Romans: Election, Israel, and Covenant Mercy

A Primer To Predestination

Transcript: AI Transcript

Professor: John Weaver

Subject: New Testament Studies

Genre: Sermon

Dictation Name:

Date: 2017-10-04

Synopsis: Pastor John Weaver provides an introductory overview of the doctrine of predestination, arguing that it is a comprehensive biblical teaching covering all events and creatures, rooted in God's eternal decree. He distinguishes between a general sense (God's sovereign control over all things, including sparrows and hair) and a special sense (election and reprobation of rational beings). Weaver emphasizes that predestination is an act of God the Father, includes both good and evil men and angels, and is inseparable from salvation itself, as believers are predestined in Christ. He addresses common objections, asserting that predestination does not make humans puppets or excuse sin, but rather provides comfort in trials by affirming God's sovereign purpose.

[John Weaver] Romans chapter 8 Romans chapter 8 and we're going to read verses 28 through 39 Romans 8 28 through 39 I'm going to be dealing with a message which I'm just simply going to call a primer on predestination. I want you to look in Romans chapter 8 beginning there with verse 28. The Bible says, and we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to His purpose.

[John Weaver] For whom He did foreknow, He also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover, whom He did predestinate, them He also called, and whom He called, them He also justified, and whom He justified, them He also glorified. What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? He that spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?

[John Weaver] Who shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth. who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea, rather that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long, we are counted as sheep for the slaughter.

[John Weaver] Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death, life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." Years ago when the Lord first saved me and called me to preach, I had a hunger to really know the Scripture.

[John Weaver] So I put myself on a schedule and I read the Old Testament all the way through every month. I read the New Testament all the way through every week. I did it over and over and over. And I finally went to the pastor one day that Alice and I had really gotten converted under. And at this time he had been in the ministry for over 30 years.

[John Weaver] And so I said, you know I've been reading my Bible and there's some words that come up that I don't understand, and it bothers me, and I'd like you to explain them to me." Well, he said, what words are they? I said, well, they're the words predestinate, predestination, elect, election. I said, I don't understand those things, and I just need you to explain them to me. I have never, ever forgotten his response.

[John Weaver] Here is what he said to me. First, there are some things in the Bible we are not meant to understand. And second, there are some things in the Bible that kill our soul when he is ill so we just leave him alone. And I looked at him being a young Christian and just being called in the ministry. And I said, you know it just seems to me that if God reveals something in His Word He means for us to understand it. And secondly it appears to me that any soul winning that the Bible kills ought to be killed anyhow.

[John Weaver] And so then he went one way and I ended up going the other way because I wanted to be absolutely honest with Scripture. So the truth of the matter is I could begin today by asking several questions like, are you predestinated? Or do you comprehend the word predestination? The truth is absolutely everything is predestinated simply because nothing happens by accident in a world that is ruled by God. God did not accidentally create the world. And God did not accidentally create man. And God did not accidentally save you. Everything that God does He does on purpose. God did not accidentally allow you to live to the age at which you are now. He did not accidentally give you grace, and mercy, and goodness.

[John Weaver] It was not an accident that you heard the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, and that you repented, and you believed, and you trusted in Jesus Christ. No, everything that God does He does on purpose. all these acts are nothing more than gracious evidences and manifestations of God's predestination."

[John Weaver] Now according to our text if you will look at it and just remember it, many doctrines are connected to the doctrine of predestination such as the doctrine of foreknowledge, election, providence, adoption. And if you take the entire context of Romans chapter 8 You will also notice that perseverance and glorification are also connected to the doctrine of predestination. So it is impossible then to understand any of these doctrines apart from predestination. Moreover it is also impossible to separate any of these doctrines from the doctrine of predestination because they all stand or fall together. So accurately speaking you could say that election is a branch of predestination, however it is more limited and it is more specific.

[John Weaver] A predestination of course would cover all creatures and all things and all events, while election would be restricted to what you and I would call rational beings such as angels and humans. And of course The Bible teaches that everything was predestinated by God from all eternity. And God has sovereignly ordained and immutably determined the history and destiny of each of His creatures. That is true. So I want you to look in your Bibles, whole Romans 8, but turn in your Bibles to the book of Job chapter 7. And look if you would please there first and then we will go to Job chapter 14 just to show you what I am talking about.

[John Weaver] Everyone understands that yes we were born according to God's decree. God is the one who allowed us life and gave us life. And we were born when God determined that we should be born. But the Bible says in Job 7 and verse 1, is there not an appointed time to man upon earth? not his days also like the days of a hireling." So God then has determined our days, each one of us has an appointed time. There is an appointed time to be born, there is an appointed time to die. If you will look in Job chapter 14 beginning there with verse 1, note if you would what the Bible says, Job 14 and verse 1, He says, man that is born of a woman is a few days and full of trouble. He cometh forth like a flower, and is cut down. He fleeth also as a shadow, and continueth not.

[John Weaver] And dost thou open thine eyes upon such an one, and bringest me into judgment with thee?" Here's the question in verse 4. Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean, not one? And then he says this about man. Watch. Seeing his days are determined, the number of his months are with thee. Thou hast appointed his bounds that he cannot pass. So God then has ordained our boundaries. He has ordained our years, our months, our days, our hours, our minutes, our seconds. And not one of us can go beyond the boundaries that God has ordained. So God then has ordained and predestined everything.

[John Weaver] Now the decree of God is His purpose or His determination in reference to future things. Now if you are going to understand predestination you have to understand it in light of God's eternal decree.

[John Weaver] Now listen very carefully as I explain something to you. I am going to show you in the Bible where the Bible talks about God's purpose. And the word decree is in the Bible. And I will quote that scripture just momentarily. But whenever we talk about God's decree, or God's purpose, and it's always singular in the Bible. Whenever you hear theologians or pastors or Christians talk about these things, they will always talk about the decrees of God. You pick up any systematic theology book when you get to the doctrine of God it talks about the decrees of God. Now the Bible says it is singular but we say it is plural. Now how is that?

[John Weaver] And how can that be? Well it is very simple because you and I cannot think or comprehend the way God thinks or comprehend what God comprehends. When you and I think we do in succession, we do one thing at the time and one thing follows the other. No matter how hard you try, you cannot think about one thing at the time. God is not like that. God's mind is infinite. He is omniscient. He knows everything. He knows everything instantly. And all God had to do was to have one purpose or one decree and that one purpose and that one decree would entail absolutely everything. And since we can't think like that, we talk about the decree of God in this area, the decree of God in that area, and thus we talk about plurality.

[John Weaver] But the Bible says in Acts chapter 15 and verse 18, known unto God are all His works from the beginning. So God knew from the beginning everything that He was going to do. Now, I want you to look in your Bibles, hold Romans 8, but look in your Bibles to Ephesians chapter 3 and verse 11. You are going to see this word occur a number of times in the Scripture. But watch if you would please Ephesians 3 and verse 11. The Bible says, according to the eternal purpose of which He purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord." Now note if you would first of all it is an eternal purpose which means whatever God purposed He did so in eternity past.

[John Weaver] It had nothing to do with time. And this eternal purpose was a purpose which He purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord.

[John Weaver] Now when we talk about God's decree have to understand that the decree of God is revealed to us in many passages under a variety of terms. For instance, the word decree is used in Psalm 27 where God says, I will declare the decree. In Ephesians 3 and verse 11 here we read of His eternal purpose. In Acts 2 and verse 23 we read of His determinate counsel and foreknowledge. In Ephesians 1 and verse 9, we see the mystery of His will. In Romans 8 and verse 29, it specifically says that He did predestinate. In Ephesians 1 and verse 9, we read about His good pleasure. In Ephesians 1 and 11, we read about the fact that it was His counsel. He did what He did according to the counsel of His own will. So God's decree then is referred to as His counsel to demonstrate that it is consummately wise.

[John Weaver] And it's called the counsel of His will to show that He was under no obligation, no constraint, no coercion. He did what He did just simply because He needed and wanted to do that. That was just simple. God did not do anything for any reason outside of Himself. So the decrees of God then relate to all future things without exception. So let me make this statement and think about this.

[John Weaver] Whatever is done in time was accomplished, was indeed foreordained before time. So whatever is done in time was foreordained before time. is accomplished in time was predestinated in eternity." So God's purpose, or God's predestination concerns everything whether it is great or small, whether it is good or evil.

[John Weaver] Now let me just go ahead and say this, we cannot make God the creator of evil in the sense that He is the creator of good. We can say, and I'm going to show you this just momentarily, that God is the orderer, and that God is the controller of evil. But evil does not proceed from God the way good proceeds from God. But God's decree is totally, absolutely comprehensive.

[John Weaver] So let me explain it to you like this. Think about this. If there is anything outside of God over which God does not have control, then God is not God. That thing is God. Whatever God does not have control over. So God has to have control over evil or else He would not be God Himself. So how do we say this? So when it comes to sin, or comes to evil, we can say it like this, God is not the author of evil. God is not the infuser of evil. God is not the instigator of evil. But God is the controller of evil because God is sovereign.

[John Weaver] Now I'm going to give you some illustrations momentarily. But let me just give you a quote from James 1 verses 13-15. Listen to this, let no man say when he is tempted that I am tempted of God. For God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth He any man. Now let me just stop there for a moment. God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man. Listen, but every man is tempted when he is drawn away of his own lust and enticed, notice, then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin, and when sin is finished, it bringeth forth death. So God says that the evil and the sin comes from our own lust. does not come from God."

[John Weaver] Now I want you to look in your Bible, Isaiah 45 and verse 7 because here is a verse undoubtedly and inevitably everyone brings up, and we certainly need to understand this verse, Isaiah 45 and verse 7. In fact let's begin reading with verse 5 just so that you can see that God is in the context, ok? And of course in this passage He is dealing with Cyrus, But notice what he says concerning himself to Cyrus, Isaiah 45 verse 5, I am the Lord and there is none else. There is no God beside me.

[John Weaver] I girded thee though thou hast not known me. That is God has control over Cyrus. He raised him up. He put him as king even though Cyrus did not know him. Watch verse 6, that they may know from the rising of the sun from the west from the West, that there is none beside me. I am the Lord and there is none else." And now God says this, I form the light and create darkness. I make peace and create evil. I the Lord do all these things. Now you and I don't have any problem with the light. We don't have any problem with darkness. We don't have any problem with peace. But He said, I the Lord form the light and create darkness. I make peace and create evil. I the Lord do all these things." Now, the question is, how can the Bible in this particular passage say that God created evil? We've already said that God is not the author of sin. God is not the author of evil. You have to understand that God created evil by definition.

[John Weaver] What do I mean by definition? It is God who determined what is good. You remember when He created the world? He beheld everything that He made and behold it was good. It is God who determines that which is right and holy and pure. So, if it is God who is determining that which is right, and holy, and pure, that means this, anything that is contrary to that by definition is wicked, wrong, and evil. So that is how He created it. He created the evil only by saying this is what is good, this is what is holy. And if you do anything contrary to this then you are doing that which is evil. That is why in Amos 5 and verse 15 God says, hate the evil and love the good. because we know what good is and since we know what good is automatically now we know what evil is because evil is contrary to that which is good. So God then controls everything, He even controls sin.

[John Weaver] So if you look in your Bibles to Psalm 76, go to Psalm 76 if you would please and look at verse 10 and I'll give you some illustrations. Psalm 76 and verse 10 God certainly controls evil. If anything is out of His control or acts apart from Him then God would not be God because God would not be omnipotent. You say, well why is there sin? Why is there evil? If God is sovereign then could not God stop sin? Of course He could. But verse 10 tells you this, Psalm 76 verse 10, Surely the wrath of man shall praise thee, and the remainder of wrath shalt thou restrain. So the question is how much evil, how much sin is there going to be in the world?

[John Weaver] And the answer is going to come back just enough that it's going to redound to God's honor and God's glory. And what will not redound to God's honor and God's glory? God will restrain.

[John Weaver] Now let me give you an illustration. In fact, I'll give you two. I want you to turn in your Bibles to the book of Genesis chapter 20. Genesis chapter 20. And let's read about Abraham and Sarah. Because Abraham goes down into Gerar and there is Abimelech the king. And you must remember that Sarah was indeed a very beautiful woman. And if I am not mistaken, and I could be, but I think at this particular time, Sarah is probably closer to 70. So she had to be exquisitely beautiful. Bible says in Genesis 20 verse 1, And Abraham journeyed from Thense toward the south country, and dwelt between Kadesh and Shur, and sojourned in Gerah. And Abraham said of Sarah his wife, She is my sister. And Abimelech king of Gerah sent and took Sarah. But God came to Abimelech in a dream by night, and said unto him, Behold, thou art a dead man for the woman which thou hast taken, for she is a man's wife. But Abimelech had not come near her.

[John Weaver] And he said, Lord, wilt thou slay also a righteous nation? Said he, nodding to me, She is my sister. And she, even she herself, said, He is my brother. In the integrity of my heart and in the innocency of my hands have I done this. And God said unto him in a dream, Yea, I know that thou didst this in the integrity of thy heart, for I also withheld thee from sinning against me. Therefore I suffered thee not to touch her."

[John Weaver] Now here the king had taken Sarah. But he had not come near her. He had not touched her. Why? I have no earthly idea. Maybe God gave him a case of the 24-hour virus. I don't know. But since Abraham was the father of all who believe, and since Jesus Christ was to come through him, would not honor God for Sarah to be defiled. And so God sovereignly restrained Abimelech. And Abimelech said, if I had known she was a man's wife I wouldn't have taken her.

[John Weaver] In the innocence of my hands, in the integrity of my heart have I done this? And God said, yes I know. That's why I restrained you. That's why I held you back.

[John Weaver] Now you're going to ask me, Well, if God could do that in this instance, could He not do that in every instance? And the answer is yes. Now, you're going to ask me, well, why does He not do so? I'll show you in just a moment. But I want you to turn in your Bibles to the book of Exodus, chapter 34. Exodus, chapter 34. And notice, if you would please, beginning there, verse 21. You remember, God demanded all of the male Israelites appear before Him three times a year for those seven annual feasts. Now many times the women went and the children as well. Sometimes they could not go, but God did demand that the men appear. So look in Exodus chapter 34 beginning there in verse 21, God says, six days thou shalt work, but on the seventh day thou shalt rest. In earing time and in harvest thou shalt rest. And thou shalt observe the Feast of Weeks, and of the firstfruits of wheat harvest, and the Feast of Engather at the year's end.

[John Weaver] Thrice, that is three times in the year, shall all your men children appear before the Lord God, the God of Israel." And they were to go to Jerusalem. Watch verse 24, God says, For I will cast out the nations before thee, and enlarge thy borders. Neither shall any man desire thy land, when thou shalt go up to appear before the Lord thy God thrice in the year. So here is my question, all the men were required to go up to Jerusalem before the Lord. The women were not required but many of them went, and the children often went as well.

[John Weaver] But obviously someone is going to have to stay back to take care of the farm, to take care of the animals, I mean that should be obvious. So here is the question, what is going to keep those dispossessed heathens, and those heathens who were not killed when the people came in and conquered the land, you remember a lot of them were made slaves. So what is to keep these dispossessed people lost the land and lost everything and now they have been made slaves to the Israelite. What is to keep them from forming an insurrection while all the men are in Jerusalem raping the women, killing the women and children and trying to reclaim that land? God said as long as you are obedient to me and doing what I am telling you they will not only not attack but It will not even come into their mind, they will not even desire to have their land back. That is, and remember, these are heathen. God has sovereign control over every man.

[John Weaver] You remember Proverbs 21 verse 1, the king's heart is in the hand of the Lord like rivers of water, he turneth it whithersoever he willeth. So, you're going to say, Well, if God could restrain a man like Abimelech, and if God could restrain these heathen, could he not do this today? And the answer is yes. Now you're going to ask, why does he not do it then? Now you're going to have to go back to Psalm 76 and verse 10. Surely the wrath of man shall praise the Lord, and the remainder of wrath shall he restrain. And in other words God says there is going to be just enough evil, there is going to be just enough sin that is going to ultimately redound to my honor and my glory. You say, how can sin redound to God's honor and God's glory? Well just stop and think about this.

