Election:
God’s choice of those who believe in Christ is an important teaching of the apostle Paul (see: Rom. 8:29-33; 9:6-26; 11:5-28; Col. 3:12; 1 Thess. 1:4; 2 Thess. 2:13; Titus 1:1). Election (Greek eklego) refers to God choosing in Christ a people whom he destines to be holy and blameless in his sight (cf. 2 Thess. 2:13). Paul sees this election as expressing God’s initiative as the God of infinite love in giving us as finite creation every spiritual blessing through the redemptive work of his Son (Eph. 1:3-5). Paul’s teaching about election involves the following truths:

(1) Election is Christocentric, i.e., election of humans occurs only in union with Jesus Christ. “He chose us in him” (Eph. 1:4). Jesus himself is first of all the elect of God. Concerning Jesus, God states, “Here is my servant whom I have chosen” (Matt. 12:18; Isa. 42:1-6; 1 Pet. 2:4). Christ, as the elect, is the foundation of our election. Only in union with Christ do we become members of the elect (Eph. 1:4-13). No one is elect apart from union with Christ through faith.

(2) Election is “in him…through his blood” (Eph. 1:7). God purposed before creation (Eph. 1:4) to form a people through Christ’s redemptive death on the cross. Thus election is grounded on Christ’s sacrificial death to save us from our sins (Rom. 3:24-26; Acts 20:28).

(3) Election in Christ is primarily corporate, i.e., an election of a people (Eph. 1:4-9). The elect are called “the body of Christ” (Eph. 4:12), “my church” (Matt. 16:18), “a people belonging to God” (1 Pet. 2:9), and the “bride” of Christ (Rev. 19:7). Therefore, election is corporate and embraces individual persons only as they identify and associate themselves with the body of Christ, the true church (Eph. 1:22-23; see Robert Shank, Elect in the Son, [Minneapolis: Bethany House Publishers]). This was true already of Israel in the OT (see Deut. 29:18-21; 2 Kings 21:14).

(4) The election to salvation and holiness of the body of Christ is always certain. But the certainty of election for individuals remains conditional on their personal living faith in Jesus Christ and perseverance in union with him. Paul demonstrates this as follows. (a) God’s eternal purpose for the church is that we should “be holy and blameless in his sight” (Eph. 1:4). This refers both to forgiveness of sins (Eph. 1:7) and to the church’s purity as the bride of Christ. God’s elect people are being led by the Holy Spirit toward sanctification and holiness (see Rom. 8:14; Gal. 5:16-25). The apostle repeatedly emphasizes this paramount purpose of God (see Eph. 2:10; 3:14-19; 4:1-3; Eph. 4:13-24; 5:1-18). (b) Fulfillment of this purpose for the corporate church is certain: Christ will “present her to himself as a radiant church…holy and blameless” (Eph. 5:27). (c) Fulfillment of this purpose for individuals in the church is conditional. Christ will present us “holy and blameless in his sight” (Eph. 1:4) only if we continue in the faith. Paul states this clearly: Christ will “present you holy in his sight without blemish…if you continue in your faith, established and firm, not moved from the hope held out in the gospel” (Col. 1:22-23).

(5) Election to salvation in Christ is offered to all (John 3:16-17; 1 Tim. 2:4-6; Titus 2:11; Heb. 2:9) but becomes actual for particular persons contingent on their repentance and faith as they accept God’s gift of salvation in Christ (Eph. 2:8; 3:17; cf. Acts 20:21; Rom. 1:16; 4:16). At the point of faith, the believer is incorporated into Christ’s elect body (the church) by the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 12:13), thereby becoming one of the elect. Thus, there is both God’s initiative and our response in election (see Rom. 8:29; 2 Pet. 1:1-11).

God is the one who empowers us to endure until the end.

We are saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ alone (Matt. 13:1-9; Matt. 13:18-23; Matt. 24:9-13; Rev. 3:21; Eph. 2:8-10). Those who have been sealed by the Holy Spirit have God’s power working in them to enable them to stand firm until the end (Eph. 1:13; Eph. 4:30; 2 Cor. 1:21-22; John 10:27-29; Rom. 8:28-39; 14:4; Phil. 1:6; 2 Tim. 1:12; Jude 1:24-25).

