Predestination according to The American Heritage Dictionary means “The doctrine that God has foreordained all things, especially that God has elected certain souls to eternal salvation.” It is only mentioned six times in the New Testament and comes from the Greek word, “proorizw" (proorizo). The Apostle Paul in Ephesians reveals that love is the motivation behind predestination and that it is an accolade to God’s grace freely distributed through Christ. To the church in Rome, he wrote that God’s foreknowledge “proginwskw” (proginosko—from which we get the word prognosis), is included in predestination. Furthermore, those He predestined were also called, justified and glorified (Romans 4:29,30)!
Luke depicts the negative side of predestination in Acts 4:28. God’s power and will worked in the lives of Herod, Pontius Pilate, Gentiles and Jews in Jerusalem to conspire against Jesus before they were ever born! Honestly, it seems very unfair that God would choose some for evil and others for adoption. But in truth, we cannot know why or how His pleasure and will were determined until we someday have the privilege of coming before His throne to ask Him. Paul taught the Corinthian believers that God’s secret wisdom was destined for our glory before time began (1 Corinthians 2:7). I look forward to the timeless day when what God has hidden is revealed.
Meditation
Ephesians 1:4-6—For He chose us in Him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in His sight. In love He predestined us to be adopted as His sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with His pleasure and will—to the praise of His glorious grace, which He has freely given us in the One He loves.
The danger with predestination is when we make a minor doctrine into a philosophical dogma. Too many of God’s children have determined that they are absolved of the need to share the gospel since God already chose who would receive salvation. This is absurd! Why did Jesus command His disciples to “Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation” (Mark 16:15)? Their responsibility to make disciples extends to us the same Christ-given mandate. Our job is not to use God’s knowledge of who will reject and who will receive Him as a respite from obedience but rather to agree with Paul, “And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?” (Rom.10:14). May we be the voice that proclaims truth! May we pray souls into the Kingdom of God in accordance with His will that everyone would come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9). Something to think about . . . in reveration!
Inspiration
The great doctrines of predestination and election are secondary matters, they are attempts at definition, but if we take sides with the theological method we will damn men who differ from us without a minute’s hesitation. Is there any form of belief which has taken the place of God with me? We only believe along the line of what we conceive of God, and when things happen contrary to that line, we deny the experience and remain true to our theological method.—Oswald Chambers in Baffled to Fight Better
