[0:00] I'd like us to turn this evening to the letter to the Ephesians. Ephesians chapter 1 and verses 4 and 5 especially. Let's read from verse 3.
[0:14] Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessings in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him.
[0:32] In love he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the beloved.
[0:46] And it's that reference, especially to our being chosen before the foundation of the world, that we want to give some attention to this evening, because that's our topic for this evening in the series of topical studies.
[1:02] Tonight we're going to look at this particular theological topic, and it's one of the most difficult in many ways, because there's a lot of mystery about it, and yet in another sense the idea of election itself, is quite simple to follow, because it's something that just has the same idea as the word that you use normally.
[1:25] The subject of election is obviously one that is found in the Bible, it's a Bible truth, it's a truth that God has revealed is about himself, and how he has chosen his own people.
[1:41] You find that where we read in the Old Testament, for example, there are other similar passages there, where the reference was to Israel, and how out of all the nations in the world, God chose these people to be a covenant people to himself.
[1:57] And he stressed there through Moses that it wasn't because they were better than others, it wasn't because they were bigger than others, it was simply because the Lord loved them. And that's a theme which follows into the New Testament references, such as here, where election and God's love are very closely connected, in fact so close that it is in love that God chose his people in Christ.
[2:22] And as we said, election really has the same meaning essentially in the Bible's use of it like this, as you use the word normally in your own daily experience.
[2:34] When you choose something, when you elect something, well you just do that out of other possible choices, you make your choice. Just imagine, just picture for a moment that you're in the supermarket, in the Copa or in Tesco, and there you see me standing in front of, let's say, the loose onions.
[2:57] Sometimes it happens that I do the food shopping, and that's one of the things that happens. You choose, out of all the selection of apples or onions, whatever it is in front of you, you choose as many as you want to buy, you put that in the bag and off you go, along with the rest of the stuff, and you take it to the check-in.
[3:17] Now there you are, you're watching me, and there I am standing in front of this aisle with these onions and this section of it. And as I stand there and looking at the onions, all different sort of shapes, sizes, perhaps different colours as well in a sense, but eventually I pick maybe five, six, whatever, put them in a bag and leave the rest.
[3:40] Now I haven't done anything to the rest. All I've done is, to these that I've chosen, I've picked them and I've put them in the bag and I've taken them with me.
[3:51] I haven't done anything to the ones that remain. But my selection of those from amongst them has affected them as well, obviously, because there are less of them than there were to begin with, for one thing.
[4:05] Keep that in mind as we come to look at this subject of God's election of his people. I want to try and make it as simple as possible in terms of the ideas that are brought to us in the Bible's own teaching.
[4:20] And there are three things especially that we can look at tonight from the topic, just confining it to these three things. Because, first of all, it's God's sovereign election.
[4:34] God's sovereign freedom is exercised in our election. In other words, when God chose, as we see here, the blessings that have come to us have come even as he chose us, even according as he has chosen us in Christ before the foundation of the world.
[4:53] Now that really says to you that before there was ever such a thing as the creation, before anything was in being, before anything existed apart from God, he actually had selected his people, he had selected those who would be his saved people before they existed, before the foundation of the world, before time, God chose us.
[5:17] God chose his people in Christ before the creation was brought about. In other words, there you have God, and nothing else exists but God, and there is God selecting his people.
[5:34] God selecting his people.
[6:04] God selecting his people.
[6:34] God selecting his people.
[7:04] God selecting his people.
[7:34] God selecting his people. God selecting his people. God selecting his people. It's because of the life of Christ. That's because of what he has done that all of these blessings flow to us.
[7:47] But God was not influenced by Christ's death in choosing his people. It was not on the basis of Jesus' obedience or Jesus' death that he then chose his people.
[8:01] You have to see the teaching of the Bible the other way. God, having chosen his people in Christ before the foundation of the world, then sent his Son to die for those that he had chosen in him.
