By Robert L. James, PhD
I have been noticing that God’s Word repeatedly talks about His elect. And there is one Scripture that is of special note that is found in Matthew 24:22 and 24. Look at this:
Matthew 24:22, “And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened.” And
Matthew 24:24, “For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders, insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.”
There are several things that we can ascertain from the above texts. But let’s start with the word itself: elect: eklogh
Strong’s – (divine) selection (abstractly or concretely): – chosen, election.
Thayer’s – the act of picking out, choosing; of the act of God’s free will by which before the foundation of the world he decreed his blessings to certain persons: the decree made from choice by which he determined to bless certain persons through Christ by grace alone; a thing or person chosen; of persons: God’s elect
Webster’s – In theology, divine choice; predetermination of God, by which persons are distinguished as objects of mercy, become subjects of grace, are sanctified and prepared for heaven.
So, from that we sense, that God, before the foundation of the world, chose or selected, those who will be saved. Now, if anything was ever difficult to understand, this is one of them. If we look at John 3:16, we get some famous words. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him shall not perish, but have everlasting life.” It seems to make it clear that if a person believes or accepts Christ, He can have everlasting life.
But think about this part. We are talking about God. There are 5 characteristics of God that must be understood. He is Eternal, He shall continue forever. He is Immortal, He will never die. He is Omnipotent, He has all power. He is Omnipresent, He is everywhere. And very important in this conversation, He is Omniscient, He knows all. God knows all!
Now, since He knows all, we know that He knows things that no other being knows. Remember the discourse of Jesus Christ when He spoke of the end of the world. He said that no one knows when that day will be. No one but the Father knows the last day of earth’s history. Matthew 24:36.
“But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only”.
Therefore, would it be too much to come to the clear understanding that God knows us better than we know ourselves. Again, doesn’t it make sense that God knows more about us than we do about ourselves? We know that we have hair on our heads. But do we know which hair came first? The Bible tells us that God knows so much about us that He has numbered the hairs on our head. Which means that when hair number one grew in He knew it? Then, He continued to number them as they grew.
Matthew 10:30 “But the very hairs of your head are all numbered.”
Wouldn’t it follow, that His Omniscience will continue all the way to the end of our lives or to the time when Jesus Christ, His Son, comes in the clouds of glory. Because He knows the future, He knows what our future choices will be.
Therefore, He knows who will choose to follow Christ and who will choose to lose. Look at this text:
King James Bible
There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.
Isn’t it wonderful that we have a loving Creator that knows more about us than we know about ourselves? And because of that, He knows what we can take and will limit our trials by His knowledge of us.
So, with this knowledge, we have a better understanding of the two texts with which we began. The reason why God shortens the last days is because if He did not, some of the ELECT would not make it!
And He does it to make sure that despite all of the trials you face, despite all of the troubles that come, despite all of the anxiety you feel, He has provided a way of escape that you, His elect, will be able to bear it. So, He even shortens it or does whatever is necessary so that His Elect, you, are saved in His kingdom. What a mighty God we serve!
Praise God, Praise God, Praise God!