He is the Savior of the body

He is the Savior of the body

As I was reading through Ephesians I came across a very enlightening passage, Chapter 5; 23. As I have demonstrated before, I believe that the world God so loved was his chosen race which were those who were chosen from the foundation of the world to be in Christ. It is interesting that many people say that Jesus is the Savior of the world, for which he is, but many intend this to mean universal redemption. But Ephesians 5; 23 refutes this idea as it says that he is the Savior of the body.

"For the husband is the head of the wife, as also Christ is the head of the church; and he is the Savior of the body" (Eph 5; 23)

Who is the body? This is the Church and who is the Church? They are those who were chosen and predestined to be in Christ from eternity. Scripture reveals that he is the savoir for these people.

"Husbands love your wives, just as Christ also loved the Church and gave himself for her." (Eph 5; 25)

Jesus is the savoir of his body, the Church, the redeemed race, which were chosen in Christ. It is for these that Jesus died.
As for all those who were chosen in Christ from eternity they have been predestined in his blood. Christ’ blood at the cross, purchased all those who are in Christ.
He obtained all of their salvation’s when he bore their sin in his body. As Ephesians 1; 7 proves, these were the only ones who were put into his blood for salvation.

"In him (talking of those chosen in Christ) we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his Grace."

1 Peter 1;2 also proves this claim when Paul talks about his elect being sprinkled with the blood of Jesus Christ.

"Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ."

As Titus 2;14 says, he might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for himself his own special people, zealous for good works.

Matthew 1;21 says,

"She will bear a Son; and you shall call his name Jesus for he will save his people from their sins."

Who will he save? His people who are his body, who are his church, who are his chosen elect.

It is also interesting because it refutes those who try and make 1 Tim 2;3-4 which talks about "God our Savior who desires all men to be saved" to mean every person who has every lived. In other post’s I have exegete this passage, but for now I will just say that this passage is talking about that God desires all kinds of people including kings and those who are in authority to have salvation. Some will be quick to say ‘Oh, it does not say some, it says all". That is true and we must look at who "all" are in the beginning of Chapter 2. The chapter exhorts that prayer and supplications be made for "all" people. What for every person who has every lived, No, the passage says for kings and… The all is for those being spoken of in the context.
So when in verse 3 it says, " For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior" he is talking about his body, his chosen people which are of many kinds of different people, including kings and those in authority. It is these he gives his life as a ransom for, verse 6.

Jesus’ blood did not only satisfy God’s justice, so that Jesus could hand out free tickets for salvation when some one wants to believe. No, he purchased his elect people with his blood. Those who are redeemed are those "in" Christ.

"God acquired the Church through his own blood" Acts 20;28,

Did Calvin invent this Interpretation?

Did Calvin invent this interpretation?

In this post I will be correcting the false assertion that the idea that Christ came to save his elect people who are considered to be those who God loves and calls the "world" (John 3;16) as an invention by John Calvin. Also is my interpretation some heresie that I am making up or is it an established understanding.
John Calvin did believe this, but he was standing on many other earlier Church Fathers writings who held this same understanding.

For example I will quote out of John Gill book "The Cause of God and truth" and John Owens book "The death of death in the death of Christ".

The Martyrdom of Polycarp, is usually dated between 150 and 180 A.D. In it the church at Smyrna speaks of our Lord as one who ‘suffered for the salvation of the whole world of those being saved’ Here Christ is spoken of as having a world of his own that he is bringing to himself.

Ignatius, This is the way leading to the Father, this is the rock, the fold, the key; he is the shephard, the sacrifice; the door of knowledge, by which entered Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, and the whole company of prophets, and the pillars of the world, the apostles, and the spouse of Christ; for whom, instead of a dowry, he poured out his own blood, that he might redeem her. Surely Jesus Christ gives not a dowry for any but his own spouse.

Origen, who died about 254 A.D, having cited 2 Corinthians 5; 19, wrote ‘Of the world of the church this is written’ just after that he cites John 1;29 where Christ is said to be the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, as illustrating the same truth.

Cyprian, 250 A.D, ‘This Grace has Christ communicated, subduing death in the trophy of his cross, redeeming believers with the price of his blood.

Cyril of Jerusalem, 386 A.D, speaks of ‘the world of men who believe in him that was crucified’.

