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In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will,<\/strong><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n All of the aspects of our salvation have come about because God determined them of His own free will.<\/p>\n The word translated \u201cwe have obtained an inheritance<\/span>\u201d is kl\u0113ro\u014d<\/em><\/span>. Literally, it means \u201cto cast lots.\u201d\u00a0 By application it means \u201cto allot\u201d or \u201cto assign something.\u201d It is expressed here in the aorist tense (a completed action in the past) and the passive voice (something done to the subject). Thus, it refers to something that was allotted to us; that is, an inheritance which was assigned to us at a point in time in the past.<\/p>\n \u201cBeing predestined<\/span>\u201d is from the Greek word prooridz\u014d<\/em><\/span>, which we saw back in verse five. There we learned that it means \u201cto establish or determine something beforehand.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe purpose<\/span>\u201d is from protith\u0113mi<\/em><\/span>, meaning \u201csomething put in place beforehand.\u201d<\/p>\n The word \u201cworks<\/span>\u201d is from energe\u014d<\/em><\/span>, which means \u201cto be active, to make something happen, to do something, or to work.\u201d<\/p>\n The phrase \u201cthe counsel of His will<\/span>\u201d is from t\u0113n boul\u0113n tou thel\u0113matos autou<\/em><\/span>. The two key words are boul\u0113n<\/em><\/span>, meaning \u201ca wish or a desire\u201d and thel\u0113matos<\/em><\/span>, meaning \u201ca determination.\u201d Thus, this expression indicates something that God determined to do simply because He wanted to do it.<\/p>\n Back in verse two we noted that the content and meaning of these verses is sort of like drinking from a fire hose. Paul has packed a lot of doctrine (teaching) into each of these verses.<\/p>\n Here he tells us that \u201cIn Him<\/span>,\u201d that is, in Christ, we obtained (past completed action) an inheritance from God. This is not something that we earned, but something that is freely given to us simply because we have been adopted into God\u2019s family (see verse five). Paul also tells us that this inheritance, our adoption, our redemption, and the forgiveness of our sins were all put in place beforehand. All of this goes back to His choosing us before He created anything. This is the point in time (actually before time) when God determined the plan of salvation and set it in place.<\/p>\n The last phrase of this verse is a powerful statement of how our God operates. It says that God does everything He does simply because He wants to. He is not constrained to do anything. Nobody can force or even entice God to do anything. So what Paul is telling us here is that the entire plan of salvation, from His choosing us, to His adopting us, to His paying the ransom for our sins, to His casting our sins far, far away, to granting us an inheritance, is all done simply because He wanted to do it. In other words, God did not do all these things because we chose to believe the gospel message and get saved. That would be us telling God what to do. The entire plan of salvation is all His doing and only His doing.<\/p>\n As hard as it is for many of us to believe, our salvation is all God\u2019s doing. That shouldn\u2019t make us complacent, it should make us eternally grateful and humbled before Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will! Praise God!<\/p>\n In God\u2019s service, for His glory,<\/strong><\/p>\nTruth to Learn<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n
Behind the Words<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n
Meaning Explained<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n
Application<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n
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