Is there a more controversial or hated doctrine than that God sovereignly and graciously chooses who will (and consequently who sovereignly and justly won’t) be saved? I challenge you to find one!
The primary objection to this doctrine of predestination, it seems to me, is that it renders God’s nature unloving, His actions unfair. God must be unloving if He doesn’t choose everyone. His actions are unfair if He doesn’t exert the same amount of effort to save all.
Interestingly enough, Paul connects God’s love with His predestinating activity. We read: “In love God predestined us for adoption to Himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of His will, to the praise of His glorious grace” (Ephesians 1:4-6, emphasis added). In other words, according to Scripture, predestination does not render God unloving but actually shows God’s love for His people. God’s decision from all eternity to sovereignly and graciously choose those who will be saved is an act of love. Without this sovereign act of love, no one would be saved!
Thus, if we talk about the love of God, we should not neglect the predestinating work of God, since that work is inherently loving. Something is wrong with our perception of God’s love if we routinely and systematically fail to talk about predestination in conjunction with God’s love (and vice versa).
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