[8:16] Remember we said there is a lot of mystery in the doctrine of election. We are not here tonight in any way to pretend that we know all aspects of it.
[8:26] That we can explain all aspects of it fully or confidently or comprehensively. It is not like that. But what we are trying to do is take the things that are clear about it from the Bible and hold to these.
[8:41] Because that is what God has actually revealed about it. So it is first of all God's sovereign freedom. When he chose his people, he acted sovereignly and freely.
[8:55] He was not influenced by anything at all out with himself. Even in the person of Jesus and his work, he chose them in his love with a view to their salvation.
[9:14] Secondly, you find God's eternal love in their election. First thing is God's sovereign freedom, not influenced by anything else.
[9:27] Secondly, there is God's eternal love. Notice what it says here. Even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him.
[9:39] Some translations put blameless before him in love. Full stop. There are ones like this one, have the full stop after him.
[9:51] And the next sentence begins, in love he predestinated us or predestined us for adoption as sons. Now predestined is in a sense the same thing as election from the point of view that predestination is God ordaining something from all eternity.
[10:08] It's God's decree. God himself, let's use the word deciding. But God deciding something before the world was.
[10:20] And what we're told here is that our selection or our election by him, he predestined that. He did that.
[10:31] He decided that in love. The way it is in the language of the New Testament, in the Greek text, you could have the word in love before he predestined or else along with the previous part.
[10:46] But it's better, I think, that we take it in this way. In other words, it's saying to us that it was in his love that he chose his people. And that's such a wonderful thing to hold on to.
[10:57] Because this was not something that you find like in mathematics where you work out a formula. And where there's a certain consequence because you've taken through all of these steps and you've worked it out in a kind of detached way.
[11:13] You have formulas that you apply or whether it's that or even arithmetic or whatever it is. You just do it in a way that is detached. Even if you really love mathematics, it's still not something that you love in the way you love a person.
[11:27] It's not like that with God choosing us in Christ. It's not him just making up a list and coldly putting down certain names upon it without any reference at all to any movement in himself towards them.
[11:44] He chose us in love. It is love that made the choice. God's love or God in his love.
[11:55] But you see, he's saying to us, it was actually in love. It was the love of God and God in his love that made this choice of his people. What a wonderful concept that is that everything, as we'll see in a minute, that flows from this choice.
[12:12] Everything you have as a Christian, you can attribute or you can trace it all the way back to the love of God choosing you as one of his people.
[12:22] And there's nothing more wonderful than that in all of existence that you or I should be able to say about ourselves.
[12:34] I have been chosen by God before the world began to be amongst his people, to belong to his people. And you know, he chose me in his sovereign, eternal love.
[12:50] His love was set upon me before I came into being. The psalmist, in Psalm 139, while it doesn't necessarily mention love, But there's a wonderful description there of, as it were, God looking before he came into being, God had written all the features of his life in his book.
[13:15] That's how he puts it, as if God was writing a volume about his life. They were all in your book, he's saying. Which means that everything that happens in our lives, you can trace it back to God and to God's book, where your life has been written down in love.
[13:39] Where love has inscribed every feature of your life as a Christian. Yes, including the difficult things. Remember Hebrews chapter 12.
[13:49] Not going to go into that, but follow it out for yourselves. Hebrews chapter 12, which deals with out correction, or out chastisement, or chastening, whatever word we use.
[14:00] It means to be corrected. And what it says in that great chapter is that it is one of the great marks of God's love that he corrects his people.
[14:11] For if we are without chastisement, we are illegitimate children. We're not sons. We don't belong to his family. And because we do belong to his family.
[14:22] And because the family of God trace their heritage, their very existence and origin back to his love. They can say, because that's the case.
[14:33] That love is going to look after me from all the time since I come into being, right through into eternity. Because it was there set upon me before I was ever born.
[14:48] He chose us in love. And that's where we have to leave it. It's not right for us then. You know, there are some questions that people do ask.
