CHRISTOLOGICALLY

CONDITIONED ELECTION
Kharitoo School of Ministry
Ap. Alex Badega
Different Concepts on Election
There are four concepts on election in Christian theology. Two of them
that are most common include;
1) Conditional election: It is the theologial belief held by Armenians
which states that God chooses for eternal salvation those whom
he foresees their will to have faith in Christ.
 This belief emphasizes the importance of a person's free will
 Its proponents are called Armenians from Jacobus Arminius ( 1560 –

1609)
 Several Christian denominations influenced by Arminian views include

the Baptists in the 17th century, the Methodists in the 18th century, and
the Pentecostals in the 20th century.
 Continued…
2) Unconditional election: (also called sovereign election
or unconditional grace) it is the belief held by Calvinists
which states that God chooses whomever he wills, based
solely on his purposes and apart from an individual's free
will.
 This belief emphasizes on the sovereignty of God and

double predestination
 Proponents are Calvinists from John Calvin; (1509 –1564)
 Churches influenced by this view include most reformed

churches
 Continued
3) Universalism: This is based on eschatology or the end time
instead of election. It is the view that all sinning ceases in the
eternal state, and in some sense the reprobate participate in the
cosmic reconciliation of all things to God: they are reconciled,
not salvifically but in and through punishment.
 This belief emphasizes God’s love and focuses around the

doctrine of universal reconciliation – the view that all human

beings will ultimately be saved and restored to a
right relationship with God.
 Proponents claim to be adherents of Origen of Alexandria (185 –

253 AD)
 Continued…
4) Christologically Conditioned Election: It is the belief that Jesus
Christ is eternally both the Electing God and Elected man for
humanity.
 This belief emphasizes Christ as subjective and objective of salvation.
 Christ is the central theme of the doctrine(i.e. Christo-centric).

Everything is interpreted in accordance the person and work of Christ.

 Proponents are of most ancient apostolic, patristic view including

Origen of Alexandria (185 – 253 AD) and some post reformation

theologians such as Karl Birth (1956-1968)
Early Christian Theological schools
 Over the first five hundred years of Christian history there are
records of at least six theological schools:
 Four of these schools were Universalist (one each in

Alexandria, Antioch, Caesarea, and Edessa- Edessa–Nisibis

[Turkey]),
 One taught conditional immortality (in Ephesus),
 and the last one taught eternal Hell (in Carthage).
 The Concept of “all inclusiveness” was most dominant in

early Christianity but didn’t hold universalism per say.

 The Difference Btn Universalism &
Christologically Conditioned Election
 Universalism:
1. It states that all humans will believe and receive the grace of God at the end.
2. It does not believe in the existence of Hell
3. It believes in the love of God and the restoration of all things
 Christologically Conditioned Election:

1. It states that Christ has already taken away the sins of the world - of every last
being in it. All human beings, at all times and places, are free whether they know
it or not, feel it or not, believe it or not.
2. It believes in hell and eternal torment as the opposite side of God’s love for those
who foolishly or intentionally reject the gift of grace.
3. It believes that hell is within the realm or boundaries of Grace because Grace is
sovereign.
Cataphatic & Apophatic Theology
 Cataphatic & Apophatic are two different
approaches to spirituality
 1. Cataphatic theology or kataphatic theology is

theology that uses "positive" terminology to describe

or refer to God
 2. Apophatic theology—also known as negative

theology—is a theology that attempts to describe God

by negation, to speak of God only in absolutely
certain terms and to avoid what may not be said.
 Contued…
 A kataphatic way to express God would be that God is
love.
 The apophatic way would be to state that God is not

hate (although such description can be accused of the

same dualism).
Simply put,
Cataphatic refers to what we know about God.
Apophatic refers to what we don’t know about God.
SUPRALAPSARIANISM & INFRALAPSARIANISM
 Supralapsarianism: “supra” meaning “above” or “before”
& “lapsum” meaning “fall”.
 It refers to the position which holds that God’s decree to save

is logically prior to his decree to create the world and permit

the fall.
 Infralapsarianism: infra meaning “below” or “after”
 It refers to the possition that God’s decree to save is

