Election
This article is taken from Reformed Dogmatics: A Systematic Treatment of Reformed Doctrine by Rev. G. H. Kersten, Volume I, pp. 130-135. It was presented for publication by the Netherlands Reformed book and Publishing Committee and printed by (Wm. B. Eerdmans: Grand Rapids, MI, 1980).
Rev. G. H. Kersten
Election is the decree of God by which He in perfect sovereignty determined in which persons, known to Him by name in Christ, He has decided to magnify His mercy gloriously unto their salvation, and also by which means He Himself shall bring those persons to salvation.
This decree is the Book of life, in which the names of the elect are written. (Rev. 20)
Scripture uses the word elect or chosen in different ways. Sometimes it is used in connection with a certain office, either a civil or an ecclesiastical office. In I Sam. 10:24, I Sam. 16:10, and in Ps. 78:70 it is used in the first sense; and in Luke 6:13 and John 6:70 in the second sense.
In other places the elect are the entire Jewish people, unto whom God had given His laws and statutes. (Deut. 4:37; 7:7)
Often choosing means setting apart in time according to the eternal decree and by effectual calling. (Ps. 4:3; John 15:16; 15:19; I Cor. 1:27,28)
Finally, and most commonly the word election is used to signify God’s eternal decree to the salvation of God’s people. (Rom.8:29,30,33; Eph. 1:4; Rev. 1:4)
The sovereign, eternal, and unchangeable election took place in Christ. (Eph. 1:4) In the election of Christ as Mediator lies the election of those who shall be saved. His election and theirs are one. Therefore, already in election the union of Christ with the elect is established. He is the head, and they are His body. Hence, Paul states that the election in Christ is the fountain of all blessings in Christ. In the first chapter of the epistle to the Ephesians Paul glories in the blessings with which the elect are blessed in Christ. More than ten times Paul says that the elect are blessed in Christ. In Him they are blessed with all spiritual blessings. (ver. 3) By Him they have the adoption of children. (ver. 5) In Him they receive grace. (ver. 6) In Him they have redemption. (ver. 7) In Him they have obtained an inheritance. (ver. 11) In Him they are gathered together. (ver. 10) In Him they were called and blessed and sealed, etc., (ver. 13) and that all because they were predestinated in Him. (ver. 5)
Although the elect were chosen in Christ, Christ is not the cause of election, any more than faith or good works can be. The sovereignty of God does not suffer any other cause beside itself. Christ Himself is the object of election: He is the Savior by election; election is not because of Him. Election is ascribed to the Triune God. To the Father: “Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace be multiplied.” (I Peter 1:2) “According as He hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love.” (Eph. 1:4) “Even so, Father: for so it seemed good in Thy sight.” (Matt. 11:26) “All that the Father giveth Me shall come to Me; and him that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out.” (John 6:37)
Election is also the work of the Son: “I know whom I have chosen.” (John 3:18) “Ye have not chose Me, but I have chosen you.” (John 15:16)
Election is also ascribed to the Holy Spirit, as we can conclude from I Cor. 6:11, “And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.” (ICor. 6:11)
Although election, therefore, is ascribed to each of the three Divine Persons, nevertheless, it is particularly the work of the Father.
The description of election given above shows that God:
a. chose the persons,
b. determined the means by which He would accomplish His election,
c. established the purpose of election, namely, the glorification of His mercy in the salvation of His people.
Now we will briefly discuss each of these points.
a.) That there is an election in which God destines salvation for certain persons chosen by Him in His eternal sovereignty, God’s Word teaches us in many places, such as these: “For whom He did foreknow them He also called: and whom He called them He also justified: and whom He justified them He also glorified. What shall we say then to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?” (Rom. 8:29,30,31) “For the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works, but of Him that calleth. . . . For He saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that showeth mercy.” (Rom. 9:11,15,16) “For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ.” (I Thess. 5:9) “Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace be multiplied.” (I Peter 1:2) “So the last shall be first, and the first last: for many be called, but few chosen.” (Matt. 20:16)
This predetermination from eternity makes the salvation of the elect unshakably certain, because all that God has decreed from eternity shall certainly take place in time. “In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of Him who worketh all things after the counsel of His own will.” (Eph. 1:11) “Known unto God are all His works from the beginning of the world.” (Acts 15:18)
Thus also eternal salvation is destined by God and is unshakably certain for those who are appointed to it. Everyone who has received an impression of the blessedness of God must realize how they who make man’s eternal destiny depend upon man’s free will, and keep it outside of God’s counsel, as the Pelagians do, violate the honor of God.
b.) The means determined by God which He himself grants in accomplishing the election are the union and communion with Christ by faith, justification, sanctification, and the adoption of children. In a very unique sense Christ can be called the means, for the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in His hand. (Isa. 53:10) Moreover all that which serves to make them conformed to the image of His Son (Rom. 8:29) through the sanctification of the Spirit (I Peter 1:2) can be counted as means by which God gathers His elect.
c.) The most perfect purpose of election is the glory of God. Election is indeed to the salvation of God’s people, but that salvation is to the glory of God. “And that He might make known the riches of His glory on the vessels of mercy, which He had afore prepared unto glory.” (Rom. 9:23)
Characteristics
Here we must make a few remarks on a few characteristics of election. Election is from eternity. “According as He hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world.” (Eph. 1:4) The election from eternity is certainly performed in time (I Cor. 1:26-28) before we believe and before we die. God draws His own in this life. He plucks them as a brand out of the fire. (Zech. 3:2) He passes them by in the open field (Ezek. 16) knowing perfectly those who are His.
