What If I Am Not Elected?

Have you ever been plagued with this question? Is it perhaps precisely when you are on your knees, begging the Lord to have mercy on you; when you are diligently using the means of grace; when in the preaching of God’s Word the gospel invites you to seek God, to give Him your heart, to open your mouth wide, to take of the water of life freely, to come to Christ who will in no wise cast sinners out—is it then that this question seems to run through your mind frequently? If this is the case, let me assure you that you are not alone. Many young people (as well as many older ones) struggle with this question, and it appears to be especially so with those who are not without concern about the welfare of their soul.

The reason you are grappling with this question is the result of your knowledge and interpretation of the doctrine of election, a doctrine which is defined very precisely in the Word of God. (Read Romans 9). It is not my intention in this article to deal with the doctrine of election as such, as this doctrine has been carefully expounded and analyzed by many eminent theologians, whose works are readily available to you. I would especially recommend that you read what John Calvin has to say in his Institutes, as well as in his commentary upon Romans 9. This great man of God received extraordinary insight into this crucial doctrine and deals very honestly with it. I also urge you strongly to read the Canons of Dordt carefully in which our forefathers have given us a very clear and balanced exposition of the teaching of Scripture regarding the doctrine of election.

My intention in this article is to deal with the practical implications of this doctrine in your personal life, which so often results in the question placed above this article. In doing so I want to use the simple and straightforward definition concerning election given by Guido DeBres in article 16 of the Belgic Confession of Faith, as our point of reference. Here the Reformed Church confesses:

We believe that all the posterity of Adam being thus fallen into perdition and ruin, by the sin of our first parents, God then did manifest himself, such as He is; that is to say, merciful and just: Merciful, since He delivers and preserves from this perdition all, whom He, in His eternal and unchangeable counsel of mere goodness, hath elected in Christ Jesus our Lord, without any respect to their works: Just in leaving others in the fall and perdition wherein they have involved themselves.

The question stated in our title, therefore, arises as a direct result of the undeniable, scriptural fact that God has precisely determined who shall be the recipients of salvation in Jesus Christ, and the number of those who shall experience salvation is therefore eternally fixed. Throughout the centuries this doctrine has aroused great enmity in the hearts of men and has prompted many to blaspheme the name of God, as well as deride all those who adhere to this doctrine. This already was the case in the days of the apostle Paul, who specifically deals with the opponents of election in Romans 9:19-23. Until this very day, this crucial doctrine is vehemently opposed by many, who dare to accuse God of injustice in saving some and passing by others. However, let us not be mistaken and think that enmity towards this doctrine is to be found outside Reformed circles only. Nothing is farther from the truth! If we are honest, then we must confess that enmity towards this doctrine is to be found in our very own hearts.

Why is it that this doctrine arouses such enmity in the heart of man? It has everything to do with the fact that by nature our carnal minds are enmity against God as a result of our wretched fall. We fell because we wanted to be as God. We wanted to be lord and master of our own life. We wanted the sovereign right to determine our own destiny. This characterizes our fallen natures until this very day! If there is any doctrine, however, which confronts fallen man with the fact that God is God, who can do with the children of men as pleases Him, who has an absolute sovereign right to determine the eternal destiny of His creatures, it is the doctrine of election. Natural man, however, will not have His Maker to rule over him, will not acknowledge that as a sinner he has forfeited the right to live and to be happy, and therefore rebels exceedingly against this doctrine.

The question stated in our title is at bottom nothing else but a veiled expression of this enmity. When we ask this question we convey that we fail to recognize that if God were to pass us by, he would be entirely just! God is under no obligation whatsoever to save any sinner, and as sinners we have completely forfeited every right to God’s favor. This truth no man by nature wants to acknowledge, and therefore our forefathers considered it of greatest importance to introduce the Canons of Dordt by stating this truth:

As all men have sinned in Adam, lie under the curse, and are deserving of eternal death, God would have done no injustice by leaving them all to perish, and delivering them over to condemnation on account of sin. It is against the background of this reality that we must view the doctrine of election. If we may do this in truth, then our reaction will be of an opposite nature, and we will exclaim, “What a wonder it would be if I were elected! What a wonder it would be if God would not pass me by and give me the just reward upon my sin, but bestow His undeserved grace upon me!”

