A Misunderstanding of Election

Photo by Caleb Woods on Unsplash

I have a confession to make…

I used to be a Calvinist.

For a number of years the Doctrine of Election, the teaching that G*d chooses whom to love and save, was a comfort to me. But…

I was comforted by a false idol.

While the Bible does teach election—the selection of Israel over every other nation, the choosing of Jacob over Esau, people predestined before the foundation of the world to be adopted children of G*d—I believe this has been misunderstood. From the beginning, that is, from the choosing of Abraham and Sarah, the selection was never an end of itself. It was a means. In Genesis 12, when G*d chose Abraham and Sarah, G*d said, “All the families on earth will be blessed through you” (verse 3; NLT¹). The Divine purpose of choosing Abraham and Sarah was that “all the families on earth”—not just the Jews, nor the Christians, nor the Muslims, but all—would be “blessed through [Abraham].”

The word translated “blessed” is “barak” and it means “to kneel” as in homage or praise or respect. The obvious questions are, “Why are ‘all the families on the earth’ kneeling in respect or praise? And to whom?” To me, the obvious answer to the second question is they are kneeling in respect and praise to Yahweh, the Creator G*d, the G*d of Abraham and Sarah. But why? Ah! That’s the question.

Some people, at this point, look at the election of Abraham, Sarah, and their family (whether they’re Jews or Muslims) as the whole point. That is, G*d chose them to be the true people, the only people. “All the [other] families on earth” were made for destruction (as some suppose Romans 9² teaches). But that’s not the case. The point of choosing Abraham and Sarah, as we have seen, is for the rescue of the whole world. It was through Abraham and Sarah that G*d would rescue the world. They’ll be G*d’s instruments, G*d’s agents, in a world-wide rescue operation.

This all goes back to worldview. How do we see the world? Is it so thoroughly corrupted that it needs to be destroyed? Or is it innately good—indeed, “very good” (Genesis 1.31)? For a very long time, the Christian world view has been that all of creation is “very good,” though broken (or as St. Paul put it in Romans 8, “subjected to futility”). Somewhere around the fifth century or so, the idea came about that, because of the “Fall”—the sin of Adam and Eve—all of creation is now so full of sin and decay, the only “righteous” thing G*d can do is destroy it. Obviously, this would include people. But, as the theory goes, while G*d’s Holy and Just and Right and therefore fully justified in destroying everything, G*d’s also Love so G*d chose to love some of humanity (and we don’t really know who that is, even though we pretend we do).

(As an important aside, the doctrine of “original sin” isn’t found in Judaism or Orthodox Christianity and had it’s start, ironically, in the Gnosticism of the second century.)

Furthermore, what’s interesting about G*d’s choice is that there’s nothing to love about those chosen. There’s nothing redeemable. G*d, by G*d’s own power and right, just chose one person from among many. In some cases, as in the case of Jacob and Esau, it looks like G*d splits a family apart for no other reason than because G*d “loved Jacob but...hated Esau (Romans 9.13)”. Indeed, in that chapter, St. Paul wrote that G*d’s choice “depends not on human will or exertion but on God” (verse 16). “So you see, God chooses to show mercy to some, and [God] chooses to harden the hearts of others so they refuse to listen” (verse 18; NLT).

Therefore, with all of G*d’s chosen people destined to spend eternity with G*d, G*d can now destroy everything else. I realize this is an oversimplification, but it’s the gist of Calvinist teaching.

But, as we stated above, this worldview misses a huge point—that G*d’s dream is to rescue all of creation, not just some of it. We see this played out in various other passages. For example:

Psalm 22.27-31 (LXX2012³; adapted): All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the Lord: and all the kindred of the nations shall worship before [the Lord]. For the kingdom is the Lord's; and [the Lord] is the governor of the nations. All the fat ones of the earth have eaten and worshipped: all that go down to the earth shall fall down before [the Lord]: my soul also lives [for the Lord]. And my seed shall serve [the Lord]: the generation that is coming shall be reported to the Lord. And they shall report [the Lord’s] righteousness to the people that shall be born, whom the Lord has made.

