May 28, 2024 • 42 mins
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Have you ever wondered if God desires some people to go to hell or if He chooses only a select few for His divine work? This episode of The Takeaway with Pastor Harry Behrens promises to unravel these profound questions as we explore the themes of God's perfect election and His purpose for believers, as described in Ephesians 1:1-14. From Paul's writings during his imprisonment, we uncover the grand design of God to redeem humanity, emphasizing the importance of aligning our thoughts with His will to lead lives that glorify Him. Discover the dangers of false teachings and understand the necessity of spiritual armor to become effective ambassadors for Christ.
In the teachings of Jesus found in John 15:16 and John 15:5, we are reminded that we are chosen to bear lasting spiritual fruit. This episode sheds light on the misconception that only certain individuals are called to God's work, clarifying that every believer is equipped for good works in their current vocation. As Matthew 5:14-16 illustrates, we are called to be a light in the world, glorifying God in all circumstances. By abiding in Jesus, we not only glorify God but are also filled with joy, understanding that our calling is a divine gift, not based on merit.
We also tackle complex topics such as sin, righteousness, and predestination, referencing key scriptures from Romans and Ephesians to reflect on God's justice and grace. Emphasizing that believers are chosen to glorify Him, we discuss the evidence of being born again in the Spirit and the significance of faith as a gift from God. Finally, we challenge you to reflect on whether you are living according to God's will, urging you to visit our website for more resources and stay connected with our ministry. Join us in this enlightening discussion that aims to deepen your understanding and relationship with God.
Please visit www.chosenbydesign.net for more information on Pastor Harry’s new book, "Chosen By Design - God’s Purpose for Your Life."
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hello, welcome again to the Takeaway.
I'm your host, pastor HarryBehrens, and in today's episode
we will be discussing Ephesians,chapter 1, verses 1-14,.
God's perfect election.
This epistle is attributed tothe Apostle Paul and was written
while he was in prison.
It is considered one of themost eloquent writings of the
New Testament, as it covers thefull spectrum of Christian
(00:21):
living and gives us a clearroadmap to follow so that we can
and will be effective believersfor Jesus while in this world.
This letter will take usthrough the plan of God,
starting with his purpose toredeem fallen man through the
full equipping of the saints, sothat we can live a purposeful,
glorifying life for him thatwill allow us to live in the joy
(00:42):
of the Lord.
John 15, 7-11.
If you abide in me and my wordsabide in you, ask whatever you
wish, and it will be done foryou.
By this my Father is glorified.
That you bear much fruit and soprove to be my disciples.
As the Father has loved me, sohave I loved you.
(01:12):
Abide in my love.
If you keep my commandments,you will abide in my love just
as I.
God's desire for us is that ourjoy is full in him and that he
is glorified.
These two things work togetherto produce a purposeful and
meaningful life.
God has hidden us, hidden ourjoy deep within himself.
(01:34):
Nothing can rob us of it.
When we understand this Now,starting in Ephesians, chapter 1
, verses 1 and 2, we read Paulan apostle of Christ Jesus by
the will of God to the saintswho are in Ephesus and are
faithful in Christ Jesus.
Grace to you and peace from God, our Father and the Lord Jesus
(01:54):
Christ.
In verse 1, we see Paul statethat he was an apostle by the
will of God.
It's important to note that thewill of God is the primary
motivator for Christians and iswhere we find our purpose.
God desires us to align ourthoughts with his will, just as
Jesus did.
By this, we will know that weare one in him and have
(02:17):
assurance of our place with himand in him.
John 14, 19.
Yet the world will see me nomore, but you will see me
because I live in you also.
You also will live in me.
In that day you will know thatI am in my Father and you in me
(02:38):
and I in you.
Since it is God's will that weabide in him.
And Paul states by the will ofGod he is an apostle, we could
be assured that what we are alsois by the will of God.
Your life is not random or outof control, but purposed by the
will of God.
I can't stress this enough.
You have a purpose in God'splan.
(03:00):
That will look different foreach of us, but I promise you
that you are no less valuablethan the apostle Paul was in
God's plan to.
That will look different foreach of us, but I promise you
that you are no less valuablethan the Apostle Paul was in
God's plan to further the gospel.
Once you understand this truth,nothing can stop you from
entering the full joy of theLord and glorifying Him in all
that you do.
You mustn't let anyone rob youof this truth and lead you
astray.
(03:20):
You cannot be robbed of yoursalvation, but you can be robbed
of your assurance in yoursalvation, and this is precisely
what the enemy is out to do robyou of any assurance,
confidence or hope in Christ tomake you powerless.
He knows you are powerful inChrist, but wants to ensure you
(03:40):
don't know that False teachers,for example, are deceitful and
lead the sheep astray.
As we have been repeatedlywarned, these are not from God,
but from the devil himself toensure that you never walk
according to the Spirit.
Our position in God is acentral theme in this letter and
, as we will see, paul urges usto understand, not be deceived,
(04:02):
and put on the whole armor ofGod so that we will be effective
ambassadors while in this world.
Colossians 2.8.
See to it that no one takes youcaptive by philosophy and empty
deceit according to humantradition, according to the
elemental spirits of the world,and not according to Christ.
1 Timothy 4.1-2.
Now the Spirit expressly saysthat in latter times, some will
(04:25):
depart from the faith bydevoting themselves to deceitful
spirits and teachings of demons, through the insincerity of
liars whose consciousnesses areseared.
2 Corinthians 5, 20-21.
Therefore, we are ambassadorsfor Christ, god making his
appeal through us.
We implore you on behalf ofChrist be reconciled to God For
(04:49):
our sake.
He made him to be sin, who knewno sin, so that in him we might
become the righteousness of God.
Now, moving on to verses 3 to 6, we will see that the will of
God is to bless us in ChristJesus.
The problem is that most peoplehave a skewed idea of what it
means to be blessed, because welive in a materialistic world.
We often think of blessings asreceiving gifts, like we do at
(05:11):
Christmas time, which is not theway we are to understand
blessings at all.
We live as if we don't needanything because we have
everything at our fingertips.
Easy access to health care,food, education and
entertainment is availableeverywhere.
Tips.
Easy access to health care,food, education and
entertainment is availableeverywhere.
It's easy to say that God hasblessed us when all we do is
shower ourselves with worldlypassions.
These are not what the Bible istalking about when it is
(05:34):
discussing blessings.
We must get this through ourheads before moving on.
To truly receive what Goddesires to give us, accepting
what he is offering will requirea humble and repentant heart to
see that your John 16, 24.
John 16, 26-27, 15, 8 to 11.
(06:21):
By this my father is glorified.
That you bear much fruit and soprove to be my disciples.
As the father has loved me, sohave I loved you.
Abide in my love.
If you keep my commandments,you will abide in my love, just
as I have kept my father'scommandments and abide in his
love.
These things.
I've spoken to you that my joymay be in you and that your joy
(06:43):
may be full.
Now Jesus is offering us theblessing of having that same
complete joy in the Father thathe has.
There is no greater blessingthan this having the fullness of
our joy flowing from ourrelationship with the Father.
It's not about what he does orgives, but about who he is.
He is the most high God andoffers himself to us without
(07:04):
limitations to explore him andhis goodness.
Jeremiah 29, 13 to 14, you willseek me and find me.
When you seek me with all yourheart, I will be found by you,
declares the Lord.
God will give us materialthings in this world, but our
joy should never be misplaced inthe gift.
It should always be found inthe giver.
(07:27):
Now that we have a betterperspective of blessings, let's
look at Ephesians, chapter 1,verses 3 to 6.
Blessed be the God and Fatherof our Lord, jesus Christ, who
has blessed us in Christ withevery spiritual blessing in the
heavenly places, even as hechose us in him before the
foundation of the world, that weshould be holy and blameless
before him In love, hepredestined us for adoption to
(07:51):
himself as sons through JesusChrist, according to the purpose
of his will, to the praise ofhis glorious grace with which he
has blessed us in the belovedNow.
These verses are a lot to takein for most people and many,
when they read this, go rightpast it without stopping to take
in what these verses are saying.
In verse 1, I explain that Paulwas who he was by the will of
(08:15):
God and that we have a purposeas well.
Now we see that expressed herein verses 4 and 5.
Even as he chose us in him herein verses 4 and 5.
Even as he chose us in him, hechose us.
Jesus told his disciples in John15, 16, you did not choose me,
but I chose you and appointedyou that you should go and bear
fruit and that your fruit shouldabide, so that whatever you ask
(08:37):
the Father in my name, he maygive it to you.
You and I could do nothingapart from Jesus to bear fruit
and please God.
He had to choose us and gift uswith the Holy Spirit so that we
could ask the Father for whatwe need and be fruitful and bear
much spiritual fruit.
John 15, 5, I am the vine, youare the branches.
Whoever abides in me and I inhim, he it is that bears much
(08:58):
fruit, for apart from me, youcould do nothing.
