The Concept of Election throughout Scripture - Essay Example

Religion and Theology Introduction Election refers to the process of choosing someone or something to an elective post or to play a role. Election generally means an act of deliberate choice. Election in the bible refers to the process by which God chose people to serve him and the Israelites1. It also refers to the choices made by human beings in the bible. God, for example, chose or elected the Israelites as his children. The exodus narrative refers to the journey made by the Israelites out of Egypt to their promised land. The gospel narrative refers to the Christian teachings spearheaded by Jesus Christ and his disciples. The Pauline narrative refers to Paul’s teachings in the bible. The essay will explore the concept of election in the biblical stories by focusing on the three narratives and indicate the relevance of the concept of election to our post-modern society. Exodus Narrative Definition The Exodus narrative dwells on the journey of the Israelites from Egypt to Canaan. It tells the painful story of the Israelites as slaves (Carmichael, 2008, p.88). The exodus narrative comprises of two main genres; these are laws and history. Its main personalities are Moses, Aaron, the Pharaohs, Joshua and Miriam. These personalities acted as the leaders of the Israelites as they moved from Egypt to Canaan. God and the Israelites engaged in several elections to choose leaders as they moved from Egypt to Canaan. Brief History of the Narrative The story is set 400 years after the Israelites went to live in Egypt during Joseph’s tenure as a Governor in Egypt. The Israelites had been enslaved by the Egyptians. God elected Moses to set the Israelites free. Moses was chosen at a time that he was herding some sheep (Good News Bible, Exodus 3:1, p. 62). God appeared to him in a burning bush and reveled to him that he will use him to rescue the Israelites2. However, Moses relied on the help of his brother Aaron. Together they confronted the king who was reluctant to set the Israelites free. It took the power of God through Moses to convince the King to let the Israelites leave Egypt. Moses unleashed plagues in Egypt that only affected the Egyptians. The king however, was always reluctant to release the Israelites. It took the death of first born males to release the Israelites. The long journey to Canaan began after the Passover feast. Canaan was the land that God had chosen for the Israelites to settle3. They travelled through the wilderness and God protected them during the day and at night. God provided for their needs by feeding them. The Israelites however, constantly sinned against God and were often punished for their sins. In a nutshell, the exodus narrative entails the journey from Egypt to Canaan. Concept of Election in the Exodus narrative The concept of election in the exodus narrative refers to the process by which God chose human beings to serve him and their fellow humans during the exodus. God also chose places that were significant during the exodus. The concept of election is a term that also refers to the choices made by humans during the exodus (Sharkansky, 2014, p. 26). Election in this case refers to the process of choosing someone or something for a specific purpose, or to enable Israelites perform a particular activity during their exodus. God elected Moses to lead the Israelites out of Egypt. This is an example of the concept of election in the scripture. Moses was born during a period when male born children were been killed by the king. Moses mother hid him in the river Nile. He was however, spotted by the king’s daughter who took him to the palace (Sugirtharajah, 2008, p.91). Moses grew to be an outstanding boy until one day he became aware of the Israelite’s plight4. He killed an Egyptian and ran away to Midian where he lived in Jethro’s house. God elected Moses when he was herding Jethro’s goats and sheep. During this time, God appeared to Moses and told him he would go and redeem the Israelites from Egyptian slavery. He was elected as the overall leader of the Israelites. Thus, God elected Moses to be the leader of Israelites. God elected or chose Canaan as the dwelling place of the Israelites. God told Moses that he would lead the Israelites out of Egypt to the land of Canaan5. Canaan was a fertile land owned by the Canaanites (Good News Bible, Exodus. 3:8, p.59). God chose this place because His children, the Israelites, had no place of their own to dwell in. The Israelites had left their own land for Egypt where they had lived for more than 400 years. Egypt had been their home until a cruel king took over in Egypt and made them slaves. Moses elected judges during the exodus. Moses was the leader and settled all the disputes that arose among the Israelites. Jethro visited him one day and saw how overwhelmed he was by the disputes. Jethro advised Moses to select judges who would assist him in settling the disputes. The judges had to be righteous and represent the will of the people (Carmichael, 2008, p. 53). The judges’ work was to solve less critical disputes while Moses solved the most critical6. Thus, this implies that election widely featured during the exodus narrative. God choose