Question:
How does one know he or she is chosen by God for salvation?
Answer:
Those who are chosen for salvation will display evidence of their salvation. They will be excited about the things of God. They will desire to please him and seek his will. They will be saddened by and sorry for breaking God’s law.
Obviously, the Christian life is marked by peaks and valleys. At times, even “chosen ones” may behave in “un-Christian” ways. The “chosen ones” will respond to the conviction of the Holy Spirit and repent of their sin.
Also, there are people walking around who may be “chosen” but may not have yet been called to faith. God’s chosen people come to faith at all different ages and stages of life. Read the story of Paul’s conversion in Acts. Paul, a law-abiding Jew, was murdering Christians until his dramatic turn from death to life.
Question:
How does one know others aren’t chosen?
Answer:
A simple response is, you don’t.
Scripture instructs believers to proclaim the gospel message to all. Precisely because we don’t know who is chosen, we should tell any and all persons, so that the chosen ones may come to faith. God uses his earthly messengers to reveal himself to the chosen but not yet converted.
Charles Spurgeon said:
Our Savior has bidden us to preach the gospel to every creature (Mark 16:15). He has not said, ‘Preach it only to the elect,’ and though that might seem to be the most logical thing for us to do, yet since he has not been pleased to stamp the elect in their foreheads or put any distinctive mark upon them, it would be an impossible task to us to perform. When we preach the gospel to every creature, the gospel makes its own division, and Christ’s sheep hear his voice, and follow him.”
from “Too Little for the Lamb” (Sermon 2937) at Spurgeon Gems
Those who aren’t chosen will obviously not respond. In fact, the Bible says that that the gospel message is foolish to those who are perishing.
~~~
What are your questions? Comment below and I’ll try to answer them in future posts. I’d love to hear from persons from different faiths and perspectives. Let’s wrestle together with the difficult questions.
Facebook
Pinterest
Twitter