The Bible says when you are in Christ Jesus you have eternal life (1 Jn. 5:11-13), but if you could lose your eternal life tomorrow, then it was never really “eternal” to begin with. If you could lose your salvation then the promise of eternal life would be a lie and a false hope (John 3:14-18; John 3:36; 5:24; John 6:37, 40, 47, 54; John 10:27-29; Rom. 6:23; Rom. 8:38-39; Rom. 10:13; Rom. 11:6, 29; Eph. 1:13-14; Eph. 4:30; 2 Cor. 1:21-22; Phil. 1:6; 1 Tim. 6:12; Heb. 10:14; 1 Jn. 1:9; 1 Jn. 2:25; 1 Jn. 5:1; 1 Jn. 5:11-13; Jude 1:24-25).

Predestination:
Predestination (Greek prooizo) means “to decide beforehand” and applies to God’s purposes comprehended in election. Election is God’s choice “in Christ” of a people (the true church) for himself. Predestination comprehends what will happen to God’s people (all genuine believers in Christ).

(1) God predestines his elect to be: (a) called (Rom. 8:30); (b) justified (Rom. 3:24; 8:30); (c) glorified (Rom. 8:30); (d) conformed to the likeness of his Son (Rom. 8:29); e) holy and blameless (Eph. 1:4); (f) adopted as God’s children (Eph. 1:5); (g) redeemed (Eph. 1:7); (h) recipients of an inheritance (Eph. 1:14); (i) for the praise of his glory (Eph. 1:2; 1 Pet. 2:9); (j) recipients of the Holy Spirit (Eph. 1:13; Gal. 3:14); and (k) created to do good works (Eph. 2:10).

(2) Predestination, like election, refers to the corporate body of Christ (i.e., the true spiritual church), and comprehends individuals only in association with that body through a living faith in Jesus Christ (Eph. 1:5, 7, 13; cf. Acts 2:38-41; 16:31). [From: Life in the Spirit Study Bible, pp. 1854-1855].

Key Words

Foreknowledge:
(Greek prognosis) (Acts 2:23; 1 Pet. 1:2) <G4268>: The Greek term indicates “knowledge beforehand,” either of things that are seen or things that are intended or arranged. These meanings are illustrated in Acts 26:5; Romans 11:2; 1 Peter 1:2, 20; 2 Peter 3:17. In the present context, the word denotes God’s knowledge of His Son’s death on the Cross long before the event occurred. This is clearly affirmed by Peter (see 1 Pet. 1:20) and is the implication of Revelation 13:8. Jesus’ death for our redemption was not an afterthought; it was part of God’s eternal plan. [Nelson’s NKJV Study Bible].

Foreknowledge:
Man’s knowledge is governed by his awareness of a past, a present and a future, but God’s knowledge is not. God is eternal, and his knowledge is not related to a sequence of events that he must experience in a world of time and space (Isa. 57:15; Jer. 23:24). Human language uses the word ‘foreknowledge’ in relation to God because it is the most convenient word available to indicate knowledge of events that man sees as future. From man’s viewpoint, God’s knowledge of the entire history of the universe is foreknowledge (Ps. 139:4-6,16; Isa. 46:9-10; Acts 2:23).

When the Bible speaks of God’s foreknowledge it means more than merely that he knows what will happen. Usually God’s foreknowledge is linked with God’s purpose, which means that it is often the same as his predetermined will. God’s foreknowledge is according to his plan, and therefore may be another word for predestination (Acts 2:23; Rom. 8:29; Heb. 11:40).

God’s sovereignty does not alter the fact that people are responsible for their actions. This may be a mystery beyond our understanding, but we do not solve the mystery by trying to weaken the truths of God’s sovereign purposes and man’s free will (Luke 22:22; Acts 2:23). [The AMG Concise Bible Dictionary].

Predestined:
(Greek proorizo) (Rom. 8:29, 30; Acts 4:28; 1 Cor. 2:7; Eph. 1:5, 11) <G4309>: To predestine means “to mark out beforehand,” “to establish one’s boundary, or one’s limits, beforehand.” Our English word horizon is a derivative of this Greek word. The Christian’s ultimate destiny or horizon has been fixed by God from all eternity: to be made like His Son. Note how the words predestined, called, justified, and especially glorified in Romans 8:29, 30 are in the past tense. That is because God, from His eternal perspective, sees this process as having been completed already. From God’s perspective, we have been glorified already because He sees us righteous because of the work of Jesus on the Cross. But still, in the march of time, we must undergo the process of being conformed to the image of God’s Son. [Nelson’s NKJV Study Bible].

