Dispensationalism and the Doctrine of Election
Refutation of Calvinism, Arminianism, and Covenant Theology
Chapter Five Election and God's Sovereign Eternal Purpose1
“11 Wherefore remember, that ye being in time past Gentiles in the flesh, who are called Uncircumcision by that which is called the Circumcision in the flesh made by hands; 12 That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world: 13 But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ. 14 For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us; 15 Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace; 16 And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby: 17 And came and preached peace to you which were afar off, and to them that were nigh. 18 For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father. 19 Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God; 20 And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; 21 In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: 22 In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit. . . 1 For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles, 2 If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward: 3 How that by revelation he made known unto me the mystery; (as I wrote afore in few words, 4 Whereby, when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ) 5 Which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit; 6 That the Gentiles should be fellowheirs, and of the same body, and partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel: 7 Whereof I was made a minister, according to the gift of the grace of God given unto me by the effectual working of his power. 8 Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ; 9 And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ: 10 To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God, 11 According to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord: 12 In whom we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of him. 13 Wherefore I desire that ye faint not at my tribulations for you, which is your glory. 14 For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, 15 Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, 16 That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man; 17 That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; 19 And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God. 20 Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, 21 Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen” (Ephesians 2:11 - 3:21).
Following the context of election “in Christ” from Ephesians chapter one, Paul expands upon this in chapters two and three of his epistle to the Ephesians. The truth of “the regeneration” . . . “in Christ” was a mystery hitherto unrevealed by God. Although the scholars (at least) of the Old Covenant were expected to know of the necessity of being “born again” (John 3:10), the details of God’s operations in all of this was obscure to them. Perhaps this obscurity was why the children of Israel viewed the promises of God in the Abrahamic Covenant as only earthly, not seeing beyond the land and national promises of God to the eternal promises beyond this world in eternity. This may have been true of most of the people of Israel, but according to Scripture it cannot be said of Abraham.
“8 By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went.
9 By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as
in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise:
10 For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker
is God.
11 Through faith also Sara herself received strength to conceive seed, and was delivered of a child when she was past age, because she judged him faithful who had promised.
12 Therefore sprang there even of one, and him as good as dead,
so many as the stars of the sky in multitude, and as the sand which is by the sea shore innumerable.
13 These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of
them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.
14 For they that say such things declare plainly that they seek a country.
15 And truly, if they had been mindful of that
country from whence they came out, they might have had opportunity to have returned.
16 But now they desire a better country, that is, an heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God:
for he hath prepared for them a city {New Jerusalem, which is after the Millennium and part of the New Heaven/Earth; see Rev. 3:12, 21:2 & 10}” (Hebrews 11:8-16).
Apparently, these eternal aspects of God’s promises in the Abrahamic Covenant were obscured by God Himself according to Ephesians 3:1-6 up until they were revealed “unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit.” Through the teachings of New Covenant truth regarding “the regeneration,” this “mystery” was fully revealed. All New Covenant believers should now be able to understand the previously “hidden” truth regarding “the regeneration” . . . “in Christ” (Ephesians 3:10-11). Part of this fuller revelation is the further explanation of God’s “eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Eph. 3:11).
Understanding the doctrine of election must be understood from the perspective of God’s “eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord.” The word “eternal” signifies that God has a purpose that transcends time. This could be translated, “through the ages one eternal purpose runs.2” God’s creation began with a Plan of the Ages, not with acts of creation. God’s “eternal purpose” is constant and consistent from before time and will continue to be so until the end of time. The words “which He purposed in Christ Jesus” refers to God’s ultimate and final act of Creation; i.e. the New Genesis “in Christ” as the new Federal Head of “the regeneration.” The “eternal purpose” of God “in Christ Jesus” is that Jesus would succeed where Adam failed.
Since God says that this “eternal purpose” is consistent through all the Ages (Dispensations), we should find this “eternal purpose” revealed from the beginning to the end of God’s progressive revelation. To begin a search for God’s “eternal purpose” we must begin with God’s declarations regarding His purpose in creation.
