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PREDESTINATION No scriptural salvation, or preservation is complete that omits a consideration of the question of predestination. Some of the questions already discussed in this book logically lead to the question of predestination. 1. The Calvinistic Theory. Calvinistic predestinarianism has held a large place in protestant theology in the past, and has been a matter of extended controversy. The discussion of it has decreased in recent years, partly because of modifications in the views of Calvinists, yet the Calvinistic system remains substantially unchanged, and represents the belief of multitudes of professors of Christianity. A clear distinction should be made between the scripture doctrine of predestination and that theory of predestination held by Calvinists. The following is the first notable five points that differentiate Calvinism from scriptural teaching. The Scriptures teach: (1) Conditionality of salvation, (2) universality of the atonement, (3) moral freedom, (4) resistibility of grace, and, (5) possibility of final apostasy. The counter tenets of the Calvinistic system are: (1) Predestination, (2) limited atonement, (3) moral necessity, (4) irresistibility of saving grace, and, (5) the absolute final perseverance of believers. Each of these two groups of doctrines is self-consistent. To hold any one of the five points logically requires the holding of all others in that group. If the doctrine of particular predestination were true in the sense that only a part of the race were ordained to salvation then it would be unreasonable, as true Calvinists hold that atonement should be made for that portion which God has decided not to save. Moral freedom would be excluded in favor of moral inability, as there could be no power to choose what does not exist. The irresistibility of saving grace would follow, for none can resist the purposes of the sovereign will of God. And if God had unconditionally predestinated one to be saved in heaven, he will necessarily cause him, not only to be converted, but to continue faithful to the end. Of these five points we have already discussed the questions of the conditionality of salvation, the extent of the atonement, and free will. Now we will give special consideration to the theories of predestination and final perseverance. No higher authority on the Calvinistic theory of predestination can be cited than the Westminster Confession of Faith. It has been revised at different times, but it is still substantially unchanged on the point of predestination. It reads “By the decree of God for the manifestation of his glory, some men and angels are predestinated unto everlasting life, and others foreordained to everlasting death. These men and angels, thus predestinated and foreordained, are particularly and unchangeably designed; and their number is so certain and definite that it can not be either increased or diminished. Those of mankind that are predestinated unto life, God, before the foundation of the world was laid, according to his eternal and immutable purpose, and the secret counsel and good pleasure of his will, hath chosen in Christ unto everlasting glory, out of his free grace and love, without any foresight of faith or good works, or perseverance in either of them or any other thing in the creature, as conditions and causes moving him thereto, and all to the praise of his glorious grace. As God hath appointed the elect unto glory, so hath he, by the eternal and most free purpose of his will, foreordained all the means there unto. Wherefore, they who are elected being fallen in Adam, are redeemed by Christ; are effectually called unto faith in Christ by his Spirit working in due season; are justified, adopted, sanctified and saved, but the elect only. “The rest of mankind God was pleased, according to the unsearchable counsel of his own good will, whereby he extendeth or withholdeth mercy as he pleaseth, for the glory of his sovereign power over his creatures, to pass by, and ordain to dishonor, and wrath for their sin, to the praise of his glorious justice.” Predestination as here described has its basis in the Calvinistic doctrine of divine decrees. According to this doctrine all events are the results of decrees of God from eternity. Decrees concerning the destiny of men and angels are called predestination. The doctrines of decrees is stated in the Westminster Creed as follows. “God from all eternity did by the most holy counsel of his own will freely and unchangeably ordain whatever comes to pass.” Disproof of the doctrine of particular predestination will furnish sufficient refutation of the objectional aspects of the doctrine of divine decrees. Predestination is used of the divine predetermination of the destinies of men, both good and evil. Those ordained to salvation are said to be the elect. Those ordained to be lost are said to be reprobates. 2. The Elect In the Calvinistic sense of the term, election means that choice by God of particular persons to enjoy everlasting blessedness, which choice is made by him. “Without any foresight of faith or good works, or perseverance in either of them or anything in the creature, as conditions or causes moving him thereto.” Election in the Calvinistic view is wholly in God’s sovereign will, and in no sense is it determined by the will or character of those elected. The question which here confronts us for answer is, is Calvinian election identical with the election described in the Scriptures? Or what is the teaching of the Scriptures? The scriptures mention three kinds of election. The first is the election of individuals to perform some particular service. Isaac and Jacob were chosen of God instead of Ishmael and Esau to be the ancestry of Christ. Cyrus was chosen to build the temple, and the twelve apostles were elected by Jesus to fill that high office in his church. But no such election insured them against missing everlasting blessedness. “Judas by transgression fell”—Acts 1:25. And Paul recognized the possibility of his becoming a “castaway” (1 Cor. 9:27). Election in this sense has no more to do with one’s being unconditionally chosen to final salvation than does one’s being called to the gospel ministry today. Neither can it be shown that such election was irrespective of one’s character and qualifications for the performance of such work. The second kind of election referred to in the Bible is that of nations or groups of persons to exalt religious privileges. A notable example of this is Israel, which was elected to be the bearer of true religion and recipient of revelation prior to the advent of Christ. But the election of this nation, as a nation, did not result in an unconditional election of final salvation of the individual composing it. If this sort of election included the final blessedness of each individual, then rebellious persons like Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, idolaters