A lot of confusion comes from the words used in
preaching about those who are chosen, those
who called, and those who are the elect. Jude addressed
the believers in his letter in the following manner:
"Jude, the servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of
James, to them that are sanctified by God the Father, and
preserved in Jesus Christ, [and] called: Mercy unto
you, and peace, and love, be multiplied." (Jude
1:1,2) Jude, as well as James, were brothers
of Jesus (I should say, half brothers, because the Holy
Spirit (God) is the father of Jesus and Joseph fathered Jude
and James). All three grew up together in the same
family under Mary's supervision. Jude counted himself
as a servant of Jesus Christ, because he knew
Jesus was telling the truth. Jude addressed the believers
as being sanctified and preserved in Jesus Christ.
What does being sanctified and preserved mean? In
studying the word sanctified in the Lexical Aid in the
Hebrew and Greek Study Bible, the Greek word is `hagiazo' derived
from `hagios' stands in contrast with and `koinos' meaning
defiled and common. Sanctification cannot be accomplished
without a person who is to be sanctified, separating himself
or withdrawing from fellowship (withdrawing support
of this world system in which Lucifer is
operating) with the world by first gaining
fellowship with God.
Since we have to live and work in this world,
what is this referring to? By first gaining
fellowship with God, means to study the Scriptures.
To me it has been a guide as to God's
principles which have nothing to do with the ten
commandments. The ten commandments are not to be neglected,
because they serve to preserve us from social
and spiritual failure. The universe is built on absolute
laws and the laws go into effect automatically. We
need God's mercy, forgiveness and protection to function
under these laws.
When we trespass, we get hit. In example if we murder
we have to pay the consequences in society. God forgives
but society does not. This does not mean that God
does not care if we do or don't murder. Murder is not an issue
in God's existence. He is love. Principles are found
in studying not only the teachings of Jesus Christ,
but also God's interactions with men of the Old Testament.
To withdraw from fellowshipping with the world, that
ridicules any attempt of `Bible thumping', gives us an
opportunity to fellowship with God in the privacy of our own
life. To gain trust in God's plan, we have to learn from
Him first, how to live and move in this world, to insure
preservation for eternity. That is what being sanctified means.
Following Jesus, means following His teachings. It is
a possibility in spite of everything, but it takes
our will to make ourselves do it. The body is under
the world system and it is at war with God. The body
is ordained to die and wants to experience its agenda on
experiences that satisfy our vanity. Disciplining the body into
activity that is conducive to spiritual reservation is a must.
The body cannot be allowed to run its agenda when
it wants to do things which are not in line with God's Word.
God agrees that we need to labor for our bread and butter.
Going back to Jude 1:1, Jude addressed the believers as not
only being sanctified by God, but also preserved in Jesus Christ
and called. The word preserved
in Greek is `tereo': to keep,..with the
possibility of either deliverance or execution, or to
maintain as opposed to leaving. Preserved in Jesus Christ
means preserved in the Word. see John 1:14 and Revelation
19:13,16: "And the Word was made flesh,
and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his
glory, the glory as of the only begotten of
the Father,) full of grace and truth." (John
1:14) "And he [was] clothed with
a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is
called The Word of God."
" And he hath on [his] vesture and on
his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND
LORD OF LORDS." (Revelation
19:13,16)
In Jude's salute to the believers ,them that are preserved
in Jesus Christ and called. The Greek word is `kletos';
from kaleo, to call. Called, invited, welcomed or appointed.
The called ones are those who have received
the divine call (klesis), having conformed
to God's saving purpose. "Paul, a servant of
Jesus Christ, called [to be] an apostle, separated
unto the gospel of God." (Romans
1:1) Paul had an encounter with God on the road
to Damascus:
"As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly
a light from heaven flashed around
him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice
say to him, `Saul, Saul, why do you ersecute me?' `Who are you,
Lord?' Saul asked. `I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,'
he replied. `Now get up and go into the city, and you will
be told what you must do." (Acts
9:3-6 NIV)
"`Lord,' Ananias answered, `I have
heard many reports about this man and all the harm he
has done to your saints in Jerusalem. And he has
come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest
all who call on your name.' But the Lord said to Ananias, `Go!
This man is my chosen instrument (the call) to carry my
name before the Gentiles and their kings and before the people
of Israel. I will show him how much he must
suffer for my name." (Acts 9:13-16
NIV)
In Matthew 20:16 `the called' are discussed in great
detail giving me a new understanding of the called and
chosen. "So the last shall be first,
and the first last: for many be called, but
few chosen. (Matthew 20:16) Jesus
used a parable to explain what he meant by that statement. "For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner
(Jesus) who went out early
in the morning to hire men
(Israel, Jacob's 12 sons (12 tribes)) to work in his vineyard. He agreed
to pay them a denarius (a specific sum
of money) for the day (12
hour day) and sent them into
his vineyard. About the third hour he went out
and saw others (Gentiles)
standing in the market-place doing nothing.
He told them, `You also go and work in
my vineyard, and I will pay
you whatever is right.' So they went. He went out again
about the sixth hour and the ninth hour and did the
same thing. About the eleventh hour he went out and
found still others standing around.
He asked them, `Why have you been
standing here all day long doing nothing?' `Because no-one
has hired us,' they answered. He said to them, `You also
go and work in my vineyard.' When evening came, the
owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, `Call
the workers and pay them their wages, beginning with the
last ones hired (the Gentiles) and going on to
the first (the Jews).'The
workers who were hired about the eleventh hour came
and each received a denarius. So when those
came who were hired first, they expected to receive more.
But each one of them also received a denarius. When
they received it, they began to grumble against the
landowner.