[John Weaver] If God showed mercy all of the time and was merciful under every situation and every circumstance who would know anything about His justice? Who would know anything about His holiness? Who would know anything about His righteous anger and wrath? In other words God is saying, yes, whatever happens when it comes to the wrath of man it is going to ultimately redound to my praise and my honor. So God did indeed predestinate all things.

[John Weaver] Now if you will look back in your Bibles to Romans 8 and verse 29, Romans 8 verse 29 and I'm going to give you another word just a little bit later. But notice in verse 29 he says, for whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate.

[John Weaver] Now the word predestinate here is the Greek word proridzo, which literally means, listen carefully, to predestinate, to determine before, to ordain, to decide beforehand, and to decree from all eternity. Okay?

[John Weaver] Now, whatever happens in time was ordained from eternity. Wow! That means we have to pay attention to what happens in time. There is a reason for a torn rotator cuff. There is a reason for everything. The Westminster Confession says this, listen carefully, God from all eternity did by the most wise and holy counsel of his own will freely and unchangeably foreordain whatever comes to pass." Now here's the Westminster Confession saying that God freely and unchangeably foreordained everything that comes to pass. When you stop and think about it, if God did not predestinate and if God did not foreordain, the only thing left is luck, chance, fate, and fortune.

[John Weaver] And Fortunata was a false goddess. That's where we get the word fortune from. So, all you have without God's sovereign predestination, you have humanism.

[John Weaver] Now, let me go a little bit further. The Philadelphia Baptist Confession of Faith says it like this. God hath decreed in himself from all eternity, by the most wise and holy counsel of his own will, freely and unchangeably, all things whatsoever comes to pass. Yet so as thereby is God neither the author of sin, nor hath fellowship with any therein, nor is violence offered to the will of the creature, nor yet is the liberty or contingency of second causes taken away, but rather established which appears his wisdom in disposing of all things, and power and faithfulness in accomplishing his decree."

[John Weaver] Now I will be honest with you he would take me about five or six different messages just to expound that one paragraph because every one of these sentences is basically taken from the Word of God. When we talk about predestination here is what I normally say concerning predestination. everyone believes in predestination, really. Everybody believes in predestination. I don't care if you are a Calvinist, I don't care if you are an Arminian, I don't care what you are.

[John Weaver] And by the way you have to believe something about it because it's in the Bible, okay. So the argument is not over the doctrine of predestination. The argument is over who does the predestination. You see when you say, well I believe the Bible, then you are going to have to come out with this, that God has predestinated everything. If you don't believe the Bible then you have to believe that man predestinates and man controls. And you see men are content with the doctrine of predestination as long as they are the one controlling it, and as long as they are the ones doing it.

[John Weaver] What many people do not understand is this, that propaganda, social welfare, public education, and a host of other governmental programs are nothing more than predestination. It's man's attempt to control the attitudes, actions, and lives of others. That's all it is. So everybody believes in it, it's just they disagree as to who does the predestinating. Now, John L. Gerardo was a Presbyterian preacher. the 19th Century. And he pastored mainly in Charleston, South Carolina.

[John Weaver] He was a theologian and author. And he gives an excellent definition of predestination. And I'm going to deal with it in half first and then the other half a little bit later. But listen to what he says, predestination in the Scriptures and in theological treatises has two senses. one wide and general, the other narrow and special. In the wider general sense, it signifies the decrees of God terminating either efficiently or permissively on all beings, acts, and events.

[John Weaver] The universe, intelligent and unintelligent, is the object. It is the plan accordance which God creates and governs all finite beings and all their properties and actions." So he is saying now when you talk about predestination you've got to consider it in two senses. The first one is wide and general, and the second one is narrow and specific. And then he begins to explain what he means by wide and general. He says, that signifies the decrees of God terminating efficiently the all beings, acts and events in the universe, intelligent and unintelligent. So let me explain it.

[John Weaver] Look in your Bibles to the book of Matthew chapter 10. Matthew chapter 10 and let's begin reading there with verse 29. Matthew 10 verse 29. Look what God says. Matthew 10 verse 29. are not two sparrows sold for a farthing." Which means they're prolific, they're cheap, are not two sparrows sold for a farthing. And one of them shall not fall on the ground without your father, but the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear you not, therefore, you are of more value than many sparrows. Now the interesting thing is when you look at verse 29 and he says, and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your father. The Greek word for fall there does not necessarily mean to die. When we read that that is exactly what we think of because in the first questions there are not two spares sold for a farthing. You capture them, you sell them, somebody kills them and eats them that is what we think about. He said, one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father.

[John Weaver] Well the Greek word can mean to thrust down or to die, but it also means to descend from a higher place to a lower place. Literally to light on the ground. So it could be read like this, or not to spare a soul for a farthing, and one of them shall not light on the ground without your Father.

[John Weaver] Now I want you to think about this. I don't know if you've ever watched sparrows or not, but we have bird feeders. I have one outside of my office window for the longest, and we have them outside the front room window, and we watch them all the time. But if you've ever seen these little sparrows around a feeder, they're up and down, up and down, up and down. I mean a thousand times an hour, they're on a limb jumping, they're on the ground pecking, they're back up into the feeder, and then they're somewhere else. When you stop and think, this word means that not one of them can lie on the ground, much less die, without your Heavenly Father. When you stop and think that God sovereignly controls the up and down, the ascent and the descent of each one of those sparrows, and not only does He control it, each ascent and descent was ordained before the world began.

[John Weaver] Wow. Nothing happens by accident in a world ruled by God. Those sparrows do not accidentally glide on a limb and accidentally go down to the ground to get food. God sovereignly ordained it and God sovereignly controls it. Look at what else he said. Notice there, if you would, in verse 30. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Now, it is true that God has more difficulty counting the hairs on some people's head than others.

[John Weaver] I made a joke on that, but please understand this. All he is saying is that God also sovereignly controls the loss of our hair. Not a single hair can fall without God's sovereign control, which also means that God ordained it from before the foundation of the world. Everything is under God's direct and sovereign control. When you comb that hair, and you bring that comb back, and you see those three hairs, before the foundation of the world. Before the foundation of the world. You see, God knew you were going to be combing your hair. God ordained those three hairs to come out. He ordained the means, and the means was you combing the hair. John L.

[John Weaver] Gerardo goes on, he says this, listen carefully, in the narrow or special sense, talking about predestination, in the narrow or special sense it signifies the decrees of God terminating on the destinies of men. In the last sense predestination is by Calvinistic theologians regarded as a generic decree including under it election and reprobation as specific decrees. The former, predestinating some human beings without regard to their merit to salvation in order to the glorification of God's sovereign grace. The latter, foreordaining some human beings for their sin to destruction in order to the glorification of God's retributive justice. Now, He is talking about election and reprobation. A reprobation is a doctrine that is clearly taught in Scripture and it is easily explained and easily illustrated.

[John Weaver] And yet it is one of the most hated and one of the most despised doctrines imaginable. So you are going to ask why is it so hated and why is it so despised? And here is why. Because it clearly evidences and teaches the fact that God does not owe man anything. The only thing that God owes man is justice. That's it. And by the way, God does not have to predestinate or ordain anyone to destruction. Why? Because that's where they're already going. All God does is pass over them and withhold from them His grace.

[John Weaver] Here is a good illustration. You remember in 1 Samuel chapter 17 David was going out to fight Goliath and he had a sling. And what did David do? He stopped at the brook and the Bible said, he chose him out five smooth stones. What did God do or what did David do to the rest of the stones in the brook? Nothing. He left them just as he found them. You follow that? All he did was select five. Do you realize if God had not chosen some to be saved, none would be saved.

[John Weaver] What did the Apostle Paul say? Except the Lord of the Sabbath had left us a remnant, we should have been made as Sodom and Gomorrah. That's what he said. If God had not chosen some, none would be saved. So, reprobation is actually the opposite of election. It is just simply God passing over. Here is a good illustration. Listen carefully. Alice and I are grown. All of our kids are grown. All of our grandkids are grown.

[John Weaver] We have Three great-grands and one on the way. So what if I looked at Alice and I said, well, you know, all of our kids are grown and grandkids are grown and it's kind of lonely around the house. I'll tell you what let's do. Let's go down to the orphanage and let's adopt three children and let's raise them as our own. We will feed them, we'll clothe them, we'll educate them, we'll support them, we'll take care of them.

[John Weaver] And that's what we do. We go down, and we select three children, and we adopt them, and we raise them as our own. You know what everybody's going to say? Everybody's going to say, isn't that wonderful? I mean, they didn't have to do that. They didn't know those kids. Isn't it wonderful that that old couple went down and adopted three kids? Isn't that wonderful? No one is going to say, those dirty, rotten, stupid, stinking grandparents, they left 45 in that orphanage. Really?

[John Weaver] How many did I owe anything to? Not one. I could have left them all in the orphanage. The very fact that I chose three was just out of my mere grace and mercy. And it's the same thing with God. The very fact that He saves any is His grace and His mercy. He did not owe that to any of us. That's why the Bible says, for by grace are you saved through faith, and that not of yourselves. It is the gift of God, not of works lest any man should boast.

[John Weaver] Now, I've got two things to show you before I try to tie it together. Two points. First of all, the act of predestination is the work of God the Father. Anytime you look at predestination in the Bible it is always the work of God the Father. Let me just quote a few verses first of all. In John 17 verses 5 and 6, Jesus Christ is there giving His high priestly prayer and He says, And now, O Father, glorify Thou me with Thine own glory, with thine own self, with the glory which I had with thee before the world was, 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." What?

[John Weaver] Did you hear what he said? You chose some before the foundation of the world, and you gave them to me.

[John Weaver] Now He said, Father keep them for they are Thine. In John 17 verse 9 He said it like this, I pray for them. I pray not for the world but for them which Thou hast given Me for they are Thine. So here is a group that was given to Jesus Christ. That is why in Romans 8 verses 28-30 there He says, And we all know that everything works together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to His purpose. Did you hear that? Those who are called according to His purpose, singular.

[John Weaver] And then he goes on to talk about predestination, etc. Look in your Bibles to the book of Ephesians chapter 1. Let me show it to you again. Ephesians chapter 1 and let's begin reading there with verse 3. Ephesians 1 verse 3, watch carefully. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ, according as He has chosen us in Him, that is in Christ, 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." Skip down to verse 11. whom also we have obtained an inheritance being predestinated according to the," what?

[John Weaver] Purpose, of Him who worketh all things after the counsel of His own will. And then if you turn right over to 1 Peter chapter 1 and 2, chapter 1 verses 1 and 2. 1 Peter chapter 1, notice verses 1 and 2. Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, Bithynia. Now watch verse 2, According to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ, grace unto you and peace be multiplied." But note if you would, elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father. Anytime you read about predestination in the Bible, it is always an act of God the Father.

[John Weaver] Secondly, very quickly, we must discuss the subject of predestination. In distinction from the decree of God in general, predestination has reference to God's rational creatures only in the specific and limited sense that Gerardo spoke about. And most frequently, of course, it refers to fallen men. First of all, let me just say that predestination includes all men, both good and evil. I want you to look in your Bibles to the book of Acts chapter 4. I cannot think of a better illustration than this, Acts chapter 4 and verses 26 and 28.

[John Weaver] I will give you another one but this is a fine one. Acts chapter 4 verse 26, this is in reference to Jesus Christ. Now the question I would ask you is this, was the death of Jesus Christ foreordained by God? everything about the death of Jesus Christ were ordained by God? And of course the answer is yes.

[John Weaver] Now watch verse 26, the kings of the earth stood up and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord and against His Christ. So here is a whole group of people that are against Jesus Christ. Watch verse 27, for of a truth against thy holy child Jesus whom thou has anointed both Herod and Pontius Pilate with the Gentiles and the people of Israel gathered together what did they do for to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done." Wow.

[John Weaver] Now let me ask you a question. Wasn't an accident that Pontius Pilate was the governor at this particular time? Wasn't an accident that Herod was on the throne? Was it an accident that those Israelites or Jews were around at that particular time? Was it an accident that the Gentiles were there? No, no, no, no. Here were wicked men who hated Jesus Christ, who were not willing to obey God, did not want to obey God, and yet here's what God did. God took their wickedness and worked out what He foreordained concerning Jesus Christ. Let me tell you something, you look around today and you find people fighting against God, fighting against Jesus Christ. The only thing they can do is work out what God has already predetermined before the world ever began. Their fighting is futile and useless and worthless. It is. But just to show you look in your Bibles to Romans chapter 9 to show you that once again includes both good and bad men. Romans chapter 9 begin there with verse 10. Look what the Bible says, Romans 9 verse 10, and not only this one, Rebecca also had conceived by one even by our father Isaac, for the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works, But of him

[John Weaver] that calleth, by the way go back to verse 11 again, For the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand not of works, but of him that calleth. It was said unto her, The elder shall serve the younger. As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated. What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? God forbid.

[John Weaver] he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. So then, it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that showeth mercy. For the Scripture saith unto Pharaoh, Even for this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I might show my power in thee, that my name might be declared throughout all the earth. Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth. Now notice if you would, God said for this same reason I raised up Pharaoh. Now here's my question. Was Pharaoh responsible and answerable and accountable to God? God said he foreordained this, he raised him up for this very purpose.

[John Weaver] Stop and think about this. How many times did Moses and Aaron go to Pharaoh and say, thus said the Lord God of Israel, let my people go. And what did Pharaoh respond? I know not the Lord. Neither will I let Israel go. In other words I don't recognize God. I'm not going to do it. I'm my own God. I do my own thing. Yes, he was answerable. Yes, he was fighting against God, but all he did was work out God's eternal decree. So God's predestination incurs, includes both good and bad men. It also includes both good and bad.

[John Weaver] The Bible not only speaks of holy angels in Mark 8 in verse 38 and Luke 9 verse 26, it also speaks about wicked angels who kept not their first estate in 2 Peter 2.4 and Jude verse 6. Now, there are some elect angels. In fact the Apostle Paul told Timothy in 1 Timothy 5 and verse 21, I charge thee before God and the Lord Jesus Christ and the elect angels that you observe these things. Now if there are elect angels then obviously there are some angels that are non-elect. So how do we conceive then of predestination of angels? Well there are only two things that you can say. You can either say that God gave some angels perseverance and grace along with that whichever He created them with, and He did not give it to other angels, or you can say that God placed some angels on an immutable footing, one that cannot change, and He placed others on a mutable footing, which could change. Well, you say, but they were created holy.

[John Weaver] May I remind you that Adam created holy and righteous and with knowledge and yet he was mutable. He could change and he did change just like these angels. But there is a difference in angels and men. God did not choose a definite number of angels out of a mass of fallen angels. Moreover angels were not predestinated in Jesus Christ as the mediator. They stand in relationship to Him as He is their head, but angels cannot be saved and are not saved the way you and I are saved. So here think about this, someone says, well I don't like this doctrine of predestination. Really? Well, I will tell you this, if you do not like the doctrine of predestination, you do not like the doctrine of salvation. Did you know that even Jesus Christ, our Mediator, our Lord, the God-man, is referred to as the elect of God? And He was also predestinated by God to be the mediator.

[John Weaver] For instance, go in your Bibles to Isaiah 42. Isaiah 42, and notice beginning there with verse 1. We will read the first four verses, Isaiah 42, verse 1. And by the way this passage is quoted in the New Testament in reference to Jesus Christ. So we know that He is talking about Christ in this passage. Isaiah 42, verse 1, God says, Behold, my servant whom I uphold, mine elect, and whom my soul delighteth, I have put my spirit upon him, he shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles.

