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-74-
The God Who Is
In II Timothy chapter 1, in verse 8, we read, "Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me his prisoner: but be thou partaker of the afflictions of the gospel according to the power of God; who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began." Only the elect, the chosen ones, are appointed to glory. For this reason, John Wycliffe said, "The church is made up of those predestinated to heaven."
Jesus told the Jews who assembled in the Temple, "The works that I do in my Father's name, they bear witness of me, but ye believe not, because ye are not of my sheep, as I said unto you. `My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: and I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand'" (John 10:25b,26). Note the reason these did not believe: "Ye are not of my sheep."
In John chapter 17, in verse 6, Jesus prayed, "I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word. Now they have known that all things whatsoever thou hast given me are of thee. For I have given unto them the words which thou gavest me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came out from thee, and they have believed that thou didst send me.
"I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine" (verses 6-9). Note that Jesus says, "I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me."
Predestination: The Blessedness of The Doctrine
In I Peter chapter 1, beginning in verse 3, we read, "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time" (verses 3- 5).
Note first, that the resurrection of Christ begets our regeneration. And second, note that we are kept by the power of God. If a man could lose his salvation, he would have to be stronger than God. Third, note that we are kept "through faith." And then, note how long we are kept by the power of God through faith: "unto salvation." The doctrine of predestination is a blessed doctrine because by it we have the assurance of salvation. By it we have the assurance of the preservation of our souls. By the doctrine of predestination, we can make our calling and election sure.
The writer of Hebrews tells us, "When God made promise to Abraham, because he could swear by no greater, he sware by himself saying, `Surely blessing I will bless thee, and multiplying I will multiply thee.' And so, after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise. For men verily swear by the greater: and an oath for confirmation is to them an end of all strife.
"Wherein God, willing more abundantly to show unto the heirs of promise the immutability of his counsel, confirmed it by an oath: that by two immutable things in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us: which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast, and which entereth into that within the veil; whither the forerunner is for us entered, even Jesus, made an high priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec" (Hebrews 6:13-20).
Note first, that Abraham had to patiently endure before he obtained the promise of God. So must we. Second, note that we have a strong consolation who have fled for refuge by laying hold upon the hope set before us. Third, this hope serves as the anchor of our soul and is both sure and stedfast. And fourth, our hope has entered within the veil into the presence of God Almighty. Our hope is therefore the person of Jesus. He is our high priest.
In Hebrews chapter 12, note verses 1 and 2. "Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin that doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God."