The ideology of predestination is a truth found in the Holy Scriptures. It simply states that God has determined certain things to be. This statement may be an over simplification to a harried doctrine. Yet, I have found that when I use too many words and illustrations and analogies to explain certain doctrines, everything gets muddled into a state of confusion leaving us all the more befuddled in our faith. So, I will attempt to do this again (by the grace of God) and perhaps we will better understand our faith in God. Simply put, we believe that God knows all things, God created all things and that God is in control of all things. We also believe that God is love, He is good, and finally, He is faithful. If a person believes these six things about God, he or she can possess faith in Him. Faith is not only believing these things but also trusting God (for our present situations) because we do believe these six things about Him. Now, back to the doctrine of predestination. God has determined certain things to be as follows: God determined that He was going to create. God determined that this creation would be something other than Himself, yet likened unto Himself (of course, I am speaking specifically of man). And God has determined that man would be free to decide whether to exist eternally with Him or away from Him. Therefore, our faith believes that prior to anything being created God already knew who would decide to live with Him eternally. Eph.1:4; 2Tim.1:9 We believe that God has given each man and woman their position and time in life (here on earth) Acts 17:26; 1Cor.12:18 And, (for the purpose of this particular Pastor’s Desk ) we believe that God is in full-control, enabling Him to bring this about. Job 23:13; Ps.115:3.
So, what does this doctrine do for you and me today? It tells us no matter where we are, no matter what circumstances befall us, no matter what situation we believe ourselves to be in, God will see us through until His purpose for us is completed. That purpose is that we will receive the glory of God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Our faith trusts God for today what we are sure of for tomorrow. For we believe that nothing will separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. We have been chosen by God to live with Him eternally –nothing will keep us from that!

Could you imagine the moment? Ananias was in prayer when suddenly, from out of nowhere, the Voice of the Lord spoke to him. “Ananias.” Once again the Eternal broke into the temporal to intervene in the lives of men! “Yes, Lord.” Ananias replied. “I am here.”
“I want you to go to a house on Straight Street. There is a man there by the name of Saul of Tarsus. At this very moment he is praying and in a vision he sees a man by the name of Ananias coming to this house and placing his hands upon him to restore his sight.”
But Ananias replied, “But Lord, I have heard all about this man and how much harm he has caused Your people. Why, I have even heard that he has come here with the authority of the chief priest to arrest anyone who calls upon Your name.” I don’t think Ananias wanted to go! But nevertheless, God told him to go. “Go on thy way, Ananias, for this man is My chosen instrument to carry My name to the Gentiles.”
Throughout history God has chosen many different vessels to carry His Name. Think of the awesome privilege of being chosen and used by the Creator of all things. What does He look for in a person? I wonder what kinds of qualifications are necessary? I wonder if things would be different if God required us to fill out applications and write out resumes? Somehow, I just can’t see the Holy One pouring over resumes to see who was the most qualified. If God be for you… we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us! God chooses men and women who will obey His commands. It doesn’t matter so much the vessels rather than the One who makes that vessel. If God asks you to do something –He gives you the qualifications to see that it gets done. Our part is to ask ourselves, are we willing to be a willing vessel? It may mean that we have to clean up our act, sacrifice our time, or even put ourselves in harm’s way. What if you had discovered that you were chosen by God to be used by Him? Well, you have! The Bible says that God has chosen the Church since the foundations of the world. God has determined that the Church would be His vessel in these last days to proclaim His Name and the Gospel of His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ! Do you know that you have been chosen? Are you a willing vessel? Can He count on using you?
Now, there is something very interesting in this account of Paul’s ordination. We all are aware that God had chosen Paul, but we may fail to see that God had also chosen Ananias. Didn’t God choose Ananias to go and pray for Paul? Yes, He did. But notice how God put it to Ananias. Acts.9:12 “In a vision he (Paul) has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight.” Did you notice that God didn’t say that Paul had seen you, Ananias, but rather, God said, Paul has seen a man named Ananias. I truly believe that God spoke this just the way that He wanted. For if Ananias would have refused to be used by God, God would have found another man named Ananias to go pray for Paul! The question isn’t whether God chooses people to carry out His will. The question is will God choose you to carry out His will?

