“Confirm Your Calling and Election”

2 Peter 1:3-12 (text); Deuteronomy 31:6-8; Canons of Dort I: 12, 13, 17
© January 26, 2014 (Pasig Covenant Reformed Church) • Download this sermon (PDF)

Introduction

Beloved congregation of Christ: Last Lord’s Day, we learned that God, before the creation of the world, elected a fixed number of people for salvation. And this election was based solely on God’s gracious purpose and will for his elect, “to the praise of his glorious grace.” It was not based on a faith, or any other good thing, that he foresaw his elect doing. Rather, it was based exclusively on his love, grace and mercy on us while we were still unborn.

Since God’s elect has no part in this salvation from beginning to end, what should this doctrine of predestination produce in our hearts? Not pride for being chosen by God, but humility for being chosen in spite of our wretched, sinfulness.

Another good fruit produced by this doctrine on Christians is the assurance of salvation. We are able to know and be assured of our salvation. The Roman Catholic Church does not believe this. In the Canons on Justification, the 16th century Council of Trent declared:

If any one says, that a man, who is born again and justified, is bound of faith to believe that he is assuredly in the number of the predestinate; let him be anathema.

Rome claims that the only people who can know, in this life, that they are saved are the “saints” who have been given special revelation by God that they are indeed elect. Those of us who are not members of this “sainthood” are misguided in our assurance. How tragic! How pitiful! Catholics who strive to do all kinds of good works all their lives will still be asking on their deathbed, “Will I be in heaven’s joy, or in purgatory’s or hell’s torment?”

But even more tragic than this is that many evangelicals who believe in justification by faith alone in Christ alone also deny the assurance of salvation? How is this possible? They believe that a Christian can be assured of his salvation for a short while, but who knows what tomorrow might bring? He might fall away from his faith one day and lose his salvation!

Equally tragic is the popularization of false assurance in evangelicals’ crusades and altar calls. By this false assurance, many people are led to believe that they are saved when they are not.

So how is a Christian assured of his salvation? This Lord’s Day, our theme is, “Confirm Your Calling and Election,” which we will meditate upon under three headings: (1) Through God’s Great Promises in the Spirit; (2)  By Practicing Christ-Like Excellence; and (3) By Increasing in the Knowledge of Christ.

Through God’s Great Promises in the Spirit

In verse 3, we read that by his own “divine power,” God has given us life—salvation—and godliness. “Power” is usually associated with the Holy Spirit: “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you” (Lk 1:35); and “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you” (Ac 1:8).

Salvation and godliness are both gifts of God through the Spirit. God chooses the elect. Christ died for them. The Spirit creates faith in them, leading them into godliness, into his own “glory and excellence.” Those are attributes of God that he chose to share with us, so we can be holy and fellowship with him. The Greek word for“excellence” summarizes all kinds of desirable virtues.

In verse 4, we read that God has granted Christians “his precious and very great promises.” Through these promises, we become sharers and participants of the divine nature. Great caution is required here: We never become part God, part human, like “little gods,” as Benny Hinn and other prosperity gospel teachers teach. This only means that as he Spirit regenerates us and delivers us from our corrupt sinful nature, he leads us into greater and greater holiness. Then we are slowly transformed into the image of Christ, who alone has divine nature.

But man cannot do any of these things by himself. It is the Spirit who gives the elect all of these qualities. And through these godly excellence leading to godliness, the true believer is able to confirm his election and salvation.

But what happens when a believer sins? His sinful nature struggles against the Spirit to avoid it, as in Romans Chapter 7. The Spirit overcomes his sinful nature, convicts him of sin, and leads him to repent. Judas and Peter are two opposite examples of the result of man’s struggle against sin: Judas was not able to overcome the temptation of money, while Peter overcame his denial of his Savior. A renewed heart given by the Spirit is the only way to repentance and turning back to godliness.

Article 12 of the First Head of Doctrine of the Canons of Dort says that some of the “unmistakable fruits of election” are: “a true faith in Christ, a childlike fear of God, a godly sorrow for their sins, [and] a hunger and thirst for righteousness.” All of these are wrought in the believer by the grace of the Spirit.