logically after his decrees related to creation and fall

 Theseissues were very prominent in the time immediately after
Calvin, in the late 1500s & in the early 1600s
Studying Time
 Time: Some Greek words referring that are often confused
1) Chronos: Refers to “a space of time”, either long or short. It
Chronological or sequence of time (Measurement of time in minutes
and seconds)
2) Aion: which means an “age” or a “cycle of time”. Eg. Stone Age.
3) Kairos: Proper or opportune time for action. Appointed time such as
seasons.
4) Aionios: which refers to “everlasting/eternal/infinite”, something that
lives long without end.
5) Eioniotita: refers to; noun “Eternity/perpetuity/sempitanity”,
something without beginning or end. That which has always been and
will always. The state or quality of lasting forever
 Eternity Explained
Eioniotita/Eternity refers to;
a) The life operating simultaneously outside time, Inside of time and
Beyond time.
b) Eternity exists within and beyond time, space & matter.
(2 Cor 4:18; Eccl 3:11 Amplified.)
It doesn’t refer to the past or the future but the quality of life God
has.
It is the same life that operates inside human beings. (Eccl 3:11)
There is nothing like “eternity past” or “eternity future” because
you cannot use time to measure eternity.
 Examining Scripture
 John 1:1 Amplified: “IN THE beginning [before all time] was the Word
( Christ), and the Word was with God, and the Word was God Himself.”
 Genesis 1:1 Amplified: “IN THE beginning God (prepared, formed,

fashioned, and) created the heavens and the earth.”

 Ephesians 1:4: “Even as [in His love] He chose us [actually picked us out for

Himself as His own] in Christ before the foundation of the world…” (see also
2 Timothy 1:9)
 The term “world” used in Eph 1:4 is translated from the Greek word

“kosmos” which means “Cosmos” or “Universe”.

 The term “Word” used in John 1:1 is the Greek word “Logos” in which the

English word “Logic” or “reason” is translated.

 Between John 1:1 and Gen 1:1 there is a space called The Gap
The Gap
 The mystery of the Gap

John Gen
1:1 Eph 1:4
The GAP
Before the
1:1
The
Wor Foundation World
d
Hypostasis Triune God/The Godhead
 Trinity: Greek word: trias; English: three
 First used by Church Father Theophilus of Antioch, 2nd century (169-185 A.D).
 Theophilus used this statement to mean "God, his Word (Logos) and his

Wisdom (Sophia)”
 To Greek philosophy or Hellenistic Jews, referred to “Nous (Mind), Logos

(Word, Reason) and Sophia (Wisdom)” .

 Tertullian born (150–160 AD), defined the Trinity as Father, Son, and Holy

Spirit
 First Council of Nicaea (325) adopted the Nicene Creed which described Christ

as “God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God, begotten, not made,
being of one substance with the Father” (St. Athanisias of Alexandria)
The three persons of the Godhead
 Christology is Theology: Hebrews 1:3: “He is the sole expression of the glory of
God [the Light-being, the out-raying or radiance of the divine], and He is the
perfect imprint and very image of [God's] nature…”
 The hypostatic Union: Describes the relationship between the three persons of

the Godhead, Father, Son and the Holy Spirit.

 Greek term hypostasis = Person
 Perichoresis (Greek, “going around”, “envelopment”; Latin: circumincessio): the

‘necessary being-in-one-another or circumincession of the three divine Persons

of the Trinity because of the single divine essence, the eternal procession of the
Son from the Father and the Father from the Son through the Holy Spirit.
 The church fathers described Perichoresis as the “dance of love” or specifically

“the dance” between the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit.
The Perichoresis
 God is LOVE (1 John 4:8,16)
PERICHORESIS EXPLAINED
 The explanation according to the Church fathers:
 The Father can not be Father without the Son, the Son cannot be

Son without the Father, the father and the Son cannot be without
the felloship of the Holy Spirit.
 The Father is the lover
 The Son is the beloved
 The Holy Spirit is the bond of Love
 LOVE flowing From the father to the Son, from the Son to the

Father and to the Son through the Holy Spirit. This has been so
from eternity
 CHRISTOLOGICALLY CONDITIONED ELECTION
 Election: in simple terms it means “a choice”
 It refers to the choice made by God way before the creation

of the world
 The God who has no need because he is self-sufficient

desired to include Man in His love relationship

 The Son became the chosen (Elect) in and through Whom

Man can be included (Eph 1:4)

 By Choosing/electing the Son, God Chose/Elected humanity

in Him
 Continued…
 The doctrine of Election involves two aspects
1) The Electing God
2) The Elected man
 Ephesians 1:4
 The Electing God, Father, Son and The Holy Spirit together

made a choice that the Son of God will be the Elected Man,
Jesus Christ of Nazareth.
 In divine freedom, the triune God eternally elects/chooses to

be for humanity the God of grace and love.

 Conclusion
 We were chosen/elected before the foundation of the world/Cosmos
 We were Chosen IN CHRIST the LOGOS/Logic of God
 GOD CHOSE US BY CHOOSING CHRIST
 We existed in God’s reasoning before we came here.
 We were chosen to be included and participate in the divine union of

love.
 Grace is not returning to the garden of Eden before the fall but being

exalted to God’s original plan which He had before the creation of the
universe.
 Man was not created for the world but the world for man.
Further Readings

1) Karl Barth: Church Dogmatics, Volume 2: The

Doctrine of God, Part 2
2) Adrian Langdon: Jesus Christ, election and
nature: revising Barth during the ecological
crisis; Barth on divine election

END