B. The Believer’s Glorious Privilege in Christ (1:3-14)
“The Believer’s Astounding Station in Christ, to the Praise of His Glory.”
Beginning the doctrinal section of this letter, Paul bursts forward in an eleven verse sentence that finds no punctuation in the Greek. Due to its rich explanations of the believer’s unmerited, Already Blessings made available by Christ Jesus, the Christian should consider bathing in Ephesians 1:3-14 regularly, using its contents to wash the mind and encourage the soul (Rom 12:2). Many have likened this passage to that of a doxology or even a first-century hymn. Without a doubt, meditation on these truths will cause the heart of the saint to soar!
Unfortunately, this section has suffered much at the hands of many expositors by being credited with many ideas and concepts that are absent from Paul’s intended meaning. It is necessary to entertain such interpretations only for the purpose of allowing Paul’s original meaning to burn brighter. In doing so, the believer’s cup will overflow in seeing that all that Paul writes thrusts us into deeper realms of honoring the Lord our God and praising Him for His glorious grace.
Ephesians 1:3
Ephesians 1:3 stands as an amazing truth that summarizes the content to follow. I consider it to be an “umbrella statement” by which the listing of the blessings that follow are all included in this initial mention. Focusing on this one truth provides the believer with a gracious foundation to which he or she can return over and over again. This verse begins with the word eulogetos (“blessed”) which is an “act of speaking in favorable terms, praise.” The English word “eulogy” is derived from this, giving us a better sense of the meaning. However, this section is not to be associated with a funeral, dirge, or any form of sorrowful proceedings. These are blessings of great joy! While it can mean “to be blessed,” this word issues praise to God for the great blessings that Paul will soon expound upon (v. 4-14). When we speak of blessing God, we speak of ascribing glory and honor to Him. It is praise of the highest form. It is worship in the purest form. Hoehner writes that eulogetos is found “eighty-seven times in the LXX and is translated forty-three times…” as “’blessed’ which has the idea of someone deserving appreciation, honor, and praise.” Hoehner goes on to note that this term is used predominately to bless God for such things as His deliverance, provision, His answers to prayers, and also just for the simple fact of Who He is and what He has done, with both being the necessary focus for a proper attitude of worship. As Boice has recorded, “doctrine, if it is rightly understood, leads to doxology. If we discover who God is and what he has done for us, we will praise him.” Paul’s first call is to the fact that we should worship the Almighty who has blessed us richly!
The one whom Paul attributes this praise and worship is “the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Paul starts at the beginning, calling attention to the Creator of all things, specifically illuminating the relationships between the Father and the Christ, His Son. Regarding this phrase, Ed DeZago writes,
The grammatical construction identifies God and “Father” as the same Person. Not only does this distinguish Father from Son (and later in this chapter, from Holy Spirit), but implies important realities about the relationship that Jesus has with God, His Father. Rather than discrediting the deity of Christ, this phrase emphasizes the unique relationship and role the Messiah has to the Father. In His humanity, Jesus, who is also God blessed forever (Rom 9:5), is, in essence, a servant, (Phil 2:7). The Eternal Word humbled Himself through the incarnation, and as a man, served His God (note Hebrews 10:7; Phil 2:5-8; and Peter’s assumed relationship of divinity and humanity in Acts 2:22-36). While Jesus’ service was to God, His life was lived as a Son to His Father (John 5:17; 6:38-40).
It is not unusual to understand that the Father blesses the believer in Christ, but questions may arise regarding the believer blessing God. The believer is found to behold an incredible privilege. Epp writes, “We bless God by praising Him, whereas He blesses us by showering His benefits upon us.” Hoehner writes, “when God is the object of a person’s blessing, it has the idea of ‘praise’ and when a person is the object of God’s blessings, it has the idea of ‘happiness, success, an increase of earthly possessions.’” In blessing God, we are not showering our benefits upon Him, for we have nothing to offer Him that would be of any benefit to Him (Acts 17:24-25). Our praise must be acceptably offered to Him because He has lavished His great love upon us, seeing all that has been accomplished for us in Christ.
