Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, just as he chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless before him in love. He destined us for adoption as his children through Jesus Christ, according to the pleasure of his will[.] Ephesians 1: 3-5, NRSV.
Abba, Father, we utter that name with holy confidence, because You have adopted us in the Beloved! Please teach us Your will as we come into You presence today. In the mighty name of Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior we pray. Amen.
We hear a lot about destination and predestination these days. Everyone seem to have their own idea of what it means to be destined, or, predestined. I never gave too much thought to the subject, until I became aware that God had destined us to eternal life, by adopting us into the family of heaven! This was made possible through the sacrifice of His Son Jesus Christ! Hallelujah!
I have spoken on the topic of adoption before. The point I made then, was that, most natural parents do not have a say in regards to what child they are going to get. An ultrasound after the first trimester, is about as close as they get to knowing what the sex of the child is, and how the child is developing. For many, the big surprise comes at the time of birth.
In the case of an adopted child, the parent chooses the child they want! This choice can be based on a lot of factors, but from many of the stories I have heard, it was “love at first sight!” Nevertheless, some adopted children feel “less than,” a child who is the product of two natural, or, blood, parents. Perhaps this feeling of inferiority comes from the fact that their natural parents were willing to give them up for adoption, not the fact that they were chosen, by their adoptive parents.
Thanks be to God, the Christian has no reason to feel “less than.” God is our real Parent by creation. It is His breath that started the cycle of life, and it is His breath that sustains life. Proof of this is found in the Word of God: “and the dust returns to the earth as it was, and the breath returns to God who gave it” (Ecclesiastes 12: 7, emphasis provided). He is also our Parent by conversion, “But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God, who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God” (John 1: 12, 13).
Because of His great love for the human race, through the death of, “His only begotten Son,” God flung the gates of eternal life wide open so that all who will may be saved (John 3: 16)! Just in case anyone is thinking that God selected only certain people to save, let me remind you that, the call is to all! As God, He does know who will respond to His call; and therefore, He equips them to pursue their destiny and be saved. The apostle in the classic words found in Romans chapter 8, says it this way: “For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified” (Romans 8: 29, 30, emphasis provided). We have no reason not to be saved! We have been predestined, called, justified, and even our glorification is already guaranteed, in Christ Jesus our Lord!
Listen to these all-inclusive words that are found in the Good News of salvation: “[W]hoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3: 16). “[T]o all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God” (John 1: 12). ” ‘ “Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters” (Isaiah 55: 1a). ” ‘ “The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let him who hears say, ‘ “Come!” ‘ Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life. . .” Yes my friend, the words all and whoever, includes you and me, and the entire world! We were all predestined to be saved! Unfortunately, not all are wiling to live up to their destiny. May God help “whoever will,” to accept the open, all inclusive, invitation of love, and be saved!