We are Chosen.
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Series Introduction
Series Introduction
Thank you for calling J.Crew. Pulled aside from my supervisor - be excited! You are excited to have the business! They are helping us make money! Really? Really mean that? Heartfelt? A script. Words. Prayers at the Thanksgiving table can be like that. Rote. A continuation of the prayers we say before a meal. In a small group Bible study. Thanking God for the obvious - food, job, friends, a friendly church. Freedom. This series is about thanking God for things that might not be obvious to us.
Also, thanksgiving is more than remembering the past. The things God has given us (past tense), continue to bless us today and in the future. And with great gifts, come great responsibility. digs into these gifts, and we’re going to take our time and look at these gifts.
Ephesians - Paul’s letter to the church at Ephesus; The apostle Paul, who was once an enemy and hater of Christ, was chosen to take the Gospel to the Gentiles - the non Jews. After he came to Christ, he spent the rest of his life planting churches. After he planted a church, he would move on and plant another church, but he would also write letters to the church he had planted. That’s where we get half the New Testament.
We’re going to focus on 12 verses of his letter to the church at Ephesus. It was [stop and ponder, don’t skim
Sermon introduction
Sermon introduction
Today’s passage says we are chosen - what does that mean. Looking back at my middle school years, I have some unpleasant memories: getting up early, the teacher who gave long, unstimulating lectures, the strict dress code (Baptist), I think our school was the last in NC to do away with corporal punishment. But one unpleasant memory that stands out for me is PE class. It may not be much of a surprise when I say that was not the most skilled athlete in middle school, and I never really hit that growth spurt I was promised. I could run, but that was about it. So I hated it when we had to play flag football, soccer or basketball. What I hated even more than was the way the teams were formed: The teacher appointed 2 people to be captains, who began the process of picking teams. I wasn’t even chosen last - I was never chosen by name. Since I was the last person standing there, the teams simply took their places and I just followed my team.
We’ve all been chosen at some point in our lives. Jury duty. A Job offer. A role in a play. You’ve probably been chosen to receive a complimentary stay at a 4-star hotel! I’ve been getting lucky lately!
A lot of things come to mind when we think of the word “chosen,” but we have to remember:
8 “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. 9 “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.
God’s way of choosing is very different from ours.
Like I said, our Thanksgiving sermon series covers 12 verses - . Today we are going to look at the first 2 of those verses;
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves.
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love
Ephesians 1:3-
What should we be thankful for? According to the Apostle Paul, we should be thankful that...
For you are a people holy to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you out of all the peoples on the face of the earth to be his people, his treasured possession.
We are chosen.
We are chosen.
We find this truth all over Scripture, like...
Deuteronomy 7:
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4 For we know, brothers and sisters loved by God, that he has chosen you, 5 because our gospel came to you not simply with words but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and deep conviction. You know how we lived among you for your sake.
1 Thesslonians 1:4-5
The very idea that we are chosen by God should tell us that God has taken the 1st step towards us. This is a constant assumption made by the writers of Scripture. Here is my personal favorite:
8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
God has chosen us not because of anything we have done. says we were chosen before the world was created. It’s not like being chosen during PE class - you are chosen based on your ability, or maybe if you are good friends with the team captain. But being chosen for a team is completely merit based. If you are choosing your team for a game of flag football, picking me may not be your best strategy. I do not have a history of leading sports teams to victory. That was true in 6th grade, and not much has changed.
But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.
Now, here’s a question that Christians have asked since the Christ formed His church. Since the Bible is clear that God chooses people, and not the other way around, does this mean that God chooses some people but not others? Are there some that get to be on the team while others are not? This is not some “way out in left field interpretation,” the issue of God’s choosing, or predestination, has been around since the beginning of the Christian church. It really became popular during the Protestant Reformation and it’s still around in some Baptists and Presbyterian churches.
There’s a lot to say about that argument that I don’t have time for now. Does God choose some and not others - if you look at Bible as a whole, and not just certain passages, you get a picture that extends his grace to everyone, and not just in a general sense - God chooses each of us personally. We see that again and again in the Bible. We also read that people also make a choice, to reject God.