By this he is glorified and weare filled with his joy.
That is the best win-winsituation you could ever ask for
.
You were picked to be on thewinning team and then given
power from above to play so thatyou can't lose.
Do you understand how profoundthat is?
If you haven't thought of ityet, you should have asked what
(09:22):
did I do to deserve this, tohave God choose, save and
empower me so that my joy may befull in Him?
And that's a great question.
And the answer is that youdidn't do anything deserving of
it.
You weren't able to, as youwill see when we get into
chapter 2 of Ephesians, becauseyou were enslaved to sin and
unable to please God.
Now, romans, chapter 8, verse 6.
(09:43):
8 says for to set the mind onthe flesh is death, but to set
the mind on the spirit is lifeand peace.
For the mind that is set on theflesh is hostile to God, for it
does not submit to God's law.
Indeed, it cannot.
Those who are in the fleshcannot please God.
That refers to all of us, whenwe were once in the flesh.
It requires a spirit-filledlife to please God, and only God
(10:07):
gives us that spirit so that wecould be pleasing to him.
Not only does he choose us andgive us all we need.
But he did this choosing beforethe foundations of the world
were laid, showing that he isfrom before time.
Before God created anything, heknew us and purposed a
particular life for us, that hewould be glorified in us and
(10:30):
that we would be satisfied inhim.
Psalm 139.16,.
Your eyes saw my unformedsubstance.
In your book were written everyone of them, the days that were
formed for me when as yet therewas none of them.
Jeremiah, chapter 1, verses 4to 5.
Now the word of the Lord cameto me, saying Before I formed
(10:52):
you in the womb, I knew you, andbefore you were born, I
consecrated you, I appointed youa prophet to the nations.
Romans, chapter 8, verses 28 to30.
And we know that for those wholove God, all things work
together for good For those whoare called according to his
purpose, for those whom heforeknew he also predestined to
(11:13):
be conformed to the image of hisson, in order that he might be
the firstborn among manybrothers.
And those whom he predestinedhe also called.
And those whom he called healso justified.
And those whom he called, healso justified.
And those whom he justified healso glorified.
Now some will say this callingis for people with a specific
(11:33):
call from God and doesn't applyto all believers.
For example, they will say thisrefers to apostles, prophets,
teachers, evangelists andpastors, but not the everyday
person who believes in Jesus.
Now, let me stop you here ifthat is how you think, as that
couldn't be further from thetruth.
The reality is that thesegifted individuals were given to
the church to equip the saints.
They are a gift to you.
(11:56):
They are not to be exalted andseen as someone who God calls to
do his work so that we canjustify why we don't.
No, they are given so that wecan be equipped to do the work,
so that we can justify why wedon't.
No, they are given so that wecan be equipped to do the work
he has for us.
Now, what work is that, you ask?
Well, ephesians 2, 10.
For we are his workmanship,created in Christ Jesus.
(12:18):
For here it is good works whichGod prepared beforehand that we
should walk in them.
Isaiah 43, 7.
Everyone who was called by myname, whom I created for my
glory, whom I formed and made.
We are called to glorify him inall that we do.
(12:38):
Wherever we are, we are thelight that goes into the world
to speak of his glory.
We are the light that goes intothe world to speak of his glory
.
That's why we need to beequipped to know who he is and
what he says, so that we canshare that with the world.
1 Corinthians 7 20.
Each one should remain in thecondition in which he was called
.
When God saved you, it was atan appointed time and place,
(13:01):
with a purpose.
God did not screw this up andget it wrong.
He knew exactly what he wasdoing and prepared you for a
time like this to be who you are, what you are, where you are.
We often look for our callingafter God saves us, as if we
should leave our jobs and enterthe mission field.
That may be the case for some,but most of us are already in
(13:23):
the mission field.
God wants us in Now.
If you are a lawyer, then be aGod-glorifying lawyer.
A doctor, a waitress, busdriver or a cable man, then be
that for the glory of God, untilyou are fired for praising him,
or he makes it clear where youshould go from there.
Some people will have jobs theyneed to leave because of sin
(13:43):
generated by that place, butmost will be able to stay right
where they are and be a light inthat dark place.
Matthew 5, 14-16.
You are the light of the world.
A city set on a hill cannot behidden, nor do people light a
lamp and put it under a basket,but on a stand, and it gives
light to all in the house In thesame way.
(14:05):
Let your light shine beforeothers so that they may see your
good works and give glory toyour Father, who is in heaven.
Now, everyone who believes inJesus Christ as their Lord and
Savior is a light in this dark,lost world.
Now that means you have apurpose and that God turned your
light on in a dark place toshine his light into it.
(14:26):
What other purpose would ourlight have if it wasn't to shine
into a dark place and reveal tothose in the darkness which way
they should go?
Could you imagine being stuckin a dark room that's on fire
and filled with smoke, with afriend who is a professional
firefighter and he says I needto get out of this place because
it's dark and filled with smokethat is going to kill me.
(14:46):
Then he gets up and leaves,using his skill to get out of
danger and into safety, leavingyou there to die.
That's what Christians aredoing every day in this world.
We leave our friends and familyin a burning world and do not
show them the way out when weknow the way.
Now, how can this be?
Is the love of God in you, andhave you been equipped to go
(15:08):
into this lost world to savethose who are about to burn up?
If the answer is no, thenyou're probably not saved.
If the answer is yes, the loveof God is in you, but I haven't.
You know it's in me, but Ihaven't been equipped.
I'm telling you right nowthat's not an excuse.
There are ample resources fromgreat teachers worldwide for our
(15:30):
equipping Now.
Do you belong to a church?
If not, why not?
That is God's primary way ofequipping the saints, as we will
see in the coming chapters.
When we get to that, we willdiscuss how to find a good Bible
teaching church and what youshould do to be equipped Now.
God has prepared you frombefore the foundations of the
world to shine his light intothe dark places we currently
(15:52):
find ourselves in.
So stop looking for where youshould go and look to those
around you who are suffocatingand dying right in front of you
and do something about it.
Now, in verse 5, it says hepredestined us for adoption.
Most of us understand howadoption works and, again, the
(16:13):
one being adopted that's, us hasno say in who adopts us.
That's why Paul said he choseus and not that we chose him.
That is further reflected inthe vocabulary Paul decides to
use in adoption.
Honestly, anyone reading thisplainly should understand this
you were adopted not by yourchoice, but by his.
(16:35):
This is with purpose, as wejust saw, and was made possible
through the sacrifice Jesus madeon the cross, according to the
purpose of his will.
Again, what's his will?
To glorify himself through hisson Jesus and those who believe
in him, the adopted sons.
(16:55):
That is how we are blessed.
Not that we need anything,because we have everything
through him.
Who called us so that we couldbe fruitful and glorify him?
Who predestined us from beforethe foundations of the world?
Don't ever forget this.
That is the central truth.
The devil will always try torob you of, so that you don't
(17:17):
walk with confidence in the onewho called you.
You have a purpose.
You are loved and are secure inyour Lord and Savior, jesus
Christ.
2 Corinthians 1, 21 to 22.
And it is God who establishesus with you in Christ and has
anointed us, and who has alsoput his seal on us and given us
(17:39):
his spirit in our hearts as aguarantee.
I want to answer anotherquestion most likely bouncing
around in your head right now.
If we are chosen, then doesthat mean that God desires for
some to go to hell?
The simple answer is no.
God does not desire any to goto hell.
(18:00):
2 Peter 3.9,.
The Lord is not slow to fulfillhis promise, as some count
slowness, but is patient towardsyou, not wishing that any
should perish, but that allshould reach repentance.
God desires all to be saved,but not all will.
So is God powerful enough tosave all?
(18:22):
If this is his desire, theanswer is yes, god is powerful
enough.
So then, why doesn't God saveall if he can, and has he even
made a way for all to be saved?
We will look at Romans, chapter9, to understand why, but first
you have to remember thisbefore we go there God's desire
is to be glorified and to revealall of himself to his children
(18:45):
so that we can have full joy inhim.
If there was no sin, fall fromgrace, sickness, wars and
poverty, how could we ever knowthe great riches of God's mercy,
forgiveness, grace, victory,love and so on.
There is a whole other side ofGod that he wants to reveal to
us so that we truly know thedepths of his love, and it is
(19:09):
only through a fallen world thatthis is possible.
Had Adam and Eve neverdisobeyed, what would they have
known of God?
Would they have ever known ofhis goodness?
Not having anything to compareit to, they became aware of good
and evil when they ate of thetree's fruit.
Most people missed that.
They think it was just evilthey became aware of.
(19:30):
But look again, it was bothgood and evil, genesis 3.22.
Now, before the fall, man had nocomprehension of good and evil
and no way of good and evil andno way of knowing all the
attributes of God.
His plan will always be toglorify himself and make himself
(19:51):
known to his creation.
