God's particular love relates to His predetermined sovereign choice of some to be saved. God's elect saints are the fourth object of God's love. The New Testament declares;
"He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before Him. In love He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace, which He lavished upon us" (Ephesians 1:4-8, emphasis added).There are not many biblical doctrines that have met such opposition as the doctrine of election. Some Christians argue that predestination makes God an unjust and unfair god who selfishly manipulates people to forcibly respond to Him, while He passes over others with contempt. In short, they argue that sovereign election is not loving at all. But, one must not miss the fact that according to Scripture, predestination is a loving act: "He chose us . . . in love, He predestined . . ." (Ephesians 1:4-5).
When Paul and Barnabas preached the gospel in the synagogue at Pisidian Antioch, Luke records that "as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed" (Acts 13:48). In other words, those who had been chosen by God before the foundation of the world responded positively in faith to the message preached by the apostles. What a loving act of God! This was His particular love in action!
To the disciples, Jesus said, "You did not choose Me, but I chose you, and appointed you, that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain . . ." (John 15:16). What a shock to the disciples who had been thinking all along that they were in control of their own decisions to love and follow Christ. Actually, Jesus had first lovingly chosen them.
Now, as previously stated, some Christians do not accept the reality of the particular love of God. To these I say, it is not wrong that God would choose to love some more than He loves others. In the same way, we choose to love a life-partner as a spouse and extend particular love to that partner while not extending it to others. We love that chosen person even more than we love our neighbour, even though we are commanded in the New Testament to love both (Matthew 22:39; Ephesians 5:25-28).
Second Timothy 1:9 declares: "[God] has saved us, and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was granted us in Christ Jesus from all eternity."
In 1 Thessalonians 1:4 Paul says, "knowing, brethren beloved by God, His choice of you."
Surely, we cannot deny the fact that God demonstrated His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us (Romans 5:8) and drew us toward Him. Praise God for His sovereign particular love! Without it, we would be lost.
The everlasting and powerful continuance of God's particular love for His chosen saints is seen in Romans 8:35 when the Apostle Paul asks, "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?" The obvious answer to that rhetorical question is that no one can do such a thing. Paul concludes, "For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 8:38-39).
God loves His elect saints in a particular sense. They are the fourth object of His love. But is there any sense in which even believers encounter a greater or lesser expression of God's love? I believe the answer is yes. I'll transition next to a conditional love of God – one that is dependent upon obedience.
No comments:
Post a Comment