There are two men in the Bible that I would like to use as an example for those of us who are living in America. I speak of Lot, the nephew of Abraham, and Daniel, the prophet of exiled Israelites. The Bible says that Lot pitched his tents near Sodom, but soon he was living in Sodom. God was bringing judgment upon Sodom and as far as I can see the only person that was interceding for the city was Abraham. Now, the Bible says that Lot was a righteous man, vexed in his soul because of the grievous sin of his neighbors, but it doesn’t say anything about him interceding for Sodom. In fact, when it came time for Lot to warn of the imminent judgment, they laughed at him. I wonder why they didn’t take him seriously? Could it be that they thought Lot was more concerned about his own welfare than theirs? It seems to me that Lot was always trying to do what was best for himself and his family. He chose the plains near Sodom because he thought they would be profitable for farming and pasture land. Somewhere along the line, he chose to live in that city of sin rather than on its outskirts. Even when judgment came and God told him he would be safe in the mountains, he chose rather, the city of Zoar because he thought it best suited him. Lot shows us that it is very difficult to intercede for the lost when you are very concerned about yourself. Sure, you can be angry at the sin around you but it is extremely difficult to love someone you are angry with.

Now, Daniel was a righteous man and highly esteemed by the Lord. He was exiled to a heathen country and held prisoner. The king of that country tried to force his culture and his gods down Daniel’s throat, but Daniel would have none of it; he would not defile himself with the delicacies of Babylon! This man was given visions and dreams. He had seen the end of days and probably Christ, Himself. He was given the vision of the Throne of the Ancient of Days! This man was highly favored with an intimate relationship with God. He never sought for position, yet the kings that ruled over him were constantly placing him in authority. But when it came time for prayer, when it came time to remember Jerusalem, he cried out to God in the spirit of intercession and in the spirit of Truth. He confessed his sins! He included himself with the people of Judah and their unfaithfulness to the Lord. He wasn’t vexed in his soul –he was repentive! In chapter nine of the book that bears his name, he includes himself no less than thirty times with sinful Judah. If Daniel were of the mindset of most American Christians of today, this prayer of his would never have been lifted up to Heaven. I think that Christians who pray for America should pray this prayer of intercession as Daniel’s example shows us. If we are going to intercede for America in the Spirit of Christ, then I believe that we need to consider every word spoken by this great prophet. It does us no good to be angry at the sinful conditions of our country or vexed in our soul because of the antichrist spirit in our culture, if we aren’t going to do something about it. We must include ourselves with this group of people who have determinedly cast the Word of God from their lives. Let us fall on our knees and ask God for the forgiveness of our sins. Whether we agree with America’s worldview for living or not, we are still –America. And if we truly love America and want to be a good patriot, then we should fall prostrate before the Lord and plead with Him for mercy and forgiveness. May God grant us the Spirit of Intercession!

As far back as my memory will allow me to travel, I can see myself on the swing-set in my backyard. I was waiting for my mother to get home. She had promised that we would go to Dairy Queen for ice cream. The two hours that my sister said that it would be before mom got home seemed like an eternity. Two hours! I couldn’t wait two hours. I think that I began to whine because I vaguely remember my older sister saying that if I didn’t straighten up I wouldn’t get any ice cream. Older sisters –yuk! The next time I wished time would pass quickly was when I was seven and it was my brother’s eleventh birthday. He was a big boy now. He was almost a teenager. I wanted to be eleven. Eleven year olds get to do so much more than seven year olds. Eleven came and went for me and I never really noticed it at all. Life was passing and it was happening so fast. It was near my fortieth birthday and I was sitting around a table with some men of God who were in their sixties and seventies. I remarked at how from twenty to forty seemed to fly by. Why it just seemed like yesterday that Robin and I had gotten married. One of the older gentlemen laughed a little and remarked that if I thought those twenty years flew by just wait for the twenty years between forty and sixty! He was so right. This year I will be fifty-one. In nine more years I’ll be sixty, should the Lord tarry or this body doesn’t give out. Then I will be writing about; where did life go? The Bible has a few things to say about the brevity of life. “What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes” Jas.4:14 “you have made my days a mere handbreadth; the span of my years is as nothing before you. Each man’s life is but a breath.” Ps.39:5 “My days are swifter than a runner, they fly away without a glimpse of joy.” Job 9:25.

Now, I believe that most people look back on their lives and wished that they could have done a few things differently. Some look back with regret while others may just be a little disappointed. Nevertheless, very few look back with fulfillment and satisfaction. It is only by the grace of God that we can live and lead a fulfilling life. That is the only way! Silver and gold are useless in the days of death. Fame and popularity are devoid of any reward. Strength and vigor will quickly flee. But one thing is very fulfilling, one thing is very rewarding and brings much peace and contentment. And that is when we travel back in our memories, even from the moment of birth, for it was even there that God was watching over our lives with the greatest of care. He kept us through childhood, sustained us through trials, protected us through dangers. He has so orchestrated our lives that no one can say that God didn’t give it His all in trying to bring us to Himself. For those who are born-again and know God in their lives, just wait a couple more “hours” He’ll come for us and we’ll go for ice cream! “Look up, for your Redemption draweth nigh!” Pastor Jim