[15:01] And they're not right to ask. Because when we're asking questions about things that God has kept from us. We're actually, on the borders at least, of treating God dishonorably.
[15:16] God has himself decided what he did and did not reveal to us. He has revealed to us that he chose his people in love.
[15:27] He did not then add, and this is why I chose them in love. It simply says, we were chosen in love. And that's it. And that's where we have to leave it.
[15:38] And isn't that enough for us? Go back to my choice of the onions. You're watching me there, choosing the onions. I choose, let's say, six of these out of the rest of them.
[15:51] I put them in the bag and off I go. And you're standing there watching me and you're asking, I wonder why he chose those six and left the rest. What was it about them that made him choose these six and not the others that he left behind?
[16:07] Well, you don't know the answer to that. The answer is in my mind. I know why I chose these. I had some things that I was thinking of when I chose these out of all the rest. But I haven't revealed that to anyone else.
[16:18] It's my choice. It's my knowledge of my choice. It's my mind that's made the choice. It's hidden in my mind. And nobody else knows it unless I choose to reveal it to them.
[16:29] God has not done that. He has chosen us in Christ before the foundation of the world. And he has chosen us in his love. His love made the choice.
[16:40] Or he in his love made the choice. But then he didn't say in this Bible, This now is why I made the choice. And why others weren't chosen.
[16:52] That's in the mystery and in the wisdom of God's own mind. Let's leave it there. God's eternal love in our election.
[17:04] We're chosen in love. But then you see, part of that as well is that we are chosen in Christ. Even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world.
[17:16] We were not just chosen by God. We were chosen in Christ. Now remember of course, Christ is the second person of the Trinity. God is three persons.
[17:27] One God. One of the great mysteries. But within God, three persons, before the foundation of the world. God the Father chose his people in the Son.
[17:44] In Christ. Not detached from him. Not without Christ's participation. Don't think of Christ as an idle, inactive spectator.
[17:55] When God the Father chose us in him. God chose us in his Son. But the Son is God equally with the Father. And he has. Although it's the Father that chose.
[18:08] He chose in the Son. Not without his acceptance or permission. Or full cooperation. Or anything like that. He was as involved in the Father's choice of his people in him.
[18:20] As the Father was in choosing them. And when you think of it in that way. Think again of the onions.
[18:33] There I am and I come to choose the onions out of the whole pile. And what do I do with them? I put them into the plastic bag that's available. I take these.
[18:43] I select them. That's my choice. That's my election. And those that I have elected. I take out of all the rest. And I put into this bag. And I can hold this bag up now.
[18:54] And say. This is my elect. This is my selection. This is what I have chosen. God chose them into him. If you like.
[19:05] He put them into Christ. Into the Son. Just like you have in the illustration. I know it's inadequate. But you take the onions.
[19:16] You put them into the bag. And after you've put them into the bag. You can say. They're now in this bag. And I can say that this selection is in the bag.
[19:28] God's people were chosen into Christ. God's selection of them was a selection into him. The very act of choosing them.
[19:38] Was a choosing of them into the Son. And from then. They could be said to be in him. And I know that's taking us all the way into. These dark mysteries of eternity.
[19:50] We should say. Bright mysteries. They're not dark. They're bright. Because they're full of life. But they are mysterious. And we can't go beyond. What God himself has revealed.
[20:00] And that's as far as he's revealed it. But you remember John 6.37. I said to you that.
[20:11] You have seen me and yet do not believe. All that the Father gives me will come to me. And whoever comes to me. I will never cast out.
[20:22] There's the verse. All that the Father has given to me. That's their election. That's their choice by God the Father. He has put them into Christ. Before the world ever started.
[20:34] And when Jesus came into the world. To do his work in the world. They were in him. He had come to die for them. They were on his heart.
[20:45] Similar to the Old Testament imagery. Or illustrated by the Old Testament imagery. Of Aaron the high priest. With the breastplate. And the twelve stones. He was representing all of Israel.
