#-10~ Predestination: Bible Doctrine 9-15-12
Today if the Lord be willing we'll continue with our study in Bible Doctrine, and say a few things about "predestination" I believe that I should remind us that "foreknowledge, election and predestination" are all three closely associated with God's sovereignty.
"Sovereignty of God" means that God can to do whatever he wants, when ever He wants simple because He is God.
He created all things, He directs all things, He gives life and He takes life as and if He so chooses and no power in heaven or on earth can do any thing about it if He has so determined.
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Deuteronomy 32: 39 -40 See now that I, even I, am he, and there is no god with me: I kill, and I make alive; I wound, and I heal: neither is there any that can deliver out of my hand. 40For I lift up my hand to heaven, and say, I live for ever.
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Little peanut headed man with all his bright ideas often displays to one and all his self centered ignorance, making remarks in the presents of others trying to impress them, he thinks he can convince his listeners that he has arrived, not knowing or believing that God is seeing every thing said and done, these people fit well in the ungodly crowd we find in;
Jude 16 -- 19 These are murmurers, complainers, walking after their own lusts*; (desires) and their mouth speaketh great swelling words, having men's persons in admiration because of advantage.
17But, beloved, remember ye the words which were spoken before of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ; 18How that they told you there should be mockers in the last time, who should walk after their own ungodly lusts. 19These be they who separate themselves, sensual, having not the Spirit.
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The Almighty Sovereign God, the Ruler of the Universe, will one day stop the heart of such evil doers as easily as blowing out a candle.
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Because He is The Almighty Sovereign God He is in complete control over everything that happens.
I think of the old saying that I'm sure most have heard and that is; "some times God allows sickness to put people on their back in order that they will then look up."
I hope this is the case with our country, it's time we get back to looking up to God, and that He might bless us once again as a country.
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We here in America have the most important election coming this November that this country has ever had in its history.
God already knows who will be elected, and guess what, the one that's elected will be the one that He allows to be in elected, we'll go and vote our personal convictions and rightly so, but remember God is the One that leads in that decision whether people believe it or not.
He can cause things to happen today that will have its pay - out so to speak 10-20 or more years from now, He don't view time as we do, our days are numbered but not His.
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Proverbs 21:1 The king's heart is in the hand of the LORD, as the rivers of water: he turneth it whithersoever he will.
That can be applied to all people as well.
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* In other words, God has predestined who the President will be in this up coming election; there are still some God loving and God fearing people in this country that still prays for God to turn this country around, to put this country back in His favor, we can only hope that it's not too late.
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>> Listen as I read you this that I found on a recent news cast: ** it say's--
The White House has rejected a request by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to meet President Barack Obama in the United States this month, an Israeli official said on Tuesday, after a disagreement erupted between the allies over Iran's nuclear program.
An Israeli official told Reuters on condition of anonymity that Netanyahu's aides had asked for a meeting when he visits the United Nations this month, and "the White House has got back to us and said it appears a meeting is not possible. It said that the president's schedule will not permit that".
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Evidently the president's schedule would not permit him to stop in Israel as he visited Egypt some time back either, only a stone throw away. -- We may as well accept the fact; Obama is not for Israel, and many times when the leader of a country is as such it can bring Gods wrath on the entire nation, maybe this is what we've been experiencing.
I personally think that if it's so unfortunate that the voters put him back in for another term that this country will see for worse things than it ever has, God may allow it to teach us a lesson.
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Listen dear heart, this present administration is the biggest enemy this country has, the voters are the people that put it there, and now the voters can and must remove it, and by the help and grace of God we will.
I am longing for the time when God removes us from all this ungodliness.
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* Back too PREDESTINATION.
The divine order is foreknowledge, election, predestination. Foreknowledge determines the election or choice.
> Foreknowledge means to define and determine beforehand, to have set determined boundaries in advance.
God had mapped out the details our salvation in past eternity, ever before time commenced.
>> Predestination is the bringing to pass of the election -- Election looks back to foreknowledge: predestination forward to the destiny.
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Romans 8: 29 -- 30 For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.
30Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified.
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God's absolute foreknowledge of people, of things, of events, small and great, comes only by divine attributes.
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* Many are called but not all will answer the call, therefore many are called but few are chosen.
God would that all be saved but most will reject His call, it's not His will that any perish.
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2 Peter 3:9 --- not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
>> A past and future are words and ideas that we as mortals relate to. -- Past and future to God is one ever present.
>> To us that are saved it's certainly a comforting thought to know and understand that we as individuals were known to God in eternal ages past, our old sorry and sinful ways that we now are so ashamed of, He knew about them even before we were born, every detail of life and character lay open to Him.
>>listen as God speaks too Jeremiah in;-
Jeremiah 1:4-5 Then the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
5Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.
* If it's possible get you a pen and paper you don't want to miss this, go ahead while I say this; God named a man by the name of Cyrus about two hundred years before he was born.
* God named another man whose name would be "JOSIAH" ALMOST THREE HUNDRED YEARS BEFORE HE WAS BORN.
* I'm going to give you these in order to further emphasize Gods "foreknowledge, election, & predestination
>>Are you ready?
Cyrus was NAMED ABOUT 200 YEARS BEFORE HE WAS BORN: = foreknowledge -
Listen, when Cyrus did appear on the scene, there would be no doubt or misunderstanding about whom Isaiah had spoken.