[John Weaver] He shall not cry, nor lift up, nor cause his voice to be heard in the street. A bruised reed shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not quench. He shall bring forth judgment unto truth. He shall not fail, nor be discouraged, till he have set judgment in the earth, and the shall wait for his law." Note, if you would please, in verse 1, God calls Jesus Christ, my servant whom I uphold, mine elect. May I remind you according to Ephesians 1 verses 3 through 6, God chose us in Christ. God elected us in Jesus Christ. Because Jesus Christ is God's elect, we are God's elect. If you would turn to Acts 17, look at verse 31. Acts 17, verse 31.

[John Weaver] Paul has been preaching on Mars Hill. He is concluding his sermon and he is telling them that God demands that people repent. Then in verse 31 he tells you why God demands repentance. Acts 17 verse 31, notice what he says, Because He, that is God the Father, hath appointed a day in the which He will judge the world in righteousness by that man, that is Jesus Christ, whom He hath ordained. wherever he hath given assurance unto all men, and that he hath raised him from the dead." So just as surely as God raised Jesus Christ from the dead, there's going to be a judgment. But look what the Bible says,"...because he hath appointed a day in which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained."

[John Weaver] The word ordained is exactly the same Greek word that you find in Romans 8 that is translated predestinate. So God not only elected and chose Jesus Christ to be the God-man, He predestinated Jesus Christ to be the mediator and the God-man. So obviously if you do not like the doctrine of predestination you do not like the doctrine of salvation. Because our salvation is tied to the election and predestination of Jesus Christ. Now, if you will go back in your Bibles to Romans chapter 8, let me show you this. Here is, this is known as the golden chain of salvation. So in Romans 8 verse 28, and we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to His what? Purpose.

[John Weaver] Notice if you would For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover, whom he did predestinate, them he also called. Whom he called, them he also justified. Whom he justified, them he also glorified."

[John Weaver] Now, here's what I'm talking about. If you are in the purpose of God in verse 28, You are in the foreknowledge of God in verse 29 if you are in the predestination of God in verse 30 What did God do for you? He called you he justified you he glorified you all of those are past tense So if you are in that golden chain at the beginning you're in that golden chain at the end Because there are no broken links in the chain of salvation none whatsoever.

[John Weaver] It is sure, it is certain, it is absolute. And the reason it is sure and certain and absolute is because we had nothing to do with it. It has reference to Jesus Christ who is our mediator, who is the God-man, who is our Redeemer, who is our Savior, because He was God's elect, He was predestinated, we were chosen in Him, and we were predestinated in Him. One last passage.

[John Weaver] I want you to look at 2 Timothy 1, verses 8 and 9. 2 Timothy 1, verses 8 and 9. Watch carefully. 2 Timothy 1, verse 8. Paul tells Timothy, Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me his prisoner. but be thou partaker of the afflictions of the gospel according to the power of God." Now look, we're talking about the power of God, verse 9, who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own what?

[John Weaver] Purpose and grace which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began. So here it is. When one denies predestination, he also denies salvation. Because we were predestinated in Jesus Christ, we were chosen in Him, we were blessed in Him, we were given grace in Him, and without predestination there is no salvation.

[John Weaver] Secondly, predestination does not make us automatons, it does not make us puppets. We are responsible and accountable creatures and we will face God in judgment. If you are a puppet you are not accountable. If you are a puppet you are not responsible. The truth of the matter is we do what we do because we want to do it and we desire to do it and we are answerable. Those men who crucified Jesus Christ They did not do it to honor God and to please God and to serve God and to fulfill His Word. No.

[John Weaver] They did what they did because they hated Him and despised Him. And men today who fight against God do so because that's what they want to do. They are still answerable and accountable to Him. One last thought. You cannot use predestination as an excuse to sin. You can't say, well, the reason I did this, I was predestinated to do that. No, no, no, no. Yeah, God may have predestinated everything, but there are second causes, or secondary causes, or contingencies. God knew that is true, but you're the one who did it. And you're responsible, and you're accountable. When you think of the doctrine of predestination, think of salvation. Without it, there is no salvation. There is no glorification.

[John Weaver] All of these doctrines stand or fall together. The one thing that will make all of our afflictions, and all of our trials, and all of our tribulations bearable is that we understand that God ordained it. Whatever He ordains in eternity comes to pass in time and it is to be for our good and our glory. Therefore we are to learn from our trials and our afflictions and submit to Him.

[John Weaver] I talked with a young lady yesterday who's going through an excruciating trial. And the only thing that is really consoling in a time like that is the sovereignty of God, knowing that God is in control And He can use whatever He wants to use for His honor and His glory. And He alone is the one that can work it out. I'd much rather depend upon God's predestination than man's predestination.

[John Weaver] Father, in the name of Jesus Christ, we bow before Thee. We thank You for Your Word. We thank You for Your truth. And we ask, Father, that You would help us to rejoice in Thy truth and in Thy Word, and help us to understand and to comprehend and believe and submit. In the name of Jesus Christ, we ask and pray. Amen.

[John Weaver] so so

A Primer To Predestination

John Weaver | YouTube

Lecture Metadata	Details
Speaker	John Weaver
Source	YouTube
Media ID	wW-evZO2dVA
Subject	New Testament Studies
Course	Romans: Election, Israel, and Covenant Mercy
Genre	Sermon
Date	2017-10-04
Dictation Name
Book	Book 138: Romans-Related Topical Applications — Chapter 17
Source Timed Segments	89

Formatted Transcript

Introduction and Personal Testimony

Weaver shares his early struggle to understand predestination and a pastor's dismissive response, motivating his commitment to biblical honesty.

Romans chapter 8. Romans chapter 8, and we're going to read verses 28 through 39. Romans 8:28-39. I'm going to be dealing with a message which I'm just simply going to call "A Primer on Predestination." I want you to look in Romans chapter 8, beginning there with verse 28. The Bible says,

Scripture Reading — Romans 8:28-39

"And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to His purpose." "For whom He did foreknow, He also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover, whom He did predestinate, them He also called, and whom He called, them He also justified, and whom He justified, them He also glorified. What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? He that spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?" "Who shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth. Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea, rather that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long, we are counted as sheep for the slaughter." "Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death, life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Years ago when the Lord first saved me and called me to preach, I had a hunger to really know the Scripture. So I put myself on a schedule and I read the Old Testament all the way through every month. I read the New Testament all the way through every week. I did it over and over and over. And I finally went to the pastor one day that Alice and I had really gotten converted under. And at this time he had been in the ministry for over 30 years.

And so I said, "You know, I've been reading my Bible and there's some words that come up that I don't understand, and it bothers me, and I'd like you to explain them to me." Well, he said, "What words are they?" I said, "Well, they're the words predestinate, predestination, elect, election. I said, I don't understand those things, and I just need you to explain them to me." I have never, ever forgotten his response. Here is what he said to me. First, there are some things in the Bible we are not meant to understand. And second, there are some things in the Bible that kill our soul-winning zeal, so we just leave them alone. And I looked at him, being a young Christian and just being called in the ministry, and I said, "You know, it just seems to me that if God reveals something in His Word, He means for us to understand it. And secondly, it appears to me that any soul-winning that the Bible kills ought to be killed anyhow."

And so then he went one way and I ended up going the other way because I wanted to be absolutely honest with Scripture. So the truth of the matter is I could begin today by asking several questions like, "Are you predestinated?" Or, "Do you comprehend the word predestination?" The truth is absolutely everything is predestinated simply because nothing happens by accident in a world that is ruled by God. God did not accidentally create the world. And God did not accidentally create man. And God did not accidentally save you. Everything that God does He does on purpose. God did not accidentally allow you to live to the age at which you are now. He did not accidentally give you grace, and mercy, and goodness.

The Comprehensive Nature of Predestination

Everything God does is on purpose; predestination covers all events, and doctrines like foreknowledge, election, and perseverance are interconnected.

It was not an accident that you heard the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, and that you repented, and you believed, and you trusted in Jesus Christ. No, everything that God does He does on purpose. All these acts are nothing more than gracious evidences and manifestations of God's predestination. Now according to our text, if you will look at it and just remember it, many doctrines are connected to the doctrine of predestination such as the doctrine of foreknowledge, election, providence, adoption. And if you take the entire context of Romans chapter 8, you will also notice that perseverance and glorification are also connected to the doctrine of predestination. So it is impossible then to understand any of these doctrines apart from predestination. Moreover, it is also impossible to separate any of these doctrines from the doctrine of predestination because they all stand or fall together. So accurately speaking, you could say that election is a branch of predestination, however it is more limited and it is more specific.

Predestination, of course, would cover all creatures and all things and all events, while election would be restricted to what you and I would call rational beings such as angels and humans. And of course, the Bible teaches that everything was predestinated by God from all eternity. And God has sovereignly ordained and immutably determined the history and destiny of each of His creatures. That is true. So I want you to look in your Bibles, hold Romans 8, but turn in your Bibles to the book of Job chapter 7. And look, if you would please, there first and then we will go to Job chapter 14 just to show you what I am talking about.

God's Decree and Human Limitations

God's decree is singular in Scripture but spoken of in plural terms due to human cognitive limits; it is eternal and encompasses all things.

Now the decree of God is His purpose or His determination in reference to future things. Now if you are going to understand predestination you have to understand it in light of God's eternal decree. Now listen very carefully as I explain something to you. I am going to show you in the Bible where the Bible talks about God's purpose. And the word decree is in the Bible. And I will quote that scripture just momentarily. But whenever we talk about God's decree, or God's purpose, and it's always singular in the Bible. Whenever you hear theologians or pastors or Christians talk about these things, they will always talk about the decrees of God. You pick up any systematic theology book when you get to the doctrine of God it talks about the decrees of God. Now the Bible says it is singular but we say it is plural. Now how is that?

And how can that be? Well it is very simple because you and I cannot think or comprehend the way God thinks or comprehend what God comprehends. When you and I think we do in succession, we do one thing at a time and one thing follows the other. No matter how hard you try, you cannot think about more than one thing at a time. God is not like that. God's mind is infinite. He is omniscient. He knows everything. He knows everything instantly. And all God had to do was to have one purpose or one decree and that one purpose and that one decree would entail absolutely everything. And since we can't think like that, we talk about the decree of God in this area, the decree of God in that area, and thus we talk about plurality.

But the Bible says in Acts chapter 15 and verse 18,

Scripture Reading — Acts 15:18

"Known unto God are all His works from the beginning."

So God knew from the beginning everything that He was going to do. Now, I want you to look in your Bibles, hold Romans 8, but look in your Bibles to Ephesians chapter 3 and verse 11. You are going to see this word occur a number of times in the Scripture. But watch if you would please Ephesians 3 and verse 11. The Bible says, "According to the eternal purpose which He purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord." Now note if you would first of all it is an eternal purpose which means whatever God purposed He did so in eternity past. It had nothing to do with time. And this eternal purpose was a purpose which He purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Now when we talk about God's decree we have to understand that the decree of God is revealed to us in many passages under a variety of terms. For instance, the word decree is used in Psalm 2:7 where God says,

Scripture Reading — Psalm 2:7

"I will declare the decree."

In Ephesians 3 and verse 11 here we read of His eternal purpose. In Acts 2 and verse 23 we read of His determinate counsel and foreknowledge. In Ephesians 1 and verse 9, we see the mystery of His will. In Romans 8 and verse 29, it specifically says that He did predestinate. In Ephesians 1 and verse 9, we read about His good pleasure. In Ephesians 1 and 11, we read about the fact that it was His counsel. He did what He did according to the counsel of His own will. So God's decree then is referred to as His counsel to demonstrate that it is consummately wise.

God's Sovereignty Over Evil

God is not the author of evil but controls it; He created evil by defining good, and restrains wrath to redound to His glory.

Now let me just go ahead and say this, we cannot make God the creator of evil in the sense that He is the creator of good. We can say, and I'm going to show you this just momentarily, that God is the orderer, and that God is the controller of evil. But evil does not proceed from God the way good proceeds from God. But God's decree is totally, absolutely comprehensive.

So let me explain it to you like this. Think about this. If there is anything outside of God over which God does not have control, then God is not God. That thing is God. Whatever God does not have control over. So God has to have control over evil or else He would not be God Himself. So how do we say this? So when it comes to sin, or comes to evil, we can say it like this, God is not the author of evil. God is not the infuser of evil. God is not the instigator of evil. But God is the controller of evil because God is sovereign.

Now I'm going to give you some illustrations momentarily. But let me just give you a quote from James 1 verses 13-15. Listen to this,

Scripture Reading — James 1:13-15

"Let no man say when he is tempted that I am tempted of God. For God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth He any man."

Now let me just stop there for a moment. God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth He any man. Listen,

Scripture Reading — James 1:13-15

"But every man is tempted when he is drawn away of his own lust and enticed, notice, then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin, and when sin is finished, it bringeth forth death."

So God says that the evil and the sin comes from our own lust. It does not come from God.

Now I want you to look in your Bible, Isaiah 45 and verse 7 because here is a verse undoubtedly and inevitably everyone brings up, and we certainly need to understand this verse, Isaiah 45 and verse 7. In fact let's begin reading with verse 5 just so that you can see that God is in the context, ok? And of course in this passage He is dealing with Cyrus, but notice what he says concerning himself to Cyrus, Isaiah 45 verse 5,

Scripture Reading — Isaiah 45:5-7

"I am the Lord and there is none else. There is no God beside me." "I girded thee though thou hast not known me."

That is God has control over Cyrus. He raised him up. He put him as king even though Cyrus did not know him. Watch verse 6,

Scripture Reading — Isaiah 45:5-7

"That they may know from the rising of the sun and from the west, that there is none beside me. I am the Lord and there is none else."

And now God says this,

Scripture Reading — Isaiah 45:5-7

"I form the light and create darkness. I make peace and create evil. I the Lord do all these things."

Now you and I don't have any problem with the light. We don't have any problem with darkness. We don't have any problem with peace. But He said,

Scripture Reading — Isaiah 45:5-7

"I the Lord form the light and create darkness. I make peace and create evil. I the Lord do all these things."

Now, the question is, how can the Bible in this particular passage say that God created evil? We've already said that God is not the author of sin. God is not the author of evil. You have to understand that God created evil by definition.

What do I mean by definition? It is God who determined what is good. You remember when He created the world? He beheld everything that He made and behold it was good. It is God who determines that which is right and holy and pure. So, if it is God who is determining that which is right, and holy, and pure, that means this, anything that is contrary to that by definition is wicked, wrong, and evil. So that is how He created it. He created the evil only by saying this is what is good, this is what is holy. And if you do anything contrary to this then you are doing that which is evil. That is why in Amos 5 and verse 15 God says, "Hate the evil and love the good." Because we know what good is and since we know what good is automatically now we know what evil is because evil is contrary to that which is good. So God then controls everything, He even controls sin.

So if you look in your Bibles to Psalm 76, go to Psalm 76 if you would please and look at verse 10 and I'll give you some illustrations. Psalm 76 and verse 10 God certainly controls evil. If anything is out of His control or acts apart from Him then God would not be God because God would not be omnipotent. You say, "Well why is there sin? Why is there evil? If God is sovereign then could not God stop sin?" Of course He could. But verse 10 tells you this, Psalm 76 verse 10,

Scripture Reading — Psalm 76:10

"Surely the wrath of man shall praise thee, and the remainder of wrath shalt thou restrain."

So the question is how much evil, how much sin is there going to be in the world?

And the answer is going to come back just enough that it's going to redound to God's honor and God's glory. And what will not redound to God's honor and God's glory? God will restrain. Now let me give you an illustration. In fact, I'll give you two. I want you to turn in your Bibles to the book of Genesis chapter 20. Genesis chapter 20. And let's read about Abraham and Sarah. Because Abraham goes down into Gerar and there is Abimelech the king. And you must remember that Sarah was indeed a very beautiful woman. And if I am not mistaken, and I could be, but I think at this particular time, Sarah is probably closer to 70. So she had to be exquisitely beautiful. Bible says in Genesis 20 verse 1,

Scripture Reading — Genesis 20:1-6

"And Abraham journeyed from Thence toward the south country, and dwelt between Kadesh and Shur, and sojourned in Gerar. And Abraham said of Sarah his wife, She is my sister. And Abimelech king of Gerar sent and took Sarah. But God came to Abimelech in a dream by night, and said unto him, Behold, thou art a dead man for the woman which thou hast taken, for she is a man's wife. But Abimelech had not come near her."