“1 To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David. The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork. 2 Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth knowledge. 3 There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard. 4 Their line is gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them hath he set a tabernacle for the sun, 5 Which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, and rejoiceth as a strong man to run a race. 6 His going forth is from the end of the heaven, and his circuit unto the ends of it: and there is nothing hid from the heat thereof” (Psalm 19:1-6).
God’s Creation is a never-ending testimony to His glory. Creation is an on going song of praise to the glory of God. Its message needs no interpretation because it speaks a language universally understood. The “sun” is a “tabernacle” to His glory shining forth with each new day manifesting the God of
new beginnings with the dawning of each new day. There is nowhere on earth where His
light does not shine or where anyone can be sheltered from His touch.
“1 O sing unto the LORD a new song: sing unto the LORD, all the earth. 2 Sing unto the LORD, bless his name; shew forth his salvation from day to day. 3 Declare his glory among the heathen, his wonders among all people. 4 For the LORD is great, and greatly to be praised: he is to be feared above all gods. 5 For all the gods of the nations are idols: but the LORD made the heavens. 6 Honour and majesty are before him: strength and beauty are in his sanctuary. 7 Give unto the LORD, O ye kindreds of the people, give unto the LORD glory and strength. 8 Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name: bring an offering, and come into his courts. 9 O worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness: fear before him, all the earth” (Psalm 96:1-9).
“3 God came from Teman, and the Holy One from mount Paran. Selah. His glory covered the heavens, and the earth was full of his praise. 4 And his brightness was as the light; he had horns coming out of his hand: and there was the hiding of his power” (Habakkuk 3:3-4).
“8 And the four beasts had each of them six wings about
him; and they were full of eyes within: and they rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come.
9 And when those beasts give glory and honour and thanks to him that sat on the throne, who liveth for ever and ever,
10 The four and twenty elders fall down before him that sat on the throne, and worship him that liveth for ever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying,
11 Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created” (Revelation 4:8-11).
The purpose of God in creation is to reveal himself in all of His glory. We would express this theologically by saying God’s “eternal purpose” is doxological. The fact is, we can see that all that God does is doxological; i.e. to make Himself known in all His wondrous attributes. Central to the purpose of His creation of man was to have someone to reveal Himself to and who would praise Him for all that He is. This is also His purpose in election “in Christ.” God wanted to retain a remnant of saved souls as the eternal seeds of righteousness through which the Seed (Gal. 3:16) would be born. Through the salvation of souls and their regeneration God would restore His original creation dominion to man “in Christ” and open a “door” (John 10:1-9) into the future New Genesis through the death and resurrection of the Promised One (Gen. 3:15). This then would restore the redeemed through salvation and glorification to once again bare the image of God through practical righteousness and once again glorify God in the way God intended in His original creation prior to the Fall.
“1 But now thus saith the LORD that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel, Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called
thee by thy name; thou art mine.
2 When thou passest through the waters, I
will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.
3 For I am the LORD thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Saviour: I gave Egypt
for thy ransom, Ethiopia and Seba for thee.
4 Since thou wast precious in my sight, thou hast been honourable, and I have loved thee: therefore will I give men for thee, and people for thy life.
5 Fear not: for I am with thee: I will bring thy seed from the east, and gather thee from the west;
6 I will say to the north, Give up; and to the south, Keep not back: bring my sons from far, and my daughters from the ends of the earth;
7 Even every one that is called by my name:
for I have created him for my glory, I have formed him; yea, I have made him” (Isaiah 43:1-7).
The inability of man due to the Fall is not the inability to make moral choices, but the inability to glorify God in his fallen state of depravity. Because the image of God in which man was originally created has been defaced by the Fall, that image must be fully restored through “the regeneration” before God can fully and truly be glorified through mankind once again. This is the “mystery . . . now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit” (Eph. 3:5). Through the salvation of man and “the regeneration” . . . “in Christ,” God could once again, as He was in the original unfallen creation, be fully revealed in all of His wondrous attributes, be fully known in those attributes, and be fully praised for those attributes.