Also, Cyrus would be the man = election -- responsible for a decree that would return the nation Israel to her land. = predestination
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Another reason Isaiah called Cyrus by name through the revelation of God was so that his accuracy could be demonstrated.
If in two hundred years Isaiah would be accurate about Cyrus, he also would be accurate in his prophecy concerning the One born of a virgin, Immanuel, God with us, who was to come seven hundred years later.
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God used Assyria to take the northern kingdom of Israel into captivity. Then He used Babylon to destroy Jerusalem and take the southern kingdom into captivity. The men God used to do this were wicked, and God judged them for what they had done.
But Cyrus is different. God calls him "my shepherd" who shall "perform all my pleasure."
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Isaiah 44: 28 That saith of Cyrus, He is my shepherd, and shall perform all my pleasure: even saying to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be built; and to the temple, Thy foundation shall be laid. --- Future tense.
Isaiah 45:1-6 Thus saith the LORD to his anointed, to Cyrus,
This is the only place in Scripture where this title (anointed) is used of a Gentile. It was normally used to designate priests.
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Notice God is saying this to Cyrus through Isaiah about 200 years before Cyrus is born.
Thus saith the LORD to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have holden, to subdue nations before him; and I will loose the loins of kings, to open before him the two leaved gates; *(of Babylon) and the gates shall not be shut;
2 I will go before thee, and make the crooked places straight: I will break in pieces the gates of brass, and cut in sunder the bars of iron: 3And I will give thee the treasures of darkness, *(treasures that were stolen) and hidden riches of secret places, that thou mayest know that I, the LORD, which call thee by thy name, am the God of Israel.
4For Jacob my servant's sake, and Israel mine elect, I have even called thee by thy name: I have surnamed thee, though thou hast not known me.
>>I have even called thee by thy name indicates that Cyrus has been deliberately named in advance to reassure the Jews that the God of Israel indeed is still in control of human events. === predestination.
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5 I am the LORD, and there is none else, there is no God beside me: I girded thee, though thou hast not known me:
6That they may know from the rising of the sun, and from the west, that there is none beside me. I am the LORD, and there is none else.
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>> If in two hundred years Isaiah would be accurate about Cyrus, he also would be accurate in his prophecy concerning the One born of a virgin, Immanuel, God with us, who was to come seven hundred years later.
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* Now let's talk about another man that God named JOSIAH.
JOSIAH NAMED ALMOST 300 YEARS BEFORE HE WAS BORN:
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1st Kgs. 13:1 And, behold, there came a man of God out of Judah by the word of the LORD unto Bethel: and Jeroboam stood by the altar to burn incense.
2And he cried against (man of God) the altar in the word of the LORD, and said, O altar, altar, thus saith the LORD; Behold, a child shall be born unto the house of David, (election) Josiah by name; -- the foreknowledge of God.
>>When Josiah reigned it was almost three hundred years later, but the prophet of God marks him out now. (Predestination)
He was a good king and he reigned thirty-one years. Josiah led in one of the five great revivals that took place during the period of the kings.
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1st KGS. 13:
1-And, behold, there came a man of God out of Judah by the word of the Lord unto Beth-el: and Jeroboam (a wicked man) stood by the altar to burn incense.
>> "Jeroboam" was making a sacrifice to a golden calf is the information I have found.
2 And he (man of God) cried against the altar in the word of the Lord, and said, O altar, altar, thus saith the Lord; Behold, a child shall be born unto the house of David, Josiah by name; and upon thee (the Altar) shall he *(Josiah) offer the priests of the high places that burn incense upon thee, and men's bones shall be burnt upon thee -- wicked so called priest--
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The prophet of God prophesied against the altar, saying that God was going to raise up a man who would destroy such altars as the high places.
>>Josiah was the one who would be raised up to accomplish that task.
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3 And he * (man of GOD) gave a sign the same day, saying, This is the sign which the Lord hath spoken; Behold, the altar shall be rent, and the ashes that are upon it shall be poured out. -- (Gods foreknowledge and predestination)
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4 And it came to pass, when king Jeroboam heard the saying of the man of God, which had cried against the altar in Beth-el, that he put forth his hand from the altar, saying, Lay hold on him. And his hand, which he put forth against him, dried up, so that he could not pull it in again to him
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5 The altar also was rent, and the ashes poured out from the altar, according to the sign which the man of God had given by the word of the LORD.
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* Then in 2nd Kings 23: 15-18 we find it came to pass.
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2 Kings 23:15-18 Moreover the altar that was at Bethel, and the high place which Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin, had made, both that altar and the high place he brake down, and burned the high place, and stamped it small to powder, and burned the grove.
>> 16 And as Josiah turned himself, he spied the sepulchres that were there in the mount, and sent, and took the bones out of the sepulchres, and burned them upon the altar, and polluted it, according to the word of the LORD which the man of God proclaimed, who proclaimed these words. -- 1st kgs.13:-
>>17 Then he said, What title is that that I see? And the men of the city told him, It is the sepulcher of the man of God, which came from Judah, and proclaimed these things that thou hast done against the altar of Bethel.
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18And he said, Let him alone; let no man move his bones. So they let his bones alone, with the bones of the prophet that came out of Samaria.
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What a man of God Josiah was, if only we had more Josiah's, just think brothers and sisters, one of these days we will actually see and talk with this amazing saint of God, Brother JOSIAH.
>> Let's not stray to far from our subject of "Predestination". God's foreknowledge and election predetermined both Cyrus and Josiah's future.
