Chosen by Choice

Scripture: You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you. John 15:16

Observation: Jesus has an informative conversation that focuses on the verb "to choose". Throughout his ministry, people have chosen to follow Jesus ... or not. Even those who were called made a choice to leave their homes and families. Some followers later decided that Jesus' teachings were too hard and chose to stop following him. In these later chapters, Judas chooses to betray Jesus, while Peter will choose to deny Jesus.

However, Jesus says here that the disciples did not choose Jesus, but he chose them. That implies a lack of freewill - that these individuals were selected to become believers and eventually tortured martyrs, without any say. That seems contradictory to our understanding of God's love of people, and of our understanding of salvation by faith. Therefore, that must NOT be what Jesus is saying.

Instead, Jesus is saying the has chosen this group for a specific purpose - to found his church. There is a mission to be done, and they are chosen by Jesus to do it ... and bear fruit. In other words, choice question is two-way:

-- We choose to believe in Jesus.
-- He can then choose us to do his work.

By extension of that, it stands that Jesus cannot - or will not - choose us to do his work unless we have first chosen him.

Application: I have seen many people doing work for which Jesus has chosen them over the past three weeks. It is important for me to recognize that these people have clearly chosen Jesus first ... they have so committed to that choice that Jesus can now entrust them with the work of his church. These are people with whom I should place my trust and brothers and sisters, showing grace and understanding for them. They have been chosen by Jesus, so they must be good enough to be part of my life.

Prayer: As you know, lord, I continue to struggle with judgment. While I have felt improvement in that area, I still can do better especially as it extends to patience and kindness and love toward my fellow believers. Help me continue on my path of improving maturity, and to embrace those whom you have called into your family. Amen.