such as Ahab and Athaliar, and the betrayer and the crucifiers of our Lord will certainly all be saved. Christians especially are called the “elect.” As a class they are elected of God to salvation and future blessedness. As the Jews were once God’s chosen people, so now he has elected that all those who believe shall be his people. This is the great truth taught in Rom. 9:24, 30. Whoever chooses to become a believer, becomes one of the elect. Election of believers, as a class, to salvation through Christ does not imply that particular individuals are unconditionally and infallibly predestinated to it nor that those who become members have their salvation secured against the possibility of apostasy. Neither does the conditional election here described exclude, or imply the necessary reprobation of those who fail of election through unbelief. A third kind of election is that of individuals to divine sonship, and future blessedness on the ground of divine foresight of their disposition freely to choose salvation. In the true biblical view of personal election men are not unconditionally chosen in order to faith, obedience, and holiness, but because of divine foresight of faith and obedience. This conditional predestination is the only kind that is compatible with the definite scriptural teaching of the conditionality of salvation, which has already been considered. Also it cannot be shown that any text of scripture teaches other than a conditional election of individuals. Jesus said, “I have chosen (elected) you out of the world”—John 15:19. But such choosing was by his changing their hearts, which according to other texts, is conditional upon their forsaking the world. Paul said, “God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth”—2 Thess. 2:13. The belief of truth is not the result of the choosing, but the choosing is through foresight of that belief. Peter also writes to his brethren in Christ that they are “elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ”—2 Peter 1:2. In this text election is said to be according to the divine foreknowledge, but that the election consists in having the work of salvation effected in their hearts. None are ever said to be of the elect who are not saved. A text which is especially depended upon by Calvinists for support of their doctrine of election reads as follows, “For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the first born among many brethren. Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: of whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified”—Rom 8:29–30. In interpreting this 29th verse it is to be read forward and not backward as the Calvinistic interpretation would require. No unconditional predestination is the ground of God’s foreknowledge of particular persons to be saved. The predestination mentioned in this text is because of the divine foreknowledge. Foreknow, means simply knowing before hand. To foreknow as here used is to know beforehand that particular persons referred to will freely accept the salvation of Christ when it is offered to them. With this sense of “foreknow” what follows is clear. God foresaw that some would freely choose to love and serve him. Therefore he predetermined and made provisions accordingly that they should be “conformed to the image of his Son,” through regeneration by the Spirit. But it was not enough that he should foreknow that some persons would choose to love and obey him nor yet that he should predetermine to save them. “Them he also called” through the preaching of the gospel. These heeded the call of the gospel and consequently were “justified” or pardoned. Lastly, those thus justified are “glorified” with God’s presence now and the blessing of heaven hereafter. No support whatever is given to Calvinistic election by this text. It is only when one’s mind is previously filled with the Calvinistic view that he can suppose that theory is supported by this text. Another text much relied on by predestinarians reads: “According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ unto himself, according to the good pleasure of his will”—Eph. 1:4–5. For different reasons this text fails to support Calvinistic election. First there is no proof that the divine election and predestination to adoption is unconditional on the part of those elected. It cannot be shown that the divine election of these before the foundation of the world was not on the ground of divine foresight of faith and love on their part. Such must be the nature of any personal election to salvation in the light of the common scripture teaching of the conditionality of salvation. Again it cannot be shown that this passage teaches a personal election. The context shows clearly that it affirms not a personal, but a collective election to the privileges of the gospel. Here the word is used to point out God’s fixed purpose of predetermination to bestow on the Gentiles the blessing of the adoption of sons by Jesus Christ, which adoption had been before granted to the Jewish people. And the apostle points out that all this was foredetermined by God; that the Jews had no right to complain, for God had formed this purpose before he had given the law, or called his people out of Egypt; and that, therefore, the conduct of God in calling the Gentiles now, bringing them into his Church, and conferring on them the gifts and graces of the Holy Spirit was only carrying out and fulfilling his original plan and that the Jews were taken to be his peculiar people, not because they had any goodness or merit in themselves, so the Gentiles were called, not for any merit they had, but according to the good pleasure of his will; that is according to his eternal plan, showing mercy and conferring privileges in this new creation as he had done in the original creation, so now in redeeming man, and sending the glad tidings of salvation both to the Jews and the Gentiles, he acted on the same principles, deriving all the reasons of his conduct from his own infinite goodness. Predestination here is a destination to sonship in the image of Christ. Election is the preference for the conditioned person. Predestination is the specific direction of people to their blessed destiny. It (predestination) is the divinely established connection between the conditioned person, and his final salvation, never being affirmed of the wicked. Proof has already been given of the conditionality of salvation, the universality of the atonement, and the power of alternative choice. With the disproof of the unconditional election of a part of mankind to final blessedness, no place remains for the unconditional reprobation of the remaining portion to future punishment. So the scripture says to all “whosoever will may come,” and whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shaft be saved.” These leave no room for unconditional predestination.
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