"And he said, Lord, wilt thou slay also a righteous nation? Said he not unto me, She is my sister? And she, even she herself, said, He is my brother. In the integrity of my heart and in the innocency of my hands have I done this. And God said unto him in a dream, Yea, I know that thou didst this in the integrity of thy heart, for I also withheld thee from sinning against me. Therefore I suffered thee not to touch her."

Now here the king had taken Sarah. But he had not come near her. He had not touched her. Why? I have no earthly idea. Maybe God gave him a case of the 24-hour virus. I don't know. But since Abraham was the father of all who believe, and since Jesus Christ was to come through him, it would not honor God for Sarah to be defiled. And so God sovereignly restrained Abimelech. And Abimelech said, "If I had known she was a man's wife I wouldn't have taken her."

"In the innocence of my hands, in the integrity of my heart have I done this." And God said, "Yes I know. That's why I restrained you. That's why I held you back." Now you're going to ask me, "Well, if God could do that in this instance, could He not do that in every instance?" And the answer is yes. Now, you're going to ask me, "Well, why does He not do so?" I'll show you in just a moment. But I want you to turn in your Bibles to the book of Exodus, chapter 34. Exodus, chapter 34. And notice, if you would please, beginning there, verse 21. You remember, God demanded all of the male Israelites appear before Him three times a year for those seven annual feasts. Now many times the women went and the children as well. Sometimes they could not go, but God did demand that the men appear. So look in Exodus chapter 34 beginning there in verse 21, God says, "Six days thou shalt work, but on the seventh day thou shalt rest. In earing time and in harvest thou shalt rest. And thou shalt observe the Feast of Weeks, and of the firstfruits of wheat harvest, and the Feast of Ingathering at the year's end."

"Thrice, that is three times in the year, shall all your men children appear before the Lord God, the God of Israel." And they were to go to Jerusalem. Watch verse 24, God says, "For I will cast out the nations before thee, and enlarge thy borders. Neither shall any man desire thy land, when thou shalt go up to appear before the Lord thy God thrice in the year." So here is my question, all the men were required to go up to Jerusalem before the Lord. The women were not required but many of them went, and the children often went as well.

But obviously someone is going to have to stay back to take care of the farm, to take care of the animals, I mean that should be obvious. So here is the question, what is going to keep those dispossessed heathens, and those heathens who were not killed when the people came in and conquered the land, you remember a lot of them were made slaves. So what is to keep these dispossessed people who lost the land and lost everything and now they have been made slaves to the Israelite. What is to keep them from forming an insurrection while all the men are in Jerusalem raping the women, killing the women and children and trying to reclaim that land? God said as long as you are obedient to me and doing what I am telling you they will not only not attack but it will not even come into their mind, they will not even desire to have their land back. That is, and remember, these are heathen. God has sovereign control over every man.

You remember Proverbs 21 verse 1,

Scripture Reading — Proverbs 21:1

"The king's heart is in the hand of the Lord like rivers of water, he turneth it whithersoever he willeth."

So, you're going to say, "Well, if God could restrain a man like Abimelech, and if God could restrain these heathen, could he not do this today?" And the answer is yes. Now you're going to ask, "Why does he not do it then?" Now you're going to have to go back to Psalm 76 and verse 10. "Surely the wrath of man shall praise the Lord, and the remainder of wrath shall he restrain." And in other words God says there is going to be just enough evil, there is going to be just enough sin that is going to ultimately redound to my honor and my glory. You say, "How can sin redound to God's honor and God's glory?" Well just stop and think about this.

If God showed mercy all of the time and was merciful under every situation and every circumstance who would know anything about His justice? Who would know anything about His holiness? Who would know anything about His righteous anger and wrath? In other words God is saying, yes, whatever happens when it comes to the wrath of man it is going to ultimately redound to my praise and my honor. So God did indeed predestinate all things.

Now if you will look back in your Bibles to Romans 8 and verse 29, Romans 8 verse 29 and I'm going to give you another word just a little bit later. But notice in verse 29 he says, "For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate."

Definitions and Senses of Predestination

Predestination has a wide sense (all beings and events) and a narrow sense (destinies of men, including election and reprobation).

Now, whatever happens in time was ordained from eternity. Wow! That means we have to pay attention to what happens in time. There is a reason for a torn rotator cuff. There is a reason for everything. The Westminster Confession says this, listen carefully, "God from all eternity did by the most wise and holy counsel of his own will freely and unchangeably foreordain whatever comes to pass." Now here's the Westminster Confession saying that God freely and unchangeably foreordained everything that comes to pass. When you stop and think about it, if God did not predestinate and if God did not foreordain, the only thing left is luck, chance, fate, and fortune.

And Fortuna was a false goddess. That's where we get the word fortune from. So, all you have without God's sovereign predestination, you have humanism. Now, let me go a little bit further. The Philadelphia Baptist Confession of Faith says it like this. "God hath decreed in himself from all eternity, by the most wise and holy counsel of his own will, freely and unchangeably, all things whatsoever comes to pass. Yet so as thereby is God neither the author of sin, nor hath fellowship with any therein, nor is violence offered to the will of the creature, nor yet is the liberty or contingency of second causes taken away, but rather established which appears his wisdom in disposing of all things, and power and faithfulness in accomplishing his decree."

Now I will be honest with you it would take me about five or six different messages just to expound that one paragraph because every one of these sentences is basically taken from the Word of God. When we talk about predestination here is what I normally say concerning predestination. Everyone believes in predestination, really. Everybody believes in predestination. I don't care if you are a Calvinist, I don't care if you are an Arminian, I don't care what you are. And by the way you have to believe something about it because it's in the Bible, okay. So the argument is not over the doctrine of predestination. The argument is over who does the predestination. You see when you say, "Well I believe the Bible," then you are going to have to come out with this, that God has predestinated everything. If you don't believe the Bible then you have to believe that man predestinates and man controls. And you see men are content with the doctrine of predestination as long as they are the one controlling it, and as long as they are the ones doing it.

What many people do not understand is this, that propaganda, social welfare, public education, and a host of other governmental programs are nothing more than predestination. It's man's attempt to control the attitudes, actions, and lives of others. That's all it is. So everybody believes in it, it's just they disagree as to who does the predestinating. Now, John L. Girardeau was a Presbyterian preacher in the 19th century. And he pastored mainly in Charleston, South Carolina.

He was a theologian and author. And he gives an excellent definition of predestination. And I'm going to deal with it in half first and then the other half a little bit later. But listen to what he says, "Predestination in the Scriptures and in theological treatises has two senses. One wide and general, the other narrow and special. In the wider general sense, it signifies the decrees of God terminating either efficiently or permissively on all beings, acts, and events." "The universe, intelligent and unintelligent, is the object. It is the plan according to which God creates and governs all finite beings and all their properties and actions." So he is saying now when you talk about predestination you've got to consider it in two senses. The first one is wide and general, and the second one is narrow and specific. And then he begins to explain what he means by wide and general. He says, that signifies the decrees of God terminating efficiently on all beings, acts and events in the universe, intelligent and unintelligent. So let me explain it.

Look in your Bibles to the book of Matthew chapter 10. Matthew chapter 10 and let's begin reading there with verse 29. Matthew 10 verse 29. Look what God says. Matthew 10 verse 29.

Scripture Reading — Matthew 10:29-31

"Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing?"

Which means they're prolific, they're cheap,

Scripture Reading — Matthew 10:29-31

"are not two sparrows sold for a farthing. And one of them shall not fall on the ground without your father, but the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear you not, therefore, you are of more value than many sparrows."

Now the interesting thing is when you look at verse 29 and he says,

Scripture Reading — Matthew 10:29-31

"and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your father."

The Greek word for fall there does not necessarily mean to die. When we read that that is exactly what we think of because in the first questions there are not two sparrows sold for a farthing. You capture them, you sell them, somebody kills them and eats them that is what we think about. He said,

Scripture Reading — Matthew 10:29-31

"one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father."

Predestination as the Work of God the Father

Scripture consistently presents predestination as an act of God the Father, who chose and gave a people to Christ.

Now, I've got two things to show you before I try to tie it together. Two points. First of all, the act of predestination is the work of God the Father. Anytime you look at predestination in the Bible it is always the work of God the Father. Let me just quote a few verses first of all. In John 17 verses 5 and 6, Jesus Christ is there giving His high priestly prayer and He says, "And now, O Father, glorify Thou me with Thine own glory, with thine own self, with the glory which I had with thee before the world was, 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." What?

Did you hear what he said? You chose some before the foundation of the world, and you gave them to me. Now He said, "Father keep them for they are Thine." In John 17 verse 9 He said it like this, "I pray for them. I pray not for the world but for them which Thou hast given Me for they are Thine." So here is a group that was given to Jesus Christ. That is why in Romans 8 verses 28-30 there He says, "And we all know that everything works together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to His purpose." Did you hear that? Those who are called according to His purpose, singular. And then he goes on to talk about predestination, etc. Look in your Bibles to the book of Ephesians chapter 1. Let me show it to you again. Ephesians chapter 1 and let's begin reading there with verse 3. Ephesians 1 verse 3, watch carefully.

Scripture Reading — Ephesians 1:3-6, 11

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ, according as He has chosen us in Him, that is in Christ, 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."

Skip down to verse 11. "In whom also we have obtained an inheritance being predestinated according to the," what? "Purpose, of Him who worketh all things after the counsel of His own will." And then if you turn right over to 1 Peter chapter 1 and 2, chapter 1 verses 1 and 2. 1 Peter chapter 1, notice verses 1 and 2. "Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, Bithynia." Now watch verse 2, "Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ, grace unto you and peace be multiplied." But note if you would, elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father. Anytime you read about predestination in the Bible, it is always an act of God the Father. Secondly, very quickly, we must discuss the subject of predestination. In distinction from the decree of God in general, predestination has reference to God's rational creatures only in the specific and limited sense that Girardeau spoke about. And most frequently, of course, it refers to fallen men. First of all, let me just say that predestination includes all men, both good and evil. I want you to look in your Bibles to the book of Acts chapter 4. I cannot think of a better illustration than this, Acts chapter 4 and verses 26 and 28.

I will give you another one but this is a fine one. Acts chapter 4 verse 26, this is in reference to Jesus Christ. Now the question I would ask you is this, was the death of Jesus Christ foreordained by God? Was everything about the death of Jesus Christ foreordained by God? And of course the answer is yes.

Predestination Includes All Rational Creatures

Predestination applies to both good and evil men (e.g., Pharaoh, Christ's crucifiers) and angels (elect and non-elect).

Secondly, very quickly, we must discuss the subject of predestination. In distinction from the decree of God in general, predestination has reference to God's rational creatures only in the specific and limited sense that Girardeau spoke about. And most frequently, of course, it refers to fallen men. First of all, let me just say that predestination includes all men, both good and evil. I want you to look in your Bibles to the book of Acts chapter 4. I cannot think of a better illustration than this, Acts chapter 4 and verses 26 and 28. I will give you another one but this is a fine one. Acts chapter 4 verse 26, this is in reference to Jesus Christ. Now the question I would ask you is this, was the death of Jesus Christ foreordained by God? Was everything about the death of Jesus Christ foreordained by God? And of course the answer is yes.

Now watch verse 26, "The kings of the earth stood up and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord and against His Christ." So here is a whole group of people that are against Jesus Christ. Watch verse 27, "For of a truth against thy holy child Jesus whom thou has anointed both Herod and Pontius Pilate with the Gentiles and the people of Israel gathered together," what did they do? "For to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done." Wow. Now let me ask you a question. Was it an accident that Pontius Pilate was the governor at this particular time? Was it an accident that Herod was on the throne? Was it an accident that those Israelites or Jews were around at that particular time? Was it an accident that the Gentiles were there? No, no, no, no. Here were wicked men who hated Jesus Christ, who were not willing to obey God, did not want to obey God, and yet here's what God did. God took their wickedness and worked out what He foreordained concerning Jesus Christ. Let me tell you something, you look around today and you find people fighting against God, fighting against Jesus Christ. The only thing they can do is work out what God has already predetermined before the world ever began. Their fighting is futile and useless and worthless. It is. But just to show you look in your Bibles to Romans chapter 9 to show you that once again includes both good and bad men. Romans chapter 9 begin there with verse 10. Look what the Bible says, Romans 9 verse 10, "And not only this, but when Rebecca also had conceived by one, even by our father Isaac, for the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works, but of him

that calleth," by the way go back to verse 11 again, "For the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand not of works, but of him that calleth. It was said unto her, The elder shall serve the younger. As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated. What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? God forbid." "For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. So then, it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that showeth mercy. For the Scripture saith unto Pharaoh, Even for this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I might show my power in thee, that my name might be declared throughout all the earth. Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth." Now notice if you would, God said for this same reason I raised up Pharaoh. Now here's my question. Was Pharaoh responsible and answerable and accountable to God? God said he foreordained this, he raised him up for this very purpose.

Stop and think about this. How many times did Moses and Aaron go to Pharaoh and say, "Thus said the Lord God of Israel, let my people go." And what did Pharaoh respond? "I know not the Lord. Neither will I let Israel go." In other words I don't recognize God. I'm not going to do it. I'm my own God. I do my own thing. Yes, he was answerable. Yes, he was fighting against God, but all he did was work out God's eternal decree. So God's predestination includes both good and bad men. It also includes both good and bad angels.

The Bible not only speaks of holy angels in Mark 8 in verse 38 and Luke 9 verse 26, it also speaks about wicked angels who kept not their first estate in 2 Peter 2:4 and Jude verse 6. Now, there are some elect angels. In fact the Apostle Paul told Timothy in 1 Timothy 5 and verse 21, "I charge thee before God and the Lord Jesus Christ and the elect angels that you observe these things." Now if there are elect angels then obviously there are some angels that are non-elect. So how do we conceive then of predestination of angels? Well there are only two things that you can say. You can either say that God gave some angels perseverance and grace along with that which He created them with, and He did not give it to other angels, or you can say that God placed some angels on an immutable footing, one that cannot change, and He placed others on a mutable footing, which could change. Well, you say, but they were created holy.

May I remind you that Adam was created holy and righteous and with knowledge and yet he was mutable. He could change and he did change just like these angels. But there is a difference in angels and men. God did not choose a definite number of angels out of a mass of fallen angels. Moreover angels were not predestinated in Jesus Christ as the mediator. They stand in relationship to Him as He is their head, but angels cannot be saved and are not saved the way you and I are saved. So here think about this, someone says, "Well I don't like this doctrine of predestination." Really? Well, I will tell you this, if you do not like the doctrine of predestination, you do not like the doctrine of salvation. Did you know that even Jesus Christ, our Mediator, our Lord, the God-man, is referred to as the elect of God? And He was also predestinated by God to be the mediator.

Christ as the Elect and Predestinated Mediator

Jesus Christ is God's elect and was predestinated to be mediator; believers are elect in Him, making predestination essential to salvation.

For instance, go in your Bibles to Isaiah 42. Isaiah 42, and notice beginning there with verse 1. We will read the first four verses, Isaiah 42, verse 1. And by the way this passage is quoted in the New Testament in reference to Jesus Christ. So we know that He is talking about Christ in this passage. Isaiah 42, verse 1, God says, "Behold, my servant whom I uphold, mine elect, and whom my soul delighteth, I have put my spirit upon him, he shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles." "He shall not cry, nor lift up, nor cause his voice to be heard in the street. A bruised reed shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not quench. He shall bring forth judgment unto truth. He shall not fail, nor be discouraged, till he have set judgment in the earth, and the isles shall wait for his law." Note, if you would please, in verse 1, God calls Jesus Christ, "my servant whom I uphold, mine elect." May I remind you according to Ephesians 1 verses 3 through 6, God chose us in Christ. God elected us in Jesus Christ. Because Jesus Christ is God's elect, we are God's elect. If you would turn to Acts 17, look at verse 31. Acts 17, verse 31.

