Before I get started on this topic, no, I am not talking about the TV show. This post is about the massive debate within the Christian faith. Here is the concept, “God chose specific people to follow Him”. This ideology brings up a lot of questions and has some backing when brought out of context. Lets deep dive together to see what the bible says and does it actually line up with scriptures.
An important thing to note about the bible; The bible was not separated by chapter and verse. This came later to help people study and refer to passages and sections of scripture. This is why it is important to know the context of verses to fully understand what is being said and why. So this blog post will be lengthy and thorough as we discuss verses that are used by Christians’ who say “I’m chosen by God” or “You have to be chosen to be a real Christian”. Lets discuss.
Lets start off with a common section. Ephesians 1:3-4 says, “Blessed is the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavens in Christ. For he chose us in him, before the foundation of the world, to be holy and blameless in love before him.” This is commonly used to show that Christ chooses people and only the people He chooses understand Him. The context here is actually Ephesians 1:3-14. These two verses start the context. Ephesians 1:3–14 praises God for the blessings He has provided. Paul ties together the ideas of predestination, God’s glory, the salvation of His people, and the rights we have as children of God. In particular, believers are blessed because God chose, before creation, to save us (humankind). That salvation came at a great cost: the death of Jesus Christ. As children of God, we can be confident that God will give us what He has promised: namely, an eternity with Him in heaven.
Important to know that these words have tremendous implications regarding the wisdom and plan of God. His wisdom and power are so great that He knew the present, even from the beginning. Likewise, He knew the end before the start. God exists outside of time, and created time. He is the only being able to know all things because He created all things. This attests to the divinity of God and His all knowing might. He knows how everything will work out before it even began and yet we do have free will. This is something our minds cannot wrap around. I know this is off topic to a degree, but to help wrap our minds around this concept, I created this that helps me, I’ll described a visual of this like a tree. A tree grows many branches (choices in life) and those branches have a clear direction. A branch cannot suddenly grow 2 feet to the right of the tree out of air, its all connected. This is a way I visualize our life and the many different interactions and decisions etc. Everything we do and everything that interacts with us affects our “tree”. I see this as a way God sees us but at a more infinite level. Imagine seeing a tree and knowing what it is thinking about and what branch to create next and where that one will go. Different people can visualize this differently but this is a great way to help bring some sort of idea of how He knows all and We have free will at the same time.
Continuing on the topic, Matthew 22:14 is a very known and used verse for the concept that certain people are chosen. Matthew 22:14 says, “For many are invited, but few are chosen.” This is actually the last verse in the context of Matthew 22:1-14. This contains Jesus’ parable of the wedding feast. Jesus compares the kingdom of heaven to a king who threw a banquet for his son. The king’s chosen guests refuse to come, to the point of violence against his messengers. So, the king fills the wedding hall with common people he finds out and about; some bad, some good. One guest is thrown out into the darkness, though, for trying to attend the feast without wearing a wedding garment. Jesus summarizes the message with the famous phrase, “Many are called, but few are chosen.” This parable touches on Israel’s rejection of the Messiah and salvation by grace. This touches on very similar themes to those of the parable of the great banquet (Luke 14:12–24), but with critical differences.
This passage, especially including this verse, contributes to a sense of tension between two ideas. Scripture seems to counterweight two concepts which are not contradictory, but which overlap in complex ways. On one side is God’s choice of those who will enter the kingdom of heaven. On the other is the mandate for people to accept the invitation and receive the gift of God’s grace by faith in Christ. Even in Jesus’ parable, some willingly refuse the invitation. Some accept and fully engage. One seems to accept the invitation, but not entirely. Jesus concludes by saying that many are called to come and participate, but few are chosen to stay.
So lets complicate things a bit, in a later passage, Jesus will refer several times to a chosen group called “the elect” (Matthew 24:22, 24, 31). It is clear from the gospel that everyone included in the elect (all those who are chosen) received the gift of God’s eternal grace after trusting in Jesus (Ephesians 2:8–9). God calls to everyone to come to Him through faith in Christ (Acts 4:12). This demonstrates the limits of human understanding (Isaiah 55:8–9). Mysteriously, and in some interrelated way, only those elected by God will believe, and yet those elected will believe by their own choice. Only those who truly believe (John 3:16–18), those who sincerely and deeply obey the call, are the chosen ones.
To uncomplicate things the best I can, God calls all to receive the gift of salvation after trusting in Jesus and elects those to believe by their choice and true absolute following of Christ as chosen. This is just another point to show that we do not have the full capability to fully grasp the divinity and absolute plan of God. If we did, we wouldn’t need Him. Are we then not all called to follow God through the teachings and understanding of Christ? Simply yes.
I wanted to bring in 2 Thessalonians 2:14 which says, “He called you to this through our gospel, so that you might obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.” The context here is 2 Thessalonians 2:13–17 which presents a stark contrast to the preceding passage. Previously, Paul wrote about the evil man of lawlessness, his wicked deeds, and the dreadful consequences that await him and his followers. Now Paul addresses the Thessalonian believers with a positive, uplifting message about their salvation, and he encourages them to take a defensive posture against false teaching and to adhere to what he had taught them. He concludes with an uplifting benediction, in which he calls upon the Lord Jesus Christ and God the Father to encourage the Thessalonians and establish them in every good word and deed.
Now, in this verse Paul reminds his readers that God used the good news of salvation to call them for a purpose. He called them to share the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. When Jesus was on earth, He took Peter, James, and John up a high mountain and was transfigured before them (Luke 9:28–36). His inner glory shone through His body, and later John and Peter reflected on what had taken place. John wrote: “We have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14). Peter wrote, “We were eyewitnesses of his majesty . . . for we were with him on the holy mountain” (2 Peter 1:16–18). In his letter to the Colossians Paul said Christ in believers is the hope of glory (Colossians 1:27). Now, we hope to share in Christ’s glory, but when He appears, we will appear with Him in glory (Colossians 3:4).