[20:57] In that breastplate. As he represented the people. In his work before the Lord. Well that's what. Jesus coming into the world. The Son of God came.
[21:08] And his people were already in him. And when he came. To do the work he did on earth. Especially his death. His resurrection. His obedience. It was for them. Who were already in him.
[21:20] By God's choice. And. That's what he's saying here. All. That the Father has given to me. That's them all complete.
[21:30] If you like. The whole. Collection. Of that selection. That God has made. They are in him. All that the Father has given. But then notice the other side.
[21:43] They will come to me. And whoever comes. Or the one who comes to me. I shall in no wise cast out. What's the difference?
[21:55] The difference is that the first part. Deals with the whole. Of God's elect. Together. They have been given to him. By the Father. Second.
[22:07] Deals with each individual person. Out of that. Coming to him. For life. Whoever. The one who comes to me. I will in no wise cast out.
[22:22] Now that makes a very important point. And the point is this. People are saved. Not merely because God has elected them.
[22:37] They are saved. We have to choose our words carefully. People are saved. Not merely. Because God has elected them. They are saved.
[22:47] Because they come to Christ. Because they believe in Christ. Because they repent of sin. Because they turn to the Lord. Because they pray. Because they actually. Worship God.
[22:58] Because they obey God. Because they respect his commandments. Not because in the sense of merit. But through all of these things. And not without any of these things. Are we actually saved.
[23:09] We are not saved. Because these things. Buy our salvation for us. That is what I mean. When we are saying. We are not saved. Merely because God chose us.
[23:20] Because. All that God chose. As Jesus put it there. Will come to me. And the one who comes to me. I will in no wise cast out.
[23:31] There I am with my bag of onions. And I have reached home. And it is intact. And I can take it up. And all the onions are inside it. And I put them away somewhere. Wherever I store them.
[23:44] But unless something extraordinary happens. I am not going to take them all. And chuck them into the one dish. Into the one meal. I will take them one by one. Or two or whatever.
[23:54] I select from the whole lot. Those that I will use in the course of time. Or whoever is going to use them. And that is what Jesus is saying. In regard to election. They are elect as one complete people.
[24:08] That is the whole collection. All that the Father has given me. And out of that. In the course of time. As time goes on. As one generation follows another.
[24:20] The one who comes to me. Out of that all. Every individual comes. For themselves. That is why. It is rather disturbing.
[24:32] To hear some people saying. As we often. Or sometimes hear people saying. Well. I can't do anything about. My salvation. It is all about God's election.
[24:44] And if I am in that elect. I will be saved. Well of course. There is a sense. In which that is true. But it is disturbing.
[24:55] Because while that person. Has not come to Christ. And while that person. Has not repented of sin. They are not saved. And they will not be saved. Until they have done so.
[25:07] Everyone. Who is in the elect. Will repent. Will believe. Will come to Christ. Christ. And only they will be saved.
[25:20] So it is a bit of a. Fatalistic attitude. To have. When you think that. Election. And nothing but election. Needs to be considered. In order to think of.
[25:31] What it is to be saved. It is the origin of things. Yes. But it is not the totality. We have to take account. Of our responsibility.
[25:42] And our election by God. Does not destroy. Our responsibility. And our responsibility. Is to believe. To accept the Jesus.
[25:53] That is offered. In the gospel. To repent of our sin. To turn to God. To come to. Accept this Christ. As he is offered. This great. Glorious.
[26:03] Wonderful. Warm. Savior. That is. How we come. To be saved. So. Yes. Election does provide us.
[26:15] A security. But. It is not a security. Detached from our. Believing. Our faith. Our living a holy life. Indeed. That is what it is saying there. Isn't it? That. That brings us to our third point.
[26:27] God's. Gracious purpose. In election. We are not told. Why he chose. The ones he chose. Out of all the rest.
[26:39] But we are told. That those he chose. He chose with a certain purpose. And the purpose was that they might be holy. That they might live. As his people.