This understanding leads us to a phrase of particular interest: “who has blessed us in Christ,” noting the past tense. This is a significant truth that begs for the reader’s attention. This verse does not tell us that we “will be blessed,” or even that we “are being blessed,” but that the Father “has blessed” us in a particular location, and that location is “in Christ.” While present and future blessings are truths that the Bible would affirm (Rom 8:23-25; Jas 1:25; 1 Pet 3:14), Paul’s point in praising God is that He is the One who has already blessed us in the location of being “in Christ.” Seeing that our position in Christ is permanent and complete, our blessings in Christ are likewise permanent and complete, for it is only through Him that these blessings are possible.
It must also be observed that these “already blessings in Christ” serve as the present reality for Paul as well, seeing that he includes himself by using the personal pronoun “us.” This is what makes the tone of rejoicing so personal throughout this section, and the rest of the epistle. Paul considers himself equal with his audience in having already received every spiritual blessing because he is “in Christ.” When studying the New Testament books of Romans through Jude, it is helpful to mark the instances where the biblical author includes himself with his recipients. I usually do this by writing in “PIP,” which stands for “personal inclusive pronoun.” Our tendency may be to think of the biblical authors as “better Christians” than ourselves, but by including themselves as recipients of the same wonderful truths that are found in Christ, we see that the playing field is very high and exalted, but also level for every saint. If we have ever felt the discouragement of being a “lesser than,” we can come back to these personal inclusive pronouns and rejoice that we share in the same gracious Already Blessings together.
This truth is so powerful that it is constantly in the crosshairs of Satan. It is this point of being “already blessed in Christ” that the enemy tries to attack in order to keep us from living in the freedom and abundant life that Christ has supplied (John 10:10). The tactic of the enemy is to introduce doubt regarding the full acceptance of the believer’s standing or of the completeness of the believer’s forgiveness. Guilt and shame are used as a smokescreen to obscure the believer’s feet and the Solid Rock on which they rest. The Word of God establishes the never-ending truth that the believer’s standing is as secure as the work of Christ is sufficient. Therefore, it is this paramount truth that we must lay hold of, meditate upon, saturate upon, and embrace fully!
This moves our attention to the fact that every believe is “in Christ.” This phrase, and similar renderings of this concept (“in Him, in the Beloved,” “in whom”- KJV), are found to be constantly drawing the reader’s attention back to the crucial Cause of the blessings that God has put forth for the believer. Stott notes that:
In the first fourteen verses of the Ephesian letter Jesus Christ is mentioned either by name or title (‘Christ’, ‘Jesus Christ’, ‘Christ Jesus’, ‘the Lord Jesus Christ’, ‘the Beloved’) or by pronoun or possessive (‘he’, ‘him’, ‘his’) no fewer than fifteen times. And the phrase ‘in Christ’ or ‘in him’ occurs eleven times.
Oh, how Christ is exalted in this opening! This beautiful phrase “in Christ” eliminates the proud and boastful heart. It strips the believer of any sense of self-accomplishment that would entitle him or her to the reception of these eternal blessings and exalts the risen Lord, who has purchased these blessings on a Roman cross, on our behalf, and has “lavishly” (1:8) poured them upon those who have believed in the Lord Jesus Christ. This tidal wave drowns us in unknown and far-fathomable riches of His pure grace! This truly is undeserved favor!
But what, exactly, does it mean to be “in Christ?” Beal and Radmacher write:
The expression “in Christ” does not arrest our attention as it would that of first century Greek readers. Our English word ‘in’ is used more loosely than was the Greek word en, which it translates. Normally en was used to refer to someone located within a city, within a house, or in a boat, but not ordinarily of someone’s person being within someone else’s person. Paul’s Ephesian readers would accept the phrase as good Greek, but they would stop for a second look at the surprising concept.
