Page 76 - Pastoral Epistles I & 2 Timothy, Titus

Ephesians 1:4 says, “even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and
without blemish before him in love. The elect of God are those whom God has chosen to be saved throughout all
eternity, and this decision was made before any person was ever created.

However, according to I Peter 1 and Roman 8, this decision to elect some was based on the foreknowledge of
God.

I Peter 1:1-2 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the elect who are sojourners of the Dispersion in
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Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, according to the foreknowledge of God the
Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ:
Grace to you and peace be multiplied.
Romans 8:28-29: For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image
of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He
also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified.

What does “according to the foreknowledge of God” mean?

We must remember that God is not bound by time. There is no sequence of events with Him. He did not look
ahead to see who would believe and then select them. He knew who would believe at the same instant that He
chose who would believe…both God’s knowledge and man’s choice were bound together as one; they are
coextensive. God’s election cannot be made independent of His foreknowledge.

God gave every man free-will to either reject the Gospel or accept the Gospel, and God will hold every man
accountable for his choices. Yet God knows every choice every man will ever make, because He is omniscient!
He knows everything, past, present, and future. That's why the offer of the Gospel to sinners requires a man to
respond in faith, believe, receive, or accept. Multiple verses tell us that God offers salvation to all men who will
believe. But not all do. Those who believe are God’s elect, and those who don’t believe are not God’s elect.

God desires all men to come to Him in Faith and Repentance!
2 Peter 3:9 The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead, he is
patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.
But not everyone is willing to repent and believe!

John 6:37-39. All those the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will
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never drive away. For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him
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who sent me. And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all those he has
given me, but raise them at the last day.
This verse is an example of both God’s sovereignty in selecting the elect and man’s responsibility in
coming to Christ. On one hand, only those whom the Father preordains to do so will come to Christ. But
on the other hand, “whoever” chooses to come will be saved (Romans 10:13)
John 6:44. No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them, and I will raise
them at the last day.
We know that the Holy Spirit convicts of sin and righteousness and judgement (John 16:8) Jesus went on
to explain: “Concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; concerning righteousness, because I go to
the Father, and you will see me no longer; concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is
judged.” (John 16:9–11, ESV).

The world is a sinful place, and one of the Holy Spirit’s tasks is to convict the world of its sin. No amount
of preaching, pleading, or pointing of fingers will bring about the conviction of sin unless the Holy Spirit is
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