the Ten Commandments and festivals for the Israelites. God gave Moses some laws that would govern the Israelites. The Ten Commandments were meant to ensure that the Israelites remained righteous and obeyed God. They were also supposed to observe three main festivals in a year. The first one was the festival of unleavened bread (Coogan, 2012, p. 48). The second was the festival of shelters and the last one was the harvest festival7. The Feast of unleavened bread lasted for seven days, as opposed to the Passover that lasted for 24 hours. The Festival of Shelters was performed annually. The feast designated one of the three pilgrim feasts that accompanied the Feast of Weeks and the Feast of Unleavened bread. Harvest festival was also performed annually and it occurred around the time of main harvest of a given region. God also elected Aaron and his sons as priests. Priests were vital during the period of migration as they provided guidance to the Israelites, particularly on religious matters. God instructed Moses to make garments for his brother. The garments were meant to be used by Aaron in his priestly duties. They provided him with beauty and a sense of dignity (Sugirtharajan, 2008, p. 87). God instructed Moses to also use the anointing oil to anoint Aaron and his sons as God’s priests. In a nutshell, the concept of election in the exodus narrative refers to the process by which God chose people and places to serve Him and His people (Sharkansky, 2014, p. 54). It also refers to the people chosen by Moses to serve God and the people. God also elected laws and chose festivals for the people to abide in and follow. Gospel Narrative Definition The term gospel narrative refers to the story of Jesus. There are four main gospel books. They include Matthew, Luke, John and Mark (Wiarda, 2010, p. 56). The gospel narrative gives a detailed account of how Jesus was born in Nazareth, grew up and died8. He later on resurrected from his death and rose to heaven. Brief History of the Narrative God promised His people that He would send them a savior who would save them from their sins. He promised to send His Son Jesus to the world. Jesus was born in Nazareth to a virgin. Mary was the mother of Jesus and together with Joseph, her husband, they raised Him. Jesus started his work after being baptized and overcoming temptations from the devil. He chose twelve disciples to work with him. Jesus life was centered on preaching the good news to the people, healing them, performing miracles and forgiving their sins (Rowe, 2006, p. 96)9. He met a lot of resistance from conservative Jews who believed in the laws given to Moses. They saw Jesus as an impostor and deceiver. Jesus was later on betrayed by one of his disciples, Judas. He was crucified, died and on the third day He rose from the dead. His death and resurrection is symbolic of God’s willingness to save people from their sins through Christ Jesus. The gospel narrative is central to God’s plan on mankind. Concept of Election in the Narrative The concept of election in the narrative refers to the process of choosing people and places in the narrative. God choose Bethlehem as His son’s birthplace. Mary and Joseph had gone to Bethlehem to be registered in the ongoing census (Wiarda, 2010, p. 38). He was born in a manger10. God also choose Nazareth as his son’s place of residence. Jesus was often referred to as Jesus of Nazareth. This symbolized the place He came from. The concept of election is used to refer to the process of God choosing Mary to be Jesus mother. Mary’s pregnancy was a fulfillment of God’s promise that He would choose a virgin to have His son. An angel appeared to Mary and spoke God’s intentions to her. Mary was petrified after being told she would get pregnant. She would get pregnant through the power of the Holy Spirit (Rowe, 2006, p.88). Joseph was angered on learning that Mary was pregnant and decided to break their engagement. However, an angel of the Lord appeared and told him not to do so since God had chosen Mary to have His son. Jesus grew up and started His missionary work by electing twelve men to help him. The twelve men were referred to as the twelve disciples. They accompanied Jesus wherever He went. Peter, John and James were the first disciples that Jesus elected. Levi, a tax collector was the fourth disciple that Jesus chose to follow him. The other disciples included Andrew, Bartholomew, Philip, Matthew, Simon, Judas, Thomas and Alphaeus’s son James. Jesus also chose seventy two men referred to as apostles (Wiarda, 2010, p. 67). He sent the men in pairs to spread God’s word in various towns11. They were supposed to go ahead of Jesus in all the towns He was supposed to visit. The concept of election in the gospel narrative also refers to the process by which Kings were appointed to serve people within their kingdoms12. Judea was a Roman empire. It had an empire and a king. Herod was appointed as the king of Judea by the Romans. Herod was supposed to further the interests of the Romans. He was also supposed to serve under the emperor, Augustus (Rowe, 2006, p. 27). Herod was a ruthless leader who murdered those who were against him. Herod eventually died and the Romans divided his kingdom into three. The