However, only those who have been eternally chosen by the Father are indwelt by the Spirit who produces holiness in our lives. And “the Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God” (Rm 8:16). And the Spirit is “the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it” in the eternal heavenly places (Eph 1:13-14).

By Practicing Christ-Like Excellence

Verse 5 begins with “For this very reason…” Then in verses 6-7, Peter lists a series of excellent virtues that all the elect must strive to have. “This very reason” is that we have been given faith and godliness and so we are to demonstrate virtue, knowledge, self-control, steadfastness, godliness, brotherly affection, and love. These are very similar to the “fruits of the Spirit” in Galatians 5:22-23. This is not to be merely a code of conduct, but the elect actually have joy in their hearts as they are able perform these virtues. And they are able to act upon these virtues because the Spirit has powerfully enabled them to do so.

When Peter says “supplement your faith” by these virtues, he doesn’t mean that the elect are saved by works plus faith. This is similar to James’ relationship between faith and works: true faith necessarily means good works that follow. Christians are to evidence their faith with good works, including the virtues listed here. Faith is listed first, and all the virtues listed end in love.

Paul says the same thing. A true believer has been elected to show good works (Eph 2:10), resurrected to new life (Eph 2:4-6), and has become a “new creation” (2 Co 5:17). Peter implies then that unbelievers will not have these qualities. Not that unbelievers will never have these virtues. They might have these virtues, but not for God’s glory, but for their own selfish purposes.

Then we come to our main text, “Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall” (2 Pt 1:10). How can you make sure your calling and election? The answer is, “if you practice these qualities,” which are the excellent virtues listed in verses 5-8. If you have them, “you will never fall.”

Peter uses the a strong word translated as “diligent.” It means “to be especially conscientious in discharging an obligation, be zealous/eager, take pains, make every effort.” Christians are to be make every effort to confirm or to “make sure of validity or force” their calling and election by God. And when we have these qualities, we have assurance that we will “never fall” or stumble, or lose one’s footing. Because stumbling in our faith often leads us to doubting our own salvation.

Then in the next verse, he encourages us,“For in this way there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 1:11). On your deathbed, how do you know that you will enter into the eternal kingdom of God? Peter answers, “in this way.” Not that good works is the way to enter the kingdom of God, but that good works is evidence that you are called and elected by God. This is the promise of your calling and election.

What about those who doubt their salvation? Often, Christians doubt their salvation because of sin. When we sin, we think, “Maybe I’m not elect. If I’m elect, I wouldn’t be like this.” This is because we hear so much of performance-based salvation. If we did well in our 5-minute devotional time; or if we have told someone, “God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life”; or if we helped in the Typhoon relief work; then there is nothing to worry about our salvation. But if we didn’t perform well, we start having doubts.

This is why we need to hear the true Gospel and its promises and benefits proclaimed to us often and regularly. Because it doesn’t take a lot of temptations and sins to start our doubts rolling. Article 12 of CD I affirms this need to hear the Gospel for assurance, “by observing in themselves with a spiritual joy and holy pleasure the infallible fruits of election pointed out in the Word of God.”

Christian, be assured that God teaches us holiness not only in our “victorious” Christian life, but more so in the failures and inadequacies in our Christian life. Peter says that Christians are “grieved by various trials… [to test the] genuineness of your faith” (1 Pt 1:6-7). In this way, our faith is strengthened and our souls are nourished.

When it comes to sin and assurance, we often have our thinking backwards. We grieve over our own sins and then doubt our salvation. But our sorrow over sin in our lives is actually evidence of our calling and election. Do unbelievers struggle against sin? Do they sorrow and repent of their sin before God? No, they couldn’t care less about sin. But Christians are blessed when they mourn over sin because they will be comforted (Mt 5:4), and “godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret” (2 Co 7:10).

