Carol Swenson
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ELECT, ELECTION
Election refers to the selection of a leader by a group of people. It involves choice. Usually one must be chosen out of many candidates.
When the verb “elect” is used in the Bible, it usually has God as its subject. God chose Israel to be his people (compare Acts 13:17). In other words, they didn’t decide to belong to him. God took the first step. God’s choice wasn’t based on any particular virtues that his people showed. Rather, it was based on his promise to their forefather Abraham (Deuteronomy 7:7-8). God also chose such leaders as Saul and David (1 Samuel 10:24; 2 Samuel 6:21). There was no popular vote by the people. The word thus means that God decides what shall happen, and it’s apart from human choice.
The same thoughts are found in the New Testament. God’s people are described as his “elect” or “chosen ones.” Jesus used this term when speaking of the future time when the Son of Man will come and gather together God’s people (Mark 13:20, 27). He will reward them for their sufferings and for their patience in waiting for his coming (Luke 18:7). In 1 Peter 2:9, God’s people are called a “chosen [elect] nation.” This phrase was first used of the people of Israel (Isaiah 43:20). It brings out the fact that the people of God in the Old Testament and the Christian church in the New Testament are connected to each other. The promises addressed to Israel now find fulfillment in the church.
In Romans 9-11 Paul discusses why the people of Israel as a nation have rejected the gospel, while the Gentiles have accepted it. He states that in the present time there is a “remnant” or small remaining part of Israel as a result of God’s gracious choice of them. This group is “the elect.” They are the chosen people who have obtained what was meant for Israel as a whole. But the greater mass of the people have failed to obtain it because they were “hardened” as a result of their sin (11:5-7).
Nevertheless, God’s choice of Israel to be his people has not been canceled. Most Jewish people have set themselves against the gospel. As a result, the Gentiles have entered into their place to receive God’s blessings. However, the Jewish people are still loved by God, and God will not go back on his original calling of them (Romans 11:28). That is why Paul is confident that in due time there will be a general return to God by the people of Israel.
The word translated “elect” is generally found in the plural. It refers either to the members of God’s people as a whole or to those in a particular local church (Romans 8:33; Colossians 3:12; 1 Thessalonians 1:4; 2 Timothy 2:10; Titus 1:1; 1 Peter 1:1-2; 2 Peter 1:10; Revelation 17:14; compare Romans 16:13 and 2 John 1:13, which have the singular form). The use of the plural may partly be explained by the fact that most of the New Testament letters are addressed to groups of people rather than to individuals. The point is that God’s election is concerned with the creation of a collective people rather than the calling of isolated individuals.
The word “election” emphasizes that God took the first step in calling people into the membership of his people. This election was made before time began, prior to all human response (Ephesians 1:4; compare John 15:16, 19). It is God who has called men and women to be his people, and those who respond are elect. God’s call does not depend on any virtues or merits of the human race. Indeed, he chooses the foolish things by worldly standards to shame the wise, the weak to confound the strong, and the lowly and insignificant to bring to nothing those who think that they are something (1 Corinthians 1:27-28). The effect of election is to leave no grounds whatever for human boasting in achievement and position. The elect owe their standing entirely to God, and they cannot boast or compare themselves with other people.
God’s elect are a privileged people. They now have God to uphold them. No one can bring any accusation against them that might lead to God’s condemnation (Romans 8:33). They are a royal priesthood. They are God’s servants with the right of access to him (1 Peter 2:9). It is for the elect’s sake that the apostles endured hardship and suffering, so that they might enjoy future salvation and eternal glory (2 Timothy 2:10).
The elect are recognized by their faith in God (Titus 1:1). They are called to show the character that should mark God’s people (Colossians 3:12). They must make their calling and election sure. That is, they must show that they belong to God by the quality of their lives (2 Peter 1:10). They must continue being faithful to the One who called them (Revelation 17:14).
The relationship between God’s call and human response is explained in Matthew 22:14: “For many are called, but few are chosen.” Although God calls many through the gospel, only some of those respond to the call and become his elect people. The text sheds no light on the mystery of why only some become God’s people. Certainly, when a person does respond to God’s call, it is because the gospel comes to him or her “in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction” (1 Thessalonians 1:4-5). When men and women refuse the gospel, it is because they have become hardened as a result of sin and because they trust in their own works. Scripture does not go beyond that point in explanation, and neither should Christians.
“Election” can also be used of God’s choice of people to serve him. Jesus chose the twelve disciples out of the larger company of those who followed him (Luke 6:13; Acts 1:2). The same thought appears in John’s Gospel. Jesus said that although he chose the Twelve, one of them turned out to be a devil (John 6:70; 13:18). When a replacement was needed for Judas, the church prayed to Jesus. They asked him to show them which of the two available candidates he would choose to fill the gap in the Twelve (Acts 1:24). Peter attributes his evangelism among the Gentiles to God’s election of him for that purpose (15:7). Similarly, Paul was elected as God’s witness to the Gentiles (9:15).
(Tyndale iLumina)
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