“6 The heathen raged, the kingdoms were moved: he uttered his voice, the earth melted. 7 The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah. 8 Come, behold the works of the LORD, what desolations he hath made in the earth. 9 He maketh wars to cease unto the end of the earth; he breaketh the bow, and cutteth the spear in sunder; he burneth the chariot in the fire. 10 Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth. 11 The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah” (Psalm 46:6-11).
“5 Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: 6 Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: 7 But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: 8 And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. 9 Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: 10 That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; 11 And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:5-11).
God has decreed that, through the incarnation of His Son (through His death, burial, resurrection and glorification), He would be “exalted among the heathen” and, in that exaltation, He would be glorified (see Psalm 96:3 and 46:10 above). These verses reveal God’s “eternal purpose” in the salvation of fallen mankind. However, His “eternal purpose” goes far beyond the salvation of men. God’s “eternal purpose” extends to a New Genesis absent of sin and where His Creation will eternally sing praises to His glory. This New Genesis will literally be the “household of God” where God will eternally dwell in His New Jerusalem with His redeemed (elect) of all Ages. This New Genesis will be the “Father’s house” made up of “many mansions” (John 14:1-3) within it for the Redeemed to literally “dwell with” God (Rev. 21:3)
In God’s progressive revelation of His “eternal purpose,” He chose for Himself a people; i.e. the nation of Israel. The nation of Israel was elected by God for the “eternal purpose” of revealing Himself in all of His attributes and for the preservation of the Truth of the gospel in the promised Coming One. The nation of Israel was to become God’s vehicle for the birth of the Promised One: the Christ of God. God would be glorified through this vehicle of His grace.
“21 Remember these, O Jacob and Israel; for thou art my servant: I have formed thee; thou art my servant: O Israel, thou shalt not be forgotten of me. 22 I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy transgressions, and, as a cloud, thy sins: return unto me; for I have redeemed thee. 23 Sing, O ye heavens; for the LORD hath done it: shout, ye lower parts of the earth: break forth into singing, ye mountains, O forest, and every tree therein: for the LORD hath redeemed Jacob, and glorified himself in Israel” (Isaiah 44:21-23).
“1 Listen, O isles, unto me; and hearken, ye people, from far; The LORD hath called me from the womb; from the bowels of my mother hath he made mention of my name.
2 And he hath made my mouth like a sharp sword; in the shadow of his hand hath he hid me, and made me a polished shaft; in his quiver hath he hid me;
3 And said unto me,
Thou art my servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified.
4 Then I said, I have laboured in vain, I have spent my strength for nought, and in vain:
yet surely my judgment is with the LORD, and my work with my God.
5 And now, saith the LORD that formed me from the womb
to be his servant, to bring Jacob again to him, Though Israel be not gathered, yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of the LORD, and my God shall be my strength.
6 And he said, It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to
restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth” (Isaiah 49:1-6).
In the birth of the Promised One and through His life, death, burial, resurrection, and glorification, God would be glorified. This is the “eternal purpose” of God in the incarnation of His Son. God sent His Son, not merely to rescue men from their fallen state and from their condemnation, but to save them to a new existence where, in their glorification, they will glorify God for all eternity. That new existence is “the regeneration.”
“27 Now is my soul troubled; and what shall I say? Father, save me from this hour: but for this cause came I unto this hour. 28 Father, glorify thy name. Then came there a voice from heaven, saying, I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again” (John 12:27-28).
“31 Therefore, when he was gone out, Jesus said, Now is the Son of man glorified, and God is glorified in him. 32 If God be glorified in him, God shall also glorify him in himself, and shall straightway glorify him” (John 13:31-32).