For that to be accomplished,there had to be a fall and a
redemption, otherwise how couldwe know God completely?
That includes forgiveness,mercy, grace and his divine
power.
Not only is God fully revealed,but those who are redeemed take
part in his glory.
(20:11):
We experience and feel what Goddoes as he lives in us, so that
we can take part in his divinenature.
By this he is exalted as itproduces praise from us.
2 Peter, 1.4.
By which he has granted to ushis precious and very great
promises so that through themyou may become partakers of the
(20:33):
divine nature, having escapedfrom the corruption that is in
the world because of sinfuldesire.
Moving on to Ephesians 1.7-10,in him we have redemption
through his blood, theforgiveness of our trespass,
according to the riches of hisgrace, which he lavished upon us
in all wisdom and insight,making known to us the mystery
(20:55):
of his will, according to hispurpose, which he set forth in
Christ as a plan for thefullness of time to unite all
things in him, things in heaven,things on earth.
Now the problem people havewith God choosing us is that
they think this makes Godresponsible for the fall of man
and therefore unjust, if this isthe case.
(21:16):
But that is not what Scriptureteaches.
It says we are accountable forour sins, not God teaches.
It says we are accountable forour sins, not God.
Yes, god made it possible forus to sin, knew we would sin,
but in no way caused us to sin.
Let's return to that scenario,with us in that burning room,
with a friend who knows how toget out.
Let's bring a little morecontext to the story.
(21:38):
You probably never thoughtabout how that fire started, did
you?
Of course not, because itwasn't relevant for the context
given, but now it is.
We don't just walk into aburning room for no good reason.
We likely find ourselves introuble because we created the
problem or someone else did.
Let's assume the story startedwith you in a perfectly designed
room with everything you needto survive and live a joyful
(22:00):
life.
One of the things you wouldhave found in that room maybe
would have been matches to starta fire so that you could stay
warm and cook food.
But maybe you were giveninstructions not to throw those
matches in the trash, or elseyou would set the room on fire.
Were the matches bad?
Was the fire bad?
Was what the fire created inthe fireplace bad?
(22:21):
No, but what happened when youthrew the lit match in the trash
after starting a fire in theproper place?
You set the room on fire andnow needed to be rescued.
Was it the fault of the personwho created the matches that the
room was on fire?
Of course not.
It was yours.
However, jesus is in the roomwith us after we do such a
(22:41):
stupid thing and knows how torescue us from the fire.
He had an escape plan frombefore the foundations of the
world, just like an escape planyou might find in a building in
case of a fire.
Now, does that prove thatsomeone wanted the building to
catch on fire?
Absolutely not.
You will often find many safetymeasures to prevent such a
calamity, but that doesn't meanthe building can't catch fire.
(23:05):
The building and that roomrepresented everything you
needed to live and have anexcellent, full life in a
relationship with the one whobuilt it.
When God built this world, hegave us everything we needed to
have a full, purposefulrelationship with him.
He didn't create robots, but hedid create people with the will
to make choices within theboundaries of a created world.
He gave us everything for ourpleasure and told us how to use
(23:27):
it and what to do with it,including what not to do, like
the instructions to not throw alit match in the trash.
He said don't eat of the treeof knowledge or you will surely
die.
The tree had a purpose in theworld's creation and played a
part in our relationship withGod Some call this free will and
that it allowed us to choose tolove God without being forced,
(23:49):
making it possible to have agenuine relationship with our
creator that wasn't coerced.
The only problem with thisscenario is that we don't see
this problem in Adam'srelationship with God before the
fall.
In no way does that tree beingthere seem to cause Adam to
stumble over his relationshipwith God.
It's not until Eve is deceivedby this serpent that we have a
problem.
It took coercion to get Adamand Eve to eat.
(24:11):
We know that Satan is thefather of all lies and a
deceiver and was cunning ingetting Eve to eat the fruit
John 8, 44.
He was a murderer from thebeginning and does not stand in
the truth, because there is notruth in him.
When he lies he speaks out ofhis own character, for he is a
liar and the father of lies.
Now we could easily ask thequestion why didn't God make
(24:34):
Adam and Eve smart enough tooutwit Satan like Jesus did in
the wilderness?
Or why not put the tree out ofreach where they couldn't reach
it?
Why have the tree to tempt themat all?
We have to assume the treeplayed some part in God's
original creation, because hecalled everything very good and
the tree was there when he saidthat.
I also don't think the tree orthe fruit of the tree tempted
them.
Scripture makes it clear thatit was Satan who tempted them.
(24:56):
Nothing in them was corruptedor bad that made them disobey.
It was a source from outsidethem.
Let's return to that room andassume we had everything,
including the matches, exceptthis time.
We have been trained to use thematches and are proficient in
using them correctly.
We have someone over and hesuggests another way to use the
matches we never even considered.
(25:18):
He says you know, if you litthe trash on fire, you will warm
the house twice as fast and getrid of the trash simultaneously
.
You might even say but I wastold not to use the matches this
way.
And your visitor says well, Ido it all the time and it works
for me.
So believe in your visitor.
You throw the lit match in thetrash.
Initially it looks like itworks, until it gets out of
control and becomes too hot, thetrash can melts, and so on.
(25:41):
Had the visitor never shown uptoo hot, the trash can melts,
and so on.
Had the visitor never shown up,you would have never done such
a thing, but you did nonethelessand you were the one who threw
the lit match in the trash, theone who told you might have
given you the thought, but youare responsible for acting on
that thought.
That shows we are accountablefor our sins, even though we
were deceived into sinning inthe first place.
(26:03):
It seems to indicate that Satanis ultimately responsible for
our sins, even though we weredeceived into sinning in the
first place.
It seems to indicate that Satanis ultimately responsible for
our sins, as he deceived us.
But let us take it a littlefurther.
God created Satan, who was oneof the highest ranking angels in
heaven.
We aren't given much detailabout how and why angels could
or were allowed to fall, but weare told they did.
(26:24):
In either case, they also arecreated beings and if God knows
all things, then he knew Satanwould fall and deceive Eve in
the garden, making him theresponsible one for the whole
scenario.
Again, we see this play out inGenesis 3, 12-13.
The man said the woman whom yougave to be with me, she gave me
(27:06):
fruit of the tree and I ate.
Then the Lord God said to thewoman what is?
The man said you make me likethis.
It's your fault, I wanted to belike you and fell, and that I
desire to lie and destroy allthat you created and love.
But he didn't.
Not once in scripture do we seethe blame put on God for the
fall of Satan.
The fall is totally, 100%Satan's fault and his
responsibility from thebeginning.
If it were not so, don't youthink he would have spoken up
when Adam and Eve did?
But he didn't.
He kept his mouth shut beforethe Lord because God was
(27:27):
blameless.
Again, we don't know how thisworks out in the heavenly realm,
but we do know that the fall isnot God's fault and instead the
fall is entirely on theshoulders of Satan.
The second point about us nothaving free will is that
universal laws, like gravity,bind us.
These laws limit all of ourdecisions, regardless of how
(27:48):
much we want to bend or breakthem.
Only God truly has free will,as he can bend or break these
universal laws as he sees fit.
All of his thoughts come fromwithin him and there is nothing
or no one that influences him inany way.
Isaiah 45, 5,.
Isaiah 55.8.
So, whatever the reason orcause for Satan's fall, we know
(28:20):
that it wasn't God's fault andit was Satan's.
So why did God create Satan ifhe knew he was going to fall.
I believe this gets us to theanswer we seek in Romans 9.
Considering that we know it'snot God's fault for sin and that
we don't have free will, whatelse could the reason be?
So let's look at Romans 9, 14to 23.
(28:42):
What shall we say then?
Is there injustice on God'spart?
By no means, for he says toMoses I will have mercy on whom
I have mercy, and I will havecompassion on whom I have
compassion.
So then it depends not on humanwill or exertion, but on God,
who has mercy.
For the scripture says toPharaoh for this very purpose, I
(29:06):
have raised you up, that Imight show my power in you and
that my name might be proclaimedin all the earth.
So then he has mercy onwhomever he wills, and he
hardens whomever he wills.
Verse 17 is the moststraightforward answer in all of
scripture as to why God didwhat he did.
Now, this is talking aboutPharaoh, but can just as easily
(29:26):
be applied to Satan, as he isalso a created being.
Everyone is made for a purpose,but not all have the same
purpose, as we saw Verse 17,.
For this very purpose I haveraised you up that I might show
my power in you and that my namemight be proclaimed in all the
earth.
That's the key to understanding.
Every person or angel has beencreated for either mercy or
(29:48):
wrath, in which God is glorifiedby his name being proclaimed on
all the earth.
So then, how can God find faultwith anyone?
I'm glad you asked because Paulanswers that in Romans 9, 19-23
.
You will say to me then, whydoes he still find fault For who
can resist his will?
But who are you, o man, toanswer back to God?
