Bible Illustrating and Journaling: Ephesians 1:4-5

Annie’s Ink-Lings

This Week's Scripture Focus:  Ephesians 1:4-5

 

Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes.  God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure.

Please note that in this journaling I am addressing only the meaning of the words "chosen" and "predestined."  This is not an argument either for or against Arminianism or Calvinism.

I encourage you to do your own research if you have been touched by this journaling.  This is one of the mysteries of the bible that we may never truly and completely understand while we are present on this earth.  But one thing is certain:  if we are a believer, we have been chosen by the grace of God, and not by works.

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 God chose we who are in Christ to be His children in His wisdom, power, and love, so our proper response as His children is to live in obedience to Him. We are to be "holy," a word meaning "set apart." We are also to live in a way which is without blame.

Before the world was created, God made the decision that all those who believed in Christ Jesus would become children of God.  By that decision, He chose who would be allowed to be his children.  The word chose comes from the Greek word eklegomai, (ek-le'-go-mī )which means “to pick out, choose out a person or thing.” 

By making the decision that only those who would become believers would become His children, God predestined us.  Predestined comes from the Greek word proorizo (proh-oh-REE-zoh) and it means “to make a decision beforehand.”  This means that God determined ahead of time whom He would adopt as His children – the believers.

God has chosen us and yet we are responsible to believe.  He gives us the gift of faith and all who have faith are granted the ability to come to Jesus and will come – no exceptions.

In the beginning before anything was created, God chose and predestinated us to be adopted as children of God by our faith in Christ Jesus.

Blessings,

Annie