Philip Dampier's Blog

Chapter 1, Verse 4 “… even as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before Him. In love…”

God set the criterion for his chosen ones before the beginning. It should be comforting to Christians to know that God did not wait and pick and choose based on a changing standard. Many disciples of Christ have made the mistake of thinking that this measure of holiness has something to do with us. To know that God decided about what He would and would not accept before we were ever born takes the guesswork out of it for us.

One problem that arises from this verse is the idea that God has made arbitrary choices; something like a hit and miss roll of the dice. Under that assumption, the candidate for salvation is left wondering if he or she was or was not chosen. That assumption leads to the doctrine that those whom God elected will act like the elected. By that belief, there is no way to fall from grace or to lose salvation by one’s lack of commitment to God. And, what about infants and children who never live long enough to demonstrate this trait? The parents and families have to wait until the end to know the fate of their children. Isn’t a particularly great advertisement for a Holy and Just God, is it?

What this verse does tell us is that God has predetermined that those who are in Christ are going to be made holy and blameless. No one can do that on their own, and those outside of Christ cannot have it done for them. God decided long ago before there was time on earth that His holy people would consist of those in His covenant relationship. Jesus brought that new covenant to the world and bought it with His own blood. Those that accept him as Lord of their life and are buried into His death and resurrection become a part of His body. They can be spoken of as being in Him.

God chose us in Jesus. That is the standard that creates holiness and blamelessness in a Christian. Those in Christ are the ones God will bless. Those in Christ are the ones God will save. Those in Christ are the ones God prepares a home for. Those in Christ are the ones who are chosen for eternal life.

There is not now, nor was there ever, a significant question about what to do to be in Christ. Many have asked, and the answer is always the same. On the first Pentecost after Jesus’ resurrection, thousands asked the question, “What must we do?” In the book of Acts, the question is asked over and over in one form or another, and the answer is always the same. When all the answers are compiled, a short list is formed.

First, believe the good news about who Jesus is and what Jesus did.

Second, realizing your sinful nature and life, repent of that lifestyle and turn from it.

Third, tell with your mouth that you believe Jesus is the Son of God.

Fourth, be buried in the water of baptism so that your sins may be washed away and come out of that water-grave and walk as a newborn person.

Once these four things are done, God will add you to the body of Christ, His church, and recreate you holy and blameless before him in love. He will also indwell you with His Holy Spirit.

Task for Today: Do not take the attitude of Naaman and believe the power is in the water. It is Jesus who forgives sins, and they are paid for by blood, not water. Accept baptism for what it is, a demonstration of the death of your old sinful self, the burial of that former self and the resurrection of a new person, recreated in the image of Christ. Not only will you be a part of the chosen family of God but to prove that, God will give you His Holy Spirit.