(30:09):
Well, what does molded say toits molder?
Why have you made me like this?
Has the potter no right overthe clay to make out of the same
lump one vessel for honorableuse and another for dishonorable
use?
What if God, desiring to showhis wrath and to make known his
power, has endured with muchpatience vessels of wrath
prepared for destruction inorder to make known the riches
(30:32):
of his glory, for vessels ofmercy, which he has prepared
beforehand for glory?
There it is.
It's for his glory that he didall that he did and he presumed.
We want to understand that, evenafter he told us, only our sin
gets in the way of acceptingthat truth.
We don't want the people welove going to hell and we can't
(30:55):
stand the thought of Godchoosing them for that purpose.
But here's the thing Goddesires all men to be saved, and
you don't know who he haschosen.
So get to work, christian, onreclaiming his name in this
world, because that is why youwere created.
In addition to us beingconcerned about lost people not
being chosen by God, why is itthat you are not concerned about
(31:18):
the fall of Satan?
Why doesn't anyone ever ask whycan't Satan be saved?
How is that fair?
Why are we concerned that somepeople are going to hell, but we
aren't concerned that Satan isas well?
It's because we aren't worriedabout anyone going to hell, and
it's more about us wanting thechoice for ourselves.
We don't want to hear that ourdestiny is in God's hands.
We want it in ours.
(31:41):
What you don't realize is thatit was in your hands and you
chose sin over righteousness,death over life.
If that doesn't show the powersin has over us, I don't know.
What does we want what we want,and we do not want God to
choose it for us, even though heonly desires good for those who
love him Romans 8, 28.
(32:01):
And we know that for those wholove God.
All things work together, forGod chose you for adoption so
that you would glorify him andpraise his name.
If you don't believe that, thenmaybe you were created so that
those who were saved would seeGod's wrath poured out and know
that they were saved from, knowthat what they were saved from,
(32:26):
so that they would praise hisname throughout eternity.
The truth is, we all deserve tobe cast into hell, and God
would be just for doing so If hedesires to save some and not
others.
When we can agree none deserveto be saved, why do we have a
problem with that?
Let us praise God for the favorhe has shown us, knowing what we
(32:47):
deserve and, more than that,knowing what he has promised us,
that we can have the fullnessof joy in Christ Jesus.
If you love the Lord, you havebeen chosen by him and for him,
and your life is beyondmeaningful.
Never let anyone rob you ofthat joy, and praise him all
your days.
Ephesians 1, 11-14.
(33:07):
In him we have obtained aninheritance, having been
predestined according to thepurpose of him, who works all
things according to the counselof his will.
Now Paul finishes promised HolySpirit, who is the guarantee of
our inheritance until weacquire possession of it to the
(33:36):
praise of his glory.
Paul finishes his initialthought by reiterating what we
just covered in verses 1 to 10.
We are in him because he choseus according to the counsel of
his will before the foundationsof the world were laid, which is
predestined, meaning it wasplanned and purposed before any
action was taken, so that wemight be to the praise of his
(33:59):
glory.
That means we would be the oneswho praise him, talk about him
and exalt him to everyone,everywhere, and it says that
this is for his glory.
Now, verse 13 says when youheard the word of truth and
believed.
The when in that statement hasmade many believe.
(34:19):
It indicates choice on our partand that when we chose to
believe, we were saved and giventhe Holy Spirit the promise and
guarantee of our salvation.
However, when we look at thetext, we see that it doesn't say
we choose.
Up to this point, paul made itclear that God was the one
choosing, not us.
So why does it seem to changein verse 13?
Because our belief was theevidence of his choosing.
(34:41):
That happened at a specificmoment in time for us, but was
predetermined by God before thefoundations of the world.
That would be the moment wewere born again, not by flesh
and blood, but by the Spirit ofGod.
The fact that you confessedJesus as your Savior and
repented of your sins was theinitial evidence of your new
birth in the Spirit.
(35:02):
Nothing of you caused that, aswe also see in verse 13.
You believed because you firstheard.
You heard because God sentpeople to tell you and you
received it, not because youwere intellectually convinced,
but because the Spirit gave youears to hear and eyes to see.
Ephesians 2, 7 and 9.
So that in the coming ages hemight show the immeasurable
(35:24):
riches of his grace and kindnesstowards us in Christ Jesus.
For by grace you have beensaved through faith, and this is
not your own doing.
Been saved through faith, andthis is not your own doing.
It is the gift of God, not aresult of works, so that no one
may boast.
John 1, 12 to 13.
But to all who did receive him,who believed in his name, he
(35:46):
gave the right to becomechildren of God, who were born
not of blood, nor of the will ofthe flesh, nor of the will of
(36:07):
man, but of God.
John 3, 5, do not marvel that.
I said to you, you must be bornagain.
The wind blows where it wishesand you hear its sound, but you
do not know where it comes fromor where it goes.
So it is with everyone who isborn of the Spirit.
Jesus clarifies that being bornagain is like your first birth
(36:29):
in the flesh.
He uses the same context totell Nicodemus that spiritual
birth comes like the wind andthat you don't know where it
came from or where it's going.
However, he also said the windblows and you hear it sound.
That is evidence that somethingtook place.
When a baby is born, it criesand you know it is alive.
When you are born in the spirit, you will glorify God by
(36:51):
praising him, and that is anoise you have never made before
, and people will hear it andnot know where it came from.
They won't understand whatchanged because they never saw
it coming, nor did you.
The proof that something didhappen is that you now make a
sound that glorifies God.
As I said, you only heardbecause they were sent and God
(37:13):
gave you ears to hear.
Romans 10, 15.
And how are they to preachunless they are sent, as it is
written?
How beautiful are the feet ofthose who preach the good news
Matthew 13, 13-17.
This is why I speak to them inparables, because seeing they do
not see, and hearing they donot hear, nor do they understand
.
Indeed, in their case, theprophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled
(37:36):
that says you will indeed hearbut never understand, and you
will indeed see but neverperceive.
For this people's heart hasgrown dull and with their ears
they can barely hear, and theireyes they have been closed, lest
they should see with their eyesand hear with their ears and
understand with their ears andunderstand with their heart and
turn, and I would heal them.
(37:56):
But blessed are your eyes forthey see, in your ears for they
hear, for truly, I say to you,many prophets and righteous
people longed to see what yousee and did not see it, and to
hear what you hear and did nothear it.
If you have heard this message,it's only because God gave you
ears to hear and gave me atongue to speak.
(38:17):
It's all because of him andit's all for him.
There is nothing of yourselfthat you can offer to God that
will complete him, because Godis complete and fully satisfied
within himself.
We are his workmanship, inwhich he shares his glory.
That it may be unto the praiseof him.
We are the instruments hecreated to proclaim his
(38:39):
greatness.
In so doing, we experience thefullness of his joy in us.
Instruments do not playthemselves.
They require a musician thatknows what he is doing.
God knows what he created usfor and desires to use us for
that purpose.
The musician is the Holy Spiritin you.
All we have to do is yield tohim.
When we do, he will orchestratethe most beautiful results
(39:03):
beyond anything we could produce.
When we allow ourselves to bewhat we were meant to be, we
will find the greatest joy andpurpose for our lives that
exists in him.
John Piper says in his bookGlorifying God the chief end of
man is to glorify God byenjoying him forever.
And God is most glorified inyou when you are most satisfied
(39:24):
in him.
This is precisely where Paulwants to lead us in Ephesians.
He desires that the fullness ofour joy is found in God and him
alone.
As we go through this epistle,we will see that this is a
repetitive theme that Pauldoesn't want us to miss.
I desire that we can explorethe words of Paul, that we can
all enter into the full joy ofthe Lord as we live a life
(39:45):
glorifying him.
Let's pray, father.
God, thank you so much for ourlisteners today.
I thank you for your word Itoday.
I thank you for your word.
I thank you for theunderstanding of your word.
I thank you for the clarity ofyour word.
I thank you for the purposethat you have given us and
placed in our lives, that youhave called us, that you have
(40:06):
chosen us, that you have adoptedus, that you have predestined
us to a very specific place andtime and work so that we may
praise you and that you may beglorified.
Father, I pray that you openthe eyes and the ears of our
listeners today, that they wouldhear your word and see your
word, that they would be movedby your Holy Spirit, god, to
(40:30):
move in the good works that youhave for them.
Father, we love you and wethank you in your precious name,
jesus, amen.
I want to thank you again forjoining us today, as I hope this
message helped you take a stepcloser in your relationship with
Jesus and that you have abetter understanding for just
how much God loves you and wantsyou to know him.
In our next episode, we're goingto discuss the importance of
(40:51):
gratitude as we explore verses15 to 23 to conclude chapter 1.
Paul not only establishedchurches, but he also continued
to pray for their spiritualgrowth and express gratitude to
God for the spiritual blessingsbestowed upon them.
