Why the Doctrine of Election is Precious to Me

This is very helpful from Juan Sanchez, at the Gospel Coalition Blog:

For some the doctrine of election (God’s free and sovereign decision to choose a people for salvation from the foundation of the world-Ephesians 1:3-6) is an abominable thought that produces great fear and concern. However, I propose that a clear understanding of this doctrine should instead produce hope and assurance. Allow me to share some of the reasons why the doctrine of election is so precious to me.

The doctrine of election is precious to me because it is biblical. In a display of the Father’s love for the Son, He gives a specific people to the Son (John 6:37). This truth is evident in the testimony of the book of Revelation when it declares that the only ones entering the eternal heaven are those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life (Revelation 21:27). John further testifies in Revelation 13:8, that these names were written in this book before the foundation of the world. In other words, one fruit of the Father’s love for Jesus, is our salvation. The Father made a free and sovereign decision to save a people as a gift for the Son and for His own glory from the foundation of the world (see also John 8:47; John 10:26-29; Romans 9:10-16).

The doctrine of election is precious to me because it secures my salvation. Jesus declared that all that the Father gave Him would come to Him and that He would never cast out any who came to Him (John 6:37). Jesus delights in receiving and keeping those whom the Father gives Him because He came to do the Father’s will (John 6:38-40), and the Father’s will is that Jesus not lose any of the ones that the Father has given Him but that He raise them all up on the last day (John 6:39).

The doctrine of election is precious to me because it encourages me to pursue holiness. Paul reminded the Thessalonians “God chose you as the first fruits to be saved, through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth” (2 Thessalonians 2:13, ESV). The Bible assures us that even though now we are only gradually being conformed to the image of Christ (2 Corinthians 3:18), we will at glorification be completely conformed to the image of Christ (Rom. 8:29).

The doctrine of election is precious to me because it is the basis for assurance of my salvation. Because God gives a people to the Son, and because the Son receives that people and keeps them, I am assured that I will never be cast out (John 6:37), nor perish, nor be snatched out of Jesus’ hand (John 10:28). Can you imagine such assurance?  The God who predestines for salvation (election) will insure that all whom He calls to salvation will ultimately be glorified (Romans 8:30).

The doctrine of election is precious to me because it encourages me to share the gospel and gives me hope for fruit in evangelism and missions. Not only does the Father give a people to the Son (John 6:37), and not only does the Son receive these people and keep them (John 6:37-39), but the Father also assures that those whom He gives to the Son will come to the Son. It is the Father’s will that everyone believing in the Son have eternal life (John 6:40), and these who believe can only come at the Father’s drawing (John 6:44, 65). Therefore, if the Father gives a people to the Son, and He assures these people come to the Son, then we can be assured that evangelism and missions will bear fruit (Acts 13:48), and we can find encouragement in our Lord’s words to Paul, “Do not be afraid, but go on speaking and do not be silent, for I am with you, and no one will attack you to harm you, for I have many in this city who are my people.” (Acts 18:9-10, ESV).

Finally, the doctrine of election is precious to me because it moves me to make much of God through Christ (true worship) and little of myself (humility). May we understand election and may it strip us of personal pride and move us to worship the Sovereign Lord in all His glory and grace.

Juan Sanchez is the Senior Pastor of High Pointe Baptist Church in Austin, TX and a Council member with The Gospel Coalition.

Filed under: Assurance, Christ-centred, Doctrine, Doctrines of Grace, Election, God's Glory, God's grace, Humility, Jesus Christ, Missional living, Salvation, Sanctification, Sovereignty of God, The Gospel, The glory of Christ, The word of God, Worship

Pursuing Greater Humility

From Justin Chiders:

How do we cultivate humility and mortify pride?