Romans elected Herod’s sons to rule the three newly created kingdoms. The three sons are Archelaus, Philip and Herod Antipas. Pauline Narrative Definition Pauline narrative refers to the gospel of Paul. Paul was an apostle of Christ and is credited for writing most of the books in the New Testament (Muddiman, 2010, p. 23). Pauline narrative revolves round the thirteen books that Paul wrote. They express Paul’s zeal for the word of God. Brief History of the Narrative Paul was originally known as Saul. He had dedicated his life to persecuting apostles and disciples. Paul was on his way to Damascus to persecute Christians when Jesus appeared to him. Paul was blinded, but his sight was restored after three days (Muddiman, 2010, p. 88)13. This incidence sparked Paul’s transformation to a man of God. Paul began his ministry by preaching about Jesus and his resurrection. He taught about the church and unity in the church. Paul was steadfast in his faith and his teachings continue to play a positive impact in the life of Christians. Concept of election in the narrative The concept of election in Pauline narrative refers to the process of electing leaders in the church and God choosing people like Paul to serve Him. Paul was elected by God through Jesus Christ to serve the church. Paul was known as Saul. Saul was a ruthless person who persecuted Christians. Saul had been given some letters by the high priest to go to Damascus and arrest Christians (Muddiman, 2010, p. 93). Saul received his salvation after Jesus appeared to him on his way to Damascus. He got blind and his sight was restored after three days. Ananias, a Christian, prayed for him. Saul’s name was changed to Paul. In Pauline’s narrative, elections were held to choose deacons. The church had grown big and the twelve Disciples of Christ were overwhelmed by God’s work. They had to move from region to region proclaiming God’s word. They performed miracles and converted people to Christianity. Their main role was holding the church together and guiding the new converts. However, not everyone’s needs were met. This created frustration among the Christians (Dockery, 2011, p. 47). The twelve Disciples asked the Christians to select seven people amongst them to help in meeting their needs. The seven members had to be righteous with a good repute. These remains significant in the modern church since many churches have deacons who assist in carrying out activities within the church. Paul also elected elders or bishops to serve in churches. Paul’s missionary work had led to the establishment of many churches in areas that he had converted people to Christianity. The new churches lacked leadership and faced the threat of breaking up. Barnabas and Paul took it upon themselves to elect elders in the new churches. The elders together with the deacons helped in holding the church together and leading missionary work in their regions. Paul also influenced other apostles to appoint elders. Paul for example, asked Titus to elect elders in each and every town. Elders were elected to serve in newly founded churches with few people (Varughese, 2009, p. 43). Deacons would be elected once the church started to grow. There was clear division of work in the church. The elected leaders performed different roles in the church. Elders committed themselves to praying and teaching God’s word. Deacons assisted the church by representing Christians and serving their physical and spiritual needs. Deacons also helped in distributing donations and funds within the church. Election of leaders in the church was done by Paul and the apostles who helped in establishing the new churches. However, there were seven deacons who were elected by the congregation. Relevance in Post-Modern Society The concept of election in the scripture is relevant in our postmodern society. Our society is marked by elections that are often held to elect officials or politicians to lead us. The postmodern society places value on elections because they give people a chance to elect leaders who will represent them and help in solving issues within the society (Morgan, 2014, p. 126)14. Elections are, thus, a source of hope in solving problems and issues affecting the society15. This is because it is through elections that people select personalities that are to lead them towards achieving their goals. Elections in the bible are relevant in our postmodern society because they teach on the importance of electing good leaders who are morally upright. Elected leaders should be responsible and committed in their work. Jethro advised Moses to choose judges who would assist him in his work. Moses chose judges who were righteous and feared God (Good News Bible, Exodus. 