Paul understood that for thechurch to thrive, it requires
sound biblical teaching,spiritual gifts and believers
(41:11):
who pray.
This forms the basis of ahealthy community and it's
something we should all becommitted to Achieving.
This goes beyond the role ofpastors.
It necessitates everyone beingfaithful with their gifts, as we
will see in the upcomingchapters.
The question is are you ready tolive your life in accordance
with God's will, or will youcontinue to pursue your own
(41:33):
desires?
Before we go, I want toencourage you to visit us at
thetakeawayfaith.
On our website, you can learnmore about us and sign up to
receive emails for notificationsabout new episodes and ministry
updates.
You can also easily share ourpodcast and use it as a resource
to help others.
Feel free to send us a message,a word of encouragement or any
(41:53):
questions or comments, as wewould love to hear from you.
God bless, and we'll see younext time on the Takeaway.
Hello, welcome again to the Takeaway.
I'm your host, pastor HarryBehrens, and in today's episode
we will be discussing Ephesians,chapter 1, verses 1-14,.
God's perfect election.
This epistle is attributed tothe Apostle Paul and was written
while he was in prison.
It is considered one of themost eloquent writings of the
New Testament, as it covers thefull spectrum of Christian
(00:21):
living and gives us a clearroadmap to follow so that we can
and will be effective believersfor Jesus while in this world.
This letter will take usthrough the plan of God,
starting with his purpose toredeem fallen man through the
full equipping of the saints, sothat we can live a purposeful,
glorifying life for him thatwill allow us to live in the joy
(00:42):
of the Lord.
John 15, 7-11.
If you abide in me and my wordsabide in you, ask whatever you
wish, and it will be done foryou.
By this my Father is glorified.
That you bear much fruit and soprove to be my disciples.
As the Father has loved me, sohave I loved you.
(01:12):
Abide in my love.
If you keep my commandments,you will abide in my love just
as I.
God's desire for us is that ourjoy is full in him and that he
is glorified.
These two things work togetherto produce a purposeful and
meaningful life.
God has hidden us, hidden ourjoy deep within himself.
(01:34):
Nothing can rob us of it.
When we understand this Now,starting in Ephesians, chapter 1
, verses 1 and 2, we read Paulan apostle of Christ Jesus by
the will of God to the saintswho are in Ephesus and are
faithful in Christ Jesus.
Grace to you and peace from God, our Father and the Lord Jesus
(01:54):
Christ.
In verse 1, we see Paul statethat he was an apostle by the
will of God.
It's important to note that thewill of God is the primary
motivator for Christians and iswhere we find our purpose.
God desires us to align ourthoughts with his will, just as
Jesus did.
By this, we will know that weare one in him and have
(02:17):
assurance of our place with himand in him.
John 14, 19.
Yet the world will see me nomore, but you will see me
because I live in you also.
You also will live in me.
In that day you will know thatI am in my Father and you in me
(02:38):
and I in you.
Since it is God's will that weabide in him.
And Paul states by the will ofGod he is an apostle, we could
be assured that what we are alsois by the will of God.
Your life is not random or outof control, but purposed by the
will of God.
I can't stress this enough.
You have a purpose in God'splan.
(03:00):
That will look different foreach of us, but I promise you
that you are no less valuablethan the apostle Paul was in
God's plan to.
That will look different foreach of us, but I promise you
that you are no less valuablethan the Apostle Paul was in
God's plan to further the gospel.
Once you understand this truth,nothing can stop you from
entering the full joy of theLord and glorifying Him in all
that you do.
You mustn't let anyone rob youof this truth and lead you
astray.
(03:20):
You cannot be robbed of yoursalvation, but you can be robbed
of your assurance in yoursalvation, and this is precisely
what the enemy is out to do robyou of any assurance,
confidence or hope in Christ tomake you powerless.
He knows you are powerful inChrist, but wants to ensure you
(03:40):
don't know that False teachers,for example, are deceitful and
lead the sheep astray.
As we have been repeatedlywarned, these are not from God,
but from the devil himself toensure that you never walk
according to the Spirit.
Our position in God is acentral theme in this letter and
, as we will see, paul urges usto understand, not be deceived,
(04:02):
and put on the whole armor ofGod so that we will be effective
ambassadors while in this world.
Colossians 2.8.
See to it that no one takes youcaptive by philosophy and empty
deceit according to humantradition, according to the
elemental spirits of the world,and not according to Christ.
1 Timothy 4.1-2.
Now the Spirit expressly saysthat in latter times, some will
(04:25):
depart from the faith bydevoting themselves to deceitful
spirits and teachings of demons, through the insincerity of
liars whose consciousnesses areseared.
2 Corinthians 5, 20-21.
Therefore, we are ambassadorsfor Christ, god making his
appeal through us.
We implore you on behalf ofChrist be reconciled to God For
(04:49):
our sake.
He made him to be sin, who knewno sin, so that in him we might
become the righteousness of God.
Now, moving on to verses 3 to 6, we will see that the will of
God is to bless us in ChristJesus.
The problem is that most peoplehave a skewed idea of what it
means to be blessed, because welive in a materialistic world.
We often think of blessings asreceiving gifts, like we do at
(05:11):
Christmas time, which is not theway we are to understand
blessings at all.
We live as if we don't needanything because we have
everything at our fingertips.
Easy access to health care,food, education and
entertainment is availableeverywhere.
Tips.
Easy access to health care,food, education and
entertainment is availableeverywhere.
It's easy to say that God hasblessed us when all we do is
shower ourselves with worldlypassions.
These are not what the Bible istalking about when it is
(05:34):
discussing blessings.
We must get this through ourheads before moving on.
To truly receive what Goddesires to give us, accepting
what he is offering will requirea humble and repentant heart to
see that your John 16, 24.
John 16, 26-27, 15, 8 to 11.
(06:21):
By this my father is glorified.
That you bear much fruit and soprove to be my disciples.
As the father has loved me, sohave I loved you.
Abide in my love.
If you keep my commandments,you will abide in my love, just
as I have kept my father'scommandments and abide in his
love.
These things.
I've spoken to you that my joymay be in you and that your joy
(06:43):
may be full.
Now Jesus is offering us theblessing of having that same
complete joy in the Father thathe has.
There is no greater blessingthan this having the fullness of
our joy flowing from ourrelationship with the Father.
It's not about what he does orgives, but about who he is.
He is the most high God andoffers himself to us without
(07:04):
limitations to explore him andhis goodness.
Jeremiah 29, 13 to 14, you willseek me and find me.
When you seek me with all yourheart, I will be found by you,
declares the Lord.
God will give us materialthings in this world, but our
joy should never be misplaced inthe gift.
It should always be found inthe giver.
(07:27):
Now that we have a betterperspective of blessings, let's
look at Ephesians, chapter 1,verses 3 to 6.
Blessed be the God and Fatherof our Lord, jesus Christ, who
has blessed us in Christ withevery spiritual blessing in the
heavenly places, even as hechose us in him before the
foundation of the world, that weshould be holy and blameless
before him In love, hepredestined us for adoption to
(07:51):
himself as sons through JesusChrist, according to the purpose
of his will, to the praise ofhis glorious grace with which he
has blessed us in the belovedNow.
These verses are a lot to takein for most people and many,
when they read this, go rightpast it without stopping to take
in what these verses are saying.
In verse 1, I explain that Paulwas who he was by the will of
(08:15):
God and that we have a purposeas well.
Now we see that expressed herein verses 4 and 5.
Even as he chose us in him herein verses 4 and 5.
Even as he chose us in him, hechose us.
Jesus told his disciples in John15, 16, you did not choose me,
but I chose you and appointedyou that you should go and bear
fruit and that your fruit shouldabide, so that whatever you ask
(08:37):
the Father in my name, he maygive it to you.
You and I could do nothingapart from Jesus to bear fruit
and please God.
He had to choose us and gift uswith the Holy Spirit so that we
could ask the Father for whatwe need and be fruitful and bear
much spiritual fruit.
John 15, 5, I am the vine, youare the branches.
Whoever abides in me and I inhim, he it is that bears much
(08:58):
fruit, for apart from me, youcould do nothing.
By this he is glorified and weare filled with his joy.
That is the best win-winsituation you could ever ask for
.
You were picked to be on thewinning team and then given
power from above to play so thatyou can't lose.
Do you understand how profoundthat is?
If you haven't thought of ityet, you should have asked what
(09:22):
did I do to deserve this, tohave God choose, save and
empower me so that my joy may befull in Him?
And that's a great question.
And the answer is that youdidn't do anything deserving of
it.
You weren't able to, as youwill see when we get into
chapter 2 of Ephesians, becauseyou were enslaved to sin and
unable to please God.
Now, romans, chapter 8, verse 6.
(09:43):
8 says for to set the mind onthe flesh is death, but to set
the mind on the spirit is lifeand peace.
For the mind that is set on theflesh is hostile to God, for it
does not submit to God's law.
