Our House Church is studying Ephesians. People dislike the ideas of predestination and election; however, in Ephesians, Paul sees those two ideas as reasons to glorify God.
even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, (Ephesians 1:4-5, ESV)
Charles Hodge, who was president of Princeton Theological Seminary between 1851 and 1878, noted two results of meditating on God's election of us in his commentary on Ephesians 1:4: first, confidence that God will not fail His adopted children, and second, humility that God saved us based on nothing in us or performed by us.
From eternity the whole scheme of redemption with all its details and in all its results lay matured in the divine mind. Hence every thing is certain. There is no possibility either of failure or of any change of purpose. The eternity of God’s purpose is, therefore, a strong ground of confidence and comfort. The other is, to express the sovereignty of the divine purpose. The grace was given to us before we existed, before the world began, and of course before we had done any good or evil. It was, therefore, not for works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us. If the one aspect of the truth that God chose us before the foundation of the world, is adapted to produce confidence; the other aspect is no less adapted to produce humility.
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