Being predestinated according to God's purpose means God, in His sovereignty and foreknowledge, has predetermined believers to obtain an inheritance and a holy calling based on His own will, not on human works.
Ephesians 1:11 says believers have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of Him who worketh all things after the counsel of His own will. Les Feldick explains that God predetermined everything in eternity past and that salvation is not according to our works but according to His own purpose and grace. At the same time, he warns against fatalism, clarifying that God's foreknowledge knew how every person would exercise their free will.
Ephesians 1:11 — This verse directly connects predestination with the purpose of God, which is the core of the question.
2 Timothy 1:9 — This verse shows that God's calling and salvation are according to His own purpose, not human works.
Scripture repeatedly connects predestination with God's purpose. Ephesians 1:11 states, "In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will." Earlier in the same chapter, verse 4 declares, "According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love." Romans 8:28-29 adds that "all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren." Second Timothy 1:9 also emphasizes, "Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began." These verses describe predestination as rooted in God's purpose, foreknowledge, and will, given before the world began.
Les Feldick opens the subject with the potter and the clay, showing that God is sovereign and has complete control, just as the potter has control over the clay. He emphasizes that God was not caught by surprise; everything happened in His eternal purpose. In Ephesians 1:11, Paul writes that believers have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of Him who worketh all things after the counsel of His own will. Les then turns to 2 Timothy 1:9 to show that God saved and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose. He stresses that we were in the mind of God before He ever created Adam, and every believer is saved for a distinct purpose. Les is careful to correct a fatalistic misunderstanding of predestination. He warns that predestination does not mean God arbitrarily chooses some for heaven and others for hell. Instead, God, in His foreknowledge, knew what every individual would do in the exercise of their own free will. The triune God met in eternity past and agreed on creation, knowing man would sin, and set up the plan of salvation. This is all part of the eternal purpose that God implemented before anything was created.
Les Feldick directly addresses the fatalist idea that God has already predetermined who goes to heaven and who goes to hell. He says, "That's not what the word predestination is talking about." Instead, he points out that God, in His foreknowledge, knew what every individual would do in the exercise of their own free will. God chose believers in Christ before the foundation of the world according to His foreknowledge. Predestination is not about removing human responsibility; it is about God carrying out His purpose in history.
Les explains that God saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose. We are children of God because it was in the purpose of God; we were in His mind before He ever created Adam. God predetermined everything, and nothing happened that He did not foreordain. The Trinity met in eternity past and set up the plan of salvation, all part of His eternal purpose. Predestination is connected to obtaining an inheritance and becoming joint heirs with Christ.
Les states that everything God does is in His eternal purpose. God was not caught by surprise at Israel's rejection of the Messiah; it was all foreordained. In eternity past, the triune God agreed on creation, knowing that man would sin, and set up the plan of salvation through the Son. This eternal purpose is what Paul refers to in Ephesians 1:11 when he says God works all things after the counsel of His own will. Les emphasizes that every believer is saved for a purpose and a reason.
God's Sovereignty as Potter and Clay
Les uses the potter-and-clay illustration to show that God is sovereign and has complete control over the clay, just as He has control over His purposes.
Predestined According to His Purpose
Les reads Ephesians 1:11 and then moves to 2 Timothy 1:9 to show that God's purpose is central to predestination and salvation.
Everything in God's Eternal Purpose
Les assures that God was not caught by surprise and everything was foreordained in His eternal purpose.
Predestination Is Not Fatalism
Les warns against fatalism, asking 'what are we predestined to?' to show that predestination is not about arbitrary selection.
Not According to Works
Les explains that God called us with a holy calling, not because we earned it, but according to His own purpose; we were in God's mind before Adam.
God Predetermined Everything
Les reiterates Ephesians 1:11 and shows that believers obtain an inheritance as joint heirs with Christ.
Foreknowledge and Free Will
Les clarifies that God's choice is based on His foreknowledge of how individuals would exercise their free will, not on arbitrary selection.
The Triune God's Eternal Purpose
Les explains that the Trinity met in eternity past to set up the plan of salvation, all according to God's purpose.
Ephesians 1:11: In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:
This is the key verse about being predestinated according to God's purpose.
Ephesians 1:4: According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:
Shows God chose believers before creation, which Les discusses with the potter's clay and foreknowledge.
Romans 8:28: And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.
Connects the called with God's purpose, which Les references when introducing predestination.
Romans 8:29: For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.
Shows predestination is correlated with foreknowledge, as Les teaches.
2 Timothy 1:9: Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began,
Reveals that God's purpose, not our works, is the basis of our calling.
No. Les Feldick explains that predestination is not fatalism. God, in His foreknowledge, knew what every individual would do in the exercise of their own free will. God has predetermined that believers would be conformed to the image of Christ and receive an inheritance, but He does not arbitrarily force anyone to believe.
According to Ephesians 1:11, we are predestinated to obtain an inheritance in Christ. Les Feldick adds that we are joint heirs with Christ and that every believer is saved for a distinct purpose, having been in God's mind before creation.
Second Timothy 1:9 says God saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose. Les emphasizes that no one earns salvation; the calling goes out to every son of Adam, and God's purpose is what determines our calling.
Watch the Teaching: Does God Harden Hearts? Romans 9:18-24 and the Potter's Clay