Ambrose, 370 A.D, ‘The people of God has its own fullness. In the elect and foreknown, distinguished from the generality of all, there is accounted a certain special universality; so that the whole world seems to be delivered from the whole world, and all men to be taken out of all men.

Augustine, 420 A.D, He that brought us with such a price will have none perish whom he has brought…he often called the church itself by the name of the world; as in that ‘God was in Christ reconciling the world unto himself; and that ‘The son of man came not to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be saved. The whole world, therefore, is the church, and the world hateth the church. The world then has the world; that which is at enmity, the reconciled, the condemned, the saved, the polluted, the cleansed world. And that world which God in Christ reconciled to himself, and which is saved by Christ, is chosen out of the opposite, condemned, defiled world.

Prosper, 440 A.D, "He is not crucified with Christ who is not a member of the body of Christ. When therefore our Saviour is said to be crucified for the redemption of the whole world, because of his true assumption of the human nature, yet may be said to be crucified only for them unto whom his death was profitable.

As we can clearly see, John Calvin did not invent this interpretation.

God so Loved the World, You are a Chosen Race!

God so loved the world, You are a chosen race!

From what we have already seen from my last few posts about for whom did Christ die for? If you have not read my last four Posts I would recommend that you do!

It is now time to deal with John 3;16 ‘For God so Loved the world". If my interpretation of scripture is correct that Jesus only died for his elect people who were chosen in him before the world began. To be adopted as Son’s predestined to be conformed in to his image. How are we to interpret John 3; 16?

Many people believe that John 3;16 is talking about God sending his Son to die for the sin’s of every individual who has every lived. They hold this view because they believe that the statement "God so loved the World" must mean every one. But does scripture use the world ‘world’ in this interpretation. Because many times in scripture the word "world’ is use to describe a people group.
For example,

Luke 2; 1-3 "There went out a decree from Caesar Augustus that all the World should be taxed". The word "world" here does not mean every one on the planet, but those who were the inhabitants of the Roman Empire.

1 John 5; 19 "We know that we are children of God, and that the whole world is under the control of the evil one". The word "world" here does not mean every individual, but a class of people who are under the devil’s control. Christians are not under his control as we are the children of God.

1 Romans 8, "First I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, that your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world". It is clear from this verse that the whole world as we know it today did not here about their faith in Jesus Christ. Paul was writing to the new Christians at the Church of Rome. The word "world" does not mean every individual on the planet.

So who is being spoken in the passage of John 3; 16? I would make the question if God has chosen a people in Christ from the foundation of the world ( Eph 1;4) to be predestined to be in Christ this must exclude a number of people. As not every person on earth is going to believe. But those who have been chosen will believe. It would be mad for God to choose a people group to be saved, and then send Jesus into the world to save every single person who has every lived. So who is the world? It is the chosen race who has be chosen to be redeemed. Is not a race a world of people? Scriptures says that all believers are a chosen race.

"But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the Excellencies of him who has called you out of darkness into his marvelous light" (1 Peter 2; 9)

First Peter opens, addressing his elect people, this would include all believers. This race also includes all God’s chosen people in the Old Testament, New Testament and future believers.
The Bible talks about two federal heads, the two Adam’s. One was Adam and the other was Christ. In Adam, he lost his world, but in Christ he had chosen a world to be saved out of Adam’s. This was to be a redeemed race that had people purchased from out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation (Rev 5;9).

Scripture makes it clear for who he purchased and died for!

"Therefore take heed to yourself and to the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the Church, which he purchased with his blood" (Acts. 20;28).

"Husbands, love your wives just as Christ also loved the Church and gave himself for her" (Eph. 5;25).

Who is his Church? It is a people group, his chosen race, world, that he chose from the foundation of the world to be in Christ. It is only when you accept this view that we see that Jesus’ death was to obtain salvation for these people. Jesus died in the place of his elect people, so their sins were covered. This is what 2 Corinthians 5;19 means when it says,

2 Corinthians 5; 19 "God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men’s sins against them".

These people were reconciled to God by Christ’s blood, so that their sins would not be counted against them. This "world" is God’s elect people, as it would be irresponsible to say that more people will be saved than have been chosen and also that all people have had there sins covered. This is false, as we know some will be in hell.
Once one has understood that this ‘world’ is the chosen race, then every other verse talking about Jesus dying for the sins of the whole world makes sense. We see that Christ’s death actual saved all his people at the cross. His chosen have been saved eternally.
He did not come to make salvation a possibility, no he saved a people, who will in time believe because they have been called to believe.