[26:50] He has indeed. Chosen us in him. Before the foundation of the world. So that we should be holy. And blameless. Before him. And that means that.
[27:04] Election first of all. Views. Us human beings. As. Fallen. Sinful. Lost. Human beings. I am not going to go into that.
[27:15] Because it is. Theologians have all these fancy words. Don't they? Long words usually as well. But this is a debate that has gone on for centuries.
[27:27] Between people who are called. Infralapsarians. And. Supralapsarians. If you find a theological dictionary. Check it up for yourselves.
[27:39] It basically means this. Or includes this. It is really to do with. The order in which God has decreed certain things. When God. Chose his people in Christ.
[27:50] Before the foundation of the world. If we can put it. In such simple terms as this. Was he looking at them in his love. As already fallen. And therefore.
[28:01] In need of salvation. Or was he looking at them. As a people. And then. Comes the decree. For their fallen Adam. Which God allowed. Or which God brought.
[28:12] And. Brought about. By. By his. Allowing of it to happen. And then. Things move on from there. The Bible.
[28:24] More often than not. Focuses on election. And grace. Together. That's what you find here. That he. All to the praise.
[28:35] Of his glorious. Grace. According to the riches. Of his grace. So in other words. The grace of God. Is connected to our.
[28:46] To his election. Of his people. So that. In his election. The grace. In which he. Views them. With which he looks upon them. Obviously.
[28:58] Regards them as lost. As fallen. Because. Who need grace. Lost sinners. Need grace. Fallen sinners.
[29:08] Need grace. And therefore. Because grace. Is so attached. To his election. Of us. In love. It's grace. Towards the fallen. It's.
[29:19] An election. Of them. As a need. Of salvation. And therefore. He sends a savior. A redeemer. To actually. Save his elect. Elect people. Now.
[29:30] There's another side of it. Of course. The fact. That he elects. Means. That some are not elect. And this is one of the. Areas.
[29:42] Where we have to. Say. That God. Has not revealed. Much to us at all. And. That's why. A lot of people. Have. An objection. To election.
[29:52] And feel. It's not really right. Of us to. To say. That there's even. Such a doctrinous election. Because it means. That God. Is choosing some. And not choosing others. Well yes.
[30:06] He's God. None deserve. To be chosen. Israel. Didn't deserve. To be chosen. But he chose them. You or I.
[30:18] Didn't deserve. To be chosen. But he chose us. In Christ. If we are his. Today. And. The difficulty.
[30:29] Is such that. The confession of faith. For example. Simply says this. Others. He passed by. In other words.
[30:43] Election. As. Don McLeod. In. In. In. His lectures. In college. Used to put it this way. For us. Election. Is. An. Effectuating. Grace.
[30:53] Or an. Effectuating. Thing. Whereas. Reprobation. That's. To do with the lost. The decree. With regard to the lost. Election.
[31:03] Is. Effectuating. Reprobation. Is not. That means that. In God's election. There is an application. Of life.
[31:14] To those that he elects. Eventually. It's with a view. To them living. Reprobation. Is as the confession. Puts it. He passed them by. Go back again. To the.
[31:25] Selection. Of the onions. I choose. The half dozen. That I choose. Out of. The rest. Not. When it comes to election. We don't know numbers. God only.
[31:35] Knows the numbers. Whether there's more. Or less. That's not up to us. To decide. God only. Knows that. But what I'm saying is. When you take the choice. Of these onions. And leave the rest.
[31:46] Like I said at the beginning. You're actually. Handling these. Onions. You're taking these. Out of the rest. You're putting them into the bag. You're not doing anything. To the others. You're simply.
[31:57] Passing them by. You're leaving them. As they are. And we always. Have to remember. That. We all deserve. To die. Eternally.
[32:09] And while there's no answer. To why God chose certain. As against others. You have to see it. Against the background. That none. Deserve. The salvation.
[32:21] That God brings us. There is. The way the. The Bible speaks of it. Or the way the confession. Puts it. The Bible.
