chapter 1 because there are delights that we receive from this doctrine the delights of election and what are they denied the lights of the election you know the first delight of the election this doctrine is this that the source of our election is God the Father look what it says in verse number four another four in other words this is this is the source of rich blessing the grace of the Father says blessed be the God and father of our Lord Jesus Christ who blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in crisis verse 3 verse 3 I just read and then verse 4 just as he chose us in him we are chosen in Christ so that means when the father and the Holy Spirit and the Lord was planning the plan of salvation before this world was ever here before there were stars and the universe before anything was here in the council rooms of God he planned out who would be saved he planned that we would be saved only in Christ so that means Christ had to come – that means history had to be put in place that means the world had to be created that means sin had to come in that means all these things had to take place within God’s plan and the source of that election is God the Father in other words it literally says there in the middle voice he chose us in for himself he chose us for himself before the world was ever created you may not realize this by hope maybe this morning you get some sense of it that divine election is the grandest most joy producing doctrine in all of Scripture the doctrine of election is never presented in Scripture as something to be afraid of but always as something for believers to rejoice in look at the passage blessed be the God and father all right who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing that’s in the context of election and I have to say this to the writers of Scripture ever had a problem with God’s electing mercy in Scripture in other words it’s not a problem it’s always been the greatest source of worship and praise to God’s people could you imagine God you hear sitting here you know the Lord God chose you before this ever world was ever created think about that for a minute what should it do with you with you what should it cause you to think I tell you one thing it should really Humble us because we have to say well how come I got it and someone else did I don’t know that’s that’s with God you know the things Deuteronomy 29 2002 things that are gods are God’s the things that are revealed in Scripture are ours and God did not tell us everything he told us everything we needed to know for this for for now on this earth but he did not tell us everything also look at the timing of election I said it several times ready but in verse number four before the foundation of the world God chose certain people to be saved God did this before the foundation of the world and solely on his sovereign will and here’s the last definition that may reinforce in your mind this truth and it says this you can read it on the screen it says God’s choice of certain individuals to salvation before the foundation of the world rested solely on his sovereign his own sovereign will his choice of particular sinners was not based on any foreseen response or obedience on their part such as faith repentance etc on the contrary God gives faith and repentance to each individual whom he selected these acts are the result not the cause of God’s choice election therefore was not determined or conditioned any virtuous quality or or act for seen in man those whom God sovereignly elected he brings through the power of the holy spirit to a willing acceptance of Christ thus God’s choice of the sinner not the sinners choice of Christ is the ultimate cause of salvation and here’s the bottom line this is what Johnny Mack said you have a Johnny Mack attack once in a while right why are people saved because God chose them why are people condemned to go to hell because they refuse to believe so have you realized yet that this is the greatest truth that you can ever know that you are chosen by God for salvation and I pray this morning you know that you are that God loves his elect children because if you notice in the rest of the passage of Scripture in Ephesians chapter 1 it says just as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world that we would be holy and blameless before him in love he predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to himself according to the kind intention of his will see that scripture right there tells us that God loves he loves his children with an everlasting love a love that will never fail so this truth should humble us to the dirt and at the same time produce a holy joy in our heart that God showed favor on you and me he showed mercy on me little me little oh you Wow Psalm 65 verse 4 says how blessed is the one whom you CH you’ve chosen and bring near to you to dwell in your courts we will be satisfied with the goodness of your house your holy temple and that’s another thing about the elect when they come to Christ they love God they love his word they love his people yes they do it in perfectly but they love what God loves and they hate what God hates that’s what happens so the object and goal of our election look at verse number four again Ephesians chapter one that we would be holy and blameless before him in love this is the goal of God not only did he elect you before the foundation of the world brought the gospel to you brought somebody to preach to you gave you faith and repentance moved your will to believe but he also did that so you would be holy and ultimately blameless in his presence God made sure that nothing unholy comes into his presence and this is one way he did that in other words I’m talking about sanctification God’s good pleasure God’s foreknowledge God’s love so brethren we we do reap certain benefits from this doctrine here’s the first benefit election is humbling because God has chosen some by grace and entirely apart from any merit it’s humbling secondly election encourages our love for God because salvation is all of God then our love for him should be all to him thirdly election will enrich your worship you want to worship God come into a place where you understand who God is you’re beginning to understand who God is all the cares of the world seem to drop off when you when you come and worship God because the chosen know God and they are known by God it’s all over scripture when they come they can freely worship and praise and give thanks and serve Him because they have this understanding from the Word of God in their mind and heart and then yes election encourages evangelism it does not discourage evangelism is if God elected people there’s people to be saved right I don’t know who they are I think it was Spurgeon who said that if God gave her yellow stripe downs everyone’s back he was elected lift her shirt give me the gospel but but we don’t know who’s in other words we don’t know who’s going to be is elective God give the gospel out and you know why you’re gonna find some people that are elect right you know why they’re gonna come they’re going to respond and they’re going to become a disciple and they’re going to become a learner and they’re going to become a follower of Christ and they’re gonna persevere right to the end of their life those are the elect so evangelism because God uses the means of gospel Proclamation to awaken and called sinners to Christ and that no matter how feeble or imperfect our witness we know all who are chosen for salvation then called by God will come to him they will come to him in other words God’s not going to lose anybody but we should always have that passion for the lost why Humanity is slipping off to a lost eternity right let’s be the ones who tell them you don’t have to go there right and so those who God chosen will respond to the message and come so don’t miss this election cannot be based on anything done by us election is apart from any thing a human being might or might not do it’s all of God all you know what that should be really comforting to us and I pray it is let’s pray Lord again your word has some hard things in it and Lord as I said before it’s not things that always settle easily in our soul but Lord they’re there and your God and we’re just but flesh so Lord if you had mercy on people thank you thank you Lord for the mercy you had on me and thank you Lord for the mercy you had on everyone who knows you you here this morning but I pray Lord if there’s someone who doesn’t know that but Lord you are tugging at their heart you’re bringing them to a place to call upon you because they’re a sinner and you’re a Savior I pray Lord you tell us in the Word of God anybody who comes unto you you will no wise cast out so lord thank you Lord for doing this in love and Lord we want to trust you we want to humble ourselves under your mighty hand and Lord we thank you for what you’ve done in this whole process of salvation so Lord let us be people who are concerned about the lost and want to see them saved so lord give us many gospel opportunities and I pray Lord along the way we may see people come to know Christ as their Lord and Savior genuinely and live for you and serve you and I pray Lord that you now also make us holy and prepare us for your presence every day I pray we would be grappling with our own sin and putting it to death so Lord we would be growing in holiness and godliness every day give us that contentment that goes with it for we know that it’s very profitable for us not only for this life but the life that come and Lord bless us with your truth and expand our heart and mind in these things that I mentioned this morning and let us be settled in them once and for all and I pray this in Christ’s name and God’s people said what all right