Chosen by God (Eph. 1:4)

It is important to understand the will of God in election.

1. What God wills to have happen
The Bible tells us that God does not have pleasure in the death of the wicked (Eze. 33:11), but rather they turn and live.

God wills to have happen is for His gospel to be preached to the world, and all to come to repentance (Acts 17:30). God never authors people to reject His Son, God is not the author of sin, God is holy, and He commands all to come to repentance because that is the only right thing to do. This is a genuine call by God.

2. What God will do
God will save a people for Himself in Jesus (Eph. 1:4)

The Bible tells us as we have seen, God has no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather they turn and live, but the same Bible tells us no one seeks after God (Romans 4:11), no one is righteous (Romans 4:10), no one does good (Romans 4:12), which means no one can turn and live within their own strength, because the heart is desperately wicked, and deceitful above all things, who can know it, and will continue to have pleasure in unrighteousness and not in the truth, and will never desire to believe the gospel. God's call is genuine, but man who is wicked rejects the call.

So what God will do, He will save a people for Himself, by the preaching of the gospel, and by the convicting work of the Holy Spirit, will enable them to seek and to believe on the Lord Jesus.

The reason a person comes to repentance and asks for mercy, is because of the mercy of God, because the Holy Spirit makes them repentant (2Tim. 2:25). Before the Holy Spirit intervenes, we can do nothing good before the Lord (Rom. 3:10-11).

Let me put this simply, when a person comes to the Lord Jesus by faith, it is because of God and His goodness, not man, but when a person rejects Christ and goes to hell for all eternity, it is because of man and his wickedness, not God, they are responsible. God gives a genuine call to repentance, but many reject His call to salvation, but the ones who come is because of the Lord.

God did not look down the corridors of time and elected us based on whether you and I put faith in the Lord Jesus, No. The reason you and I put faith in the Lord Jesus is because God chose us in Jesus before the foundation of the world (Eph. 1:4), and by His grace enabled the chosen to be able to come to repentance and faith in Jesus, and be saved.

Remember God is God, and God does not answer to anyone. Never get the idea God is fair, because then you will think God owes you something. God does not owe us anything, absolutely nothing, except His righteous judgment. God is not fair, God is just. In Romans 9, the Bible teaches God is free to punish, and God is free to pardon. He is God, and God will pardon according to His Sovereign will.

If God decided to save nobody, or 1 person, who are you and I to reply to God. If God decided to save a remnant (which He has), who are you and I to reply to God. He is the potter, we are the clay. What right as the clay to reply to the potter. Grace is the undeserved merit of God (not deserved), what right as anyone have the right to demand God what to do with His Grace, or demand His Grace, or where His Grace should go, when we deserve His wrath, His judgement. God does not owe us His Grace. When a person receives Grace, he receives something he does not deserve, when a person receives judgement, he receives what he deserves. He is only getting what he deserves.

If you are not saved, come to the Lord Jesus by repentance and faith, and you will find Him to be a perfect Saviour, and thank the Lord for saving you by His saving grace, because without God, no man would come, because man rejects God's truth.