Jesus, the Elected Head, of His People

I want to ponder something with you. I want to ponder how in control of salvation our God is; how in control God is of all creation and the salvation worked out in space-time history. And we are going to do that by spending very little time talking about history at all. Because I want to go back. Way back. I want to back to before Genesis 1:1. How do we do that? By looking at texts that reference before time. How do we get from the Triune God [Father, Son, and Holy Spirit] existing in and of himself in glory, to not just his act of creation, but his act of ordering our salvation in this creation? There are far too many terrible, and unbiblical answers to this.

For instance, some wrongly think that God did not elect you. He didn't elect, anyone in eternity past. Instead, they think God way back then chose faith, or an amorphous mass. They think God chose the act of faithing as the grounds of salvation. And therefore, they think God does not know who will choose him. He only knows that faith is the means of salvation. because that’s what he set up. But is that what the Bible actually teaches? Let's compare that to the Scriptures. Is that true?

Listen to Eph 1:3-4:

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places,  (4)  even as he [the Father] chose us [the church (the Bride of Christ) individually and as a whole] in him [Jesus. When?] before the foundation of the world…"

Let's simplify that a little bit. In eternity past, God the Father chose us to be represented by his Son. Now, that also means God the Father, before he chose us, chose the Son. You can’t complain there is no free will, if even the Son of God is chosen before time began.

Listen to how the author of Hebrews puts it in Hebrews 5:4-5

"No one takes this honor for himself, [The author of Hebrews is talking about taking the office of High Priest to himself. No one may take it. Instead, it is bestowed. God bestows it on sinners in the Old Testament. But he's about to apply the idea to Jesus. Therefore, the office of Savior, of Messiah, of Covenant Head cannot be taken; it cannot be bid for; it cannot be earned. It is bestowed. And such bestowal is indeed an honor. But the Father bestowed such an office on the Son.] but only when called by God, just as Aaron was.  (5)  So also Christ did not exalt himself to be made a high priest, but was appointed [elected, selected, chosen] by him [The Father] who said to him [to Jesus], “You are my Son, [That has to be the Father speaking] today I have begotten you”;

The Father chose the Son to be a representative. And the Father - not the Son, or the Holy Spirit - chose you in His chosen Son. Jesus didn't choose himself. Nor did the Father choose the Spirit. The Father chose the Son. He chose the Second Person of the Trinity. And that occurred, according to Ephesians 1, before Genesis 1:1! That occurred “before the foundation of the world.” So, before time began. Jesus was elected by the Father, before you were elected in Jesus. Now, what does elected mean? It means "chosen." The same way husbands and wives, you chose a spouse. The same way kids, you choose each other in kick ball. Except here, its applicable to salvation. The Father chose the Son to be Savior. The Father selected the Son to be the representative of his people. The Son didn't offer himself for the position. He didn't apply for the job. He never said, "Hey choose me." He didn’t call his own number. Neither did the Holy Spirit.

So then, before God the Father chose us in Jesus; God the Father chose Jesus. Not “a” Jesus; not a Hebrew man 2,000 years; nor faith as a concept; nor humility as an action. The Father appointed the Son to represent those of fallen sinful humanity he chose to save. But that means TWO ENORMOUS THINGS, which again the author of Hebrews focuses on.

Note Hebrews 1:1-2 

Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets,  (2)  but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he [the Father] appointed the heir [Jesus] of all things, through whom [Jesus] also he [the Father] created the world.

So, the Father selected the Son TO BE HIS HEIR, AND through whom the Father created the world. Now, some people think that all that means is that the Father created all things, through the work of the Son, the same way a boss works through his workers, or the same way an older brother tells his younger brother what to do to benefit himself. Nope! But that is not actually what the author of Hebrews is saying. He isn't merely saying Jesus was the instrument the Father used to make creation. He is saying that. But, he is also saying Jesus was before time and creation began. The Father assigned the Second Person of the Trinity to be the Heir of Creation, before the Creation was created. Jesus’ office of Savior was appointed by the Father before God created. But as Heir of All Things - as Heir of Creation - creation, the universe, was made for Jesus. And especially for his office of Savior. The whole universe was created for the purpose of being redeemed.

Jesus isn't just the source from which creation was created. Jesus wasn't just the Father's instrument of creation. The world is defined by Jesus, bends towards Jesus' will, and its beginning, middle, and end, is for Jesus, the Savior's, redeeming, new-life creating, darkness-and evil-defeating, work.

That means there is no bug, no animal, no waterfall, no hard time, no good time, no math problem, no science problem, no political scenario, that comes about apart from him, but by the nature of his office of “Heir” and “Head” comes from his wisdom, and is part of his plan and agenda for this world. The breath you breathe, the chair you're sitting in; your breath was made to return to its maker. Your chair ultimately fulfills one goal: the glory of the Christ.

And Paul sings God's praise for this.