18-14-26, p. 56). The seven deacons in the bible were committed Christians and of good character. Paul also asked Titus to elect deacons who were committed and God fearing. This is relevant to our postmodern society as it sets the rules by which we should elect leaders16. Leaders in the contemporary world are chosen to serve God and His people. God chose Moses to serve Him and the Israelites. Election in the bible refers to the process by which God chose people17. The work of the chosen people was to serve by providing essential services to humanity. This is relevant to our postmodern society because it explains the work of leaders or elected persons. Elections in our postmodern society provide an opportunity for us to elect leaders who will serve our needs and not their needs (Rice, 2009, p. 43). They should also serve God because elections are a calling from God18. Moses chose judges to serve the Israelites by solving minor conflicts. The deacons were supposed to help in distributing donations among the Christians. Jesus chose the twelve disciples to serve God by spreading his word. He rose to heaven and the disciples were left to serve mankind. These are indications of service to God and humans by elected leaders. It is critical to note that leadership comes from God. Even in modern times, Christians believe that God chooses the best people who can lead them and base their leadership on the principles of Godliness and morality. Leaders chosen by God are sent to help human beings identify the necessity of Christianity in addition to being rescued from the jaws of worldly pressures. Moses, for example, was sent by God to rescue the Israelites from the cruel hands of the Egyptians. Moses was at first worried because the Israelites would not listen to him. However, God assured him that they would listen to him. The king of Egypt at first resisted the request by Moses to let the Israelites leave. It took plagues and deaths to finally set the Israelites free (Carmichael, 2008, p. 88). This means that people should be subject to their leaders. This is relevant in our postmodern society because it points the need for people to respect their elected leaders. Elections in the bible marked the emergence of new changes. This is relevant to our postmodern society because people should chose leaders who will bring change in the society19. Moses was chosen by God to bring change to the Israelites. He was tasked with the duty of setting the Israelites free and leading them to their own land. He was also supposed to act as a link between them and God. The judges elected by Moses were a symbol of change. They marked the beginning of judges who would help in settling disputes among the Israelites. The disciples of Jesus were supposed to bring new changes in the society by preaching God’s word and salvation through His son Jesus. They brought change by establishing new churches which did not teach the Law of Moses but the gospel of Jesus. Election of the deacons and elders also marked new change in the church (Muddiman, 2010, p. 54). Initially, only the disciples led the churches. However, electing elders and deacons changed this. Christians in most churches in our modern society elect deacons to represent them. Paul’s election by God as His servant also marked change in the life of Paul. He was transformed from Saul to Paul and grew to be one of the most popular apostles of his times. In a nutshell, elections in the bible teach us that electing new leaders should be a process that sparks new change in the society. Conclusion Elections are important in our modern society. They are meant to choose people who can lead us and make decisions on our behalf. In the Scripture, the concept of election refers to the process by which God chose mankind to serve Him and his fellow mankind. It also refers to the process by which God chose places that would serve His people. Men too held elections. It was a process of selecting people to represent and serve them. In the exodus narrative, we learn of how God chose Moses to lead the Israelites. In the gospel narrative, we learn of how Jesus chose his disciples to serve God and other human beings. The Pauline narrative explores how Christians chose deacons (Muddiman, 2010, p. 39). It also explores how Paul and the disciples elected deacons and elders in the churches. The concept of election is relevant to our postmodern society in a number of ways. They teach us that leadership comes from God. Leaders or those chosen should serve people. They should be responsible and committed in their work. Elections give people hope and are meant to create change in the society. References Carmichael, C. 2008. Law and Narrative in the Bible. New York: Lea and Blanchard. Coogan, D. 2012. The Oxford Guide to Ideas Issues of the Bible. New York: New York University Press. Dockery, D. 2011. Holman Concise Bible Commentary. New York: New York University Press. Good News Bible. 2009. New York: Harper Collins. Morgan, T. 2014. If God Won Our Elections. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Muddiman, J. 2010. The Pauline Epistles. London: Routledge. Rice, E. 2009. The Biblical Doctrine of Election and Predestination. New York: Routledge. Rowe, C. 2006. Early Narrative Christology: The Lord in the Gospel of Luke. New York: Harper Collins. Sharkansky, I. 2014. Israel and its Bible: A Political Analysis. Massachusetts: McGraw Hill. Sugirtharajah, R. 2008. The Postcolonial Biblical Reader. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Varughese, T. 2009. Bible and Theology Mysteries Solved. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Wiarda, T. 2010. Interpreting Gospel Narratives: Scenes, People and Theology. 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