Election is to Service

 

The word election comes from the Greek noun eklogē (1589), the adjective eklektos (1588), and the verb eklegō (1586). All the words mean “chosen, select,” and I wish that Bible translators would have consistently translated them as “choose” or “chosen” as this would have reduced some of the confusion surrounding the term “elect.”

There are many related terms as well, such as calling, foreknowledge, ordained, and predestined, but by considering the term election, or to choose, the basic meaning of these others words will become clear.

The key truth to remember about election, or “God’s choice,” is that God chooses certain people and groups of people to perform certain tasks in this world so that He can accomplish part of His plan in and through them.

And what does God elect, or choose, these people for?

God does not choose which people will receive eternal life and which ones will not. Instead, God chooses which people will have a prominent role in helping Him move forward His plan for this world.

In other words, election is not to eternal life, but to service.

Whom Does God Elect?

Since this is how to understand election, it is obvious that God can elect individuals or entire nations.

election of GodHe can elect believers or unbelievers.

Sometimes, the people God elects will later believe in Him and be justified (cf. Gen 12:4; 16:16; 17:1), while other times, they will not believe, and remain elect unbelievers (cf. John 6:70; Rom 9:10-24).

Of course, all who believe in Jesus are automatically elected by God, because all believers are “in Christ” and Jesus is the primary elect person in Scripture (cf. Luke 23:35; Eph 1:4-5).

Furthermore, just because God chooses, or elects, someone to fulfill a purpose in His plan for the world, this does not mean that the person will do what God wants.

Election is to service; not to eternal life.

While all who have eternal life are elect, not all the elect have eternal life. God raises up whom He wills to perform tasks He desires so they will accomplish His plan and purposes in this world. With this central idea in mind, let us look at several key texts from Scripture that reveal this truth in more detail.

https://redeeminggod.com/election-is-to-service/

Why Biblical election is to service and privilege, 
not to eternal life

As members of the Body of Christ, we are elect in Christ, and share in the general vocation to do good works (Eph 2:10). Hence, this vocational doctrine of election makes a difference to several areas of Christian thought and practice.

First, it does not cast doubt on God’s loving character the way other theories of election do. God’s election is an expression of His love for all. For example, the Jews were chosen to produce the Messiah so that all people could be saved. And the Apostles were chosen to proclaim the gospel so that many would believe in Jesus and have eternal life. Election to service actually magnifies God’s love for all mankind.

Second, election to service does not destroy people’s assurance of eternal life. It brings out the fact that election and eternal life are two different issues. Eternal life is given to us freely on the basis of faith in Christ (John 3:16). But being faithful in the service to which we are all chosen takes prayer, effort, faithfulness, diligence, and work.

Third, election to service clarifies the importance of both God’s sovereignty and human free-will. From the divine side of things, God sovereignly sends His Son to atone for the sins of the world, chooses servants to preach the good news to all mankind, and chooses to save whoever will believe in Jesus for eternal life. And from the human side of things, people are free to seek the truth in response to God’s drawing, to believe in Jesus’ promise of eternal life, and to be faithful or unfaithful in the mission God has sovereignly given them as members of the Church (Eph 2:10). God sovereignly allows for human freedom in both eternal life and in our election to service.