Indeed, it cannot.
Those who are in the fleshcannot please God.
That refers to all of us, whenwe were once in the flesh.
It requires a spirit-filledlife to please God, and only God
(10:07):
gives us that spirit so that wecould be pleasing to him.
Not only does he choose us andgive us all we need.
But he did this choosing beforethe foundations of the world
were laid, showing that he isfrom before time.
Before God created anything, heknew us and purposed a
particular life for us, that hewould be glorified in us and
(10:30):
that we would be satisfied inhim.
Psalm 139.16,.
Your eyes saw my unformedsubstance.
In your book were written everyone of them, the days that were
formed for me when as yet therewas none of them.
Jeremiah, chapter 1, verses 4to 5.
Now the word of the Lord cameto me, saying Before I formed
(10:52):
you in the womb, I knew you, andbefore you were born, I
consecrated you, I appointed youa prophet to the nations.
Romans, chapter 8, verses 28 to30.
And we know that for those wholove God, all things work
together for good For those whoare called according to his
purpose, for those whom heforeknew he also predestined to
(11:13):
be conformed to the image of hisson, in order that he might be
the firstborn among manybrothers.
And those whom he predestinedhe also called.
And those whom he called healso justified.
And those whom he called, healso justified.
And those whom he justified healso glorified.
Now some will say this callingis for people with a specific
(11:33):
call from God and doesn't applyto all believers.
For example, they will say thisrefers to apostles, prophets,
teachers, evangelists andpastors, but not the everyday
person who believes in Jesus.
Now, let me stop you here ifthat is how you think, as that
couldn't be further from thetruth.
The reality is that thesegifted individuals were given to
the church to equip the saints.
They are a gift to you.
(11:56):
They are not to be exalted andseen as someone who God calls to
do his work so that we canjustify why we don't.
No, they are given so that wecan be equipped to do the work,
so that we can justify why wedon't.
No, they are given so that wecan be equipped to do the work
he has for us.
Now, what work is that, you ask?
Well, ephesians 2, 10.
For we are his workmanship,created in Christ Jesus.
(12:18):
For here it is good works whichGod prepared beforehand that we
should walk in them.
Isaiah 43, 7.
Everyone who was called by myname, whom I created for my
glory, whom I formed and made.
We are called to glorify him inall that we do.
(12:38):
Wherever we are, we are thelight that goes into the world
to speak of his glory.
We are the light that goes intothe world to speak of his glory
.
That's why we need to beequipped to know who he is and
what he says, so that we canshare that with the world.
1 Corinthians 7 20.
Each one should remain in thecondition in which he was called
.
When God saved you, it was atan appointed time and place,
(13:01):
with a purpose.
God did not screw this up andget it wrong.
He knew exactly what he wasdoing and prepared you for a
time like this to be who you are, what you are, where you are.
We often look for our callingafter God saves us, as if we
should leave our jobs and enterthe mission field.
That may be the case for some,but most of us are already in
(13:23):
the mission field.
God wants us in Now.
If you are a lawyer, then be aGod-glorifying lawyer.
A doctor, a waitress, busdriver or a cable man, then be
that for the glory of God, untilyou are fired for praising him,
or he makes it clear where youshould go from there.
Some people will have jobs theyneed to leave because of sin
(13:43):
generated by that place, butmost will be able to stay right
where they are and be a light inthat dark place.
Matthew 5, 14-16.
You are the light of the world.
A city set on a hill cannot behidden, nor do people light a
lamp and put it under a basket,but on a stand, and it gives
light to all in the house In thesame way.
(14:05):
Let your light shine beforeothers so that they may see your
good works and give glory toyour Father, who is in heaven.
Now, everyone who believes inJesus Christ as their Lord and
Savior is a light in this dark,lost world.
Now that means you have apurpose and that God turned your
light on in a dark place toshine his light into it.
(14:26):
What other purpose would ourlight have if it wasn't to shine
into a dark place and reveal tothose in the darkness which way
they should go?
Could you imagine being stuckin a dark room that's on fire
and filled with smoke, with afriend who is a professional
firefighter and he says I needto get out of this place because
it's dark and filled with smokethat is going to kill me.
(14:46):
Then he gets up and leaves,using his skill to get out of
danger and into safety, leavingyou there to die.
That's what Christians aredoing every day in this world.
We leave our friends and familyin a burning world and do not
show them the way out when weknow the way.
Now, how can this be?
Is the love of God in you, andhave you been equipped to go
(15:08):
into this lost world to savethose who are about to burn up?
If the answer is no, thenyou're probably not saved.
If the answer is yes, the loveof God is in you, but I haven't.
You know it's in me, but Ihaven't been equipped.
I'm telling you right nowthat's not an excuse.
There are ample resources fromgreat teachers worldwide for our
(15:30):
equipping Now.
Do you belong to a church?
If not, why not?
That is God's primary way ofequipping the saints, as we will
see in the coming chapters.
When we get to that, we willdiscuss how to find a good Bible
teaching church and what youshould do to be equipped Now.
God has prepared you frombefore the foundations of the
world to shine his light intothe dark places we currently
(15:52):
find ourselves in.
So stop looking for where youshould go and look to those
around you who are suffocatingand dying right in front of you
and do something about it.
Now, in verse 5, it says hepredestined us for adoption.
Most of us understand howadoption works and, again, the
(16:13):
one being adopted that's, us hasno say in who adopts us.
That's why Paul said he choseus and not that we chose him.
That is further reflected inthe vocabulary Paul decides to
use in adoption.
Honestly, anyone reading thisplainly should understand this
you were adopted not by yourchoice, but by his.
(16:35):
This is with purpose, as wejust saw, and was made possible
through the sacrifice Jesus madeon the cross, according to the
purpose of his will.
Again, what's his will?
To glorify himself through hisson Jesus and those who believe
in him, the adopted sons.
(16:55):
That is how we are blessed.
Not that we need anything,because we have everything
through him.
Who called us so that we couldbe fruitful and glorify him?
Who predestined us from beforethe foundations of the world?
Don't ever forget this.
That is the central truth.
The devil will always try torob you of, so that you don't
(17:17):
walk with confidence in the onewho called you.
You have a purpose.
You are loved and are secure inyour Lord and Savior, jesus
Christ.
2 Corinthians 1, 21 to 22.
And it is God who establishesus with you in Christ and has
anointed us, and who has alsoput his seal on us and given us
(17:39):
his spirit in our hearts as aguarantee.
I want to answer anotherquestion most likely bouncing
around in your head right now.
If we are chosen, then doesthat mean that God desires for
some to go to hell?
The simple answer is no.
God does not desire any to goto hell.
(18:00):
2 Peter 3.9,.
The Lord is not slow to fulfillhis promise, as some count
slowness, but is patient towardsyou, not wishing that any
should perish, but that allshould reach repentance.
God desires all to be saved,but not all will.
So is God powerful enough tosave all?
(18:22):
If this is his desire, theanswer is yes, god is powerful
enough.
So then, why doesn't God saveall if he can, and has he even
made a way for all to be saved?
We will look at Romans, chapter9, to understand why, but first
you have to remember thisbefore we go there God's desire
is to be glorified and to revealall of himself to his children
(18:45):
so that we can have full joy inhim.
If there was no sin, fall fromgrace, sickness, wars and
poverty, how could we ever knowthe great riches of God's mercy,
forgiveness, grace, victory,love and so on.
There is a whole other side ofGod that he wants to reveal to
us so that we truly know thedepths of his love, and it is
(19:09):
only through a fallen world thatthis is possible.
Had Adam and Eve neverdisobeyed, what would they have
known of God?
Would they have ever known ofhis goodness?
Not having anything to compareit to, they became aware of good
and evil when they ate of thetree's fruit.
Most people missed that.
They think it was just evilthey became aware of.
(19:30):
But look again, it was bothgood and evil, genesis 3.22.
Now, before the fall, man had nocomprehension of good and evil
and no way of good and evil andno way of knowing all the
attributes of God.
His plan will always be toglorify himself and make himself
(19:51):
known to his creation.
For that to be accomplished,there had to be a fall and a
redemption, otherwise how couldwe know God completely?
That includes forgiveness,mercy, grace and his divine
power.
Not only is God fully revealed,but those who are redeemed take
part in his glory.
(20:11):
We experience and feel what Goddoes as he lives in us, so that
we can take part in his divinenature.
By this he is exalted as itproduces praise from us.
2 Peter, 1.4.
By which he has granted to ushis precious and very great
promises so that through themyou may become partakers of the
(20:33):
divine nature, having escapedfrom the corruption that is in
the world because of sinfuldesire.
Moving on to Ephesians 1.7-10,in him we have redemption
through his blood, theforgiveness of our trespass,
according to the riches of hisgrace, which he lavished upon us
in all wisdom and insight,making known to us the mystery
(20:55):
of his will, according to hispurpose, which he set forth in
Christ as a plan for thefullness of time to unite all
things in him, things in heaven,things on earth.