• We need to spend time thinking about God’s greatness and holiness in comparison to our natural, moral, and moral insignificance.
• We need to think about how much God loves the humble and hates the proud.
• We need to meditate on the way that Christ humbled Himself when He came to earth.
• We need to think seriously on the examples of humility left by the most useful believers who have walked this earth.
• We must consider the example of humility demonstrated by the holy angels.
• We need to carefully reflect on the humility of believers who are now in heaven.
• We need to think about the great imperfections and weakness of our faith, our character, our behavior, our motives, our duties, and our service to God.
• We need to think about the fact that we deserve to experience God’s judgment and wrath because of our sin.
• We need to spend time thinking about the day of judgment.
• We ought to reflect on the pride of Satan and the demons.
• We need to remember that everything that we have or have accomplished comes from God’s hand.
• We must spend time thinking about the sad consequences of pride in other people’s lives.
• We ought to spend time with humble people and avoid as much as possible the company of arrogant people.
• We must spend time in prayer every day, confessing our pride to God and earnestly pleading for greater humility.

Adapted from Wayne Mack’s Humility: The Forgotten Virtue.

Filed under: Christian character, Discipleship, God's Glory, Humility, Jesus Christ, Sanctification, The Christian Life

Man Is Not the Centre

Spurgeon writes in Lectures to My Students:

Just as the earth is not the centre of the universe, so man is not the grandest of all beings. God has been pleased highly to exalt man; but we must remember how the psalmist speaks of him: “When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; what is man, that thou art mindful of him; and the son of man, that thou visitest him?” In another place, David says, “Lord, what is man, that thou takest knowledge of him! or the son of man, that thou makest account of him! Man is like to vanity: his days are as a shadow that passeth away.” Man cannot be the centre of the theological universe, he is altogether too insignificant a being to occupy such a position, and the scheme of redemption must exist for some other end than that of merely making man happy, or even of making him holy. The salvation of man must surely be first of all for the glory of God; and you have discovered the right form of Christian doctrine when you have found the system that has God in the centre, ruling and controlling according to the good pleasure of his will. Do not dwarf man so as to make it appear that God has no care for him; for if you do that, you slander God. Give to man the position that God has assigned to him; by doing so, you will have a system of theology in which all the truths of revelation and experience will move in glorious order and harmony around the great central orb, the Divine Sovereign Ruler of the universe, God over all, blessed for ever.

(HT: Darryl Dash)

Filed under: Attributes of God, CH Spurgeon, Doctrine, Evangelical, God centredness, God's Glory, Sovereignty of God

Reach them with the Amazing God not helpful tips

From Kevin DeYoung:

I beg of you, don’t go after the next generation with mere moralism, either on the right (don’t have sex, go to church, share your faith, stay off drugs) or on the left (recycle, dig a well, feed the homeless, buy a wristband). The gospel is not a message about what we need to do for God, but about what God has done for us. So get them with the good news about who God is and what he has done for us.

Some of us, it seems, are almost scared to tell people about God. Perhaps because we don’t truly know him. Maybe because we prefer living in triviality. Or maybe because we don’t consider knowing God to be very helpful in real life. I have to fight against this unbelief in my own life. If only I would trust God that God is enough to win the hearts and minds of the next generation. It’s his work much more than it is mine or yours. So make him front and center. Don’t preach your doubts as mystery. And don’t reduce God to your own level. If ever people were starving for a God the size of God, surely it is now.

Read the rest HERE.

(HT: Todd Pruitt)

Filed under: Attributes of God, Doctrine, God centredness, God's Glory, Moralism, The Gospel

What can be a greater honour than this?

“How great an honor will it be to a person to have God at the day of judgment owning a person, declaring before all men, angels and devils that that person is before his all-seeing eyes and that he stands innocent and perfect in his sight, clothed with perfect righteousness and entitled to everlasting glory and blessedness. How honorable will this render them in the eyes of all that vast assembly that will be together at the day of judgment. That will be an infinitely greater honor than any man or any angel declaring that they judge him upright and sincere and that eternal life belongs to him. What can be a greater honor than this — to be owned by the great King and Lord of all things?”

Jonathan Edwards, The Glory and Honor of God, edited by Michael D. McMullen, page 61.

