Ephesians 1:5 Predestined to Love

5/29/10

Time Spent: 10 min

Main Idea: God's motive of election is by His love

What I Learned about God: God is not an impersonal force, but personal in His care and compassion towards us

Summary: The greeting Paul gives to the church itself is so rich in theology. It does not just "shoot the breeze" but goes straight to the weightiness of God and His glory right form the get go. He shares with them the loaded phrase that God had predestined His believers for good works. The reason that God does this is because of His love. People get up in arms when they talk about "predestination" because they see themselves as robots in a divine play that is being manipulated by an impersonal God. People feel they have no say, rights, or determination to factor their own life. They do not want a divine ideal lording over their life. However, those people fail to realize that they do have a divine ideal ruling over them: themselves, science, history, family, etc. What they fail to see is that they're being ruled and governed by an impersonal force that forces them to achieve or die. Something is going to be ruling your life. However, if we do have a God that elects and predestines, we might fear that we're in the same category as the people listed above, who may feel they're driven by their gods. However, we know that God cares and that's why He elects us.

Application: This shows the wonderful character of God. God loves us, elects us, dies for us. These are glorious truths of a soverign, powerful, and gracious God that we have. This God is personal and Has a vested interest in our lives; not out of duty, but because of His love for us. This is the God that sets captives free, even people who feel that "God" is the one who is doing the imprisoning. Predestination could be the most liberating idea because of the freedom it brings; showing God's love for you not based upon your goodness or your life, but by His grace. This is a God that we can worship and praise.