Now the problem people havewith God choosing us is that
they think this makes Godresponsible for the fall of man
and therefore unjust, if this isthe case.
(21:16):
But that is not what Scriptureteaches.
It says we are accountable forour sins, not God teaches.
It says we are accountable forour sins, not God.
Yes, god made it possible forus to sin, knew we would sin,
but in no way caused us to sin.
Let's return to that scenario,with us in that burning room,
with a friend who knows how toget out.
Let's bring a little morecontext to the story.
(21:38):
You probably never thoughtabout how that fire started, did
you?
Of course not, because itwasn't relevant for the context
given, but now it is.
We don't just walk into aburning room for no good reason.
We likely find ourselves introuble because we created the
problem or someone else did.
Let's assume the story startedwith you in a perfectly designed
room with everything you needto survive and live a joyful
(22:00):
life.
One of the things you wouldhave found in that room maybe
would have been matches to starta fire so that you could stay
warm and cook food.
But maybe you were giveninstructions not to throw those
matches in the trash, or elseyou would set the room on fire.
Were the matches bad?
Was the fire bad?
Was what the fire created inthe fireplace bad?
(22:21):
No, but what happened when youthrew the lit match in the trash
after starting a fire in theproper place?
You set the room on fire andnow needed to be rescued.
Was it the fault of the personwho created the matches that the
room was on fire?
Of course not.
It was yours.
However, jesus is in the roomwith us after we do such a
(22:41):
stupid thing and knows how torescue us from the fire.
He had an escape plan frombefore the foundations of the
world, just like an escape planyou might find in a building in
case of a fire.
Now, does that prove thatsomeone wanted the building to
catch on fire?
Absolutely not.
You will often find many safetymeasures to prevent such a
calamity, but that doesn't meanthe building can't catch fire.
(23:05):
The building and that roomrepresented everything you
needed to live and have anexcellent, full life in a
relationship with the one whobuilt it.
When God built this world, hegave us everything we needed to
have a full, purposefulrelationship with him.
He didn't create robots, but hedid create people with the will
to make choices within theboundaries of a created world.
He gave us everything for ourpleasure and told us how to use
(23:27):
it and what to do with it,including what not to do, like
the instructions to not throw alit match in the trash.
He said don't eat of the treeof knowledge or you will surely
die.
The tree had a purpose in theworld's creation and played a
part in our relationship withGod Some call this free will and
that it allowed us to choose tolove God without being forced,
(23:49):
making it possible to have agenuine relationship with our
creator that wasn't coerced.
The only problem with thisscenario is that we don't see
this problem in Adam'srelationship with God before the
fall.
In no way does that tree beingthere seem to cause Adam to
stumble over his relationshipwith God.
It's not until Eve is deceivedby this serpent that we have a
problem.
It took coercion to get Adamand Eve to eat.
(24:11):
We know that Satan is thefather of all lies and a
deceiver and was cunning ingetting Eve to eat the fruit
John 8, 44.
He was a murderer from thebeginning and does not stand in
the truth, because there is notruth in him.
When he lies he speaks out ofhis own character, for he is a
liar and the father of lies.
Now we could easily ask thequestion why didn't God make
(24:34):
Adam and Eve smart enough tooutwit Satan like Jesus did in
the wilderness?
Or why not put the tree out ofreach where they couldn't reach
it?
Why have the tree to tempt themat all?
We have to assume the treeplayed some part in God's
original creation, because hecalled everything very good and
the tree was there when he saidthat.
I also don't think the tree orthe fruit of the tree tempted
them.
Scripture makes it clear thatit was Satan who tempted them.
(24:56):
Nothing in them was corruptedor bad that made them disobey.
It was a source from outsidethem.
Let's return to that room andassume we had everything,
including the matches, exceptthis time.
We have been trained to use thematches and are proficient in
using them correctly.
We have someone over and hesuggests another way to use the
matches we never even considered.
(25:18):
He says you know, if you litthe trash on fire, you will warm
the house twice as fast and getrid of the trash simultaneously
.
You might even say but I wastold not to use the matches this
way.
And your visitor says well, Ido it all the time and it works
for me.
So believe in your visitor.
You throw the lit match in thetrash.
Initially it looks like itworks, until it gets out of
control and becomes too hot, thetrash can melts, and so on.
(25:41):
Had the visitor never shown uptoo hot, the trash can melts,
and so on.
Had the visitor never shown up,you would have never done such
a thing, but you did nonethelessand you were the one who threw
the lit match in the trash, theone who told you might have
given you the thought, but youare responsible for acting on
that thought.
That shows we are accountablefor our sins, even though we
were deceived into sinning inthe first place.
(26:03):
It seems to indicate that Satanis ultimately responsible for
our sins, even though we weredeceived into sinning in the
first place.
It seems to indicate that Satanis ultimately responsible for
our sins, as he deceived us.
But let us take it a littlefurther.
God created Satan, who was oneof the highest ranking angels in
heaven.
We aren't given much detailabout how and why angels could
or were allowed to fall, but weare told they did.
(26:24):
In either case, they also arecreated beings and if God knows
all things, then he knew Satanwould fall and deceive Eve in
the garden, making him theresponsible one for the whole
scenario.
Again, we see this play out inGenesis 3, 12-13.
The man said the woman whom yougave to be with me, she gave me
(27:06):
fruit of the tree and I ate.
Then the Lord God said to thewoman what is?
The man said you make me likethis.
It's your fault, I wanted to belike you and fell, and that I
desire to lie and destroy allthat you created and love.
But he didn't.
Not once in scripture do we seethe blame put on God for the
fall of Satan.
The fall is totally, 100%Satan's fault and his
responsibility from thebeginning.
If it were not so, don't youthink he would have spoken up
when Adam and Eve did?
But he didn't.
He kept his mouth shut beforethe Lord because God was
(27:27):
blameless.
Again, we don't know how thisworks out in the heavenly realm,
but we do know that the fall isnot God's fault and instead the
fall is entirely on theshoulders of Satan.
The second point about us nothaving free will is that
universal laws, like gravity,bind us.
These laws limit all of ourdecisions, regardless of how
(27:48):
much we want to bend or breakthem.
Only God truly has free will,as he can bend or break these
universal laws as he sees fit.
All of his thoughts come fromwithin him and there is nothing
or no one that influences him inany way.
Isaiah 45, 5,.
Isaiah 55.8.
So, whatever the reason orcause for Satan's fall, we know
(28:20):
that it wasn't God's fault andit was Satan's.
So why did God create Satan ifhe knew he was going to fall.
I believe this gets us to theanswer we seek in Romans 9.
Considering that we know it'snot God's fault for sin and that
we don't have free will, whatelse could the reason be?
So let's look at Romans 9, 14to 23.
(28:42):
What shall we say then?
Is there injustice on God'spart?
By no means, for he says toMoses I will have mercy on whom
I have mercy, and I will havecompassion on whom I have
compassion.
So then it depends not on humanwill or exertion, but on God,
who has mercy.
For the scripture says toPharaoh for this very purpose, I
(29:06):
have raised you up, that Imight show my power in you and
that my name might be proclaimedin all the earth.
So then he has mercy onwhomever he wills, and he
hardens whomever he wills.
Verse 17 is the moststraightforward answer in all of
scripture as to why God didwhat he did.
Now, this is talking aboutPharaoh, but can just as easily
(29:26):
be applied to Satan, as he isalso a created being.
Everyone is made for a purpose,but not all have the same
purpose, as we saw Verse 17,.
For this very purpose I haveraised you up that I might show
my power in you and that my namemight be proclaimed in all the
earth.
That's the key to understanding.
Every person or angel has beencreated for either mercy or
(29:48):
wrath, in which God is glorifiedby his name being proclaimed on
all the earth.
So then, how can God find faultwith anyone?
I'm glad you asked because Paulanswers that in Romans 9, 19-23
.
You will say to me then, whydoes he still find fault For who
can resist his will?
But who are you, o man, toanswer back to God?
(30:09):
Well, what does molded say toits molder?
Why have you made me like this?
Has the potter no right overthe clay to make out of the same
lump one vessel for honorableuse and another for dishonorable
use?
What if God, desiring to showhis wrath and to make known his
power, has endured with muchpatience vessels of wrath
prepared for destruction inorder to make known the riches
(30:32):
of his glory, for vessels ofmercy, which he has prepared
beforehand for glory?
There it is.
It's for his glory that he didall that he did and he presumed.
We want to understand that, evenafter he told us, only our sin
gets in the way of acceptingthat truth.
We don't want the people welove going to hell and we can't
(30:55):
stand the thought of Godchoosing them for that purpose.
But here's the thing Goddesires all men to be saved, and
you don't know who he haschosen.
So get to work, christian, onreclaiming his name in this
world, because that is why youwere created.