This provides some excellent pictures for the mind. Being “in Christ” means that God has brought you to a new location. If you have ever moved, you know that an abandoning of the former residence took place and a transference into a new location completed the process. God has moved the one who responds in faith to the gospel of Jesus Christ to a new, eternal location. Just as one is born from a woman into this world, so the one who believes in the gospel is spiritually born out of the world and into Christ Himself. The former life is gone (2 Cor 5:17-18). There is a new beginning. A new life. And this place of permanent residence is found “in Christ.” They continue on, stating:
When we follow Paul’s use of the expression, we discover that to be in Christ means that in a real sense the Christian has been placed, located, within Christ. In Christ signifies that whatever Jesus Christ is before God the Father, the believer shares his identity, because he or she is within the Savior. It is the Father giving the believer the same exalted status that Christ in all His glory now holds. It is the Christian’s full identification with Jesus Christ in the eyes of the Father.
The blessings that believers have been blessed with cannot be of an effectual nature unless they are “in Christ.” This is the location where the blessings reside and in which the blessings can be received. This superior location speaks to where Paul’s readers are currently residing. Though they may be in Ephesus, Rome, China, or Virginia, they are always and forever in Christ! There is no segway or progressive timeline of events that must transpire before the believer reaches this blessed destination. At the moment that one places their faith in Christ, they are immediately and without reservation translated into Jesus Himself, becoming a part of His Body on Earth (Eph 1:23; 4:4-6; 5:30; 1 Cor 12:27). The believer is now in a location of complete blessing, having a standing or righteousness before the Father as He has so declared to all who are in Christ (Gen 15:6; Rom 3:22; 10:17; Eph 1:13).
It cannot be stated enough, nor pondered enough: our standing with Christ is based upon His finished, all-sufficient work on the cross which secures the believer’s permanent position. This is what makes us completely accepted and fully acquitted before the eyes of the Father. “Christ is the golden string on which all the pearls of this doxology are strung. He is the central diamond around which all the lesser diamonds are set as rays.” He has made the impossible possible in obtaining for us an “astounding station” before God by His blood.
Many times we refuse to accept the truth our position in Christ is a non-negotiable fact. This usually stems from shame or self-condemnation due to sins that we have previously committed, rampant sinful thoughts that we are having little success in controlling, or just a poor self-assessment. Satan seeks to leverage these matters against us. The enemy’s constant attacks will always be focused on the position of the believer in Christ. Something that we see as a mindset of discouragement is actually an attack on our personal inability or our failed attempts at accomplishment. But we know from this one verse that all believers have been blessed with “every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places.” Every last one! Looking to ourselves guarantees sure defeat. We simply have no answers on our own: No standing, no merit, no redemption, no hope, no plan, and no answer. When looking unto Christ, “self” fades into the background, and Perfection Himself takes center stage, rightly captivating our time, attention, thoughts, and life. No longer are we worried about the failures in our daily lives because we are now consumed and attentive to the grand accomplishments of the Lord Jesus on our behalf! Let us remember that the sea that God has drowned our sins in is the precious blood of Jesus our Lord (Micah 7:19; 1 John 2:2). The hymn is true:
Turn your eyes upon Jesus,
look full in His wonderful face.
And the things of Earth will grow strangely dim,
in the light of His glory and grace.
The careful observer will note that there are two significant locations in this verse: the first being “in Christ” which has been considered, and the second is “in the heavenly places.” The word “places” is not found in the original Greek text but has been added by English translators for clarification. The “heavenlies” should not be considered as “places,” but as a location in which the believer in Christ’s spiritual blessings are found to be complete which is the heavens, being a dimension beyond the blue sky which will be reveal at the 2nd Coming of Christ (Joel 2:28-32; Isa 2:18-21; Matt 24:29-31; Rev 6:12-17). The NIV and NET use the word “realm” which may be more appropriate when compared with Paul’s use of it throughout Ephesians (1:3, 20; 2:6; 3:10; 6:12), while the ESV, MEV, NASB, and NKJV use the word “places.” Both Darby and the HCSB have chosen to translate this word literally, leaving it alone in its plural state. J. Vernon McGee writes:
It literally states, ‘in the heavenlies in Christ.’ Here we are, blessed with all spiritual blessings, and it is in the heavenlies. I don’t know exactly where the heavenlies are, but I do know where the Lord Jesus is. He is at God’s right hand, and we are told here that these blessings are in Christ. May I say to you that we need to be careful with this. It does not say here that these blessings are with Christ (there are those who read it like that). Right now you and I are seated in Christ. When somebody asks, ‘Are you going to heaven some day?’ the answer generally given is, ‘Well, I hope so.’ Let me say this to you: if you’re going to heaven, you’re already there in Christ. He has blessed you in the heavenlies in Christ, and you are there regardless of what your position is down here. Your practice down here may not be good, but if you are a child of God, you are already in Christ.