Romans 11:36 puts it this way,

"For from him [that is Jesus is the head over creation, and Jesus’ position as Savior is the goal of creation. For from him … ] and through him [that is by his agenda, and by his power, and his instrumentality] and to him [that means the goal of every possible entity is to be bent toward his glory now and in the future. What things?] are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen."

Hallelujah! Jesus reigns on high. The one who was appointed Heir and Head by his Father, is not sitting at the right hand of God in heaven. And whether now or when he returns, all the cosmos, all the universe is made and built to sing his glory.

So, now I want to go back to where we started.

All of that has to be true BEFORE God elects us in Christ.

Given that the Father set Jesus up to define for his own salvation; given that the Father chose the Son to wield creation to his own glory …

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places,  (4)  even as he [the Father] chose us [Christians (the church), individually and as a whole] in him [Jesus. When?] before the foundation of the world…"

Blessed be our Triune God, and His Christ.

The Total Depravity of All Mankind, Part 1

The Biblical Fact of Total Depravity:

How do you view natural man? As good? How do you view yourself in your sin? Are you mostly good, but do some bad things? The Bible's testimony of the moral/spiritual quality of man is clear: man, in his sin, in his fallen nature, and even the fleshly-remaining part of the Christian, is morally depraved.

The Old Testament Witness:

The doctrine of Total Depravity is certainly an Old Testament reality.

Genesis 6:5  The LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.

But there are many more texts. Go look up: Job 14:4, Psalm 14:1-4, Psalm 51, Ecclesiastes 9:3, Jeremiah 17:9

But what about the New Testament? Realize, we don’t believe there are different gods in the Old Testament in comparison to the New. We believe the same Triune God worked in both. And therefore, we should find a consistency of doctrine from Old Testament to New Testament.

The New Testament Witness:

Romans 3:10-18  as it is written: "None is righteous, no, not one;  (11)  no one understands; no one seeks for God.  (12)  All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one."  (13)  "Their throat is an open grave; they use their tongues to deceive." "The venom of asps is under their lips."  (14)  "Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness."  (15)  "Their feet are swift to shed blood;  (16)  in their paths are ruin and misery,  (17)  and the way of peace they have not known."  (18)  "There is no fear of God before their eyes."

Notice the New Testament text of Romans 3 is literally quoting Old Testament texts. Together they testify inerrantly that man is guilty of sin, a sinner, sins, is liable for God’s eternal wrath in hell, and to the miseries of this life. But there are numerous other texts that make the same point. Even Jesus will teaches us that nothing good comes out of the heart of men. Go read: Matthew 15:16-20, Mark 7:18-23, Romans 1:28-32, Ephesians 2:1-3, and Galatians 5:19-21.

The Clarification of the Doctrine:

But, by "Total Depravity" we do not mean that man is as bad as he could be. Satan, we could argue, is the most evil being. But every person is not Satan. Adolph Hitler, we could argue, is one of the most evil persons to ever have existed. Every person is not Hitler though. That's not what we mean. The "total" of "total depravity" does not modify "depravity." We are not saying "all people are as bad as they could be." Rather the "total" of "total depravity" references all the aspects of the internal thought world of man. In this sense, "total" means "comprehensive." We are saying that man is comprehensively depraved.

For instance, you parents, why do you not have to teach a child to disobey? Why do they know how to disobey naturally? Who taught them, if they are indeed morally neutral or good? They don’t need teaching! If you’re a parent, you know what I mean. How come your pre-one-year-old seems to get angry at you for feeding them, putting them to bed, getting them up, WRONG!? But manners, politeness, or cleaning their rooms - why is that an act of divine power when it happens!? Or, why are your motives for obedience also tainted with self-love? It is because man's will is in subjection to his corrupt nature.

But the doctrine of Total Depravity is entirely practical. It destroys any argument for the validity of pride or arrogance. When you lose a child, when you lose a job, when you serve the Lord and bad things happen, it’s easy - and immoral - to tell yourself, “God, you’re wrong for taking this away from me. If I were God, I would have given it to myself.” Who are you, O man! Is it not right and appropriate, that, when we go through real, dark, and deep travail of soul, over sin, over pain, over loss, that we first recognize THAT I AM NOT OWED ANY GOOD THING FROM GOD. In your sinfulness, you are first owed his wrath, and the miseries of this life. But if you thought you were owed something from God, you’d be prideful and thankless when you have something good. But considering that you are owed God’s wrath, and the miseries of this life, then the children we do have, an imperfect job that provides for my family, and a humble place to serve in the kingdom, are things we can be thankful for. And when loss of a child, firing, or self-forgetting service in the kingdom comes - while the pain and loss is real, and deep - you don’t have to get mad at God, you don’t have to doubt his love, because your sin renders you worthy of the worst miseries in this life. And while some miseries are genuinely hard, and dark - they are not THE WORST. But God knows the loss you suffer, because he sent his Son to die on the cross for your sin - in a more brutal death than any of us will ever experience. He knows. You’re not forgotten. But that doesn’t mean we may lie to ourselves about how worthy or good we are.