Predestination:
God is the sovereign ruler of the universe, one who is perfect in wisdom and power and who determines all things according to his will (Isa. 46:10; Dan. 4:35; Acts 4:28; Eph. 1:11). Predestination means that he ‘pre-destines’ what will happen he sees, knows, plans, prepares, appoints and decides what will happen (Ps. 33:10-11; Prov. 16:33; Isa. 14:26-27; 22:11; 37:26-27; Acts 17:26-27; Rom. 8:29-30; Eph. 1:5-6; 1 Pet. 1:20).

Divine will and human response:
God’s predestination does not mean that people are the helpless victims of unalterable fate. They have the freedom to make their own decisions, and they are fully responsible for what they do (Luke 22:22; Acts 2:23; 4:27-28; Rom. 14:10,12). [The AMG Concise Bible Dictionary].

Election:
The doctrine of election is one of the most hotly debated mysteries of the Christian life. Theologians through the ages have pondered the meaning of Romans 8:29, “For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son.” What did the apostle Paul mean when he wrote that God “foreknew” certain people? How are we to understand the notion of God having “predestined” certain individuals to be saved and sanctified?

In attempting to resolve these profound questions, Bible students have typically aligned themselves in two camps. Arminians, those who embrace the position of the seventeenth-century Dutch pastor Jacobus Arminius, understand foreknowledge to mean God’s knowledge in advance of those who would repent of their sin and believe the Gospel. In other words, in eternity past, God looked down the corridors of time to see all who would one day accept the offer of salvation through Christ. In the Arminian view, those who accept salvation are the elect. The fact that they would eventually believe in Christ was the condition that prompted God to choose them “before the foundation of the world” (see Eph. 1:3) or predestine them to eternal life. To bolster their position, Arminians point to verses that clearly state God’s desire for all people to be saved (see 1 Tim. 2:3, 4; 2 Pet. 3:9). Furthermore, they argue the universal call for sinners to repent and believe the gospel is meaningless if salvation is determined solely by God apart from the free will of a person.

Calvinism is the second dominant viewpoint. Calvinists, named for the Swiss Reformer John Calvin, understand foreknowledge as a “relational” term. In other words, foreknowledge refers to God’s intimate knowledge of and love for His elect before they came into existence. From the Calvinistic perspective, it is God’s sovereign choice, and not a person’s exercised faith, that determines who the elect are. Put simply, Calvinists define election as the unconditional choice of God that is the cause of our faith. Arminians, on the other hand, would define it as the conditional choice of God that is the result of our faith. Calvinists defend their position with passages like Romans 9:6-24 which describe why God hardened Pharaoh’s heart. Moreover, they argue that depraved, spiritually dead people could not choose to believe and would not choose to believe.

Regardless of one’s stance on the matter of election, this much is clear: God is infinitely wise, powerful, and good. We cannot accuse Him of being unfair in His dealings with humans. It was our own sinfulness that has entrapped us and condemned us. Yet God, out of His infinite mercy, chooses to save. [Nelson’s NKJV Study Bible].

Election:
God is a loving and merciful God, and in his grace chooses people for purposes that he has planned. This exercise of God’s sovereign will is called election.
In the Old Testament God’s election applied particularly to his choice of Abraham and, through Abraham, to his choice of Israel to be his people (Gen. 12:1-3; Ne. 9:7-8; Isa. 41:8-9). From this people he produced one man, Jesus the Messiah, chosen by him before the foundation of the world to be the Savior of the world (Luke 9:35; Acts 2:23; 4:27-28; Eph. 1:9-10; 1 Pet. 1:20; 2:4, 6). All who believe in Jesus, whether Jew or Gentile, are the true people of God, the true descendants of Abraham (Rom. 9:6-9; Gal. 3:14, 26-29). God has chosen them to receive his salvation, and together they form God’s people, the church (John 6:37,44; 15:19; 17:2, 6; Eph. 1:4-6; 2 Thess. 2:13-14; 1 Pet. 2:9). ‘The elect’ is therefore another name for the people of God (Matt. 24:22; Luke 18:7; 2 Tim. 2:10). [The AMG Concise Bible Dictionary].

See: Hold Fast: Heb. 6:4-6 and the Possibility of Apostasy by Robert E. Picirilli