"For God sent not the Son into the world to judge the world; but that the world should be saved through him" (John 3;17)
Why would God not send the Son to judge the world? Because the world is his chosen people who have been predestined in his blood to be holy (Eph 1;4). For there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ.
The Father sent the Son to be the Savior of the world" (1 John 4;14) and he was, he saved all those who were given to him by the Father from eternity.
"Behold the Lamb of God, that takes away the sin’s of the world (John 1; 29) and Jesus did take away all their sins when he died in their place and when,
"God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men’s sins against them"(2 Cor 5;19).

1 John 2;2 "And he himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world". Those who believe the Atonement was for every individual on the planet, do not take time to see what the word "Propitiation’ means. The word means that Christ sacrifice appeased the wrath of God against that person. This has not been done for every individual as John 3; 36 says that "He who believes in the Son has ever lasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him". So what does this verse mean? It means that Christ appeased Gods wrath against the "Our" sins, Christians then living in that context and also for those who will believe through out the whole world. This ties in with other verses which say Christ laid his life down for his sheep, "And other sheep I have which are not of this fold, them also I must bring, and they will here my voice and there will be one flock and one Shepherd" (John 10; 16). Also John 11;51 implies the same context "Now this he did not say on his own authority, but being high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus would die for the nation (elect Jews) and not for that nation only but also that he would gather together in one the children of God who were scattered abroad.

I stand and hold that the "world’ that is spoken of in John 3;16 is God’s chosen race spoken of in 1 Peter 2;9.

Mystical Union with Christ, One died for all, therefore all died

Mystical Union with Christ, One died for all therefore all died.

In this post we will be looking at the mystical union one has as a believer in Christ, which transcends time and finite reality.

When asking the question "For whom did Christ die"? Another way of putting the question can be "who died with Christ"?. As I have said all along Jesus died on the cross for his elect people throughout the ages of this world.

I believe that 2 Corinthians 5; 14-15 also confirms this,

"For Christs love compels us because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again."

This is an interesting passage as Paul say that Christ died for all and therefore all died. What does Paul mean by this? Does he mean that because Jesus died he in fact died in place of everyone who has ever lived?
One way to answer this is to review the ways people die.

Physical death, did all die physically when Christ died? No

Spiritual death, did all die spiritually through the death of Christ? No

Eternal death, did all die eternally when Christ died? No Christ came to save us from eternal death.

The death Christ died was the death to sin, the death penalty. Christ died in the place of others, in their place so that they are dead to sin and death. This event happened at the cross, people died when Christ died. This is what is none as the mystical union with Christ. The truth is that the whole world could not have all died in Christ at the cross, as then every one would be saved as there would be no penalty for sin and no one would be in sin. Those for whom Christ died are those who were chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world to be conformed to the image of Christ, his elect people. It is these that Christ purchased with his life by tasting their death. We were crucified with Christ (Gal 2; 20).

This is why 2 Corinthians 5;19 say’ that "God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men’s sin’s against them". Who was God reconciling? The text says those who are "In" Christ. Who are these people? The book of Ephesians is very clear on this, It is those who God chose to be "In" Christ from eternity according to his good pleasure and will. It is these that Christ died for because it is these who are been predestined to adoption. Their sins have gone and they will be saved. It is a particular group of people, God’s elect.

The amazing thing is that the elect have been in Christ form eternity past to eternity future in this mystical union, which transcends time. God chose us in Christ before the finite world even existed (Eph 1; 4-15). Are names were written in the book of life before the creation of the world (Rev 13;8)

The bible also says that Christ was slain before the world existed, so in away ‘we" were chosen, written in the book of life, and our sin was paid for and also we were purchased before time came to be ( Rev 5;9).

We were even in Christ when God was reconciling us in our fallen nature back to him. Events happen in time, but what God has decreed is already a finished deal.
Scripture describes the saints as predestined in Christ (Eph 1; 4-5), called in Christ (2 Tim 1;9), regenerated in Christ (Eph 2; 10), justified in Christ (Rom 8;1), sanctified in Christ (1 Cor 1; 4-5), and glorified in Christ (Rom 8;17). All these events happen to those who were "IN" Christ from eternity.