Sermon Guide

FORMED | ELECTION

Teaching Text

Ephesians 1:3-14

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and understanding, he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ. In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, in order that we, who were the first to put our hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.

Sermon Recap

This Sunday, Pastor Tim Brown continued our Fall sermon series, Formed, an exploration of the key doctrines surrounding a believer’s transformation from being dead in sin to being alive and formed in the image of Christ, with a teaching on election. This has been considered one of the most controversial and unsettling doctrines of the Christian faith, but Pastor Tim’s goal was to present the Scriptures with clarity, and allow his teaching to orient us around what God says instead of human opinion. Being rooted in truth, he encouraged us to go forth and seek God on this topic for more understanding.

In our modern world, the question of salvation has become increasingly understood as narrow minded or superficial, but the Bible tells us that being saved is the most profound and meaningful reality we can experience in our lifetime. In Ephesians 1, Paul lays out the gospel of salvation in Christ from God’s perspective, refusing to let us keep looking at life from our human point of view with all its limitations. We must acknowledge that our human perspective is hindered by our limited knowledge, temporal perspective, free will, conditional love, imperfect judgment, seeing the exterior, our chaining nature, immediate focus, and sin. Yet God is all knowing, eternal, sovereign, perfect love embodied, a righteous judge, sees the heart, holy, perfect, unchanging in nature, and always has a redemptive focus. Our perspective dictates the position we take, and many of us feel the tension of doubt in our faith because of our human point of view. Paul explains right away that through His love and by His grace God has chosen His people, and sets them apart for special use.

Pastor Tim presented four truths that make up the doctrine of election, the first being that no one is able to make themselves a Christian, only God is able to do that. This truth points to the reality that God’s grace is the driving factor behind our salvation instead of it being something we can earn by our own strength or merit. The second truth is that it is impossible to want God ourselves, and that is why God has to choose us. While the Scriptures make it clear that we have free will, it is also clear that our desires are governed by the flesh, and without God’s intervention, we will be hostile towards Him in our hearts. All humans are sinful and deserving of judgment, but as our Creator, God wants all people to come to Him. In light of this, God must be the one to rescue us into His mercy. This leads us to the third truth, that God’s love for us does not have a beginning point, and is therefore unconditional. Paul states that God chose us before creation, meaning HIs love is unbounded, and always reaching towards us first. The final truth Pastor Tim presented is that God will set apart those He chooses, and He will never let them go. If we did nothing to deserve the love of God, then we can never un-deserve it. This reality should free us from fear of being cast off, and instead drive us towards a life spent loving God with all we have and sharing His good news with those around us.

The doctrine of election should produce in us an unconditional confidence that everything we fight against in ourselves will one day be swallowed up by the victory of Jesus as He transforms us by His Spirit. It should also produce a radical humility, knowing that we have nothing to boast in but the grace of Christ. Finally, it should produce joy in the midst of the great sacrifice required to come to Jesus and follow Him. Jesus sacrificed Himself to put the Spirit of Adoption on offer for all people; all we have to do is come to Him. Jesus promises that when we turn to Him, repenting of our own ways, and place our full trust in Him, believing He is who He says He is and He’ll do what He said He’ll do, we will be saved.

If you missed this talk, you can watch it here today.

Discussion Questions

Connect

1. What are you looking forward to in Community Group this season?

Character

Ask someone to read Ephesians 1:3-14 aloud. Then, ask the following questions:

1. What words, images, or phrases stand out to you in this passage?

2. What do you learn about God’s character in this passage?

Consider

1. As we focus on being formed into the image of Jesus this Fall, what is an area you want to grow in looking like Jesus?

2. In the beginning of his sermon, Pastor Tim explained that the doctrine of election (ie, that God chose us in Christ before the creation of the world to be holy (v4), but also we must repent and believe the good news of Jesus (v13) is one of the more complicated theological topics of the Christian faith (with respected Christians spanning the spectrum from Calvinist to Arminian). Pastor Tim used the helpful illustration that to be chosen but also responsible to choose is much like Einstein’s discovery that light is both a wave and a particle, and that the perspective of the observer determines which way we perceive it. In the midst of this, Pastor Tim encouraged us to read Ephesians 1 as God’s perspective on our salvation journey (vs our perspective). In light of this:

a.  How does God’s perspective encourage you?

b. How do these verses motivate you to trust and obey Jesus more fully, even in the midst of trials or temptations?

3. One of the repeated phrases in this text is “in Christ” / “in him.” All that God has purposed, does, and will do is related to glorifying Jesus and “uniting all things in heaven and on earth under Christ” (v10).  How does this change your perspective regarding your purpose and identity?

4. Pastor Tim mentioned 1 Timothy 2:3-4: “This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth,” emphasizing God’s desire for all people to come to the knowledge of the truth of Jesus. In Ephesians 1:13, Paul writes, “And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit.”

a. How did you first hear about Jesus?

b. Who in your life needs to hear the gospel?

c. How can we come alongside you, as you step out in faith and ask the Holy Spirit to empower you to proclaim the gospel to them?

Cover

Spend time together praying for this upcoming season of Community Group. Ask God to reveal how and where He wants to lead this season.