[32:32] Teaches us. God has. Predestined some. To eternal life. And God has. Passed by others. And it's interesting. The confession uses. Predestined.
[32:43] For the elect. And ordained. For those that are not. For the reprobate. For those who will not. Be saved. There's not really. Much. Of a difference.
[32:53] Essentially. Between the two words. But. Those who made up. The confession of faith. The word. Predestined. For them. Had connections. With the love of Christ. And with Christ.
[33:04] With God. In his love for Christ. So they confined it. To that. And they chose. The other word. For the reprobate. For the lost. That's just. An interesting. Observation.
[33:16] So God's gracious purpose. Views man as fallen. But election. Is unto. Salvation. He chose us. So that we would come. To be saved.
[33:27] His love. Settled upon us. So that we. As we said here. Will be holy. Would be holy. And blameless. Before him. And. Everything you see.
[33:38] In verse 3 there. Blessed be the God and Father. Of our Lord Jesus Christ. Who has blessed us. In Christ. With every spiritual blessing. In the heavenly places.
[33:49] Worth that. Where Jesus is. Tonight. And where he has been. Since he went back. To heaven. To be a. Set. At the right hand. Of the throne of God. To rule over all things.
[34:01] Till he comes back again. That's the. That's the source. From which we are blessed. Out of that. Fullness of blessing. That is in Jesus. The exalted king.
[34:13] It's the treasure. That's in him. That you receive. When you receive blessing. What he's saying is. That has been according to.
[34:24] As he chose us in him. See the. Election. Of God. As it is something that. Happened before.
[34:36] The world was. Those that he elected. Are those that come to be blessed. They are blessed. According to the purpose.
[34:46] Of the election. Which is that they would have. This blessing. That's stored for them. In Jesus Christ. And.
[34:57] That doesn't mean. That we live. A loose life. Our election is. Unto salvation. Salvation. Salvation includes. This life that we live now.
[35:09] Where we seek to please God. To serve God. To live. As it says here. A holy life. Some people think that. If you believe in election. God chose his people.
[35:22] These people will certainly be saved. Yes we believe all that. Well they conclude. Well that means you don't have to worry about your life then. Doesn't it. It doesn't really matter how you live. You're certain to be saved anyway.
[35:33] And if you live a loose life. For most of your life. Even in the final year of your life. If you're elect. Then God will come and save you. And that will be that. That's. Putting together things.
[35:44] Which the Bible doesn't put together. And at the same time. It's actually pulling apart things. Which the Bible does put together. Because the Bible does put together.
[35:54] The elect of God. And living a holy life. And the people who know. What it is. To have come to Christ. For salvation. Whose lives have been changed.
[36:06] Who can say they're thankful to God. That there's such a thing as election. That he chose them. Before they came to him. They can also say.
[36:17] That. The life they now live. Is a life that does not want to sin against God. That does not want to.
[36:30] To displease God. And to live disobediently. It's the very opposite. Because election.
[36:42] Brings us to. The means of grace. To the Bible. To prayer. To fellowships. To. The preaching of God's word. And all of these are used by God.
[36:52] Indeed. For ordained by God. For the elect. To live the lives. That they ought to live. And that means.
[37:03] Finally. God's gracious purpose. Views us. In election. As fallen. But the election is unto salvation. And thirdly. Election is for our.
[37:15] Practical application. You may wonder about that. After. A kind of study. That we've had tonight. Because it is.
[37:26] Very heavy theology. And I hope I'm trying to. Open it out somewhat. That is followable. But what is. What we're saying is that. Election is for our. Practical application.
[37:36] It's not there for. Theologians only. And indeed. It's not there primarily. For theological. Disputations. And discussions. It's there for you.
[37:47] And I. To put. To good. Practical. Use. In your Christian life. How? Well listen to what the confession says. The doctrine of this high mystery of predestination.