This magnanimous truth causes us to agree with Paul saying, “Praise God! He has already blessed every single believer in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies!” The verses that proceed from verse 3 serve in unfolding the “spiritual blessings” already given to us in Christ. This fact stands as an unconditional truth that is always true, regardless of our belief or unbelief of its reality. The enemy sees Ephesians 1:3 as a major threat to his endeavors to keep us ineffective and stagnant. Let us not be so foolish as to think that Satan does not exist and that his angels do not seek to destroy the lives of Christians every day, and that his avenue for such disruption is simple unbelief in the promises of God to us in Christ.
The Bible tells us that the devil roams around “like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8). In every wavering instance, our lack of discernment and our bouts of misery, sin, and depression can be traced back to an inability to thwart the schemes of Satan because we are ignorant of the objective truths that we already possess in Christ our Lord. Neil Anderson writes, “Renewing our minds does not come naturally, there is no automatic ‘delete button’ that erases past programming. We have to consciously know the Word of God so that we can understand who we are from God’s perspective.” This is why we must lay claim to the glorious fact that God has given us every spiritual blessing due to Christ’s work on the cross, and not based upon anything within ourselves that would cause God to issue such blessings.
Satan is a master deceiver who seeks to drown out the reality of our astounding station in Christ. Our growth and maturity in these truths resembles one taking a mug of coffee and pouring great amounts of water into it so that the coffee rises to the surface, overflows the edges, and becomes almost nonexistent. Satan seeks for opportunities to take the gifted cup of pure righteousness and dilute it with anything that prevents us from seeing the contents of the cup. He is a liar (John 8:44) that renders the believer in Christ unaware of the blessed reality that is already theirs in Christ. Knowing that the enemy is going to attack the foundational truth of Ephesians 1:3 in our lives, we must consider three areas where the enemy seeks to dilute the focus in our lives.
1. Distraction-
The things of this world become important to us, or worse, precious. We get so overwhelmed with pressure and responsibility that the idea of having every spiritual blessing seems like a fairy tale (Matt 13:22). Today’s problems crowd the spotlight away from the certain blessings already secured for us in Christ and the abounding blessings that lay out ahead for every believer in Christ. Satan is the king of “busy,” and he has erected the god of “busy” within our schedules, using whatever it takes to blind the eyes that God has personally opened in Christ. This approach will often keep us occupied with the wrong things.
2. Discouragement-
This is the most well-worn tool in the enemy’s box. Being imperfect people, Satan has no problem making light of our inadequacies and shortcomings, having a focus that doesn’t even need other people to point them out. This unhealthy introspection is another substitute for Christ and His all-sufficient work. All the enemy has to do is point us back at ourselves. If he can get us to appraise ourselves, especially in light of those around us, he has disarmed us into a realm of self-defeating thoughts. This approach can leave us out of commission for long periods of time.
3. Distortion
Satan seeks to blind us from the truths of God’s Word (2 Cor 4:4). Every attack that he wages revolves around distorting the truth. This is exactly what happened in Genesis 3. In buying into his lies, we begin to rationalize sin, fall away from fellowship, miss church, leave our Bibles unopened, and drift into becoming friends with the world. All of these are considered enmity toward God (Heb 10:25; Jas 4:4). These are nothing short of spiritual adultery and slothfulness. Too often believers see how much they can flirt with the world and still be free of accountability by their brothers and sisters. This approach will find us drifting along on the wrong road until we are painfully corrected. If we love God, should we not seek to follow Him closely (John 14:21)?