(HT: Ray Ortlund)

Filed under: Christ our Mediator, Christ our righteousness, Christ our sin bearer, God's Glory, God's grace, Jonathan Edwards, The Cross, The Gospel, Union with Christ

Beholding Christ as Antidote to Worldliness

John Owen on seeing Christ’s glory:

It is by beholding the glory of Christ by faith that we are spiritually edified and built up in this world, for as we behold his glory, the life and power of faith grow stronger and stronger. It is by faith that we grow to love Christ. So if we desire strong faith and powerful love, which give us rest, peace and satisfaction, we must seek them by diligently beholding the glory of Christ by faith. In this duty I desire to live and to die. On Christ’s glory I would fix all my thoughts and desires, and the more I see of the glory of Christ, the more the painted beauties of this world will wither in my eyes and I will be more and more crucified to this world. It will become to me like something dead and putrid, impossible for me to enjoy.

–The Glory of Christ (1684)

(HT: The Gospel Coalition Blog)

Filed under: Affections, Christ our treasure, Discipleship, God's Glory, Jesus Christ, John Owen, Sanctification, The word of God, Worldliness, Worship

10 Reasons We Need to be Reminded of the Gospel Everyday (about the gospel)

Justin Childers posts this succinct and helpful reminder:

The gospel message itself contains the most powerful reasons why we need to constantly remind ourselves of it.

1. The gospel reveals the Glory of God.
2. The gospel is the power of God unto salvation.
3. The gospel protects us from Satan.
4. The gospel sanctifies us.
5. The gospel enables us to obey God rightly.
6. The gospel enables us to love others.
7. The gospel cultivates humility.
8. The gospel frees me from condemnation.
9. The gospel liberates me from legalism.
10. The gospel smashes our idols.

Filed under: Discipleship, Doctrine, Evangelical, God's Glory, Jesus Christ, Salvation, Sanctification, The Christian Life, The Cross, The Gospel, The glory of Christ, The word of God

We Will Be Glorified for the Glory of God

From John Piper:

Someday, at the coming of the Lord Jesus, all who are in Christ will be glorified.

Those whom he justified he also glorified. (Romans 8:30)

The creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. (Romans 8:21)

That is, we will be glorious.

The righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. (Matthew 13:43)

But our glory will not be our own but the glory of Christ who is the image of God. We will be glorified with his glory.

To this he called you through our gospel, so that you may obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. (2 Thessalonians 2:14)

The Lord will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory. (Isaiah 60:19)

The result of our being glorious with the glory of God is that in the end God will be glorified by our glorification.

Your people shall all be righteous . . . the branch of my planting, the work of my hands, that I might be glorified. (Isaiah 60:21)

Therefore, do not let your joy or your hope or your theology or your preaching rest finally on what you are or what you will be. Rejoice finally in this: that what you will be is a joyful reflection of the glory of God. And he will be all in all. Be glad that you are not the final point of it all, but a happy pointer.

Filed under: Christ our treasure, Doctrine, Evangelical, Glorification, God's Glory, John Piper, Second Coming

Sam Storms: Calvin on the Joy of the Last Resurrection

Filed under: Christ our treasure, Doctrine, Eternal life, Evangelical, God's Glory, Heaven, Jesus Christ, John Calvin, Joy, Sam Storms, The glory of Christ

The ultimate purpose of God

Here is John Piper’s message, from the Desiring God Conference, September 27, 2009 where he shows how Jesus Christ relates to the ultimate purpose of God in creating the universe as the theatre of God:

Filed under: Biblical exposition, Christ crucified, Christ-centred, Doctrine, Evangelical, God's Glory, John Piper, Salvation History, The Consummation, The Cross, The Gospel, The glory of Christ

Majestic Splendor

Amazing new images from the Hubble telescope

O LORD, our Lord,
How majestic is Your name in all the earth,
Who have displayed Your splendor above the heavens!

When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers,
The moon and the stars, which You have ordained;
What is man that You take thought of him,
And the son of man that You care for him?
Yet You have made him a little lower than God,
And You crown him with glory and majesty!
O LORD, our Lord,
How majestic is Your name in all the earth! ( Psalm 8  )

(HT: Stand to Reason)

Filed under: Creation, God's Glory, The word of God

Lost in wonder, love, and praise!