Scripture speaks about the immutability of election in II Tim. 2:19; Rom. 8:29; 9:11; and other places. The number of the elect is determined, and can be neither increased nor decreased. This the Word of God testifies for the comfort of His people. No one shall pluck them out of the Father’s hand. Election is the unfathomable and inexpressible source of comfort for God’s poor people who are entirely lost in themselves. According to His pleasure God is glorified in them to their salvation. They are saved, not because they want to be saved, but because God wants to save them. “By Thee, by Thee alone, because of Thy eternal good pleasure.”
Our attention should especially be drawn to the fact that there is but one election to salvation. All those who teach the free will of fallen man, if they still deal with election, speak of many kinds of elections, as do the Pelagians, Socinians , Semi-Pelagians, among whom are the Roman Catholics, and alas, also many Lutherans.
Rejecting their blasphemous errors, the Reformed out of all countries, who were gathered at Dort confessed: “There are not various decrees of election, but one and the same decree respecting all those, who shall be saved, both under the Old and New Testament: since Scripture declares the good pleasure and counsel of the divine will to be one, according to which He hath chosen us from eternity, both to grace and glory, to salvation and the way of salvation, which He hath ordained what we should walk therein.” (Canons of Dort, I, Art. 8)
Those who hold the free will of fallen man deny the election of persons by the sovereign will of God. They assert that there is only an election of state and condition. According to them, God chose those who will believe, and rejected those who do not want to believe. Those that still speak of an election of persons say it is general and conditional. Thus, for example, the election of Peter would have taken place with the condition of faith and repentance, worked by himself in his own power. Furthermore these erring spirits speak of an election that is temporary and changeable, so that, for example, God decided to save Peter when he believed, but only if he persevered. This comfortless doctrine of the Pelagians leaves those that believe in despair until they die, for according to them it is possible any moment to lose their faith and fall out of election. “The foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are His.” (II Tim. 2:19)
All of Scripture testifies against these abominable errors just mentioned. Moreover some even sank so far as to speak of a general election of all rational creatures. Origen taught that not only all people shall be saved, but also the devils who have been chosen thereto shall be saved after they have spent a certain length of time in hell to suffer their punishment. In the 16th century Puccius and Huberus followed him. God’s Word, however, very clearly denies a general election. “For many are called, but few are chosen.” (Matt. 20:16, and 22:14) “If ye were of the world, the world would love its own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.” (John 15:19) “I have manifested Thy name unto the men which Thou gayest Me out of the world: Thine they were, and Thou gayest them Me; and they have kept My word.” (John 17:6) “For whom He did foreknow, He also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren”. (Rom. 8:29) “As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated.” “For He saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.” “Therefore hath He mercy on whom He will have mercy, and whom He will He hardeneth.” (Rom. 8:13,15,18) “For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ.” (I Thess. 5:9)
The word election excludes universality. For to elect means to choose out of a multitude, and this conflicts with an election of all. (John 15:19) Also, if there were a general election, there would be no reprobation, which, however, Scripture teaches. (Rom. 9:13; Jude 4; Prov. 16:4; Matt. 25:41) There is not one place in God’s Word that teaches a general election, which would be fruitless, and left undone, unless one accepts the idea that all men shall be saved, which is contrary to the entire Scripture, so that it deserves not one word of contradiction.
In Rom. 9:18 election, which there is called mercy, is not said to be general, as our opponents assert. The whole 9th chapter of the epistle to the Romans testifies against them. Is there any other chapter that teaches so clearly that both election and rejection of persons known to God by name are acts of perfect sovereignty? No, election is not general.
Neither does John 3:16 give erring spirits any ground. The “world” in this text means the world of the elect, not only of the Jews, but also of the heathen.
Other texts that are used to confirm their theory include: “Who will have all men to be saved.” (I Tim. 2:4) “Say unto them, As I live, saith the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?” (Ezek. 33:11) “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to usward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” (II Peter 3:9)
In I Tim. 2:4 Paul speaks of all men, both those in authority, and the subjects; and Ezekiel speaks of the death of those sinners which are converted by grace, namely God’s elect; while Peter teaches that God does not want any of the believers who have the promise to be lost. None of these texts, therefore speak of an election of all people. Nor is there a falling away of the saints. The Arminians speak of such a falling away, and point to I Tim. 1:19,20, where however, Paul does not speak of the falling away of true believers, but of outward confessors and temporary believers. These are like the seed that falls in stony places. They receive the word immediately with joy, but they are never rooted in Christ, and therefore wither. (Matt. 13:20,21)