Satan’s methods all have one thing in common: They keep us from the Word of God. His schemes seek to replace the Truth in our lives. Clinging to the rich blessings and truths that have been afforded us in Christ (like Ephesians 1:3) is the only offense that we have against the enemy’s lying ways. We must take every thought captive unto the truths found in Christ (2 Cor 10:5; Col 2:8), making every effort to cling to Christ (1 John 2:24)!
Ephesians 1:4a
When Paul speaks of the saints as being blessed “with every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies in Christ,” he is not one to leave such a pregnant statement to the guesswork of the reader. These blessings are something that the believer in Christ already possesses. These blessings are already a reality, meaning that we are never trying to earn these blessings for Christ earned them on the cross. Neither are we waiting for them to be applied to us because we are in Christ at the moment of faith. Nor are we needing anything more to complete these blessings because Christ is seated at the right hand of God. He has truly given “every spiritual blessing” to us in the heavenlies, in Christ Jesus our Lord to the full.
Verses 3-6 are concerned with the grace of the Father as demonstrated in the free distribution of every spiritual blessing to the saints of God. These verses are designed to ascribed praise to the Father for what He has done for the saints in Christ. It is God the Father who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing (1:3) and it is God the Father who has chosen us in Christ to be holy and blameless in our love (1:4). It is God the Father who has predestined us to the adoption as sons (1:5), and in every one of these blessings, Jesus Christ is the integral component that makes such things a settled reality for the believer. Apart from the Son of God and His work on the cross, His resurrection, and His ascension, there would be no effectual component in lavishing these realities upon the saints of God. The Father’s blessings are of such a nature that Jesus Christ is indispensable in our receiving them! This is why the apostle caps off this section emphasizing the Father’s work of blessing by stating, “to the praise of the glory of His grace” (v. 6). Pondering such blessings will lead to worship. Praise His glorious Name!
To say that the word “chose” in 1:4 has been a hotbed of controversy is to put it mildly. Within this verse, as well as other passages like John 6 and Romans 9, has withstood the Calvinist interpretations that see “Election… (as) an act of God before creation in which he chooses some people to be saved, not on account of any foreseen merit in them but only because of his sovereign good pleasure.” This view understands “election” and being “chosen” in reference to one’s eternal destiny of Heaven or the Lake of Fire, being decided before time began by God alone, without any consideration of a person’s life, attitudes, or circumstances. In other words, everyone’s final resting place, either in glory or torment, has been pre-decided by God regardless of how many times one hears the gospel of Jesus Christ dying for sinners on the cross. If they have not been pre-selected by God, they will never be able to respond in faith, having never been given the possibility of being saved. This view is best expressed by Sam Storms, who states:
God’s choice is not dependent on human merit or temporal circumstances. God sovereignly elects us unto eternal life before we exist and without our consent. That isn’t to say that our voluntary consent isn’t important. We must still believe in Jesus, but our belief is itself the historical and experiential fruit or effect of God’s pre-temporal elective decree (emphasis original).
What is most concerning about this view, besides its conclusions of human only having worth as automatons with a fatalistic future, is that it is not biblical. The Bible does not teach that only certain people have been chosen by the Creator to be saved and go to Heaven when they die. It is simply not there, and it is especially not here in Ephesians 1:4 either. Allowing the verse to speak for itself, in the context in which it was written, will clearly show the intent of Paul’s words to his believing audience.
To think correctly about this subject, we must examine the word used by Paul and consider the context to arrive at his intended meaning. The word “chose” is the Greek word eklegomai which is defined as “to pick out, select,” and in the NASB has been translated as chose (7x), chosen (7x), picking (1x), made… choice (1x), choose (3x), select (1x). C. Gordon Olson writes that “the secular Greek usage of the verb had to do with electing or appointing people to an office or responsibility with an accompanying obligation to fulfill it responsibly. This is most important since democratic elections began in Greece and the word originated in that connection.” Knowing the common usage of a word from its inception gives greater insights into the surrounding conversational and cultural use of Jesus and the apostles.
