Unconditional election
A view held among orthodox Christians
Before creation God chose particular people to save, out of His free grace and not because of any faith or goodness He foresaw in them.
Also called: sovereign election, election to salvation
What it means
Scripture plainly teaches that God elects, or chooses, people for salvation. The question among Christians is the basis of that choice. Unconditional election holds that God's choice rests on His own good pleasure alone. He did not look ahead, see who would believe, and choose them for it; rather, faith is the result of His choosing, not its cause.
Holders point to Romans 9, where Paul says God chose Jacob before the twins had done anything good or bad, so that His purpose would stand, and to Acts 13:48, where those appointed to eternal life believed. They find the doctrine deeply humbling and comforting: salvation rests on God's unchanging purpose, not on our fickle wills.
Other Christians believe God's election is based on His foreknowledge of faith (Arminianism) or that He elected Christ and, in Him, all who will believe (some Provisionists). The Reformed confessions teach unconditional election, and they also insist that it must be taught with care, for the assurance and humility of believers rather than idle speculation.
In Scripture
God chose us before the foundation of the world, according to the good pleasure of His will.
Before the twins were born or had done anything, God's purpose in election stood.
It depends not on human will or effort but on God's mercy.
God saved us by His own purpose and grace, given us in Christ before time began.
You did not choose Me, but I chose you.
Where it comes up
Confessions: WCF 3.5; LBCF 1689 3.5; Canons of Dort 1.7; Belgic Confession Art. 16
Related terms
CalvinismA view held among orthodox Christians
The teaching that salvation is wholly God's work, from His choosing of sinners before creation to His keeping them to the end.
ArminianismA view held among orthodox Christians
The view that God, by grace, enables every person to respond to the gospel, and elects to salvation those He foresees will freely believe.
MolinismA view held among orthodox Christians
The view that God knows not only what will happen but what every free creature would do in any circumstance, and uses this "middle knowledge" to accomplish His purposes.
ProvisionismA view held among orthodox Christians
A view, common among some Baptists, that God has provided salvation for all through Christ and that every person is able to respond to the gospel without a prior regenerating work.
Effectual callingA view held among orthodox Christians
God's Spirit inwardly calls the elect in a way that certainly brings them to faith, by renewing their hearts so that they come to Christ willingly.