God's will was absolutely free in connection with election. In choosing a people unto eternal
life and glory, there was nothing outside Himself which moved God to form such a purpose. As
He expressly declares, "I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion
on whom I will have compassion" (Rom. 9:15)
—language could not state more definitely the
absoluteness of divine sovereignty in this matter. "Having predestinated us unto the adoption of
children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will" (Eph. 1:5): here
again all is resolved into the mere pleasure of God. He bestows His favors or withholds them as
pleaseth Himself. Nor does He stand in any need of our vindicating His procedure. The Almighty
is not to be brought down to the bar of human reason: instead of seeking to justify God's high
sovereignty, we are only required to believe it, on the authority of His own Word. "I thank thee,
0 Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because thou hast hid these things from the wise and
prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes: even so, Father; for so it seemed good in thy sight"
(Matt. 11:25, 26)—the Lord Jesus was content to rest there, and so must we be.
Some of the ablest expositors of this profound truth have affirmed that the love of God is the
moving cause of our election, citing "In love having predestinated us" (Eph. 1:5); yet in so doing,
we think they are chargeable with a slight inaccuracy or departure from the rule of faith. While
fully agreeing that the last two words of Ephesians 1:4 (as they stand in the A.V.) belong properly
to the beginning of verse 5, yet it should be carefully noted that verse 5 is not speaking of our
original election, but of our being predestinated unto the adoption of children: the two things
are quite distinct, separate acts on the part of God, the second following upon the first.
There is
an order in the divine counsels, as there is in God's works of creation, and it is as important to
heed what is said of the former as it is to attend unto the divine procedure in the six days work of
Genesis 1.
An object must exist or subsist before it can be loved. Election was the first act in the mind
of God, whereby He chose the persons of the elect to be holy and without blame (v. 4).
Predestination was God's second act, whereby He ratified by decree the state of those to whom
His election had given a real subsistence before Him. Having chosen them in His dear Son unto
a perfection of holiness and righteousness, God's love went forth to them, and bestowed upon
them the chiefest and highest blessing His love could confer: to make them His children by
adoption. God is love, and all His love is exercised upon Christ and those in Him. Having made
the elect His own by the sovereign choice of His will, God's heart was set upon them as His
special treasure.
Others have attributed our election to the grace of God, quoting "There is a remnant
according to the election of grace" (Rom. 11:5).
But here again we must distinguish between
things that differ, namely, between the beginning of a divine decree and its matter or substance.
It is true, blessedly true, that the elect are the objects upon which the grace of God is specially
exercised, but that is quite another thing from saying that their election originated in God's
grace. The order we are here insisting upon is clearly expressed in Ephesians 1. First, "He [God]
hath chosen us in him [Christ] before the foundation of the world: that we should be holy and
without blame [righteous] before him" (v. 4): that was the initial act in the divine mind. Second,
"in love having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself." and
that "according to the good pleasure of his will" (v. 5): that was God enriching those upon whom
He had set His heart.
Third, "to the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us
accepted in the beloved" (v. 6): that was both the subject and design of God's decree—the manifestation and magnification of His grace.
"The election of grace" (Rom. 11:5), then, is not to be understood as the genitive of origin,
but of object or character, as in "the Rose of Sharon," "the tree of life," "the children of
disobedience."
The election of the church, as of all His acts and works, is to be traced right back
to the uncontrolled and uncontrollable will of God. Nowhere else in Scripture is the order of the
divine counsels so definitely revealed as in Ephesians 1, and nowhere else is emphasis placed so
strongly upon God's will. He predestinated unto the adoption of children "according to the good
pleasure of his will" (v. 5). He has made known to us "the mystery of his will" (not "grace") and
that "according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself" (v. 9). And then, as
though that was not sufficiently explicit, the passage closes with "being predestinated according
to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will, that we should be
to the praise of his glory" (vv. 11, 12).
life and glory, there was nothing outside Himself which moved God to form such a purpose. As
He expressly declares, "I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion
on whom I will have compassion" (Rom. 9:15)
—language could not state more definitely the
absoluteness of divine sovereignty in this matter. "Having predestinated us unto the adoption of
children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will" (Eph. 1:5): here
again all is resolved into the mere pleasure of God. He bestows His favors or withholds them as
pleaseth Himself. Nor does He stand in any need of our vindicating His procedure. The Almighty
is not to be brought down to the bar of human reason: instead of seeking to justify God's high
sovereignty, we are only required to believe it, on the authority of His own Word. "I thank thee,
0 Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because thou hast hid these things from the wise and
prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes: even so, Father; for so it seemed good in thy sight"
(Matt. 11:25, 26)—the Lord Jesus was content to rest there, and so must we be.
Some of the ablest expositors of this profound truth have affirmed that the love of God is the
moving cause of our election, citing "In love having predestinated us" (Eph. 1:5); yet in so doing,
we think they are chargeable with a slight inaccuracy or departure from the rule of faith. While
fully agreeing that the last two words of Ephesians 1:4 (as they stand in the A.V.) belong properly
to the beginning of verse 5, yet it should be carefully noted that verse 5 is not speaking of our
original election, but of our being predestinated unto the adoption of children: the two things
are quite distinct, separate acts on the part of God, the second following upon the first.
There is
an order in the divine counsels, as there is in God's works of creation, and it is as important to
heed what is said of the former as it is to attend unto the divine procedure in the six days work of
Genesis 1.
An object must exist or subsist before it can be loved. Election was the first act in the mind
of God, whereby He chose the persons of the elect to be holy and without blame (v. 4).
Predestination was God's second act, whereby He ratified by decree the state of those to whom
His election had given a real subsistence before Him. Having chosen them in His dear Son unto
a perfection of holiness and righteousness, God's love went forth to them, and bestowed upon
them the chiefest and highest blessing His love could confer: to make them His children by
adoption. God is love, and all His love is exercised upon Christ and those in Him. Having made
the elect His own by the sovereign choice of His will, God's heart was set upon them as His
special treasure.
Others have attributed our election to the grace of God, quoting "There is a remnant
according to the election of grace" (Rom. 11:5).
But here again we must distinguish between
things that differ, namely, between the beginning of a divine decree and its matter or substance.
It is true, blessedly true, that the elect are the objects upon which the grace of God is specially
exercised, but that is quite another thing from saying that their election originated in God's
grace. The order we are here insisting upon is clearly expressed in Ephesians 1. First, "He [God]
hath chosen us in him [Christ] before the foundation of the world: that we should be holy and
without blame [righteous] before him" (v. 4): that was the initial act in the divine mind. Second,
"in love having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself." and
that "according to the good pleasure of his will" (v. 5): that was God enriching those upon whom
He had set His heart.
Third, "to the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us
accepted in the beloved" (v. 6): that was both the subject and design of God's decree—the manifestation and magnification of His grace.
"The election of grace" (Rom. 11:5), then, is not to be understood as the genitive of origin,
but of object or character, as in "the Rose of Sharon," "the tree of life," "the children of
disobedience."
The election of the church, as of all His acts and works, is to be traced right back
to the uncontrolled and uncontrollable will of God. Nowhere else in Scripture is the order of the
divine counsels so definitely revealed as in Ephesians 1, and nowhere else is emphasis placed so
strongly upon God's will. He predestinated unto the adoption of children "according to the good
pleasure of his will" (v. 5). He has made known to us "the mystery of his will" (not "grace") and
that "according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself" (v. 9). And then, as
though that was not sufficiently explicit, the passage closes with "being predestinated according
to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will, that we should be
to the praise of his glory" (vv. 11, 12).
