Hard Sayings

“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves:
it is the gift of God:” Eph. 2:8

Here, we learn that faith is a gift of the grace that God gives to His elect. However, is grace the gift mentioned in this verse, or is Jesus, God’s only begotten Son? There is no question Jesus is the object of a Christian’s faith and our greatest Treasure. His name is the only name under heaven whereby we must call upon to be saved. But how does the grace of God, which is a free gift, interact with our placing faith in Christ, our High Priest Who enters the Holy of Holies and sprinkles His blood on that eternal altar? This is, indeed, a part of the mystery of the Godhead… Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

In my blog yesterday, I discussed how Jesus, as High Priest, was both sin offering (oblation) and intercessor. In today’s verse from Ephesians, we know that God the Father is the One Who provides the believer the grace to believe, and Jesus knows whom God has chosen. We know this from Jesus’ final prayer before dying on the cross, that He prayed ‘…not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine.’ (John 17:9) Here, we see the working of God’s sovereign election in choosing His adopted sons and daughters. Our Lord’s prayer is consistent with what Paul wrote in Ephesians 1:5, God “Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will.”  Christ’s sin offering and intercession was the means by which God’s eternal and good pleasure was extended to sinners. However, it was through grace; a free and unmerited gift, by which the Father, through the Holy Spirit, drew many to His Son. Thus, Jesus became mediator, and we co-heirs with Him. “For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;” (1 Tim. 2:5) and, “and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ,” (Rom. 8:17)

Of course, the question I must ask is how do I reconcile God’s gift of grace and that of His Son? Is each gift severally (separately) given? Yes, certainly Christ is Savior of the world inasmuch as every knee shall bow to Him and tongue confess that He is Lord. However, we also know that many are called but are not chosen. (See Mat. 20:16) Even among the twelve, one was not chosen. I do not speak concerning all of you. I know whom I have chosen; but that the Scripture may be fulfilled, He who eats bread with Me has lifted up his heel against Me.” (John 13:18) It is important to know that when Jesus spoke of those that He chose, He referred to the disciples; among who was Judas Iscariot. There too were many other professed disciples that turned away after they heard Christ’s ‘hard sayings’ of John, Chapter Six.

The question is though, given my discussion on predestination and God’s sovereignty, is this hard for you? Even so, are you willing to abandon what you think you know or heard and seek God through a plain reading of the Scriptures, as the Bereans, to affirm what is taught? Or, will you, as many others, turn aside, “Many therefore of his disciples, when they had heard this, said, This is an hard saying; who can hear it?”  (John 6:60) I pray the former is true for you, as God works in you to will to learn and to do His good pleasure.