Allan, in your
excellent post, you wrote:
Very few if any deny 'election' and 'predestined'. However, what IS denied is NOT 'election' and 'predestination' but the soveriegnty doctrines (per)version of of their meanings. And yes, it was done tongue in check since both sides say the same thing about the other's view.
BTW - your analogy of "God’s sovereign choice of Abraham and, therefore, Israel, by definition excludes all other nations", would ALSO 'by definition' exclude any individual who was not a descendant of Abraham's chosen line and thus of Israel from being one of Gods chosen. That leaves out those Gentiles in Christ's family tree - like Rahab and Ruth for starters. Guess what - there were many others to besides those few recorded in OT and by distinction Christ’s family tree.
Edited in -->> That is why God's choice for Israel to His own, does not mandate that all of that Nation (Israel) IS saved. God chose the Nation of Isreal (all people of that nation) for and to fulfill His purpose, but not that all people of that nation ARE saved.
Anyway, I'm backing out now since that is another topic for another time. Sorry.
The “analogy” of God’s sovereign choice of Abraham is not, “mine,” it is found in scripture. But it
does not exclude people like Rahab. Here’s why:
Israel’s choice had a singular purpose: To bless the nations of the earth
Genesis 12:1-3 (ESV)
Now the Lord said to Abram, "Go from your country and your kindred and your father's house to the land that I will show you. [2] And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. [3] I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed."
Verses two and three are a beautiful example of Hebrew parallelism. Unfortunately, the ESV could have translated par of it better (The last part of v. 3 should read: “So that in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”)
What is clear, though, is that God’s Sovereign choice of Israel—to the exclusion of every other nation—has as its goal the salvation of the nations. So, no, it does not, by definition, exclude individuals outside of Abraham’s physical family. The Apostle Paul Writes:
Galatians 3:7-9 (ESV)
Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham. [8] And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, "In you shall all the nations be blessed." [9] So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.
So, actually, God’s sovereign choice of Israel, to the exclusion of other nations, had at its goal the salvation of the Gentiles.
The Apostle Paul argues there is a distinction between “National Israel” and “True Israel.”
Romans 9:6-8 (ESV)
But it is not as though the word of God has failed. For not all who are descended from Israel belong to Israel, [7] and not all are children of Abraham because they are his offspring, but "Through Isaac shall your offspring be named." [8] This means that it is not the children of the flesh who are the children of God, but the children of the promise are counted as offspring.
National Israel was named for Abraham’s son Jacob (Israel), the son of Isaac. But we see further that God, even inside of National Israel, keeps for Himself a collection of True (or faithful) Israel
1 Kings 19:18 (ESV)
Yet I will leave seven thousand in Israel, all the knees that have not bowed to Baal, and every mouth that has not kissed him."
In any case, it is clear that God is doing this. He is not pleading with people to believe Him. He guarantees there will be a faithful “remnant,” even inside National Israel. This much is clear: It is God’s Sovereign choice, which, by definition, excluded other nations and those outside the chosen faithful remnant of Israel.
Thanks for you post Allan. Many Blessings,
The Archangel