Paul has been preaching on Mars Hill. He is concluding his sermon and he is telling them that God demands that people repent. Then in verse 31 he tells you why God demands repentance. Acts 17 verse 31, notice what he says, "Because He, that is God the Father, hath appointed a day in the which He will judge the world in righteousness by that man, that is Jesus Christ, whom He hath ordained. Whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead." So just as surely as God raised Jesus Christ from the dead, there's going to be a judgment. But look what the Bible says, "...because he hath appointed a day in which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained." The word ordained is exactly the same Greek word that you find in Romans 8 that is translated predestinate. So God not only elected and chose Jesus Christ to be the God-man, He predestinated Jesus Christ to be the mediator and the God-man. So obviously if you do not like the doctrine of predestination you do not like the doctrine of salvation. Because our salvation is tied to the election and predestination of Jesus Christ. Now, if you will go back in your Bibles to Romans chapter 8, let me show you this. Here is, this is known as the golden chain of salvation. So in Romans 8 verse 28, "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to His what? Purpose."

Notice if you would, "For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover, whom he did predestinate, them he also called. Whom he called, them he also justified. Whom he justified, them he also glorified."

Now, here's what I'm talking about. If you are in the purpose of God in verse 28, you are in the foreknowledge of God in verse 29. If you are in the predestination of God in verse 30, what did God do for you? He called you, He justified you, He glorified you. All of those are past tense. So if you are in that golden chain at the beginning you're in that golden chain at the end. Because there are no broken links in the chain of salvation. None whatsoever.

It is sure, it is certain, it is absolute. And the reason it is sure and certain and absolute is because we had nothing to do with it. It has reference to Jesus Christ who is our mediator, who is the God-man, who is our Redeemer, who is our Savior, because He was God's elect, He was predestinated, we were chosen in Him, and we were predestinated in Him. One last passage. I want you to look at 2 Timothy 1, verses 8 and 9. 2 Timothy 1, verses 8 and 9. Watch carefully. 2 Timothy 1, verse 8. Paul tells Timothy, "Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me his prisoner. But be thou partaker of the afflictions of the gospel according to the power of God." Now look, we're talking about the power of God, verse 9, "who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own what?"

"Purpose and grace which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began." So here it is. When one denies predestination, he also denies salvation. Because we were predestinated in Jesus Christ, we were chosen in Him, we were blessed in Him, we were given grace in Him, and without predestination there is no salvation.

Practical Implications and Comfort

Predestination does not negate human responsibility or excuse sin; it provides comfort in trials by assuring God's sovereign, good purpose.

Secondly, predestination does not make us automatons, it does not make us puppets. We are responsible and accountable creatures and we will face God in judgment. If you are a puppet you are not accountable. If you are a puppet you are not responsible. The truth of the matter is we do what we do because we want to do it and we desire to do it and we are answerable. Those men who crucified Jesus Christ, they did not do it to honor God and to please God and to serve God and to fulfill His Word. No.

They did what they did because they hated Him and despised Him. And men today who fight against God do so because that's what they want to do. They are still answerable and accountable to Him. One last thought. You cannot use predestination as an excuse to sin. You can't say, "Well, the reason I did this, I was predestinated to do that." No, no, no, no. Yeah, God may have predestinated everything, but there are second causes, or secondary causes, or contingencies. God knew that is true, but you're the one who did it. And you're responsible, and you're accountable. When you think of the doctrine of predestination, think of salvation. Without it, there is no salvation. There is no glorification.

All of these doctrines stand or fall together. The one thing that will make all of our afflictions, and all of our trials, and all of our tribulations bearable is that we understand that God ordained it. Whatever He ordains in eternity comes to pass in time and it is to be for our good and our glory. Therefore we are to learn from our trials and our afflictions and submit to Him. I talked with a young lady yesterday who's going through an excruciating trial. And the only thing that is really consoling in a time like that is the sovereignty of God, knowing that God is in control and He can use whatever He wants to use for His honor and His glory. And He alone is the one that can work it out. I'd much rather depend upon God's predestination than man's predestination.

Father, in the name of Jesus Christ, we bow before Thee. We thank You for Your Word. We thank You for Your truth. And we ask, Father, that You would help us to rejoice in Thy truth and in Thy Word, and help us to understand and to comprehend and believe and submit. In the name of Jesus Christ, we ask and pray. Amen.

Study Guide

Major Themes

God's Sovereign Decree

Summary: God's eternal purpose or decree encompasses all things, and nothing happens by accident; predestination is the outworking of this decree.

Evidence: Weaver states, 'Everything that God does He does on purpose... All these acts are nothing more than gracious evidences and manifestations of God's predestination.' (5:03-5:26) and cites Ephesians 3:11 on God's 'eternal purpose.'

Comprehensiveness of Predestination

Summary: Predestination covers all creatures, events, and even trivial details like sparrows and hairs, demonstrating God's meticulous control.

Evidence: Weaver explains Matthew 10:29-30, noting that not a sparrow lights on the ground without the Father, and 'the very hairs of your head are all numbered.' (34:31-37:31)

God's Control Over Evil

Summary: God is not the author of sin but orders and controls evil for His glory, restraining it as He wills.

Evidence: Weaver says, 'God is not the author of evil... But God is the controller of evil because God is sovereign.' (15:33-16:17) and cites Psalm 76:10 on wrath praising God.

Election and Reprobation

Summary: In the narrow sense, predestination includes election to salvation and reprobation (passing over) for sin, highlighting God's sovereign grace.

Evidence: Weaver quotes Girardeau on election and reprobation (38:34-39:24) and uses the illustration of choosing five stones from a brook (39:25-40:10).

Predestination in Christ

Summary: Predestination is an act of God the Father, and believers are predestined in Christ, who is Himself the elect Mediator.

Evidence: Weaver cites Ephesians 1:4-5, 'chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world, having predestinated us...' (45:12-46:06) and Isaiah 42:1 calling Christ 'mine elect.'

Human Responsibility and Comfort

Summary: Predestination does not make humans puppets; they remain accountable. The doctrine comforts believers in trials by affirming God's purposeful control.

Evidence: Weaver states, 'predestination does not make us automatons... We are responsible and accountable creatures' (1:00:26-1:01:03) and shares a pastoral example of comfort (1:02:37-1:03:15).

Key Arguments

Predestination is biblical and must be understood

Summary: Weaver argues that if God reveals something in Scripture, He intends it to be understood, and any soul-winning zeal that the Bible kills ought to be killed.

Evidence: Weaver recounts his response to his pastor: 'it just seems to me that if God reveals something in His Word, He means for us to understand it. And secondly, it appears to me that any soul-winning that the Bible kills ought to be killed anyhow.' (3:24-4:02)

God's decree is singular but perceived as plural

Summary: Because God's mind is infinite and knows all things instantly, His one decree encompasses everything; humans think in succession, so we speak of decrees.

Evidence: Weaver explains, 'When you and I think we do in succession... God is not like that. God's mind is infinite... all God had to do was to have one purpose or one decree.' (10:07-10:59)

God controls evil without being its author

Summary: God created evil by defining good; anything contrary is evil. He restrains evil to the extent that it serves His glory.

Evidence: Weaver says, 'It is God who determined what is good... anything that is contrary to that by definition is wicked, wrong, and evil.' (18:11-19:14) and cites Psalm 76:10.

Reprobation is God passing over sinners

Summary: God does not owe salvation to anyone; reprobation is simply withholding grace from those already headed to destruction.

Evidence: Weaver illustrates with David choosing five stones: 'What did God do or what did David do to the rest of the stones in the brook? Nothing. He left them just as he found them.' (39:25-40:10)

Predestination is essential to salvation

Summary: Since Christ was predestinated as Mediator and believers are chosen in Him, denying predestination is denying salvation itself.

Evidence: Weaver states, 'When one denies predestination, he also denies salvation. Because we were predestinated in Jesus Christ... without predestination there is no salvation.' (59:54-1:00:22)

Predestination does not negate human accountability

Summary: Though God ordains all, humans act according to their own desires and are responsible for their actions.

Evidence: Weaver says, 'We do what we do because we want to do it and we desire to do it and we are answerable.' (1:01:03-1:01:58)

Scripture References

Romans 8:28-39

Context: The primary text for the sermon, read at the beginning, covering the golden chain of salvation and the security of believers.

Job 7:1

Context: Cited to show that man has an appointed time on earth, supporting God's sovereign determination of days.

Job 14:1-5

Context: Used to demonstrate that man's days are determined and his bounds appointed by God.

Acts 15:18

Context: Quoted to affirm that all God's works are known to Him from the beginning.

Ephesians 3:11

Context: Referenced to show God's eternal purpose purposed in Christ.

Psalm 2:7

Context: Mentioned as an example where the word 'decree' is used in Scripture.

Acts 2:23

Context: Cited as referring to God's determinate counsel and foreknowledge.

Ephesians 1:9, 11

Context: Referenced for the mystery of His will and the counsel of His will.

James 1:13-15

Context: Quoted to show that God does not tempt anyone and that sin comes from human lust.

Isaiah 45:5-7

Context: Examined to explain how God creates evil by defining good, and that He forms light and darkness.

Amos 5:15

Context: Cited to support hating evil and loving good, knowing good defines evil.

Psalm 76:10

Context: Used to explain that God restrains wrath to the extent that it praises Him.

Genesis 20:1-6

Context: Illustration of God restraining Abimelech from sinning with Sarah.

Exodus 34:21-24

Context: Example of God controlling the desires of heathen nations to protect Israel during feasts.

Proverbs 21:1

Context: Quoted to show God turns the king's heart wherever He wills.

Matthew 10:29-31

Context: Used to illustrate God's meticulous sovereignty over sparrows and the hairs of our head.

1 Samuel 17

Context: Alluded to in the illustration of David choosing five stones, leaving the rest.

Romans 9:29

Context: Quoted: 'Except the Lord of Sabaoth had left us a remnant, we should have been made as Sodom and Gomorrah.'

John 17:5-6, 9

Context: Cited to show that the Father gave a specific people to Christ.

Ephesians 1:3-6, 11

Context: Read to demonstrate that believers are chosen and predestined in Christ according to God's purpose.

Historical References

Westminster Confession of Faith

Context: Quoted to support that God foreordains whatever comes to pass.

Philadelphia Baptist Confession of Faith

Context: Quoted to affirm God's decree and that He is not the author of sin.

John L. Girardeau (19th-century Presbyterian preacher)

Context: Cited for his definition of predestination in wide and narrow senses.

Important Quotes

Everything that God does He does on purpose. God did not accidentally allow you to live to the age at which you are now. He did not accidentally give you grace, and mercy, and goodness.

Significance: Emphasizes the purposeful nature of God's actions, foundational to the doctrine of predestination.

If there is anything outside of God over which God does not have control, then God is not God. That thing is God.

Significance: Argues for God's absolute sovereignty as essential to His deity.

God is not the author of evil. God is not the infuser of evil. God is not the instigator of evil. But God is the controller of evil because God is sovereign.

Significance: Clarifies the distinction between God's authorship and control of evil.

Surely the wrath of man shall praise thee, and the remainder of wrath shalt thou restrain.

Significance: Key verse (Psalm 76:10) explaining why God permits evil—for His praise and glory.

What many people do not understand is this, that propaganda, social welfare, public education, and a host of other governmental programs are nothing more than predestination. It's man's attempt to control the attitudes, actions, and lives of others.

Significance: Illustrates that everyone believes in predestination, but the debate is over who does the predestinating.

When one denies predestination, he also denies salvation. Because we were predestinated in Jesus Christ, we were chosen in Him, we were blessed in Him, we were given grace in Him, and without predestination there is no salvation.

Significance: Ties predestination inseparably to the gospel and salvation itself.

Predestination does not make us automatons, it does not make us puppets. We are responsible and accountable creatures and we will face God in judgment.

Significance: Addresses the common objection that predestination negates human responsibility.

The one thing that will make all of our afflictions, and all of our trials, and all of our tribulations bearable is that we understand that God ordained it.

Significance: Highlights the practical comfort of predestination in suffering.

Discussion Questions

How does understanding that 'everything God does He does on purpose' change the way you view daily events, both good and bad?

Context: Weaver emphasizes God's purposeful control over all things, including grace and mercy.

Why is it important to distinguish between God being the author of evil and God being the controller of evil?

Context: Weaver explains that God is not the author of sin but orders it for His glory.

How does the illustration of David choosing five stones help explain the doctrine of reprobation?

Context: Weaver uses this to show that God passes over some, leaving them as they are.

In what ways is predestination connected to the doctrine of salvation, according to Weaver?

Context: Weaver argues that denying predestination is denying salvation because believers are predestined in Christ.

How can the doctrine of predestination provide comfort during trials and afflictions?

Context: Weaver shares that knowing God ordained trials makes them bearable and purposeful.

What does Weaver mean when he says that everyone believes in predestination, but the argument is over who does the predestinating?

Context: He points to human attempts to control others through government programs as man's predestination.

How does the 'golden chain' of Romans 8:28-30 assure believers of their security?

Context: Weaver explains that all links (foreknowledge, predestination, calling, justification, glorification) are unbreakable.

Applications

Submit to God's sovereignty in trials

Summary: Believers should find comfort in knowing that God ordains all afflictions for their good and His glory, and thus learn from and submit to them.

Evidence: Weaver says, 'The one thing that will make all of our afflictions... bearable is that we understand that God ordained it... Therefore we are to learn from our trials and our afflictions and submit to Him.' (1:01:59-1:02:32)

Reject human-centered predestination

Summary: Recognize that attempts to control others through social programs are man's predestination; trust instead in God's sovereign plan.

Evidence: Weaver states, 'propaganda, social welfare, public education... are nothing more than predestination. It's man's attempt to control... I'd much rather depend upon God's predestination than man's predestination.' (31:06-31:42; 1:02:37-1:03:15)

Embrace the doctrine for honest Bible study

Summary: Do not avoid difficult doctrines like predestination; if God revealed them, He intends for us to understand them.

Evidence: Weaver recounts his early conviction: 'if God reveals something in His Word, He means for us to understand it.' (3:24-4:02)

Rest in the security of salvation

Summary: Because the golden chain of salvation is unbroken, believers can have assurance that those whom God predestined He also glorified.

Evidence: Weaver explains, 'If you are in that golden chain at the beginning you're in that golden chain at the end. Because there are no broken links in the chain of salvation.' (57:56-58:35)

Take responsibility for sin

Summary: Do not use predestination as an excuse for sin; humans act according to their own desires and are accountable.

Evidence: Weaver warns, 'You cannot use predestination as an excuse to sin... you're the one who did it. And you're responsible, and you're accountable.' (1:01:03-1:01:58)

deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | clean_readable_transcript | 2026-06-06T01:25:55Z

deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | weaver_study | 2026-06-06T15:24:56Z

Clean Transcript

A Primer To Predestination

Clean readable transcript. This view follows the Commentary.net cleaned segment text while preserving timestamps for audio follow-along.