Article 1 of the Canons causes us to look at election from God’s perspective rather than from man’s perspective. If I may view it as such, then it becomes an incomprehensible wonder that there is an election unto salvation. Then I begin to understand that also in the doctrine of election God manifests the very essence of His Being, namely, love. If the essence of Cod’s being had not been love, there never would have been an election unto salvation. If sovereign justice only had been the essence of God’s being, God would have justly condemned the entire human race for its rebellion against Him. It is, however, His sovereign love, His sovereign good pleasure which eternally moved Him to elect sinners unto salvation. It has eternally been God’s desire to reveal His heart to human beings. For that reason He created them in His image, and for that reason He has eternally decreed that an innumerable multitude of sons and daughters of Adam, from every tongue, nation, people, and kindred will be recreated in His image. This is the reason that not every human being will be justly condemned for his rebellion, but that rebellious sons and daughters of Adam will be saved!

What a wonder this is considering that by nature we are dead in sins and trespasses and are enemies of Cod and our own salvation! As a result of this dreadful condition there is no one who by his own inclination will ever seek His Maker. If Cod, therefore, had not decreed the salvation of sinners, heaven would be an empty place, and every human being without exception would work out his own destruction. However, due to God’s wondrous decree of election Jehovah shall have a willing people in the day of His power! There will be sons and daughters of Adam who will again respond to the love of their Maker and who will glorify Him forever. God has eternally committed Himself to this and therefore He gave His only begotten Son so that whosoever would believe in Him should not perish but have everlasting life; therefore He sends forth His Spirit to conquer the rebellious hearts of fallen human beings such as you and I are. All of this would not be so were it not for the wondrous decree of election! If there were no election unto salvation it truly would be a hopeless case for you. Now, however, we may have God’s warranty that sinners shall be reconciled to Him, not because man wills it, but because God wills it!

How well did Rev. C.H. Spurgeon understand this when he stated that election is the friend of sinners. How contrary this is to what Satan would have you believe! Satan will whisper in your ear that because of election you cannot be saved, whereas God’s Word reveals the very opposite to us, namely, that because of election you can be saved. How well the prince of darkness knows that our hearts are inclined towards enmity against our Maker, and he does not hesitate to use any means to fan these flames of enmity. He does not even hesitate to use God’s Word for this purpose and he will don the mask of orthodoxy to reach his goal, namely, to keep sinners from seeking their Maker. If, therefore, your interpretation of the doctrine of election leads you to have rebellious thoughts towards your Maker, leads you to think of Him as a Tyrant who deals arbitrarily with the children of men, leads you to pity yourself as a victim of circumstances, you can rest assured that such an interpretation has been suggested to you by the prince of liars, who until this day delights to incite man to rebellion towards His Maker. If he can use the doctrines of Scripture to accomplish this he will not hesitate to do so!

God has given us His Word and causes it to be preached to us for the very opposite purpose, namely, that we would turn to Him and live. God has also revealed the doctrine of election for that purpose. When you bow your knees, you may do so in the realization that God will save sinners until the end of time, and that therefore there is also hope for you; you may do so in the realization that God has chosen sinners unconditionally, and that therefore no qualifications from your side are needed to make you a suitable object of God’s mercy. On the contrary, because of election the vilest and most wicked sinner can be saved. This is why Manasseh, Paul, and John Newton were saved, and this is also the reason why you can be saved. The world still exists, Cod’s house is still not full, the door of grace is still open, and therefore there is also room for you. The fact that you are living under the proclamation of God’s Word is the best proof that indeed there is hope for you, for the Lord has specifically ordained the preaching of the gospel as the primary means to gather in His elect from all the ends of the world.

Therefore, do not use this precious doctrine as Satan would have you use it, namely, to pry into God’s secret will, but heed the admonition Christ gave to the person who questioned Him about the doctrine of election. Upon his question, “Are there few that be saved?”, Christ gave this remarkable answer, “Strive to enter in at the straight gate!” I sincerely hope that this is what you will do without ceasing, for “the secret things belong unto the Lord our God: but those things which are revealed belong unto us” (Deut. 29:29). And this is what He has revealed to us: “Seek ye the Lord while He may be found, call ye upon Him while He is near!” (Isaiah 55:6)

Battel Elshout is laboring as evangelistelder in the Denver, Colorado area on behalf of the Netherlands Reformed Congregations.

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