What is the reason that God selects beforehand some for salvation?
Let's have a look at a famous part of the Bible that is often misunderstood.
Romans 9:11-16,
11For the children (Jacob and Esau) being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works, but of him that calleth;)12It was said unto her, The elder shall serve the younger.13As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated.14What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? God forbid.15For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.16So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy.
OK, so what was the reason God loved Jacob and hated Esau before they were even born?
Was it that Esau was going to be hairy and red so God didn't like his appearance?
Was it that Jacob was going to be maybe handsome so God liked him?
Some will answer saying that we don't know what God had in mind. Don't we really?
If we look at the lives of both what do we see? We see that Jacob loved to grab God's promise to Abraham, and we also see that Esau literally rejected and humiliated that promise considering that promise to be less valuable than a dish of soup. What a humiliation! Similarly Judas thought that Jesus, the Son of God, deserved just 30 pieces of silver. So I ask again. What did God know beforehand about those two so He loved Jacob but hated Esau? The answer is obvious, isn't it? Next question. On what God based His decision to select beforehand Jacob instead of Esau. Not on what He arbitrarily decided but on how those two would respond to His call. Maybe God did something supernatural to make Jacob respond and Esau reject Him? Why would He do that?
Similarly God's selection of each one of us is due to our response to His love which He showed to us by sacrificing His Son. There is no other possible reason
Let's have a look at a famous part of the Bible that is often misunderstood.
Romans 9:11-16,
11For the children (Jacob and Esau) being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works, but of him that calleth;)12It was said unto her, The elder shall serve the younger.13As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated.14What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? God forbid.15For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.16So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy.
OK, so what was the reason God loved Jacob and hated Esau before they were even born?
Was it that Esau was going to be hairy and red so God didn't like his appearance?
Was it that Jacob was going to be maybe handsome so God liked him?
Some will answer saying that we don't know what God had in mind. Don't we really?
If we look at the lives of both what do we see? We see that Jacob loved to grab God's promise to Abraham, and we also see that Esau literally rejected and humiliated that promise considering that promise to be less valuable than a dish of soup. What a humiliation! Similarly Judas thought that Jesus, the Son of God, deserved just 30 pieces of silver. So I ask again. What did God know beforehand about those two so He loved Jacob but hated Esau? The answer is obvious, isn't it? Next question. On what God based His decision to select beforehand Jacob instead of Esau. Not on what He arbitrarily decided but on how those two would respond to His call. Maybe God did something supernatural to make Jacob respond and Esau reject Him? Why would He do that?
Similarly God's selection of each one of us is due to our response to His love which He showed to us by sacrificing His Son. There is no other possible reason
This comment thread is locked. Please enter a new comment below to start a new comment thread.
Note: Comment threads older than 2 months are automatically locked.
Do you have a Bible comment or question?
Please Sign In or Register to post comments...
Report Comment
Which best represents the problem with the comment?