Lets talk about two very important verses on this topic. First John 6:37 says, “Everyone the Father gives me will come to me, and the one who comes to me I will never cast out.” Various theories exist on what, exactly, this means. Some interpret this as a hardline determination by God. Others see this as a reference to God’s sovereign choice in the issue of salvation; this might imply that God works to bring people to saving faith, but not necessarily that He withholds it from those who are not saved.
Secondly, John 6:44 says, “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up on the last day.” Like verse 37, this text also touches on the question of predestination; the idea that God is the one who ultimately decides which persons are saved and which are not. Here, the language seems fairly specific: only those drawn by God can come to Christ. In verse 37, it was stated that those who were “given” to Christ by the father would be saved. Of course, in the wide debates over predestination, there are alternative theories of how, who, and when exactly God “draws” people.
So let us go ahead a bit to John 12:32 which says, “As for me, if I am lifted up from the earth I will draw all people to myself.” The context here is John 12:27–43 that represents the end of Jesus’ public ministry in the gospel of John. After being approached by non-Jewish people who believed in God, Jesus seems agitated as He anticipates His impending death. A voice from heaven affirms His mission, but to most people it simply sounds like noise or thunder. What Jesus means as a reference to crucifixion is misinterpreted by many as a prediction that He’ll be exalted: to be ”lifted up.” The people struggle to understand His message, and Jesus will leave them after warning that their time is short. This confirms Old Testament prophecies and reiterates how far some people will go in order to defy evidence of God.
Why this verse? The expression “lifted up” is a metaphor for crucifixion; a fate Jesus will be experiencing very soon (John 12:23–24). This is something Christ alluded to when speaking with Nicodemus (John 3:14). There, Jesus referenced an incident from Numbers 21:4–9. The people of Israel were suffering from a self-inflicted plague, and could only be saved by looking to a bronze serpent held up on a pole. That moment foreshadowed the concept of salvation by grace through faith, with the eventual Messiah as the one “lifted up” for others to look to and be saved.
This act of being “lifted up” will “draw all men to [Christ].” The context of this “drawing” is the conversation Jesus is having with a crowd in Jerusalem (John 12:20–22). The people had mixed reactions to an overt voice from heaven (John 12:28–29). Jesus pointed out that such events were meant for their own good (John 12:30), as signs to point them to the truth (John 20:30–31). The message of the gospel, focused on Christ’s death and resurrection, is one that “calls” to all people (John 6:35; 40). Unfortunately, not all will respond (John 6:44).
The aftermath of Jesus’ death proves the literal truth of the words “all men.” He will be executed under a placard sarcastically proclaiming Him as king in multiple languages (John 19:20). His death will shake the worldview of a pagan soldier (Mark 15:39), witnessed by both followers and enemies (Mark 15:29–32; John 19:25). He will die in between thieves (Matthew 27:38), only one of whom will believe (Luke 22:39–43). His body will be attended to by both loyal disciples and secret followers; those of both low and high class (Matthew 27:57–61). Women will be the first to learn of His resurrection (Mark 16:1–6). Gentiles will be converted (Acts 10:44–45). Hardened enemies will become missionaries (Acts 22:6–8). Social barriers will be broken (Galatians 3:28). In eternity, those redeemed by Christ will included members of “every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages” (Revelation 7:9).
We can see in Hebrews 4:16 that says, “Therefore, let us approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in time of need.” Context here is Hebrews 4:14–16 is among the most often-quoted passages in the Bible. It is also one of the clearest expressions of Christianity’s unique nature. Jesus, the Son of God, has experienced all of our struggles, temptations, and sufferings. And yet, He did so without succumbing to sin. For this reason, we can look to Him as our perfect example. We can rely on Him as our perfect substitute. We can come to Him as our only High Priest. And, we can trust in Him as our source of help and healing. Knowing that Christ fully, personally understands what it means to be human gives us confidence when we bring Him our failures and needs. So here is our choice in this aspect of following God.
This topic causes a lot of debates within the Christian faith and we can see that this is more complicated than we are to understand. We are to understand the very basics of this which are:
– God is divine and knows everything
– Faith in Jesus leads to eternity with Him
– God was said to draw people in to receive this gift of salvation
– Jesus claimed that after His death, all human kind would be drawn to Him through his death and resurrection but not everyone will answer the call
– Our choice is to answer that call and draw near to Him as He has called us
With this said, under the covenant of Christ who died for us and draws us all near to Him to accept the gift of His death and resurrection which covered the penalty of sin which was death for us. We can see even today that people are drawn to churches, to the bible, and to faith. The issue we deal with is that people distort the truth, misunderstand the truth, and choose their own truth. This is a great way to reflect back to Matthew 22:1-14 with the parable that Jesus uses. Even a guest that accepted the invitation was still thrown out due to not wearing the wedding garments. We also see this in later verses about How Jesus can know us not in Matthew 25:11–12. We are called to have faith in Christ, repent (turn from sin), follow Christ, know Him, and do what He tells us is right.
I hope this post helps those who struggle with this concept. We as Christians study the scriptures together and work together to understand Him more and draw closer to Him. We are to work together as brothers and sisters in Christ for the greater of His glory. You can reach out to us on the home page under “get involved”. I pray this leads you to truth and a better understanding of Christ and his calling. Peace be with you.
Gospel Truth Project 