Man's rebellion against God is the moral quality of his entire internal thought world. By "depraved" we mean man is not only "not righteous before God", he doesn't want to be righteous, and he cannot be righteous; he doesn't like God, and he does want to be like God. He wants to be God in every area of his life. But he’d prefer to kill God. Righteousness according to God and the Bible is disgusting to natural man. Man is morally and spiritually warped. He is a rebel before God.

Think of it this way: every other religion thinks man is basically good. But such a position is a demonstration of man's moral depravity. We will call evil "good" in every other religion in order to escape the reality of having been judged by the thrice-holy God. And there is no part of man that isn't controlled by his rebellion. There is no part that is morally good, or acceptable to God. You are dead to God, in your trespasses and sin:

Ephesians 2:1-3 And you were dead in the trespasses and sins (2) in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— (3) among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.

Introducing: the Doctrines of Grace (or, the Five Points of Calvinism)

The Five Points of Calvinism in History and Personally:

The Five Points of Calvinism are historically and personally controversial. Historically, they are a response to the Five Points of Arminianism. The Five Points of Arminianism are named after Jacob Arminius, a Dutch Pastor and Theologian in the mid-1500's to the early 1600's. Some people have accused me of being a direct descendant of good ole Arminius (pictured below). But I promise, though we look alike, I am not.

Jacob Arminius

Those who identified with his system of theology are called "Arminians." (No, this is not the same label as the people from the country Armenia.) This is quite important today. While American evangelicalism was originally Calvinistic, today it is not, but Arminian. In fact, most American evangelical churches today teach the Arminian system of doctrine. For instance, if you believe the natural person, though a sinner, can still reach out to God in faith, unassisted by God, then, whether you knew it or not, you are Arminian in your thinking.

The Arminians and the Reformed were both Dutch. In fact, at the time, they were both apart of the Dutch Reformed Church. The Arminians were publicly antagonistic to the Reformed Theology being taught in Geneva and in the Netherlands. So they published the Five Points of Remonstrance, or "ardent protest". The Reformed Church responded publicly. They held a gathering of their church court at Dordrecht to answer these five doctrines point for point. And [drum roll please] the Five Points of Calvinism were born. The name of that Synod was the Synod of Dort. So, the Five Points of Calvinism, or the Doctrines of Grace, were a reaction to false teaching.

However, some have objected to the name "Calvinism." And I don’t mind the objection. It's not unlike the difference between "Calvinism" and "Reformed Theology." When your average Southerner hears the category "Calvinism" many respond as though you just said a cuss word. But, when you say "Reformed Theology" they are shockingly open. Maybe because "Reformed" and even "the Protestant Reformation" hasn't been taught in our churches in a long time. Maybe because the "Calvinism" well has been poisoned by opposing pastors for a long time. Or maybe, it is genuinely the name. And, the name does matter. It's unfortunate that the Five Points were named after John Calvin, a French pastor and theologian in the early to mid-1500's.

John Calvin

I highly doubt Calvin would have appreciated the name. But, it isn't named after him per se, but the system of theological thought attributed to him. If anything, Calvinism strives, using the doctrine of Sola Scriptura and the method of expository teaching, to be clearly biblical. Sola Scriptura is a mantra of the Reformation calling for the church to find its ultimate authority for any doctrine or practice in "The Scriptures Alone," hence Sola (Alone) Scriptura (the Bible). Further, expository teaching naturally flowed out of Sola Scriptura. If the Bible is our ultimate authority for any doctrine or practice, then the church should stick close to the text going verse by verse, chapter by chapter, through the Bible. This doctrine Calvin unapologetically taught. And this method of teaching is throughout his commentaries and his books. However, Jacob Arminius was three years old when Calvin died. So, Calvin wasn't even alive for the controversy, let alone the pithy response of the Five Points. The Synod of Dort was held from 1618-1619. But Calvin died in 1564, more than fifty years before. But still, he wouldn't have liked the Five Points named after him. And I personally don't mind the Reformed Church apologizing for the reference. We should not be naming movements or doctrines after sinful men. Yet, these five points of biblical doctrine are and will still be referenced as "the Five Point of Calvinism," or "the Doctrines of Grace."

Personally, these doctrines are both so biblical and so contrary to our flesh that many Christians reject the headings and the content. In fact, some just irrationally respond with vitriol to the headings. You’ll see more all the heading in future blogposts. Oddly enough when presented with the content from the Bible, but without the headings, many Christians will see just how eminently biblical the Five Points of Calvinism are. But, when you reinsert the headings … the fangs come out. However, I'm confident that the Holy Spirit working through the plain teaching of his Word, will actually show you the vast storehouses of comfort that come, not just by the doctrine, but when we see the connections of these doctrines to our living and reigning Savior, His Father in Heaven, and the Spirit who abides in us. In following posts, I will personally strive to show how each doctrine relates to your relationship with each person of the Trinity and the gospel.

In Christ, and with you all,

Rev. Joshua Sparkman

Christ Presbyterian Church (2131 Cody Road S.)

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