In 2 Thessalonians 2, Paul refers to an important and often misunderstood part of our experience as Christians, our being God’s “chosen” or “elect.” Paul wrote in the 13th and 14th verses, “But we are bound to give thanks to God always for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God from the beginning chose you for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth, to which He called you by our gospel, for the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Christians are God’s chosen people. Chosen “for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth, to which He called you by our gospel…” Under the Old Testament, the Jewish nation was chosen by God, but under the New Covenant of Christ, Paul wrote, “For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh; but he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the Spirit, not in the letter; whose praise is not from men but from God” (Romans 2:28-29). The clear indication of scripture is that today the chosen of God consists of those who believe in Christ, i.e. Christians.
This is God’s plan. Our choosing was determined by God from the beginning of time. It was predestined by God for us to obtain the inheritance, as Paul wrote, “that we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory” (Ephesians 1:12).
But, some misunderstand this choosing. God predestined who would be His under this New Covenant. What does this mean? It is simply stated in our text. “through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth, to which He called you by our gospel” (13-14). The chosen are not individually chosen, but are a part of the group God chose to save, those who have responded in faith to the gospel of Christ. As our Lord Himself clearly told His disciples, “…Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned” (Mark 16:15-16).
This is wonderful news for all of us. We have a choice. We can choose to be part of the elect or not! God made the determination to set apart all who believed through the preaching of the gospel. On the day of Pentecost, 3,000 joined that group (cf. Acts 2:41). From that point until now untold numbers have become part of the group that God chose to save through His Beloved Son.
Do you want to be chosen of God? Sanctified? The gospel is calling! The thing that you must do to be one of God’s chosen is to respond in faith!
