Ángel
Manuel Rodríguez
Someone
quoted Ephesians 1:4 to demonstrate that every human being was elected
for salvation
in Christ before the
creation of the world. Is that what the text says?
Let me quote the text: "For
he [God] chose us in him [Christ] before the creation of the world
to be holy and blameless in his sight."*
Before I comment on
the biblical topic of election, a clarification: Adventists who believe
that every human being was elected by God
for salvation also hold that all were actually saved at the cross.
They correctly reject the idea that God chose some for salvation and
others for damnation (double predestination). But they see only two
other possibilities: that God elected and saved all (which they support)
or that there is double predestination. Those are not the only two
options.
1. Contextual Control: Before
concluding that Ephesians 1:4 describes the election of the whole human
race for salvation, we should examine the context. Is there in the
context universal language, e.g., "all," "the
world"? Is Paul discussing the election of some and the rejection of
others? Notice the terminology he uses. He writes "to the saints," "the
faithful" (verse 1), those who "praise . . . our Lord Jesus" (verse
3), etc. He is referring to believers. When he says "He chose us in
[Christ]," he is describing the experience of believers who are in
Christ, not the sinful of the world. The Christ event will have a universal
impact because through Him God purposes to unite "all things in heaven
and on earth" (verse 10). This is not yet a reality, but evidence of it is observed
in the union of Jews and Gentiles in the church (Eph. 3:6).
2. Election From: In the Bible, election
is the act of choosing from a group. For instance, God elected Israel from among
the nations of the earth (Deut. 7:6, 7), Christ to be our Savior (Luke
9:35), Paul as a missionary to the Gentiles (Acts 9:15); and Jesus
elected 12 disciples (John 6:70). In His sovereign will God chooses
some individuals to perform a particular task (Rom. 9:14-24).
When the term election is
used theologically in the New Testament, it always refers to those
who place their faith in Christ, chosen by God for a particular purpose.
It could designate individual believers (Acts 1:24) or the church collectively
(Titus 1:1; 1 Peter 1:1), but never the world in general, independent
of a faith relationship with God. It is universal only in the sense
that through the preaching of the gospel and the work of the Spirit
God is choosing Jews as well as Gentiles (1 Thess.
1:4). Jesus said, "For many are invited, but few are chosen" (Matt.
22:14). The chosen are those who accept the call. God is doing all
He can to move all to accept the call and be saved (1 Tim. 2:4).
3. Pretemporal Election
in Christ: Paul says that God "chose us in him before the creation of the world" (Eph. 1:4). The passage
indicates, first, that election is grounded in God Himself without
our intervention. This decision took place before we existed; the decision
to elect us happened before the creation of the world.
Second, the certainty
of our election is expressed through the use of the past tense of the
verb ("he elected"). God's intention for us is not ambivalent, but
firm.
Third, in God's purpose
and sovereign will He predetermined that our election will take place
exclusively "in Christ." That is to say, our election is a reality through and in
union with Christ. He is the person, the sphere
within which election occurs, and this election is the mystery of God's
work for us in His Son.
Fourth, election is
not an abstract or a nonhistorical event.
It takes place in the Incarnated One, in Christ, and
manifests itself in a "holy and blameless" life. In fact, election
is not simply election to salvation but to
a holy life. The one cannot be separated from the other without robbing election of its meaning and
content.
Fifth, nothing in the
text refers to double predestination or the pretemporal election
of the whole human race. Paul is assuring believers that
their election is rooted in God's inscrutable purpose for them in Christ. The connection
between free-will and election is not examined here. He is stressing
God's prior action on our behalf.
*Bible texts in this
article are from the New International Version.
6/10/04
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