Knowing Your Election

In this part of the sermon: To understand Paul's meaning of 'election,' Martin examines its general usage in the Old and New Testaments, illustrating it with examples like David choosing stones and the…

Martin humorously suggests that the simplest way to understand Paul's meaning of 'election' would be to call him down from heaven for five minutes, highlighting the impossibility and thus the need for biblical interpretation.

Now, how can we do this? Well, a simple way would be if we had the power to call Paul down from heaven for about five minutes, and say, now, Paul, you remember when you wrote that letter? I sure do. Well, would you mind telling us just exactly what you meant?

11:49 - 12:02 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: To understand Paul's meaning of 'election,' Martin examines its general usage in the Old and New Testaments, illustrating it with examples like David choosing stones and the…

Martin corrects the common Sunday school misconception that David was a small boy when he fought Goliath, noting he was a 'mighty man of valor,' to set up the illustration of David choosing stones.

And in the Old Testament, when they were translating out of Hebrew into Greek in what's called the Septuagint by these 70 men who did this work several hundred years before Christ, the word is used several times in a very interesting way that I think begins to give us some idea of its meaning. When it's said that David went down as not a young lad, but as a young warrior, for remember, the little song, Only a Boy Named David, is a cute little song, but it just ain't true. For he was called a mighty man of valor before he went down to fight Goliath. Probably a young man in his early twenties, h...

13:14 - 13:58 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: To understand Paul's meaning of 'election,' Martin examines its general usage in the Old and New Testaments, illustrating it with examples like David choosing stones and the…

David selecting five smooth stones from the brook to fight Goliath illustrates the meaning of 'chose' or 'elected' as an active selection by the chooser from many options.

I hope I haven't spoiled anybody's Sunday school lesson. Well, then again I hope, maybe I have. Now when David was going down to the brook. It says in 1 Samuel 17 and verse 40 that when he came to that brook, he did something.

13:58 - 14:16 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: To understand Paul's meaning of 'election,' Martin examines its general usage in the Old and New Testaments, illustrating it with examples like David choosing stones and the…

People at a feast picking out the chief places illustrates 'chose' or 'elected' as a deliberate selection of preferred options.

As David came to the brook, the brook was full of stones and out of the many stones David selected, elected, chose, picked out five stones that he would use in his conquest of Goliath. The same word is used in Luke chapter 14 in verse 7 where our Lord spoke of those who came to a feast and they would pick out the chief places or the chief seats there at the feast or at the supper. There were many seats, some of high degree, some of low degree and these particular people would choose out, would select out, would, same word, elect the seats of greater station. And rank and importance. It's the s...

14:46 - 15:58 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: To understand Paul's meaning of 'election,' Martin examines its general usage in the Old and New Testaments, illustrating it with examples like David choosing stones and the…

The early church selecting seven men to serve as deacons illustrates 'chose' or 'elected' as a multitude taking initiative to select individuals for a task.

As David came to the brook, the brook was full of stones and out of the many stones David selected, elected, chose, picked out five stones that he would use in his conquest of Goliath. The same word is used in Luke chapter 14 in verse 7 where our Lord spoke of those who came to a feast and they would pick out the chief places or the chief seats there at the feast or at the supper. There were many seats, some of high degree, some of low degree and these particular people would choose out, would select out, would, same word, elect the seats of greater station. And rank and importance. It's the s...

14:46 - 15:58 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: To understand Paul's meaning of 'election,' Martin examines its general usage in the Old and New Testaments, illustrating it with examples like David choosing stones and the…

Martin uses the absurd image of stones wiggling themselves out of the brook to be chosen by David to emphasize that the chosen object is passive and does not initiate the choice.

In every instance of the use of this word the choice is never conditioned or initiated by the thing chosen. In other words you didn't have five little stones wiggle themselves up out of the brook and stand up on their backsides and say well David I'd like to be a part of this conquest. Will you choose me? No the stones were lying there either in the brook or alongside the edge of the brook.

16:42 - 17:03 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: Martin outlines four distinct biblical usages of 'elect': the nation of Israel (national election to privilege), election to specific positions (like priests or kings), Christ as…

Martin compares America's historical gospel privileges to Israel's national election, illustrating that national election to privilege does not guarantee individual salvation, and highlighting God's sovereign disposition.

Romans 9. They are not all Israel who are of Israel. There is an Israel within Israel. In this sense we might say that America has been in a peculiar way an elect nation.

19:28 - 19:43 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: Martin presents seven scriptural conclusions about election: God does the choosing, He chooses individual people, He chooses unto salvation, He chooses in eternity, His choice is…

Martin uses the analogy of Mr. Smith choosing a car to illustrate that the choice is initiated by the chooser (Mr. Smith), not the chosen (the car), and to highlight the absurdity of twisting the plain meaning of 'chosen' in everyday language, which people often do with biblical election.

Good words be more simple than that. If I speak to you about a certain car that Mr. Smith has chosen. Those words have a very obvious meaning.

30:37 - 30:49 Read in full sermon

The point: If you see yourself as lost, undone, and having no claim on God, hear the wonderful hope in God's promises: believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved; Him that comes to me, I will in no wise cast out.

Martin quotes Joseph Alleine to distinguish between God's secret purposes (election) and His plain promises (believe and be saved), offering comfort and direction to those struggling with the doctrine of election.

For God says in His Word, and His Word becomes the basis of our approach to Him. He says in His Word, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. He says in His Word, Him that comes to me, I will in no wise cast out. He's the old Puritan, Joseph.

43:58 - 44:17 Read in full sermon