Preface:
This message explores the biblical theme of God’s plan and human freedom from a Seventh-day Adventist perspective.
Christians across history have understood predestination and salvation security in different ways.
The aim here is not debate but encouragement—helping all who read or listen to experience the assurance of God’s love, the joy of salvation in Jesus Christ, and the freedom to respond to Him day by day.
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Introduction – From Laughs to Life Choices
In the 1970s comedian Flip Wilson created Geraldine Jones, a quick-witted church lady famous for explaining every misstep with a smile and the line: “The devil made me do it!”
We may not use those exact words, but we know the tune: “It’s not my fault. The alarm didn’t go off. The traffic made me late.”
That impulse is as old as the Garden of Eden. Adam said, “The woman you gave me—she gave me the fruit, and I ate.” Eve said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”
From the beginning, humans have looked for someone else to blame—Satan, circumstances, even God.
So an important question remains: if the devil tempts and God knows the future, do our choices really matter? Are we just following a script?
Today’s message will show from Scripture that predestination is not a dark decree but a love story that began before creation. God prepared salvation for everyone and still honors every person’s freedom.
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1. God’s Loving Plan Before Time
Before you or I existed, God had a plan.
Ephesians 1:4–5 says He “chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world, having predestined us to adoption as His children through Jesus Christ.”
Notice in Christ.
God did not lock in a secret list of names. He chose a people—a family in Christ—open to everyone who will believe.
Paul writes that God “desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 2:4), and Peter adds, “The Lord…is not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9).
Think of parents who start a college fund before their child is born. The plan is certain, but the child must choose to use it.
God set the destination—eternal life in Jesus—but never forces the boarding of the ship.
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2. Stories That Seem Like Fate: Pharaoh and Judas
Someone may ask, “What about Pharaoh or Judas? Didn’t God predestine them to fail?”
Pharaoh
Exodus says both “God hardened Pharaoh’s heart” and “Pharaoh hardened his heart.”
This is a common Hebrew way of speaking that credits God with what He permits or foresees.
Each time Pharaoh rejected a clear call to let Israel go, his heart grew less responsive. God ultimately used Pharaoh’s persistent defiance to demonstrate His power, but Pharaoh’s own choices built the wall.
Judas
Jesus knew betrayal would come and prophecy anticipated it, yet He washed Judas’ feet, warned him gently, and called him friend at the moment of the kiss.
Prophecy revealed what God foreknew; it did not force the betrayal.
Judas’ tragedy lay in persistent rejection of grace, not in a predestined sentence.
> Key insight: God’s sovereignty can guide outcomes without overriding the human will. Prophecy can predict without predetermining.
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3. Predestination: A Plan, Not a Prison
This is Paul’s message in Ephesians 1 and Romans 8: God lovingly predestined a destiny for everyone who is “in Christ.”
Foreknowledge—God’s perfect knowledge of the future—does not mean coercion.
Think of a GPS: it knows every route and can re-route when you miss an exit, but it never seizes the steering wheel.
God can see every tomorrow while leaving today’s choice entirely free.
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4. Living Assurance Without Presumption
Some Christian traditions express salvation security with the phrase “once saved, always saved.”
Seventh-day Adventists share the confidence that “no one can snatch them out of My hand” (John 10:28), yet also hear Jesus’ call, “Abide in Me… apart from Me you can do nothing” (John 15:4–6).
Adventists understand salvation as a living relationship:
As long as we abide in Christ, we are secure.
But love cannot be forced; a person may walk away.
Picture an electric lamp. As long as it stays plugged in, the current never fails. Unplug it and the light goes out—not because the power stopped but because the connection was broken.
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5. What This Means for Us
Live assured, not anxious. The cross is God’s eternal “yes” to you.
Stay connected. Daily trust and obedience keep the life of Christ flowing.
Share the invitation. Because God desires all to be saved, our mission is hopeful and urgent.
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Conclusion and Appeal
From eternity past, God said yes to you.
The devil can tempt but cannot make you.
God can foreknow but will never force you.
Your future is not a fixed script; it is open to the freedom of grace.
> “I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life.” (Deuteronomy 30:19)
Today you can echo God’s yes with your own.
(Closing prayer optional)
“Father, thank You for planning salvation in Jesus long before creation. Thank You for giving real freedom. We choose Christ again. Keep us abiding in Him until the day we see You face to face. In His name, Amen.”