Romans chapter 8. Romans chapter 8, and we're going to read verses 28 through 39. Romans 8:28-39. I'm going to be dealing with a message which I'm just simply going to call "A Primer on Predestination." I want you to look in Romans chapter 8, beginning there with verse 28. The Bible says, "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to His purpose."
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"For whom He did foreknow, He also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover, whom He did predestinate, them He also called, and whom He called, them He also justified, and whom He justified, them He also glorified. What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? He that spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?"
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"Who shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth. Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea, rather that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long, we are counted as sheep for the slaughter."
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"Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death, life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." Years ago when the Lord first saved me and called me to preach, I had a hunger to really know the Scripture.
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So I put myself on a schedule and I read the Old Testament all the way through every month. I read the New Testament all the way through every week. I did it over and over and over. And I finally went to the pastor one day that Alice and I had really gotten converted under. And at this time he had been in the ministry for over 30 years.
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And so I said, "You know, I've been reading my Bible and there's some words that come up that I don't understand, and it bothers me, and I'd like you to explain them to me." Well, he said, "What words are they?" I said, "Well, they're the words predestinate, predestination, elect, election. I said, I don't understand those things, and I just need you to explain them to me." I have never, ever forgotten his response.
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Here is what he said to me. First, there are some things in the Bible we are not meant to understand. And second, there are some things in the Bible that kill our soul-winning zeal, so we just leave them alone. And I looked at him, being a young Christian and just being called in the ministry, and I said, "You know, it just seems to me that if God reveals something in His Word, He means for us to understand it. And secondly, it appears to me that any soul-winning that the Bible kills ought to be killed anyhow."
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And so then he went one way and I ended up going the other way because I wanted to be absolutely honest with Scripture. So the truth of the matter is I could begin today by asking several questions like, "Are you predestinated?" Or, "Do you comprehend the word predestination?" The truth is absolutely everything is predestinated simply because nothing happens by accident in a world that is ruled by God. God did not accidentally create the world. And God did not accidentally create man. And God did not accidentally save you. Everything that God does He does on purpose. God did not accidentally allow you to live to the age at which you are now. He did not accidentally give you grace, and mercy, and goodness.
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It was not an accident that you heard the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, and that you repented, and you believed, and you trusted in Jesus Christ. No, everything that God does He does on purpose. All these acts are nothing more than gracious evidences and manifestations of God's predestination.
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Now according to our text, if you will look at it and just remember it, many doctrines are connected to the doctrine of predestination such as the doctrine of foreknowledge, election, providence, adoption. And if you take the entire context of Romans chapter 8, you will also notice that perseverance and glorification are also connected to the doctrine of predestination. So it is impossible then to understand any of these doctrines apart from predestination. Moreover, it is also impossible to separate any of these doctrines from the doctrine of predestination because they all stand or fall together. So accurately speaking, you could say that election is a branch of predestination, however it is more limited and it is more specific.
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Predestination, of course, would cover all creatures and all things and all events, while election would be restricted to what you and I would call rational beings such as angels and humans. And of course, the Bible teaches that everything was predestinated by God from all eternity. And God has sovereignly ordained and immutably determined the history and destiny of each of His creatures. That is true. So I want you to look in your Bibles, hold Romans 8, but turn in your Bibles to the book of Job chapter 7. And look, if you would please, there first and then we will go to Job chapter 14 just to show you what I am talking about.
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Everyone understands that yes, we were born according to God's decree. God is the one who allowed us life and gave us life. And we were born when God determined that we should be born. But the Bible says in Job 7 and verse 1, "Is there not an appointed time to man upon earth? Are not his days also like the days of a hireling?" So God then has determined our days, each one of us has an appointed time. There is an appointed time to be born, there is an appointed time to die. If you will look in Job chapter 14 beginning there with verse 1, note if you would what the Bible says, Job 14 and verse 1, He says, "Man that is born of a woman is of few days and full of trouble. He cometh forth like a flower, and is cut down. He fleeth also as a shadow, and continueth not."
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"And dost thou open thine eyes upon such an one, and bringest me into judgment with thee?" Here's the question in verse 4. "Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean? Not one." And then he says this about man. Watch. "Seeing his days are determined, the number of his months are with thee. Thou hast appointed his bounds that he cannot pass." So God then has ordained our boundaries. He has ordained our years, our months, our days, our hours, our minutes, our seconds. And not one of us can go beyond the boundaries that God has ordained. So God then has ordained and predestined everything.
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Now the decree of God is His purpose or His determination in reference to future things. Now if you are going to understand predestination you have to understand it in light of God's eternal decree.
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Now listen very carefully as I explain something to you. I am going to show you in the Bible where the Bible talks about God's purpose. And the word decree is in the Bible. And I will quote that scripture just momentarily. But whenever we talk about God's decree, or God's purpose, and it's always singular in the Bible. Whenever you hear theologians or pastors or Christians talk about these things, they will always talk about the decrees of God. You pick up any systematic theology book when you get to the doctrine of God it talks about the decrees of God. Now the Bible says it is singular but we say it is plural. Now how is that?
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And how can that be? Well it is very simple because you and I cannot think or comprehend the way God thinks or comprehend what God comprehends. When you and I think we do in succession, we do one thing at a time and one thing follows the other. No matter how hard you try, you cannot think about more than one thing at a time. God is not like that. God's mind is infinite. He is omniscient. He knows everything. He knows everything instantly. And all God had to do was to have one purpose or one decree and that one purpose and that one decree would entail absolutely everything. And since we can't think like that, we talk about the decree of God in this area, the decree of God in that area, and thus we talk about plurality.
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But the Bible says in Acts chapter 15 and verse 18, "Known unto God are all His works from the beginning." So God knew from the beginning everything that He was going to do. Now, I want you to look in your Bibles, hold Romans 8, but look in your Bibles to Ephesians chapter 3 and verse 11. You are going to see this word occur a number of times in the Scripture. But watch if you would please Ephesians 3 and verse 11. The Bible says, "According to the eternal purpose which He purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord." Now note if you would first of all it is an eternal purpose which means whatever God purposed He did so in eternity past.
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It had nothing to do with time. And this eternal purpose was a purpose which He purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord.
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Now when we talk about God's decree we have to understand that the decree of God is revealed to us in many passages under a variety of terms. For instance, the word decree is used in Psalm 2:7 where God says, "I will declare the decree." In Ephesians 3 and verse 11 here we read of His eternal purpose. In Acts 2 and verse 23 we read of His determinate counsel and foreknowledge. In Ephesians 1 and verse 9, we see the mystery of His will. In Romans 8 and verse 29, it specifically says that He did predestinate. In Ephesians 1 and verse 9, we read about His good pleasure. In Ephesians 1 and 11, we read about the fact that it was His counsel. He did what He did according to the counsel of His own will. So God's decree then is referred to as His counsel to demonstrate that it is consummately wise.
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And it's called the counsel of His will to show that He was under no obligation, no constraint, no coercion. He did what He did just simply because He needed and wanted to do that. That was just simple. God did not do anything for any reason outside of Himself. So the decrees of God then relate to all future things without exception. So let me make this statement and think about this.
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Whatever is done in time was accomplished, was indeed foreordained before time. So whatever is done in time was foreordained before time. Whatever is accomplished in time was predestinated in eternity. So God's purpose, or God's predestination concerns everything whether it is great or small, whether it is good or evil.
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Now let me just go ahead and say this, we cannot make God the creator of evil in the sense that He is the creator of good. We can say, and I'm going to show you this just momentarily, that God is the orderer, and that God is the controller of evil. But evil does not proceed from God the way good proceeds from God. But God's decree is totally, absolutely comprehensive.
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So let me explain it to you like this. Think about this. If there is anything outside of God over which God does not have control, then God is not God. That thing is God. Whatever God does not have control over. So God has to have control over evil or else He would not be God Himself. So how do we say this? So when it comes to sin, or comes to evil, we can say it like this, God is not the author of evil. God is not the infuser of evil. God is not the instigator of evil. But God is the controller of evil because God is sovereign.
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Now I'm going to give you some illustrations momentarily. But let me just give you a quote from James 1 verses 13-15. Listen to this, "Let no man say when he is tempted that I am tempted of God. For God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth He any man." Now let me just stop there for a moment. God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth He any man. Listen, "But every man is tempted when he is drawn away of his own lust and enticed, notice, then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin, and when sin is finished, it bringeth forth death." So God says that the evil and the sin comes from our own lust. It does not come from God.
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Now I want you to look in your Bible, Isaiah 45 and verse 7 because here is a verse undoubtedly and inevitably everyone brings up, and we certainly need to understand this verse, Isaiah 45 and verse 7. In fact let's begin reading with verse 5 just so that you can see that God is in the context, ok? And of course in this passage He is dealing with Cyrus, but notice what he says concerning himself to Cyrus, Isaiah 45 verse 5, "I am the Lord and there is none else. There is no God beside me."
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"I girded thee though thou hast not known me." That is God has control over Cyrus. He raised him up. He put him as king even though Cyrus did not know him. Watch verse 6, "That they may know from the rising of the sun and from the west, that there is none beside me. I am the Lord and there is none else." And now God says this, "I form the light and create darkness. I make peace and create evil. I the Lord do all these things." Now you and I don't have any problem with the light. We don't have any problem with darkness. We don't have any problem with peace. But He said, "I the Lord form the light and create darkness. I make peace and create evil. I the Lord do all these things." Now, the question is, how can the Bible in this particular passage say that God created evil? We've already said that God is not the author of sin. God is not the author of evil. You have to understand that God created evil by definition.
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What do I mean by definition? It is God who determined what is good. You remember when He created the world? He beheld everything that He made and behold it was good. It is God who determines that which is right and holy and pure. So, if it is God who is determining that which is right, and holy, and pure, that means this, anything that is contrary to that by definition is wicked, wrong, and evil. So that is how He created it. He created the evil only by saying this is what is good, this is what is holy. And if you do anything contrary to this then you are doing that which is evil. That is why in Amos 5 and verse 15 God says, "Hate the evil and love the good." Because we know what good is and since we know what good is automatically now we know what evil is because evil is contrary to that which is good. So God then controls everything, He even controls sin.
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So if you look in your Bibles to Psalm 76, go to Psalm 76 if you would please and look at verse 10 and I'll give you some illustrations. Psalm 76 and verse 10 God certainly controls evil. If anything is out of His control or acts apart from Him then God would not be God because God would not be omnipotent. You say, "Well why is there sin? Why is there evil? If God is sovereign then could not God stop sin?" Of course He could. But verse 10 tells you this, Psalm 76 verse 10, "Surely the wrath of man shall praise thee, and the remainder of wrath shalt thou restrain." So the question is how much evil, how much sin is there going to be in the world?
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And the answer is going to come back just enough that it's going to redound to God's honor and God's glory. And what will not redound to God's honor and God's glory? God will restrain.
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Now let me give you an illustration. In fact, I'll give you two. I want you to turn in your Bibles to the book of Genesis chapter 20. Genesis chapter 20. And let's read about Abraham and Sarah. Because Abraham goes down into Gerar and there is Abimelech the king. And you must remember that Sarah was indeed a very beautiful woman. And if I am not mistaken, and I could be, but I think at this particular time, Sarah is probably closer to 70. So she had to be exquisitely beautiful. Bible says in Genesis 20 verse 1, "And Abraham journeyed from Thence toward the south country, and dwelt between Kadesh and Shur, and sojourned in Gerar. And Abraham said of Sarah his wife, She is my sister. And Abimelech king of Gerar sent and took Sarah. But God came to Abimelech in a dream by night, and said unto him, Behold, thou art a dead man for the woman which thou hast taken, for she is a man's wife. But Abimelech had not come near her."
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"And he said, Lord, wilt thou slay also a righteous nation? Said he not unto me, She is my sister? And she, even she herself, said, He is my brother. In the integrity of my heart and in the innocency of my hands have I done this. And God said unto him in a dream, Yea, I know that thou didst this in the integrity of thy heart, for I also withheld thee from sinning against me. Therefore I suffered thee not to touch her."
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Now here the king had taken Sarah. But he had not come near her. He had not touched her. Why? I have no earthly idea. Maybe God gave him a case of the 24-hour virus. I don't know. But since Abraham was the father of all who believe, and since Jesus Christ was to come through him, it would not honor God for Sarah to be defiled. And so God sovereignly restrained Abimelech. And Abimelech said, "If I had known she was a man's wife I wouldn't have taken her."
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"In the innocence of my hands, in the integrity of my heart have I done this." And God said, "Yes I know. That's why I restrained you. That's why I held you back."
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Now you're going to ask me, "Well, if God could do that in this instance, could He not do that in every instance?" And the answer is yes. Now, you're going to ask me, "Well, why does He not do so?" I'll show you in just a moment. But I want you to turn in your Bibles to the book of Exodus, chapter 34. Exodus, chapter 34. And notice, if you would please, beginning there, verse 21. You remember, God demanded all of the male Israelites appear before Him three times a year for those seven annual feasts. Now many times the women went and the children as well. Sometimes they could not go, but God did demand that the men appear. So look in Exodus chapter 34 beginning there in verse 21, God says, "Six days thou shalt work, but on the seventh day thou shalt rest. In earing time and in harvest thou shalt rest. And thou shalt observe the Feast of Weeks, and of the firstfruits of wheat harvest, and the Feast of Ingathering at the year's end."
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"Thrice, that is three times in the year, shall all your men children appear before the Lord God, the God of Israel." And they were to go to Jerusalem. Watch verse 24, God says, "For I will cast out the nations before thee, and enlarge thy borders. Neither shall any man desire thy land, when thou shalt go up to appear before the Lord thy God thrice in the year." So here is my question, all the men were required to go up to Jerusalem before the Lord. The women were not required but many of them went, and the children often went as well.
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But obviously someone is going to have to stay back to take care of the farm, to take care of the animals, I mean that should be obvious. So here is the question, what is going to keep those dispossessed heathens, and those heathens who were not killed when the people came in and conquered the land, you remember a lot of them were made slaves. So what is to keep these dispossessed people who lost the land and lost everything and now they have been made slaves to the Israelite. What is to keep them from forming an insurrection while all the men are in Jerusalem raping the women, killing the women and children and trying to reclaim that land? God said as long as you are obedient to me and doing what I am telling you they will not only not attack but it will not even come into their mind, they will not even desire to have their land back. That is, and remember, these are heathen. God has sovereign control over every man.
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You remember Proverbs 21 verse 1, "The king's heart is in the hand of the Lord like rivers of water, he turneth it whithersoever he willeth." So, you're going to say, "Well, if God could restrain a man like Abimelech, and if God could restrain these heathen, could he not do this today?" And the answer is yes. Now you're going to ask, "Why does he not do it then?" Now you're going to have to go back to Psalm 76 and verse 10. "Surely the wrath of man shall praise the Lord, and the remainder of wrath shall he restrain." And in other words God says there is going to be just enough evil, there is going to be just enough sin that is going to ultimately redound to my honor and my glory. You say, "How can sin redound to God's honor and God's glory?" Well just stop and think about this.
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If God showed mercy all of the time and was merciful under every situation and every circumstance who would know anything about His justice? Who would know anything about His holiness? Who would know anything about His righteous anger and wrath? In other words God is saying, yes, whatever happens when it comes to the wrath of man it is going to ultimately redound to my praise and my honor. So God did indeed predestinate all things.
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Now if you will look back in your Bibles to Romans 8 and verse 29, Romans 8 verse 29 and I'm going to give you another word just a little bit later. But notice in verse 29 he says, "For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate."
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Now the word predestinate here is the Greek word proorizō, which literally means, listen carefully, to predestinate, to determine before, to ordain, to decide beforehand, and to decree from all eternity. Okay?
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Now, whatever happens in time was ordained from eternity. Wow! That means we have to pay attention to what happens in time. There is a reason for a torn rotator cuff. There is a reason for everything. The Westminster Confession says this, listen carefully, "God from all eternity did by the most wise and holy counsel of his own will freely and unchangeably foreordain whatever comes to pass." Now here's the Westminster Confession saying that God freely and unchangeably foreordained everything that comes to pass. When you stop and think about it, if God did not predestinate and if God did not foreordain, the only thing left is luck, chance, fate, and fortune.
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And Fortuna was a false goddess. That's where we get the word fortune from. So, all you have without God's sovereign predestination, you have humanism.
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Now, let me go a little bit further. The Philadelphia Baptist Confession of Faith says it like this. "God hath decreed in himself from all eternity, by the most wise and holy counsel of his own will, freely and unchangeably, all things whatsoever comes to pass. Yet so as thereby is God neither the author of sin, nor hath fellowship with any therein, nor is violence offered to the will of the creature, nor yet is the liberty or contingency of second causes taken away, but rather established which appears his wisdom in disposing of all things, and power and faithfulness in accomplishing his decree."
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Now I will be honest with you it would take me about five or six different messages just to expound that one paragraph because every one of these sentences is basically taken from the Word of God. When we talk about predestination here is what I normally say concerning predestination. Everyone believes in predestination, really. Everybody believes in predestination. I don't care if you are a Calvinist, I don't care if you are an Arminian, I don't care what you are.
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And by the way you have to believe something about it because it's in the Bible, okay. So the argument is not over the doctrine of predestination. The argument is over who does the predestination. You see when you say, "Well I believe the Bible," then you are going to have to come out with this, that God has predestinated everything. If you don't believe the Bible then you have to believe that man predestinates and man controls. And you see men are content with the doctrine of predestination as long as they are the one controlling it, and as long as they are the ones doing it.