Olson quotes Lothar Coenen in Colin Brown’s New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology, Vol. I where it says, “Although these words originate in military vocabulary, by the time of Plato eklegomai and eklektos are already in use in a political sense (referring to elections). In every case it is a matter of electing people to perform a certain task, or administer a certain office… It is always, however, accompanied by some kind of obligation or task concerned with the well-being of all the other members of the community.” So the issue surrounding one being “chosen” is not found in an arbitrary selection by God that determines one’s eternal destiny but a personal choice that commissions them for a task, obligation, or responsibility of some kind that may have underlying factors in the person or people being chose that prove to be useful in the accomplishment of that task.
In the Septuagint, the word is derived from the Hebrew word bahar (162 times). The participle forms bahur and bahir are used to describe “specially chosen elite troops.” Coenen notes that “eklektos also appears a number of times for Hebrew roots connoting loveliness, preciousness, or excellent condition. Here the adjective does not express the fact of being chosen, but in a wider sense factors already present which make choice likely…”
What Coenen is getting at is that the Greek translation of the Hebrew words signify two things:
1. That people or groups were considered “chosen” to a task, obligation, or responsibility, and NOT to “go to heaven when you die.”
2. That this choosing to a task, obligation, or responsibility is based upon some factor that makes this choosing likely, meaning that the people are in some way qualified for the task.
This understanding finds perfect coherence with the New Testament.
For instance, Paul’s choosing is communicated to Ananias when God says “he is a chosen instrument of Mine, to bear My name before the Gentiles and kings and the sons of Israel; for I will show him how much he must suffer for My name’s sake” (Acts 9:15-16). At no time does the Lord state that Paul was chosen to go to Heaven or Hell, but to go to the Gentiles, kings, Jews, in order to bear His Name. His choosing is unto ministry, not eternal destiny.
In Luke 9:35 we read that the Lord Jesus is declared to be “My Chosen One” by the Father. Surely, we would not conclude that Jesus is just one of many possible Saviors, nor would we conclude that He was chosen arbitrarily, nor would we state that He was chosen to go to Heaven when He dies. We would, with complete confidence, understand that He is the Messiah who would die for the sins of the world (John 1:29; Heb 2:9; 1 John 2:2) having the previous fact that He is God the Son as a factor that qualifies Him for this ministry (Matt 3:17; 17:5; Mark 9:7).
Another example of this verb in action would be in James 2:5 where we are told, “did not God choose the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him?” Notice that James’ emphasis is not on their becoming Christians, but being “rich in faith” and “heirs of the Lord’s kingdom,” which Scripture shows is not something that is true of every believer in Christ (Rom 8:16-17; 1 Cor 6:9-11; Gal 5:19-21; Eph 5:5). One qualifying factor that was true of them for such choosing is the fact that they were impoverished.
One could take a concordance and find other examples, but it is clear that choosing/election is never set forth in the New Testament as a matter of one’s eternal destiny concerning Heaven or the Lake of Fire. Even in the Old Testament, such a concept maintains its consistency.
Read 2 Samuel 21:1-6. This passage shows that King Saul was considered the “chosen of the Lord” (v. 6). How was Saul “chosen of the Lord?” We see in 1 Samuel 9:1-10:27 that Saul is chosen by the Lord to be the first human king over Israel. Of particular note is 1 Samuel 9:16 where the interchange between the Lord and Samuel the prophet takes place. We see here that Saul was chosen for the task of being king over Israel. Were there factors present that made God’s choice of Saul likely? G. Coleman Luck believes so, writing:
God made the choice which the people were manifestly unable to make for themselves. But it remains very clear that God did not choose this king for Himself, but rather for the people. In other words, though God actually appointed Saul, Saul did not in the final analysis represent God’s choice, but the people’s choice. David, not Saul, was the man after God’s own heart (1 Sam. 13:14). The Israelites had already specified the kind of man they wanted—one who would go out before them and fight their battles, one who was grand in appearance and in whom they could rejoice with fleshly pride (1 Sam. 8:20). So God picked for them the man who in all Israel came nearest to fulfilling their idea of what a king should be.