Romans 11.11-12, 15-16; 11.32 (adapted): So I ask, have [Israel] stumbled so as to fall? By no means! But through their stumbling salvation has come to the gentiles, so as to make Israel jealous. Now if their stumbling means riches for the world and if their loss means riches for gentiles, how much more will their full inclusion mean!…For if their rejection is the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead? If the part of the dough offered as first fruits is holy, then the whole batch is holy; and if the root is holy, then the branches also are holy.…For God has imprisoned all in disobedience so that [God] may be merciful to all.

1 Corinthians 15.21-22: For since death came through a human, the resurrection of the dead has also come through a human, for as all die in Adam, so all will be made alive in Christ.

2 Corinthians 5.19 (adapted): God was in Christ reconciling the world to [Godself], not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting the message of reconciliation to us.

Ephesians 1.10 (CEB⁴): This is what God planned for the climax of all times: to bring all things together in Christ, the things in heaven along with the things on earth.

Colossians 1.19-20 (CEB; adapted): Because all the fullness of God was pleased to live in [Christ], and [God] reconciled all things to [Godself] through [Christ]—whether things on earth or in the heavens. [God] brought peace through the blood of [Christ’s] cross.

From these passages (and many others could be sited), we see quite clearly that the point of the election of Abraham and Sarah was the reconciliation of the entire cosmos. And, if I may sharpen that point a little bit more, that reconciliation has already been accomplished!

Notice again 2 Corinthians 5.19. G*d “was reconciling the world” through Christ. This is past tense. It’s already been accomplished. The people of G*d have been given that message of reconciliation. If we want to know what to do, if we want to know what our “calling from G*d” is—it’s that. Furthermore, Paul was even more clear in Colossians 1. G*d “reconciled all things...through Christ” and “brought peace through the blood of [Christ’s] cross.”

There’s a lot of talk lately about G*d’s covenant (agreement) with the people of Israel. Of how the sacrifices that were made on their holiest day (Yom Kippur) were made for the whole nation. An Israelite didn’t have to “accept” this sacrifice to receive the benefit of it. The sacrifice only had to be accepted by G*d. If it was accepted, then forgiveness and mercy were bestowed upon the entire nation. New Testament scholars see in that event an example of what G*d did through the death of Jesus. That is, since G*d did the same thing with Christ’s death (once more, G*d took what humanity meant for evil and turned it into good, see Acts 2.22-24), all of humanity, all of creation, has been reconciled to G*d! The vocation of G*d’s people now, i.e., the people who are “called” or “chosen” or “elected” by G*d to work now, is to implement that reconciliation in our world today. Simply put, “election” is about vocation. Like Israel of old, the “elect” today are to be like priests for the world. We’re to reflect creations pains and sorrows to G*d and reflect back G*d’s Love to creation.

The old way of seeing election only continues to foster this “us vs. them” worldview. G*d’s worldview is much bigger. It involves the entire cosmos. We need to open our eyes to what G*d is doing. We need to let go of “childish things” and see the way G*d sees. We need to see that the entire creation is “holy land” and that all water is “holy water” (Romans 11.16). We need to see that all people are G*d’s people and that they’re our sisters and brothers.

My friends, G*d’s dream for creation isn’t limited by our understandings; it transcends them. We can’t fathom a world in which the “enemy” is indeed a human being with needs and wants of love and kindness and mercy just like ourselves. But that’s the way G*d sees it. All of creation has been reconciled to G*d through Christ. That includes our enemies as well as our friends. That includes our neighbors as well as our families. We’ve been chosen to a great vocation. We have to work at building bridges to those around us. We need to look towards G*d’s ultimate future where we’ll “hammer [our] swords into plowshares and [our] spears into pruning hooks. Nation will no longer fight against nation, nor train for war anymore” (Isaiah 2.4; NLT). It’s toward that goal that we’ve been elected. Our enlightenment now is for that purpose—to bring G*d’s realm of peace and love and mercy to the whole creation.

~~~

In the Love of the Three in One,

Br Jack+, LC

1. Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright ©1996, 2004, 2007, 2013, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation, Inc. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

2. Unless otherwise stated, all scripture quotations and references—and scripture quotations marked (NRSVue)—are taken from the New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

3. Scripture quotations marked (LXX2012) are taken from the Septuagint in American English 2012. The Septuagint in American English 2012 is in the public domain and may be freely copied, published, etc.

4. Scripture quotations marked (CEB) are taken from The Common English Bible. Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible. Used by permission.