So what does it mean when we say we are chosen by God? It means God has taken the first step towards us, and called us to a relationship with Him. I trust that everyone has heard that call and answered it. Some people avoid it or ignore it. If you have answered God’s call, God has given you a new purpose in life. God has given you a life mission. First I want to look at some of the blessings and benefits to being chosen by God.
We are assured of God’s presence.
We are assured of God’s presence.
We are assured of God’s presence.
We are assured of God’s presence.
We were chosen for an inseparable relationship. Eugene Petersen once wrote, "You are the ones chosen by God . . . from nothing to something, from rejected to accepted."
One of the most painful parts of life is a severed relationship. Divorce. Death. Betrayal. Abandonment. Rejection. To be cut off.
Ex. Bat Mitvah. Girls not invited. Seeing the group who was invited wearing the t-shirts from the weekend. It was so painful for the person who wanted to be invited to have that visible form of rejection.
God chooses us to be in a secure relationship where we can constantly enjoy His presence. In Romans, he goes out of his way to assure us of that truth:
33 Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. 34 Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?
Romans 8:
When God reaches out to you - chooses you -
33 Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. 34 Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it is written:
“For your sake we face death all day long;
we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”
37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
not safety - examples of OT prophets who were chosen for specific tasks; either scared (Jeremiah, the weeping prophet) or hated the mission (Jonah)
We are assured of God’s justice.
We are assured of God’s justice.
This can be a hollow phrase for someone who has been at the receiving end of injustice.
And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?”
Luke
This is a tough one to believe if you feel like you haven’t received justice.
This is a tough one to believe if you feel like you haven’t received justice.
7 And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? 8 I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?”
Nelson Mandela is, unfortunately, a rare historical figure. He served a 27 years of a life prison sentence, for wanting to overthrow a pro-apartheid government. When he was released, he did not seek revenge or wish harm on his enemies. Instead, he became a promoter of racial reconciliation and peace making. How was this possible? His unwavering belief that God was the provider of justice.
7 And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? 8 I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?”
This is a tough one to believe if you feel like you haven’t received justice.
If you’ve been treated unfairly and your enemies haven’t gotten what’s coming to them.
Our idea of justice may not match up to God’s.
Justice doesn’t always happen in our timetable.
But Scripture assures us, that God’s chosen people are assured of justice.
We are assured of a place in heaven.
We are assured of a place in heaven.
Therefore, my brothers and sisters, make every effort to confirm your calling and election. For if you do these things, you will never stumble, and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Baptist preacher: “Christianity is about playing the long game.” Just like we may not see justice in this lifetime, we may not receive a full reward in this lifetime.
As God’s chosen, we will About receiving blessings for persevering hardship, being faithful in this life without reward, but receiving your reward in heaven.
You can tell the difference between someone who believes in this and someone who does not. Someone who goes to their grave bitter, and someone who looks forward to their reward that never...
But there are responsibilities that come with being chosen by God.
We are chosen for a specific purpose.
We are chosen for a specific purpose.
Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.
Colossians
But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.
Going back to the PE class illustration, I remember one time I was chosen first - and it was so much more embarrassing than being chosen last. The team captain took pity on me, he was trying to be nice, and he obviously didn’t care about winning.
There was no good reason for choosing me, except for pity. Kindness. Generosity. Charity. Not bad reasons. But this stiill doesn’t describe the way God chooses us. God chooses us out of compassion. We were in sin. We were lost. Without purpose. Without God.
This is where our calling, our being chosen, becomes unique. We’re not just lumped into a large category of chosen people whom God had compassion on. God chooses His church, but he also chooses individual people. And he chooses each of us for specific purposes.
“God loves everybody.”
Examples of individuals being chosen for specific tasks. Spiritual gifts.
Every calling is unique, but the purpose is the same: declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.
Remember: thanksgiving isn’t just about remembering what God has done for us - God has given us wealth to invest in the kingdom, not in ourselves; God has gifted us, not for our own sense of fulfillment, but to use for His glory and His kingdom;