In addition to us beingconcerned about lost people not
being chosen by God, why is itthat you are not concerned about
(31:18):
the fall of Satan?
Why doesn't anyone ever ask whycan't Satan be saved?
How is that fair?
Why are we concerned that somepeople are going to hell, but we
aren't concerned that Satan isas well?
It's because we aren't worriedabout anyone going to hell, and
it's more about us wanting thechoice for ourselves.
We don't want to hear that ourdestiny is in God's hands.
We want it in ours.
(31:41):
What you don't realize is thatit was in your hands and you
chose sin over righteousness,death over life.
If that doesn't show the powersin has over us, I don't know.
What does we want what we want,and we do not want God to
choose it for us, even though heonly desires good for those who
love him Romans 8, 28.
(32:01):
And we know that for those wholove God.
All things work together, forGod chose you for adoption so
that you would glorify him andpraise his name.
If you don't believe that, thenmaybe you were created so that
those who were saved would seeGod's wrath poured out and know
that they were saved from, knowthat what they were saved from,
(32:26):
so that they would praise hisname throughout eternity.
The truth is, we all deserve tobe cast into hell, and God
would be just for doing so If hedesires to save some and not
others.
When we can agree none deserveto be saved, why do we have a
problem with that?
Let us praise God for the favorhe has shown us, knowing what we
(32:47):
deserve and, more than that,knowing what he has promised us,
that we can have the fullnessof joy in Christ Jesus.
If you love the Lord, you havebeen chosen by him and for him,
and your life is beyondmeaningful.
Never let anyone rob you ofthat joy, and praise him all
your days.
Ephesians 1, 11-14.
(33:07):
In him we have obtained aninheritance, having been
predestined according to thepurpose of him, who works all
things according to the counselof his will.
Now Paul finishes promised HolySpirit, who is the guarantee of
our inheritance until weacquire possession of it to the
(33:36):
praise of his glory.
Paul finishes his initialthought by reiterating what we
just covered in verses 1 to 10.
We are in him because he choseus according to the counsel of
his will before the foundationsof the world were laid, which is
predestined, meaning it wasplanned and purposed before any
action was taken, so that wemight be to the praise of his
(33:59):
glory.
That means we would be the oneswho praise him, talk about him
and exalt him to everyone,everywhere, and it says that
this is for his glory.
Now, verse 13 says when youheard the word of truth and
believed.
The when in that statement hasmade many believe.
(34:19):
It indicates choice on our partand that when we chose to
believe, we were saved and giventhe Holy Spirit the promise and
guarantee of our salvation.
However, when we look at thetext, we see that it doesn't say
we choose.
Up to this point, paul made itclear that God was the one
choosing, not us.
So why does it seem to changein verse 13?
Because our belief was theevidence of his choosing.
(34:41):
That happened at a specificmoment in time for us, but was
predetermined by God before thefoundations of the world.
That would be the moment wewere born again, not by flesh
and blood, but by the Spirit ofGod.
The fact that you confessedJesus as your Savior and
repented of your sins was theinitial evidence of your new
birth in the Spirit.
(35:02):
Nothing of you caused that, aswe also see in verse 13.
You believed because you firstheard.
You heard because God sentpeople to tell you and you
received it, not because youwere intellectually convinced,
but because the Spirit gave youears to hear and eyes to see.
Ephesians 2, 7 and 9.
So that in the coming ages hemight show the immeasurable
(35:24):
riches of his grace and kindnesstowards us in Christ Jesus.
For by grace you have beensaved through faith, and this is
not your own doing.
Been saved through faith, andthis is not your own doing.
It is the gift of God, not aresult of works, so that no one
may boast.
John 1, 12 to 13.
But to all who did receive him,who believed in his name, he
(35:46):
gave the right to becomechildren of God, who were born
not of blood, nor of the will ofthe flesh, nor of the will of
(36:07):
man, but of God.
John 3, 5, do not marvel that.
I said to you, you must be bornagain.
The wind blows where it wishesand you hear its sound, but you
do not know where it comes fromor where it goes.
So it is with everyone who isborn of the Spirit.
Jesus clarifies that being bornagain is like your first birth
(36:29):
in the flesh.
He uses the same context totell Nicodemus that spiritual
birth comes like the wind andthat you don't know where it
came from or where it's going.
However, he also said the windblows and you hear it sound.
That is evidence that somethingtook place.
When a baby is born, it criesand you know it is alive.
When you are born in the spirit, you will glorify God by
(36:51):
praising him, and that is anoise you have never made before
, and people will hear it andnot know where it came from.
They won't understand whatchanged because they never saw
it coming, nor did you.
The proof that something didhappen is that you now make a
sound that glorifies God.
As I said, you only heardbecause they were sent and God
(37:13):
gave you ears to hear.
Romans 10, 15.
And how are they to preachunless they are sent, as it is
written?
How beautiful are the feet ofthose who preach the good news
Matthew 13, 13-17.
This is why I speak to them inparables, because seeing they do
not see, and hearing they donot hear, nor do they understand
.
Indeed, in their case, theprophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled
(37:36):
that says you will indeed hearbut never understand, and you
will indeed see but neverperceive.
For this people's heart hasgrown dull and with their ears
they can barely hear, and theireyes they have been closed, lest
they should see with their eyesand hear with their ears and
understand with their ears andunderstand with their heart and
turn, and I would heal them.
(37:56):
But blessed are your eyes forthey see, in your ears for they
hear, for truly, I say to you,many prophets and righteous
people longed to see what yousee and did not see it, and to
hear what you hear and did nothear it.
If you have heard this message,it's only because God gave you
ears to hear and gave me atongue to speak.
(38:17):
It's all because of him andit's all for him.
There is nothing of yourselfthat you can offer to God that
will complete him, because Godis complete and fully satisfied
within himself.
We are his workmanship, inwhich he shares his glory.
That it may be unto the praiseof him.
We are the instruments hecreated to proclaim his
(38:39):
greatness.
In so doing, we experience thefullness of his joy in us.
Instruments do not playthemselves.
They require a musician thatknows what he is doing.
God knows what he created usfor and desires to use us for
that purpose.
The musician is the Holy Spiritin you.
All we have to do is yield tohim.
When we do, he will orchestratethe most beautiful results
(39:03):
beyond anything we could produce.
When we allow ourselves to bewhat we were meant to be, we
will find the greatest joy andpurpose for our lives that
exists in him.
John Piper says in his bookGlorifying God the chief end of
man is to glorify God byenjoying him forever.
And God is most glorified inyou when you are most satisfied
(39:24):
in him.
This is precisely where Paulwants to lead us in Ephesians.
He desires that the fullness ofour joy is found in God and him
alone.
As we go through this epistle,we will see that this is a
repetitive theme that Pauldoesn't want us to miss.
I desire that we can explorethe words of Paul, that we can
all enter into the full joy ofthe Lord as we live a life
(39:45):
glorifying him.
Let's pray, father.
God, thank you so much for ourlisteners today.
I thank you for your word Itoday.
I thank you for your word.
I thank you for theunderstanding of your word.
I thank you for the clarity ofyour word.
I thank you for the purposethat you have given us and
placed in our lives, that youhave called us, that you have
(40:06):
chosen us, that you have adoptedus, that you have predestined
us to a very specific place andtime and work so that we may
praise you and that you may beglorified.
Father, I pray that you openthe eyes and the ears of our
listeners today, that they wouldhear your word and see your
word, that they would be movedby your Holy Spirit, god, to
(40:30):
move in the good works that youhave for them.
Father, we love you and wethank you in your precious name,
jesus, amen.
I want to thank you again forjoining us today, as I hope this
message helped you take a stepcloser in your relationship with
Jesus and that you have abetter understanding for just
how much God loves you and wantsyou to know him.
In our next episode, we're goingto discuss the importance of
(40:51):
gratitude as we explore verses15 to 23 to conclude chapter 1.
Paul not only establishedchurches, but he also continued
to pray for their spiritualgrowth and express gratitude to
God for the spiritual blessingsbestowed upon them.
Paul understood that for thechurch to thrive, it requires
sound biblical teaching,spiritual gifts and believers
(41:11):
who pray.
This forms the basis of ahealthy community and it's
something we should all becommitted to Achieving.
This goes beyond the role ofpastors.
It necessitates everyone beingfaithful with their gifts, as we
will see in the upcomingchapters.
The question is are you ready tolive your life in accordance
with God's will, or will youcontinue to pursue your own
(41:33):
desires?
Before we go, I want toencourage you to visit us at
thetakeawayfaith.
On our website, you can learnmore about us and sign up to
receive emails for notificationsabout new episodes and ministry
updates.
You can also easily share ourpodcast and use it as a resource
to help others.
Feel free to send us a message,a word of encouragement or any
(41:53):
questions or comments, as wewould love to hear from you.
God bless, and we'll see younext time on the Takeaway.
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