`These men who were hired last worked
only one hour,' they said, `and you have made them
equal to us who have borne the burden of the work and the heat
of the day (speaking of all the persecution they
endured).' But he answered one
of them, `Friend, I am not
being unfair to you. Didn't you agree (the
work all on a voluntary basis) to work
for a denarius? Take your pay and go. I want to give the
man who was hired last the same as I gave you. Don't I
have the right to do what I want with my own money?
Or are you envious because I am generous? `So
the last will be first (could
well be a reference to the rapture of the Gentiles),
and the first (the 144,000 Jews
are sealed to Jesus after the exposure of the Antichrist)
will be last." (Matthew 20:1-16 NIV)
The New International Version left out what we
were discussing: "So the last shall
be first, and the first last:
for many be called, but few chosen. (Matthew
20:16 KJV) Any clue, who is called and who is chosen?
All Gentiles are called and the Jews were chosen. God wants
the Gospel preached to the whole world before He comes back which
is just about done. "Simon has described to
us how God at first showed his concern by
taking from the Gentiles a people for himself
(a people is speaking of Abraham, who was a Gentile
until God sought him out).
The words of the prophets are in agreement with this,
as it is written: `After this I will return and rebuild
David's fallen tent (talking about the temple).
Its ruins I will rebuild, and I will restore it,
that the remnant of men (the Jews) may seek
the Lord, and all the Gentiles who bear my name, says
the Lord, who does these things that have been known for
ages. `It is my judgment, therefore, that we should not make
it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to
God (indicates that they turn to God by their
own volition). (Acts 15:15-19
NIV) ".., until the times of
the Gentiles be fulfilled." (Luke
21:24)
The parable was in answer to Peter who said to Jesus:
"Behold, we have forsaken all, and followed thee;
what shall we have therefore? And Jesus said unto them, `Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed
me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in
the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve
thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. And every one that hath forsaken
houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother,
or wife, or children, or lands, for my name's sake,
shall receive an hundredfold, and
shall inherit everlasting life. But
many [that are] first shall be last; and the
last [shall be] first. (Matthew 19:27-30) The inheritance of
the eternal kingdom is the same for all who are regenerated
(saved, sealed, delivered in Christ Jesus), Jews
and Gentiles, but rewards differ depending on our dedication
to Him.Regeneration in Greek is `palgenesia'; from `palin' again,
and ginomai, to become. Recovery, renovation,
a new birth. In Matthew 19:28 it refers to
the coming state of the whole creation, equivalent
to the restoration of all things (Acts 3:21),
which will occur when the Son of Man shall come in
His glory.
What begins to stick out like a sore thumb is the suffrage
of the Jews. It is prolonged because of the times of
the Gentiles and God's mercy to try and get them
to understand the truth, so they don't miss out. The importance
of our sharing what we understand with as many as possible,
because Luke shares in 18:7,8: "And shall
not God avenge his own elect (eklektos; chosen), which
cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them?
I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless
when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth."
From this passage the Hebrew, Greek Key Study Bible
refers us to the following passage and a note to
help us get the meaning. "According as he hath chosen
us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should
be holy and without blame before him in love: Having predestinated
us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself,
according to the good pleasure of his will."
(Ephesians 1:4,5) Note: The real
dilemma in this passage is determining how a person can
know if he is one of the elect, or even if he can be given
that kind of knowledge. There are two words in this
passage that must be examined in order to explain the much
debated subject of God's election and predestination.
The first is found in verse four, `he has chosen', referring
to the Greek word `exelexato' meaning
`chosen out of.' In this context, this word
means that at one particular time in the past, God chose individuals
for salvation. The second verb in verse five is `proorisas',
`to determine beforehand or predestinate'... It is
interesting to note that Peter referred to the concept
of predestination in his sermon on the day of Pentecost.
He said (speaking of Christ), `Him, being delivered
by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have
taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain.'
In this verse, one can note the evidence of
the concept of man's free choice coupled with the
responsibility for his actions. God delivered up
His Son, and man was given the choice of what they would
do with Christ. They chose to crucify Him, leaving
them with the responsibility for their act.
Furthermore, the teaching of Scripture is clear: Christ died
for all. In 1 John 2:2 the writer states, "And he is the
propitiation for our sins, (i.e., believers) and not for ours
only, but
also for [the sins of] the whole world." Therefore, the
ministry of Christ that He did on the cross was intended for
all. Repeatedly, God says that `Whosoever
believeth in Him' can obtain salvation (John
3:16-18,36; Acts 10:43). To come to Christ is an
invitation to all, and all who hear the gospel are
responsible and without excuse to either accept
or reject Christ.
If one perishes in his sin, he is
condemned as a result of his own choice (Titus 3:10,11). As one reflects on the salvation
experience of the believer, he should note that God
alone knows the point at which a person receives Christ
for salvation. It is also evident that the believer is
fulfilling God's purposes for his life, resulting
in him becoming one of God's elect. Jude's advice in Jude 1:3
"Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of
the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you,
and exhort [you] that ye should earnestly contend for the faith
which was once delivered unto the saints."
To come back to the purpose of this study: "So the last shall be first,
and the first last: for many be
called, but few chosen." (Matthew
20:16) This Scripture does not mean what it
seems to mean, that only few are chosen to make it. It means
that there are many more Gentiles than Jews, many
more are called because of that. Few
`chosen' means that there is only a small group of
Jews compared to Gentiles. All have an equal chance for
the life to come in Christ Jesus. There is no excuse
for not coming into the Body of Christ Jesus and
allowing Him to be your shepherd instead of the world.