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What many people do not understand is this, that propaganda, social welfare, public education, and a host of other governmental programs are nothing more than predestination. It's man's attempt to control the attitudes, actions, and lives of others. That's all it is. So everybody believes in it, it's just they disagree as to who does the predestinating. Now, John L. Girardeau was a Presbyterian preacher in the 19th century. And he pastored mainly in Charleston, South Carolina.
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He was a theologian and author. And he gives an excellent definition of predestination. And I'm going to deal with it in half first and then the other half a little bit later. But listen to what he says, "Predestination in the Scriptures and in theological treatises has two senses. One wide and general, the other narrow and special. In the wider general sense, it signifies the decrees of God terminating either efficiently or permissively on all beings, acts, and events."
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"The universe, intelligent and unintelligent, is the object. It is the plan according to which God creates and governs all finite beings and all their properties and actions." So he is saying now when you talk about predestination you've got to consider it in two senses. The first one is wide and general, and the second one is narrow and specific. And then he begins to explain what he means by wide and general. He says, that signifies the decrees of God terminating efficiently on all beings, acts and events in the universe, intelligent and unintelligent. So let me explain it.
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Look in your Bibles to the book of Matthew chapter 10. Matthew chapter 10 and let's begin reading there with verse 29. Matthew 10 verse 29. Look what God says. Matthew 10 verse 29. "Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing?" Which means they're prolific, they're cheap, "are not two sparrows sold for a farthing. And one of them shall not fall on the ground without your father, but the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear you not, therefore, you are of more value than many sparrows." Now the interesting thing is when you look at verse 29 and he says, "and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your father." The Greek word for fall there does not necessarily mean to die. When we read that that is exactly what we think of because in the first questions there are not two sparrows sold for a farthing. You capture them, you sell them, somebody kills them and eats them that is what we think about. He said, "one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father."
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Well the Greek word can mean to thrust down or to die, but it also means to descend from a higher place to a lower place. Literally to light on the ground. So it could be read like this, "Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing, and one of them shall not light on the ground without your Father."
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Now I want you to think about this. I don't know if you've ever watched sparrows or not, but we have bird feeders. I have one outside of my office window for the longest, and we have them outside the front room window, and we watch them all the time. But if you've ever seen these little sparrows around a feeder, they're up and down, up and down, up and down. I mean a thousand times an hour, they're on a limb jumping, they're on the ground pecking, they're back up into the feeder, and then they're somewhere else. When you stop and think, this word means that not one of them can light on the ground, much less die, without your Heavenly Father. When you stop and think that God sovereignly controls the up and down, the ascent and the descent of each one of those sparrows, and not only does He control it, each ascent and descent was ordained before the world began.
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Wow. Nothing happens by accident in a world ruled by God. Those sparrows do not accidentally glide on a limb and accidentally go down to the ground to get food. God sovereignly ordained it and God sovereignly controls it. Look at what else he said. Notice there, if you would, in verse 30. "But the very hairs of your head are all numbered." Now, it is true that God has more difficulty counting the hairs on some people's head than others.
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I made a joke on that, but please understand this. All he is saying is that God also sovereignly controls the loss of our hair. Not a single hair can fall without God's sovereign control, which also means that God ordained it from before the foundation of the world. Everything is under God's direct and sovereign control. When you comb that hair, and you bring that comb back, and you see those three hairs, before the foundation of the world. Before the foundation of the world. You see, God knew you were going to be combing your hair. God ordained those three hairs to come out. He ordained the means, and the means was you combing the hair. John L.
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Girardeau goes on, he says this, listen carefully, "In the narrow or special sense, talking about predestination, in the narrow or special sense it signifies the decrees of God terminating on the destinies of men. In the last sense predestination is by Calvinistic theologians regarded as a generic decree including under it election and reprobation as specific decrees. The former, predestinating some human beings without regard to their merit to salvation in order to the glorification of God's sovereign grace. The latter, foreordaining some human beings for their sin to destruction in order to the glorification of God's retributive justice." Now, He is talking about election and reprobation. Reprobation is a doctrine that is clearly taught in Scripture and it is easily explained and easily illustrated.
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And yet it is one of the most hated and one of the most despised doctrines imaginable. So you are going to ask why is it so hated and why is it so despised? And here is why. Because it clearly evidences and teaches the fact that God does not owe man anything. The only thing that God owes man is justice. That's it. And by the way, God does not have to predestinate or ordain anyone to destruction. Why? Because that's where they're already going. All God does is pass over them and withhold from them His grace.
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Here is a good illustration. You remember in 1 Samuel chapter 17 David was going out to fight Goliath and he had a sling. And what did David do? He stopped at the brook and the Bible said, he chose him out five smooth stones. What did God do or what did David do to the rest of the stones in the brook? Nothing. He left them just as he found them. You follow that? All he did was select five. Do you realize if God had not chosen some to be saved, none would be saved.
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What did the Apostle Paul say? "Except the Lord of Sabaoth had left us a remnant, we should have been made as Sodom and Gomorrah." That's what he said. If God had not chosen some, none would be saved. So, reprobation is actually the opposite of election. It is just simply God passing over. Here is a good illustration. Listen carefully. Alice and I are grown. All of our kids are grown. All of our grandkids are grown.
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We have three great-grands and one on the way. So what if I looked at Alice and I said, "Well, you know, all of our kids are grown and grandkids are grown and it's kind of lonely around the house. I'll tell you what let's do. Let's go down to the orphanage and let's adopt three children and let's raise them as our own. We will feed them, we'll clothe them, we'll educate them, we'll support them, we'll take care of them."
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And that's what we do. We go down, and we select three children, and we adopt them, and we raise them as our own. You know what everybody's going to say? Everybody's going to say, "Isn't that wonderful? I mean, they didn't have to do that. They didn't know those kids. Isn't it wonderful that that old couple went down and adopted three kids? Isn't that wonderful?" No one is going to say, "Those dirty, rotten, stupid, stinking grandparents, they left 45 in that orphanage." Really?
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How many did I owe anything to? Not one. I could have left them all in the orphanage. The very fact that I chose three was just out of my mere grace and mercy. And it's the same thing with God. The very fact that He saves any is His grace and His mercy. He did not owe that to any of us. That's why the Bible says, "For by grace are you saved through faith, and that not of yourselves. It is the gift of God, not of works lest any man should boast."
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Now, I've got two things to show you before I try to tie it together. Two points. First of all, the act of predestination is the work of God the Father. Anytime you look at predestination in the Bible it is always the work of God the Father. Let me just quote a few verses first of all. In John 17 verses 5 and 6, Jesus Christ is there giving His high priestly prayer and He says, "And now, O Father, glorify Thou me with Thine own glory, with thine own self, with the glory which I had with thee before the world was, 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." What?
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Did you hear what he said? You chose some before the foundation of the world, and you gave them to me.
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Now He said, "Father keep them for they are Thine." In John 17 verse 9 He said it like this, "I pray for them. I pray not for the world but for them which Thou hast given Me for they are Thine." So here is a group that was given to Jesus Christ. That is why in Romans 8 verses 28-30 there He says, "And we all know that everything works together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to His purpose." Did you hear that? Those who are called according to His purpose, singular.
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And then he goes on to talk about predestination, etc. Look in your Bibles to the book of Ephesians chapter 1. Let me show it to you again. Ephesians chapter 1 and let's begin reading there with verse 3. Ephesians 1 verse 3, watch carefully. "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ, according as He has chosen us in Him, that is in Christ, 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." Skip down to verse 11. "In whom also we have obtained an inheritance being predestinated according to the," what?
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"Purpose, of Him who worketh all things after the counsel of His own will." And then if you turn right over to 1 Peter chapter 1 and 2, chapter 1 verses 1 and 2. 1 Peter chapter 1, notice verses 1 and 2. "Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, Bithynia." Now watch verse 2, "Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ, grace unto you and peace be multiplied." But note if you would, elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father. Anytime you read about predestination in the Bible, it is always an act of God the Father.
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Secondly, very quickly, we must discuss the subject of predestination. In distinction from the decree of God in general, predestination has reference to God's rational creatures only in the specific and limited sense that Girardeau spoke about. And most frequently, of course, it refers to fallen men. First of all, let me just say that predestination includes all men, both good and evil. I want you to look in your Bibles to the book of Acts chapter 4. I cannot think of a better illustration than this, Acts chapter 4 and verses 26 and 28.
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I will give you another one but this is a fine one. Acts chapter 4 verse 26, this is in reference to Jesus Christ. Now the question I would ask you is this, was the death of Jesus Christ foreordained by God? Was everything about the death of Jesus Christ foreordained by God? And of course the answer is yes.
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Now watch verse 26, "The kings of the earth stood up and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord and against His Christ." So here is a whole group of people that are against Jesus Christ. Watch verse 27, "For of a truth against thy holy child Jesus whom thou has anointed both Herod and Pontius Pilate with the Gentiles and the people of Israel gathered together," what did they do? "For to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done." Wow.
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Now let me ask you a question. Was it an accident that Pontius Pilate was the governor at this particular time? Was it an accident that Herod was on the throne? Was it an accident that those Israelites or Jews were around at that particular time? Was it an accident that the Gentiles were there? No, no, no, no. Here were wicked men who hated Jesus Christ, who were not willing to obey God, did not want to obey God, and yet here's what God did. God took their wickedness and worked out what He foreordained concerning Jesus Christ. Let me tell you something, you look around today and you find people fighting against God, fighting against Jesus Christ. The only thing they can do is work out what God has already predetermined before the world ever began. Their fighting is futile and useless and worthless. It is. But just to show you look in your Bibles to Romans chapter 9 to show you that once again includes both good and bad men. Romans chapter 9 begin there with verse 10. Look what the Bible says, Romans 9 verse 10, "And not only this, but when Rebecca also had conceived by one, even by our father Isaac, for the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works, but of him
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that calleth," by the way go back to verse 11 again, "For the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand not of works, but of him that calleth. It was said unto her, The elder shall serve the younger. As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated. What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? God forbid."
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"For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. So then, it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that showeth mercy. For the Scripture saith unto Pharaoh, Even for this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I might show my power in thee, that my name might be declared throughout all the earth. Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth." Now notice if you would, God said for this same reason I raised up Pharaoh. Now here's my question. Was Pharaoh responsible and answerable and accountable to God? God said he foreordained this, he raised him up for this very purpose.
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Stop and think about this. How many times did Moses and Aaron go to Pharaoh and say, "Thus said the Lord God of Israel, let my people go." And what did Pharaoh respond? "I know not the Lord. Neither will I let Israel go." In other words I don't recognize God. I'm not going to do it. I'm my own God. I do my own thing. Yes, he was answerable. Yes, he was fighting against God, but all he did was work out God's eternal decree. So God's predestination includes both good and bad men. It also includes both good and bad angels.
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The Bible not only speaks of holy angels in Mark 8 in verse 38 and Luke 9 verse 26, it also speaks about wicked angels who kept not their first estate in 2 Peter 2:4 and Jude verse 6. Now, there are some elect angels. In fact the Apostle Paul told Timothy in 1 Timothy 5 and verse 21, "I charge thee before God and the Lord Jesus Christ and the elect angels that you observe these things." Now if there are elect angels then obviously there are some angels that are non-elect. So how do we conceive then of predestination of angels? Well there are only two things that you can say. You can either say that God gave some angels perseverance and grace along with that which He created them with, and He did not give it to other angels, or you can say that God placed some angels on an immutable footing, one that cannot change, and He placed others on a mutable footing, which could change. Well, you say, but they were created holy.
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May I remind you that Adam was created holy and righteous and with knowledge and yet he was mutable. He could change and he did change just like these angels. But there is a difference in angels and men. God did not choose a definite number of angels out of a mass of fallen angels. Moreover angels were not predestinated in Jesus Christ as the mediator. They stand in relationship to Him as He is their head, but angels cannot be saved and are not saved the way you and I are saved. So here think about this, someone says, "Well I don't like this doctrine of predestination." Really? Well, I will tell you this, if you do not like the doctrine of predestination, you do not like the doctrine of salvation. Did you know that even Jesus Christ, our Mediator, our Lord, the God-man, is referred to as the elect of God? And He was also predestinated by God to be the mediator.
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For instance, go in your Bibles to Isaiah 42. Isaiah 42, and notice beginning there with verse 1. We will read the first four verses, Isaiah 42, verse 1. And by the way this passage is quoted in the New Testament in reference to Jesus Christ. So we know that He is talking about Christ in this passage. Isaiah 42, verse 1, God says, "Behold, my servant whom I uphold, mine elect, and whom my soul delighteth, I have put my spirit upon him, he shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles."
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"He shall not cry, nor lift up, nor cause his voice to be heard in the street. A bruised reed shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not quench. He shall bring forth judgment unto truth. He shall not fail, nor be discouraged, till he have set judgment in the earth, and the isles shall wait for his law." Note, if you would please, in verse 1, God calls Jesus Christ, "my servant whom I uphold, mine elect." May I remind you according to Ephesians 1 verses 3 through 6, God chose us in Christ. God elected us in Jesus Christ. Because Jesus Christ is God's elect, we are God's elect. If you would turn to Acts 17, look at verse 31. Acts 17, verse 31.
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Paul has been preaching on Mars Hill. He is concluding his sermon and he is telling them that God demands that people repent. Then in verse 31 he tells you why God demands repentance. Acts 17 verse 31, notice what he says, "Because He, that is God the Father, hath appointed a day in the which He will judge the world in righteousness by that man, that is Jesus Christ, whom He hath ordained. Whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead." So just as surely as God raised Jesus Christ from the dead, there's going to be a judgment. But look what the Bible says, "...because he hath appointed a day in which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained."
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The word ordained is exactly the same Greek word that you find in Romans 8 that is translated predestinate. So God not only elected and chose Jesus Christ to be the God-man, He predestinated Jesus Christ to be the mediator and the God-man. So obviously if you do not like the doctrine of predestination you do not like the doctrine of salvation. Because our salvation is tied to the election and predestination of Jesus Christ. Now, if you will go back in your Bibles to Romans chapter 8, let me show you this. Here is, this is known as the golden chain of salvation. So in Romans 8 verse 28, "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to His what? Purpose."
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Notice if you would, "For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover, whom he did predestinate, them he also called. Whom he called, them he also justified. Whom he justified, them he also glorified."
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Now, here's what I'm talking about. If you are in the purpose of God in verse 28, you are in the foreknowledge of God in verse 29. If you are in the predestination of God in verse 30, what did God do for you? He called you, He justified you, He glorified you. All of those are past tense. So if you are in that golden chain at the beginning you're in that golden chain at the end. Because there are no broken links in the chain of salvation. None whatsoever.
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It is sure, it is certain, it is absolute. And the reason it is sure and certain and absolute is because we had nothing to do with it. It has reference to Jesus Christ who is our mediator, who is the God-man, who is our Redeemer, who is our Savior, because He was God's elect, He was predestinated, we were chosen in Him, and we were predestinated in Him. One last passage.
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I want you to look at 2 Timothy 1, verses 8 and 9. 2 Timothy 1, verses 8 and 9. Watch carefully. 2 Timothy 1, verse 8. Paul tells Timothy, "Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me his prisoner. But be thou partaker of the afflictions of the gospel according to the power of God." Now look, we're talking about the power of God, verse 9, "who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own what?"
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"Purpose and grace which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began." So here it is. When one denies predestination, he also denies salvation. Because we were predestinated in Jesus Christ, we were chosen in Him, we were blessed in Him, we were given grace in Him, and without predestination there is no salvation.
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Secondly, predestination does not make us automatons, it does not make us puppets. We are responsible and accountable creatures and we will face God in judgment. If you are a puppet you are not accountable. If you are a puppet you are not responsible. The truth of the matter is we do what we do because we want to do it and we desire to do it and we are answerable. Those men who crucified Jesus Christ, they did not do it to honor God and to please God and to serve God and to fulfill His Word. No.
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They did what they did because they hated Him and despised Him. And men today who fight against God do so because that's what they want to do. They are still answerable and accountable to Him. One last thought. You cannot use predestination as an excuse to sin. You can't say, "Well, the reason I did this, I was predestinated to do that." No, no, no, no. Yeah, God may have predestinated everything, but there are second causes, or secondary causes, or contingencies. God knew that is true, but you're the one who did it. And you're responsible, and you're accountable. When you think of the doctrine of predestination, think of salvation. Without it, there is no salvation. There is no glorification.
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All of these doctrines stand or fall together. The one thing that will make all of our afflictions, and all of our trials, and all of our tribulations bearable is that we understand that God ordained it. Whatever He ordains in eternity comes to pass in time and it is to be for our good and our glory. Therefore we are to learn from our trials and our afflictions and submit to Him.
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I talked with a young lady yesterday who's going through an excruciating trial. And the only thing that is really consoling in a time like that is the sovereignty of God, knowing that God is in control and He can use whatever He wants to use for His honor and His glory. And He alone is the one that can work it out. I'd much rather depend upon God's predestination than man's predestination.
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Father, in the name of Jesus Christ, we bow before Thee. We thank You for Your Word. We thank You for Your truth. And we ask, Father, that You would help us to rejoice in Thy truth and in Thy Word, and help us to understand and to comprehend and believe and submit. In the name of Jesus Christ, we ask and pray. Amen.
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so so
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deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | clean_readable_transcript | 2026-06-06T01:25:55Z