How about Psalm 105:37-45. This is a recounting of Israel’s deliverance from their time of slavery in Egypt. They are referred to as God’s “chosen ones” in verse 43b. Israel was called to be God’s “megaphone” to the nations. We find this designation in Deuteronomy 4:6-9. However, the status of their eternal destiny is noticeably absent.
Looking at Isaiah 41:8-10, we read that twice Israel is mentioned as God’s “chosen” and they are referred (rightly) to as the offspring of Abraham (41:8b). Though Abraham was a pagan Gentile from Ur of the Chaldeans, he is later declared to be a “Hebrew” in Genesis 14:13 establishing him as the progenitor of the Jewish people. In verse 9 we read, “You whom I have taken from the ends of the earth.” This could be a reference to regathering a scattered people from the four corners of the Earth, or it could be a reference to the Jews being called our from among the nations. Smith captures the essence of God’s choosing of Israel.
By recalling early experiences in ancient history in 41:9, God reminds the audience that their forefathers at one time were living at the far ends of the earth (probably referring to Abram living in Ur), but this did not limit God’s ability to act on his behalf. At that time God “strengthened you,” or “firmly grasped you” (NIV “took”), an act of divine grace that coincided with the call of Abram (Gen 11:31; Neh 9:7). That strong “seizing, strengthening” of Abram was designed to make him God’s servant (Gen 26:24). God’s decision was to choose this one man so that through him God could raise up a mighty nation that would bring a blessing to all the nations of the earth (Gen 12:3) (emphasis added).
Again, this was not a matter of eternal destiny, but one of calling to a particular task, mission, obligation, or ministry.
One final example is found in Isaiah 42:1-4. This portion of Isaiah speaks of the coming Messiah, Jesus Christ. Notice that Jesus is considered the “chosen” of God. We see this affirmed in the New Testament in Luke 23:35 by those who scoffed at Him when He was crucified, as well as the Apostle Peter’s designation of Jesus as “chosen” in 1 Peter 2:4, 6. Such a designation is one of privilege and responsibility, not of eternal destiny.
As with the New Testament, one could easily use a concordance and go from passage to passage observing that any choosing or electing that takes place is of such that obligations, ministry, tasks, and the faithful execution of a service are in mind. One thing that we can surely understand from the verses that we have observed so far is that God did NOT arbitrarily choose King Saul, Israel, or the Lord Jesus to go to Heaven when they died. He chose them with a purpose or task in mind because of the fact that they were well-suited to fulfill His purposes.
Returning to Ephesians 1:4, we must observe that the apostle is emphasizing the corporate nature of the truths involved. The personal inclusive pronoun (PIP) shows him to be on an equal playing field with his recipients. Klyne Snodgrass brings some helpful thoughts on how we should understand this “choosing” by writing:
Usually when people speak of divine election, they think of the election of individuals and the benefit to them. But biblical texts have a different emphasis, for election is primarily a corporate term. Nothing in Ephesians 1 focuses on individuals; rather, the text focuses collectively on those who are in Christ. This changes the theology. People become elect only in the Elect One—Christ. Whereas Israel was chosen to convey the blessings of God to the world, now Christ has taken on that task. He is the “seed of Abraham” par excellence, who fulfills Israel’s election (cf. Gal. 3:7–29). Election takes place in him (Eph. 1:4) and through him (1:5). Individuals are not elected and then put in Christ. They are in Christ and therefore elect.
Snodgrass goes on to note:
Election does indeed bring privilege, but not so that people can bask in privilege or disdain others. Election always brings responsibility; God has chosen us to do something—namely, to live holy and blameless lives before him (1:4; cf. 5:27). Other biblical texts on election have the same understanding, whether they refer to Israel, the remnant, or an individual like Paul or Jeremiah. God’s choosing enlists people in his work and gives them responsibility.
Snodgrass hits the nail squarely on the head. “Election/Choosing” is unto service, ministry, a task, a calling, etc. and not to salvation (going to Heaven when you die). Every instance recorded in Scripture of this concept shows this to be the case.