“1 These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee: 2 As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him. 3 And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent. 4 I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do. 5 And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was. 6 I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word. 7 Now they have known that all things whatsoever thou hast given me are of thee. 8 For I have given unto them the words which thou gavest me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came out from thee, and they have believed that thou didst send me. 9 I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine. 10 And all mine are thine, and thine are mine; and I am glorified in them” (John 17:1-10).
In John 17:10, Jesus says that the continuum of the glorification of God would be through His glorification “in them,” i.e. those “born again . . . by grace through faith.” “Them” refers to believers of the Church Age. This is what Ephesians 2:1 through 3:21 is referring to: the corporate entity called the Church “in Christ.”
“Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen” (Ephesians 3:21).
The “eternal purpose” of God to which man was created and to which Israel and the Church, as corporate entities, were elected is to bring glory to God.
“13 Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men. 14 Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. 15 Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. 16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven” (Matthew 5:13-16).
“3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ: 4 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: 5 Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, 6 To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved” (Ephesians 1:3-6).
We are chosen individually only “in Christ;” i.e. in union with Christ. In that union, all believers are united in God’s “eternal purpose” of bringing glory to His Name in the corporate entity called the Church. The “eternal purpose” of God “in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Eph. 3:11) is the central theme of the epistle to the Ephesians. It is also the central theme and purpose for the existence of the elect of “church of the firstborn” (Heb. 12:23). The emphasis of the epistle to the Ephesians is upon how the corporate entity called the Church will accomplish God’s “eternal purpose” for it; i.e. bringing glory to God through her life and “work of the ministry” (Eph. 4:12).
“To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us {the corporate entity called the Church} accepted in the beloved” (Ephesians 1:6).
“That we {the corporate entity called the Church} should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ” (Ephesians 1:12).
“Which is the earnest of our {the corporate entity called the Church} inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory” (Ephesians 1:14).
“Unto him be glory in the church {the corporate entity called the Church} by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen” (Ephesians 3:21).
The “mystery” previously hidden in the Ages gone past and now fully revealed in the Church Age is the uniting in one “body” of Jew and Gentile as the new Priesthood of Israel. However, the “mystery” goes beyond this uniting of Jew and Gentile into the “household of God” (Eph. 2:19). This as well touches upon the glorification of the Church “in Christ” as Paul refers to in I Corinthians 15:35-57. Again, salvation is not just being saved from Hell. Salvation is being saved to eternal life and to a new existence “in Christ.” The final act of God in our personal regeneration is our glorification (I John 3:2).
“35 But some man will say, How are the dead raised up? and with what body do they come? 36 Thou fool, that which thou sowest is not quickened, except it die: 37 And that which thou sowest, thou sowest not that body that shall be, but bare grain, it may chance of wheat, or of some other grain: 38 But God giveth it a body as it hath pleased him, and to every seed his own body. 39 All flesh is not the same flesh: but there is one kind of flesh of men, another flesh of beasts, another of fishes, and another of birds. 40 There are also celestial bodies, and bodies terrestrial: but the glory of the celestial is one, and the glory of the terrestrial is another. 41 There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars: for one star differeth from another star in glory. 42 So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption; it is raised in incorruption: 43 It is sown in dishonour; it is raised in glory: it is sown in weakness; it is raised in power: 44 It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body. 45 And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit. 46 Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual. 47 The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven. 48 As is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy: and as is the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly. 49 And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly. 50 Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption. 51 Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, 52 In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. 53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. 54 So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory. 55 O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? 56 The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (I Corinthians 15:35-57).
[1] Many of the ideas of this chapter are taken from a booklet by Pastor Norman H. Wells who, at the time of its printing, was Pastor of Central Baptist Church of Cincinnati, Ohio. The booklet is since out of print. Other articles by Pastor Wells can be found by doing a WWW search using his name.
[2] A. T. Robertson, Word Pictures in the New Testament, Volume IV, Epistles of Paul, Baker Book House, Grand Rapids, Mich., page 532
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