Chosen

The opening section presents the sermon's main theme: God's election in Christ Jesus. Based on Ephesians 1:3-14, the pastor points out that Apostle Paul repeats the phrase "in Him" at least twelve times to stress the importance of abiding in Christ. The pastor explains that being chosen by God to be sanctified, to become God's children, to be redeemed and forgiven are the spiritual blessings in heaven that every believer receives.

The second section develops why doctrine is important. The pastor compares doctrine to theorems in mathematics and science—they are foundational, unchanging over time. Doctrine is the distillation of research over many centuries about Scripture, the Trinity, salvation, and the ordinances of the Church. The pastor emphasizes that doctrine determines what we believe, and what we believe determines our actions, attitudes, words, and thoughts. Those who do not believe Scripture is the sole and complete revelation will hold different beliefs, leading to different actions. The pastor illustrates this with examples of the Cold War and extremist conflicts, showing that belief systems drive behavior.

The third section explains three things Scripture teaches about salvation: God desires all people to be saved, humans have free choice, and God has predestined and chosen certain people to be saved. The pastor cites specific Scripture passages from Ezekiel, 2 Peter, 1 Timothy, Deuteronomy, Joshua, John, Matthew, and 1 Peter to prove these three truths do not contradict each other.

The fourth section uses a practical example about Prince William, Prince Harry, and their wives to illustrate that being chosen is a blessing. The pastor asks believers whether being chosen by God to be forgiven, saved, and made His children is an even greater blessing than being chosen by a prince. He emphasizes that being chosen by God is not because believers are good, talented, or virtuous, but solely because of God's love and grace. This is important so that no one can boast but instead does God's work with sincere gratitude.

The fifth section explains the relationship between God's choice and human choice. The pastor uses the example of a dog choosing meat over vegetables to illustrate that human nature after Adam and Eve's sin is naturally unwilling to choose God. However, when the Holy Spirit calls a person, their desire changes and they want to come to God. This proves they have been called, predestined, and chosen by God from before the foundation of the world to be in Christ. The pastor concludes by quoting Romans 8:28-30 to explain God's process of calling, justifying, and glorifying those He has predestined.