There are also others who think they are saved, when they are not. Many who have responded to altar calls by praying the sinner’s prayer have been told that they are saved and have been “born again.” But they show by their behavior and attitudes towards God’s Word, the church, and other believers that they are far from salvation. They have no interest in God’s Word. They don’t honor the LORD’s Day by attending the worship service. They go to church for the entertainment, not to hear the preaching of the true Gospel. And they have no care for the brothers and sisters in Christ. They pay lip service to all these things of God.

These people who have false assurance are no better than unbelievers. Those who reject the gospel of Christ know they are not saved, and they love it! All the qualities of unbelievers are also found in those who have false assurance: no care for God’ Word, the church, and the brethren. And even worse, they have no care for godliness and righteousness by their godless lives.

The elect have inward assurance through the Spirit, and through outward Christ-like qualities that are fruits of the Spirit. Lastly, we have assurance by increasing in the knowledge of Christ.

By Increasing in the Knowledge of Christ

Verse 8 of our text tells us that if we have the excellent virtues that Peter has listed, we will be effective and fruitful in the knowledge of Christ. Holiness then leads to true knowledge.

Article 12 of CD I says that this knowledge is not found by searching “the hidden and deep things of God,” but by the unmistakable fruits of election pointed out in God’s Word.” Knowledge and assurance comes from God’s Word. This is what 1 John 5:9-15 teaches us:

If we receive the testimony of men, the testimony of God is greater, for this is the testimony of God that he has borne concerning his Son. Whoever believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself. Whoever does not believe God has made him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has borne concerning his Son. And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.

I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life. And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him.

God has “testified” that eternal life comes through faith in “his Son.” Those who believe in the Son have the “testimony” in themselves (verses 9-12). This testimony is the internal witness of the Spirit. We can be assured that God’s testimony is true, because God does not lie. 1 John was written so we “may know” that we “have eternal life.” We have “confidence” that God hears prayers of the elect. If an unsaved person asked to be saved, then God will grant his request.

This text from 1 John says that assurance comes from (1) the internal witness of the Spirit; (2) the reliability of God’s Word; and (3) the confidence that God hears and answers the prayers of the elect. So Peter reminds us that we are to demonstrate these qualities in our lives, since we are established in the truth, God’s Word (verse 12).

When you have these three sources of assurance—the Spirit who testifies, the Word that confirms, and the Spirit who produces fruits—never doubt your election. And when you doubt because of sin, remember that if you were not elect, you will never care whether you’re elect or not.

Article 17 even tells us not to doubt the election of our infants, since the Word of God “testifies that the children of believers are holy, not by nature but by virtue of the gracious covenant in which they together with their parents are included.”

Lastly, Article 13 says that this assurance should not cause us to be proud, but this should be a “greater cause to humble ourselves before God, to adore the fathomless depth of his mercies, to cleanse ourselves, and to give fervent love in return to him who first so greatly loved us.” Furthermore, this assurance should not cause us to be “lax in observing his commandments or carnally self-assured.”

 

So whenever doubts assail your hearts and minds, keep these questions handy:

Does the Holy Spirit assure your heart and mind that you are elect? Remember, only the elect care whether they are elect or not.

When I sin, does it bother me until I confess and repent of it before the Father in heaven? Remember, only the elect have godly sorrow for sin.

Do I confess Christ as my Savior and Lord of my life, and do I desire to know him more and more? Remember, only the elect acknowledges the kingship of Christ over their lives.

Do I trust in the promises of God’s Word—of salvation from sin and death, of forgiveness of sins, and of an eternal inheritance? Remember, only the elect study—and trust—God’s holy Word.

Lastly, do I see evidence of the growth in the excellent virtues that Peter lists? Remember, only the elect are indwelt by the Spirit who enables them to live godly lives.

Remember God’s assurance to Joshua and Israel, “It is the LORD who goes before you. He will be with you; he will not leave you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed” (Dt 31:8).

This is the same comfort, assurance and promise we have today from God through Christ. Since the Spirit indwells all the elect, we are enabled to practice Christ-like virtues and increase in the knowledge of our Savior till that promised day of complete redemption from sin and death.