[37:59] Is to be handled with special prudence and care. So that people attending to the will of God revealed in his word. And yielding obedience to it.
[38:11] May from the certainty of their effectual vocation. Be assured of their eternal election. So shall this doctrine afford all manner matter of praise, reverence and admiration of God.
[38:28] And of humility, diligence and abundant comfort to all who sincerely obey the gospel. Election is there not to confuse you.
[38:43] It's in the Bible not to confound you. It's there not to make you alarmed or lose your assurance. It's the opposite. It's a great pastoral doctrine.
[38:58] And we're mishandling the doctrine of election. Unless we're applying it and looking at it primarily as a great doctrine for practical purposes. That's why the confession which is such a great practical document in itself.
[39:13] As well as theological. All the great theology in the Bible that comes to us as revealed by God is for your life. And for your manner of life.
[39:25] And for indeed this assurance. That God is your God and that you are his. That's how the confession puts it. There are two areas to our practical use of it.
[39:38] First of all for our praise and reverence and admiration of God. Many people think that Calvinism is a horrible religion.
[39:56] Or a horrible species of theology I should say. Calvin does use the word in Latin horribilis. And he uses it of this doctrine.
[40:08] And especially off the side of it. That's reprobation too. But when Calvin uses it in that way. It doesn't mean horrible.
[40:19] It means awesome. Stimulating awe and admiration of God. That's what it should do for us. That God has chosen the likes of us.
[40:33] That God's love settled upon us from all eternity. That because God chose us in him. He sent his son into the world to die for us. So that we chosen in him might come to live through him.
[40:46] That we might have forgiveness. Because of the fact that God chose us towards that in Christ. Before we were ever born. And then all that follows on from that.
[41:01] To the praise and to the worship of God. And on the other side of it. There's your own humility. It humbles you to think. That God actually set his love upon you and I.
[41:18] Before we were ever in being. Diligence. Make your calling and election sure. Peter is saying. That doesn't mean that it's not sure already with God.
[41:31] And that you're making it sure by something you do. What it means is that. Prove by your way of life. That you are one of God's chosen people.
[41:43] Make it sure to yourself. Because that's the evidence of it. That you do these things that are mentioned in 2 Peter 1. And then there's a.
[41:56] Abundant consolation of comfort. Our salvation tonight doesn't depend on. The qualities that we bring to it. It's not depending on our diligence.
[42:12] How often we pray. How well we remember sermons. What level of holiness we've attained in life. No.
[42:23] Our consolation is in God. There alone is our comfort. And when you say your consolation. Your comfort is in God.
[42:34] As surely as anything else. It's in the election that God. Has made of his people. They are certain. To be saved.
[42:47] Certain never to come. Within. Within. Condemnation. And that's why the confession puts it. That's true for. That's a. Diligence.
[42:57] Humility. Abundant consolation. To all. That sincerely. Obey the gospel. And I'm thankful tonight. That these men were wise enough.
[43:08] To say. Sincerely obey the gospel. Not perfectly. Obey the gospel. Because then we would despair.
[43:21] And then we would lose assurance. What it says is. This is for all. Who sincerely. Obey the gospel. Who know they're not perfect.
[43:32] But you want to be perfect one day. And to be perfect. With the perfection. For which. They were chosen. In heaven.
[43:43] Before the foundation. Of the world. Let's pray. Our gracious God. Enable us. We pray. To. Reflect upon these great issues.
[43:57] That your word reveals to us. And help us. Despite the difficulties of. Understanding them. Or speaking of them. That we may nevertheless. Know sufficiently.
[44:09] To admire. And to praise. And to worship your name. And to draw. Our own humility. And comfort. And humble walk. From them. So that we might.
[44:19] Lord. Proceed in our lives. In this world. In a way that indeed. Would be your people. As described. In your word. Receive our thanks. Now we pray. For Christ's sake.
[44:30] Amen. Amen. Ask for His way. Amen.
[44:47] Thank you. Thank you. Go ahead.