A Primer To Predestination

John Weaver | Freedom Ministries

Pastor John Weaver provides an introductory overview of the doctrine of predestination, arguing that it is a comprehensive biblical teaching covering all events and creatures, rooted in God's eternal decree. He distinguishes between a general sense (God's sovereign control over all things, including sparrows and hair) and a special sense (election and reprobation of rational beings). Weaver emphasizes that predestination is an act of God the Father, includes both good and evil men and angels, and is inseparable from salvation itself, as believers are predestined in Christ. He addresses common objections, asserting that predestination does not make humans puppets or excuse sin, but rather provides comfort in trials by affirming God's sovereign purpose.

Introduction and Personal Testimony

Weaver shares his early struggle to understand predestination and a pastor's dismissive response, motivating his commitment to biblical honesty.

Scripture Reading — Romans 8:28-39

"And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to His purpose." "For whom He did foreknow, He also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover, whom He did predestinate, them He also called, and whom He called, them He also justified, and whom He justified, them He also glorified. What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? He that spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?" "Who shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth. Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea, rather that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long, we are counted as sheep for the slaughter." "Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death, life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

The Comprehensive Nature of Predestination

Everything God does is on purpose; predestination covers all events, and doctrines like foreknowledge, election, and perseverance are interconnected.

God's Decree and Human Limitations

God's decree is singular in Scripture but spoken of in plural terms due to human cognitive limits; it is eternal and encompasses all things.

But the Bible says in Acts chapter 15 and verse 18,

Scripture Reading — Acts 15:18

"Known unto God are all His works from the beginning."

Scripture Reading — Psalm 2:7

"I will declare the decree."

God's Sovereignty Over Evil

God is not the author of evil but controls it; He created evil by defining good, and restrains wrath to redound to His glory.

Now I'm going to give you some illustrations momentarily. But let me just give you a quote from James 1 verses 13-15. Listen to this,

Scripture Reading — James 1:13-15

"Let no man say when he is tempted that I am tempted of God. For God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth He any man."

Now let me just stop there for a moment. God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth He any man. Listen,

Scripture Reading — James 1:13-15

"But every man is tempted when he is drawn away of his own lust and enticed, notice, then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin, and when sin is finished, it bringeth forth death."

So God says that the evil and the sin comes from our own lust. It does not come from God.

Scripture Reading — Isaiah 45:5-7

"I am the Lord and there is none else. There is no God beside me." "I girded thee though thou hast not known me."

That is God has control over Cyrus. He raised him up. He put him as king even though Cyrus did not know him. Watch verse 6,

Scripture Reading — Isaiah 45:5-7

"That they may know from the rising of the sun and from the west, that there is none beside me. I am the Lord and there is none else."

And now God says this,

Scripture Reading — Isaiah 45:5-7

"I form the light and create darkness. I make peace and create evil. I the Lord do all these things."

Now you and I don't have any problem with the light. We don't have any problem with darkness. We don't have any problem with peace. But He said,

Scripture Reading — Isaiah 45:5-7

"I the Lord form the light and create darkness. I make peace and create evil. I the Lord do all these things."

Scripture Reading — Psalm 76:10

"Surely the wrath of man shall praise thee, and the remainder of wrath shalt thou restrain."

So the question is how much evil, how much sin is there going to be in the world?

Scripture Reading — Genesis 20:1-6

"And Abraham journeyed from Thence toward the south country, and dwelt between Kadesh and Shur, and sojourned in Gerar. And Abraham said of Sarah his wife, She is my sister. And Abimelech king of Gerar sent and took Sarah. But God came to Abimelech in a dream by night, and said unto him, Behold, thou art a dead man for the woman which thou hast taken, for she is a man's wife. But Abimelech had not come near her."

You remember Proverbs 21 verse 1,

Scripture Reading — Proverbs 21:1

"The king's heart is in the hand of the Lord like rivers of water, he turneth it whithersoever he willeth."

Definitions and Senses of Predestination

Predestination has a wide sense (all beings and events) and a narrow sense (destinies of men, including election and reprobation).

Look in your Bibles to the book of Matthew chapter 10. Matthew chapter 10 and let's begin reading there with verse 29. Matthew 10 verse 29. Look what God says. Matthew 10 verse 29.

Scripture Reading — Matthew 10:29-31

"Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing?"

Which means they're prolific, they're cheap,

Scripture Reading — Matthew 10:29-31

"are not two sparrows sold for a farthing. And one of them shall not fall on the ground without your father, but the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear you not, therefore, you are of more value than many sparrows."

Now the interesting thing is when you look at verse 29 and he says,

Scripture Reading — Matthew 10:29-31

"and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your father."

Scripture Reading — Matthew 10:29-31

"one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father."

Predestination as the Work of God the Father

Scripture consistently presents predestination as an act of God the Father, who chose and gave a people to Christ.

Scripture Reading — Ephesians 1:3-6, 11

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ, according as He has chosen us in Him, that is in Christ, 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."

Predestination Includes All Rational Creatures

Predestination applies to both good and evil men (e.g., Pharaoh, Christ's crucifiers) and angels (elect and non-elect).

Christ as the Elect and Predestinated Mediator

Jesus Christ is God's elect and was predestinated to be mediator; believers are elect in Him, making predestination essential to salvation.

Practical Implications and Comfort

Predestination does not negate human responsibility or excuse sin; it provides comfort in trials by assuring God's sovereign, good purpose.

A Primer To Predestination

John Weaver | YouTube

Lecture Metadata	Details
Speaker	John Weaver
Source	YouTube
Media ID	wW-evZO2dVA
Subject	New Testament Studies
Course	Romans: Election, Israel, and Covenant Mercy
Genre	Sermon
Date	2017-10-04
Dictation Name
Book	Book 138: Romans-Related Topical Applications — Chapter 17
Source Timed Segments	89

Lecture Guide

Outline

Introduction and Personal Testimony: Weaver shares his early struggle to understand predestination and a pastor's dismissive response, motivating his commitment to biblical honesty.
The Comprehensive Nature of Predestination: Everything God does is on purpose; predestination covers all events, and doctrines like foreknowledge, election, and perseverance are interconnected.
God's Decree and Human Limitations: God's decree is singular in Scripture but spoken of in plural terms due to human cognitive limits; it is eternal and encompasses all things.
God's Sovereignty Over Evil: God is not the author of evil but controls it; He created evil by defining good, and restrains wrath to redound to His glory.
Definitions and Senses of Predestination: Predestination has a wide sense (all beings and events) and a narrow sense (destinies of men, including election and reprobation).
Predestination as the Work of God the Father: Scripture consistently presents predestination as an act of God the Father, who chose and gave a people to Christ.
Predestination Includes All Rational Creatures: Predestination applies to both good and evil men (e.g., Pharaoh, Christ's crucifiers) and angels (elect and non-elect).
Christ as the Elect and Predestinated Mediator: Jesus Christ is God's elect and was predestinated to be mediator; believers are elect in Him, making predestination essential to salvation.
Practical Implications and Comfort: Predestination does not negate human responsibility or excuse sin; it provides comfort in trials by assuring God's sovereign, good purpose.

Major Themes

Key Arguments

Predestination is biblical and must be understood

Weaver argues that if God reveals something in Scripture, He intends it to be understood, and any soul-winning zeal that the Bible kills ought to be killed.

Weaver recounts his response to his pastor: 'it just seems to me that if God reveals something in His Word, He means for us to understand it. And secondly, it appears to me that any soul-winning that the Bible kills ought to be killed anyhow.' (3:24-4:02)

God's decree is singular but perceived as plural

Because God's mind is infinite and knows all things instantly, His one decree encompasses everything; humans think in succession, so we speak of decrees.

Weaver explains, 'When you and I think we do in succession... God is not like that. God's mind is infinite... all God had to do was to have one purpose or one decree.' (10:07-10:59)

God controls evil without being its author

God created evil by defining good; anything contrary is evil. He restrains evil to the extent that it serves His glory.

Weaver says, 'It is God who determined what is good... anything that is contrary to that by definition is wicked, wrong, and evil.' (18:11-19:14) and cites Psalm 76:10.

Reprobation is God passing over sinners

God does not owe salvation to anyone; reprobation is simply withholding grace from those already headed to destruction.

Weaver illustrates with David choosing five stones: 'What did God do or what did David do to the rest of the stones in the brook? Nothing. He left them just as he found them.' (39:25-40:10)

Predestination is essential to salvation

Since Christ was predestinated as Mediator and believers are chosen in Him, denying predestination is denying salvation itself.

Weaver states, 'When one denies predestination, he also denies salvation. Because we were predestinated in Jesus Christ... without predestination there is no salvation.' (59:54-1:00:22)

Predestination does not negate human accountability

Though God ordains all, humans act according to their own desires and are responsible for their actions.

Weaver says, 'We do what we do because we want to do it and we desire to do it and we are answerable.' (1:01:03-1:01:58)

Scripture References

Romans 8:28-39: The primary text for the sermon, read at the beginning, covering the golden chain of salvation and the security of believers.
Job 7:1: Cited to show that man has an appointed time on earth, supporting God's sovereign determination of days.
Job 14:1-5: Used to demonstrate that man's days are determined and his bounds appointed by God.
Acts 15:18: Quoted to affirm that all God's works are known to Him from the beginning.
Ephesians 3:11: Referenced to show God's eternal purpose purposed in Christ.
Psalm 2:7: Mentioned as an example where the word 'decree' is used in Scripture.
Acts 2:23: Cited as referring to God's determinate counsel and foreknowledge.
Ephesians 1:9, 11: Referenced for the mystery of His will and the counsel of His will.
James 1:13-15: Quoted to show that God does not tempt anyone and that sin comes from human lust.
Isaiah 45:5-7: Examined to explain how God creates evil by defining good, and that He forms light and darkness.
Amos 5:15: Cited to support hating evil and loving good, knowing good defines evil.
Psalm 76:10: Used to explain that God restrains wrath to the extent that it praises Him.
Genesis 20:1-6: Illustration of God restraining Abimelech from sinning with Sarah.
Exodus 34:21-24: Example of God controlling the desires of heathen nations to protect Israel during feasts.
Proverbs 21:1: Quoted to show God turns the king's heart wherever He wills.
Matthew 10:29-31: Used to illustrate God's meticulous sovereignty over sparrows and the hairs of our head.
1 Samuel 17: Alluded to in the illustration of David choosing five stones, leaving the rest.
Romans 9:29: Quoted: 'Except the Lord of Sabaoth had left us a remnant, we should have been made as Sodom and Gomorrah.'
John 17:5-6, 9: Cited to show that the Father gave a specific people to Christ.
Ephesians 1:3-6, 11: Read to demonstrate that believers are chosen and predestined in Christ according to God's purpose.

Historical References

Westminster Confession of Faith: Quoted to support that God foreordains whatever comes to pass.
Philadelphia Baptist Confession of Faith: Quoted to affirm God's decree and that He is not the author of sin.
John L. Girardeau (19th-century Presbyterian preacher): Cited for his definition of predestination in wide and narrow senses.

Important Quotes

Everything that God does He does on purpose. God did not accidentally allow you to live to the age at which you are now. He did not accidentally give you grace, and mercy, and goodness.

Emphasizes the purposeful nature of God's actions, foundational to the doctrine of predestination.

If there is anything outside of God over which God does not have control, then God is not God. That thing is God.

Argues for God's absolute sovereignty as essential to His deity.

God is not the author of evil. God is not the infuser of evil. God is not the instigator of evil. But God is the controller of evil because God is sovereign.

Clarifies the distinction between God's authorship and control of evil.

Surely the wrath of man shall praise thee, and the remainder of wrath shalt thou restrain.

Key verse (Psalm 76:10) explaining why God permits evil—for His praise and glory.

What many people do not understand is this, that propaganda, social welfare, public education, and a host of other governmental programs are nothing more than predestination. It's man's attempt to control the attitudes, actions, and lives of others.

Illustrates that everyone believes in predestination, but the debate is over who does the predestinating.

When one denies predestination, he also denies salvation. Because we were predestinated in Jesus Christ, we were chosen in Him, we were blessed in Him, we were given grace in Him, and without predestination there is no salvation.

Ties predestination inseparably to the gospel and salvation itself.

Predestination does not make us automatons, it does not make us puppets. We are responsible and accountable creatures and we will face God in judgment.

Addresses the common objection that predestination negates human responsibility.

The one thing that will make all of our afflictions, and all of our trials, and all of our tribulations bearable is that we understand that God ordained it.

Highlights the practical comfort of predestination in suffering.

Discussion Questions

[Question]

How does understanding that 'everything God does He does on purpose' change the way you view daily events, both good and bad?

[Context]

Weaver emphasizes God's purposeful control over all things, including grace and mercy.

[Question]

Why is it important to distinguish between God being the author of evil and God being the controller of evil?

[Context]

Weaver explains that God is not the author of sin but orders it for His glory.

[Question]

How does the illustration of David choosing five stones help explain the doctrine of reprobation?

[Context]

Weaver uses this to show that God passes over some, leaving them as they are.

[Question]

In what ways is predestination connected to the doctrine of salvation, according to Weaver?

[Context]

Weaver argues that denying predestination is denying salvation because believers are predestined in Christ.

[Question]

How can the doctrine of predestination provide comfort during trials and afflictions?

[Context]

Weaver shares that knowing God ordained trials makes them bearable and purposeful.

[Question]

What does Weaver mean when he says that everyone believes in predestination, but the argument is over who does the predestinating?

[Context]

He points to human attempts to control others through government programs as man's predestination.

[Question]

How does the 'golden chain' of Romans 8:28-30 assure believers of their security?

[Context]

Weaver explains that all links (foreknowledge, predestination, calling, justification, glorification) are unbreakable.

Applications

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