The Chosen

Peter opens his letter by referencing one of the most controversial doctrines of the christian faith, the doctrine of predestination. Peter references this doctrine by calling his readers the “chosen” people “according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the spirit, to be obedient and to be sprinkled with the blood of Jesus Christ.” 


The doctrine of predestination, also referred to as the doctrine of election, is the belief that God chose who to save before the foundation of the world (Revelation 13: 8.) Most people agree with that idea, but the differences lie in how they believe God chooses who will be saved. The common belief held by many Christians today is that of conditional election. Conditional election is the belief that God chose who to save, or elect, based on his foreknowledge of who would come to faith in Christ. This belief acknowledges the eternal omniscience of God in that before he even created humans He knew which ones would place their faith in Him and which ones would deny Him. Using this information, He wrote the names of all professing followers of Christ in the book of life and destined them to be saved from an eternity in Hell and to inherit eternal life in Heaven. Therefore, it is called conditional election because everyone who is elect meets the condition of faith in Jesus Christ.


The opposing view is unconditional election. This is the belief that God chose who to save, not based on any foreknowledge of their faith, but out of a sovereign act of grace. It is deemed unconditional because there is no criteria that a person must meet, such as the presence of faith, to receive this free gift of God’s grace. Believers of unconditional election often reference Romans 9 to support their belief. Paul says in verse 18 of Romans 9: “so then, he has mercy on whom he wants to have mercy and he hardens whom he wants to harden.” God’s choice in unconditional election is based solely on His sovereignty and His authority. Paul goes on to write to those who refute this doctrine in verse 20 saying, “who are you, a human being, to talk back to God?” Paul asserts that any human who has a hard time accepting God’s sovereign choice of election has no authority to question the ways of an Almighty God.


For most of my life, I have been a firm resident in the conditional election camp. As I began diving into this topic almost a year ago I discovered that many of the Pastors and Theologians that I read and listen to belong to the unconditional election group. Those who believe in unconditional election include St. Augustine, Martin Luther, John Calvin, Jonathan Edwards, Charles Spurgeon, and Matthew Henry. Modern names you might be familiar with are J. I. Packer, RC Sproul, John Macarthur, Wayne Grudem, and John Piper. Included in that list are some of the most influential names in the history of the church and modern Christianity. If great men of the faith, such as those listed, can confidently proclaim the idea of unconditional election then it is worth my time to dive deeper in to it. I cannot begin to share the bulk of my research in a short blog post but I would like to highlight a few of my initial objections that were answered and share some additional resources for those that wish to explore this topic further.


My first objection was a common one derived from 1 Timothy 2:4 which claims that God “desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” So how can God desire all to be saved yet only choose to save some? John Piper has written an excellent defense to this objection, which can be found here. Piper thoughtfully and concisely explains that God’s revealed will does not always match his secret will. And the Bible is also full of examples where God desires one thing but another thing happens. As mentioned a few weeks ago in my post entitled “Be Transformed,” God’s revealed will is given to us through his commands. God’s commands are what he desires his children to do. However, it does not take much effort to find a time in my life where I disobeyed one of His commands. Therefore, what God desired to happen is not what he decreed to happen. Thus, God can desire that all be saved, yet only save some.


My next objection was that unconditional election seems unfair. However, our view of fairness changes when we acknowledge that God does not owe salvation to anyone. God would have been perfectly justified had he chosen to save no one. But, out of his great love and amazing grace, he has chosen to save some. RC Sproul defends this objection and magnifies God’s glorious act of grace in his book “God’s Love,” which you can read an excerpt of here. The fact that God has chosen to save any sinners who were severely indebted to Him is the biggest display of mercy and grace in history and should make us marvel at His love for us.


The point of this post is not to convince you to believe either side of this great debate but to bring you to the realization that both sides have similar foundational beliefs. Both sides believe that all of mankind has a sin debt that we are unable to pay. Both sides believe that God’s Son was sent to this earth, lived a perfect sinless life, and died in our place on the cross, absorbing the wrath of God that was due to us. Both sides agree that not all will be saved and that those who are saved are those who put their faith in Jesus Christ, repent of their sins, and are born again. And finally, both sides agree that people are brought to saving faith through the proclamation of the Gospel by Christian men and women. The application is this: Whether you believe conditional or unconditional election, or somewhere in between, your mission is the same. “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.” (Matthew 28: 19-20.) This was Jesus’ final command to his disciples and is his command to us still today. Regardless of our beliefs on the doctrine of predestination, we are called to make disciples. We must strive to proclaim the good news to all people in hopes that they will be saved!