I’ve been meditating on the last line of Charles Wesley’s glorious hymn, ‘Love Divine, all loves excelling’ - Lost in wonder, love, and praise! It has a beautiful theological logic to it. First, we are to see/understand/comprehend, be impacted by Divine glory – wonder. Second, having seen it, we are to love what we see. We are to be affected at an emotional, heart level by the wonder of who God is and all He is for us in Christ. I think this is what Jesus prayed for at the climax of his High Priestly prayer in John 17: 24, 26. That we should see his glory and love and appreciate it/him just as the Father – who sees and loves his Son’s infinite perfections perfectly – does. (A lesser love is not worthy of him.) Having been so affected, there remains only the consummation of our satisfaction in Christ – praise!

My prayer is that I can be lost in the foretaste that the Spirit brings of this glory now, and forever transformed by what I see of Christ in his word. And then, face to face, the apprehension and appreciation of the glory of Christ will only increase, without any distraction, distortion, dilution or detraction – Oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!

Love Divine, all loves excelling,
Joy of heaven, to earth come down,
Fix in us thy humble dwelling,
All thy faithful mercies crown.
Jesus, thou art all compassion,
Pure unbounded love thou art;
Visit us with thy salvation,
Enter every trembling heart.

Come, almighty to deliver,
Let us all thy grace receive;
Suddenly return, and never,
Never more thy temples leave.
Thee we would be always blessing,
Serve thee as thy hosts above,
Pray, and praise thee, without ceasing,
Glory in thy perfect love.

Finish then thy new creation
Pure and spotless let us be;
Let us see thy great salvation,
Perfectly restored in thee,
Changed from glory into glory,
Till in heaven we take our place,
Till we cast our crowns before thee,
Lost in wonder, love, and praise!

Filed under: Christ our treasure, Evangelical, God's Glory, Holiness, Jesus Christ, The glory of Christ, The word of God, Worship

Why does God focus so much attention on Himself?

Filed under: Attributes of God, Doctrine, Evangelical, God the Father, God's Glory, Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ, John Piper, The glory of Christ, Worship

What is God’s Glory?

(HT: Allsufficientgrace)

Filed under: Attributes of God, God's Glory, God's holiness, John Piper

The Nature of Conversion by Joseph Alleine

Conversion then, in short, lies in the thorough change both of the heart and life, in which:

1. The AUTHOR of conversion is the Spirit of God. Conversion is a work above man’s power. We are ‘born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man—but of God’ (John 1:13). Never think you can convert yourself. If ever you would be savingly converted, you must despair of doing it in your own strength. It is a resurrection from the dead (Eph 2:1), a new creation (Gal 6:15; Eph 2:10), a work of absolute omnipotence (Eph 1:19).

2. The efficient CAUSE of conversion is both free grace, which is internal, and the merit and intercession of the blessed Jesus, which is external.

3. The INSTRUMENT of conversion is the Word and those who minister it.

4. The final END of conversion is man’s salvation, and God’s glory.

5. The SUBJECT of conversion is the elect sinner, in all his parts and powers, members and mind. Whom God predestinates, them only He calls (Rom 8:30). None are drawn to Christ by their calling, nor come to Him by believing—but His sheep, those whom the Father has given Him (John 6:37, 44). Effectual calling runs parallel with eternal election (2 Pet 1:10). Do not stand still disputing about your election—but set to repenting and believing. Cry to God for converting grace. Revealed things belong to you; busy yourself in these, and not in unrevealed mysteries. Whatever the decrees of heaven may be, I am sure that if I repent and believe, I shall be saved; and that if I do not repent, I shall be damned. Is not this plain ground for you; and will you yet run upon the rocks?

More particularly, this change of conversion extends to the whole man. A carnal person may have some shreds of good morality—but he is never good throughout the whole cloth. Conversion is not a repairing of the old building; but it takes all down, and erects a new structure. It is not the sewing on a patch of holiness; but with the true convert, holiness is woven into all his powers, principles and practice. The sincere Christian is quite a new fabric, from the foundation to the top-stone. He is a new man, a new creature; all things are become new (2 Cor 5:17).

Conversion is a deep work, a heart work. It makes a new man in a new world. It extends to the whole man: to the mind, to the members, and to the motions, or practice of the whole life.

Excerpt from An Alarm to the Unconverted by Joseph Alleine

(HT: Reformation Theology)

Filed under: Conversion, Doctrine, Election, God's Glory, God's grace, Holiness, Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ, New Birth, Reformed, Regeneration, The Gospel