Our scripture text is from Isaiah chapter 42. The title of the communion meditation this morning is the election of Christ, the election of Christ, the election of Jesus. So we're gonna be reading the first four verses of Isaiah 42, but we'll mainly be focusing on the first Hear the word of the Lord. Behold, my servant whom I uphold, my elect one in whom my soul delights. I have put my spirit upon him. He will bring forth justice to the Gentiles. He will not cry out, nor raise his voice, nor cause his voice to be heard in the street. A bruised reed he will not break, and smoking flax he will not quench. He will bring forth justice for truth. He will not fail nor be discouraged till he has established justice in the earth and the coastlands shall wait for his law. Let's pray. Dear Father, teach us by your word and your spirit about your son. He is our Lord and we are about to dine with him. Thank you for revealing truth about your love for us even before the world began. In Jesus's name, amen. We talk a lot, especially as Calvinists, about our election. We know that it was done before the world began, and it was of God's good pleasure, and it was nothing of ourselves. But have we considered what the scripture says about the election of Christ? Of course, the election of Christ is not a salvific election. It's not dealing with salvation, but it is still an election according to the Bible, and it does relate directly with our salvation. The idea for this community meditation comes from a book I am slowly reading. It's called Looking Unto Jesus by Isaac Ambrose. I do recommend this book, especially since it may be going out of print, and right now you can get it at a good price. What I love most about this book is I can't figure out if it's theological or devotional. And I'm thinking maybe that's a mark of a really good book, if you can't figure out if it's theological or devotional. Well, before we talk about this concept of the election of Christ, I think we need to warm up our minds a little bit. Before we get into these primary texts, it's important to know something of the pre-incarnate trinity. This, of course, is a big topic, and we can talk a lot about it, but for today, let's just have two things in our mind. Let's pull two things from the scripture, and that is that Before creation the Trinity had understanding and they had a will See sometimes we we reflexively think that there wasn't anything going on before creation Well, there was nothing but God but God is a source of wisdom and God's wisdom is existed before creation and Pastor Kaiser recently preached on the book of Proverbs, and he addressed the question in there. Who is this personified wisdom? Chapter eight is one of those chapters. In fact, why don't you go ahead and start turning there. Proverbs chapter eight. We're gonna read verse 22 through 26. Here is a section that talks about wisdom existing prior to creation, and there's a lot of commonality with Christ. But as Pastor Kaiser pointed out, the personified wisdom in Proverbs is best understood to be a quality that all elements or all persons of the Trinity hold to. The common view is that it's Christ, but he pointed out it's better to see the wisdom held by all three members of the Trinity before creation. So let's read verse 22 through 26. Speaking of wisdom, the Lord possessed me at the beginning of His way before His works of old. I have been established from everlasting, from the beginning, before there was ever an earth. When there were no depths, I was brought forth. When there were no fountains abounding with water, before the mountains were settled, before the hills, I was brought forth. While as yet He had not made the earth or the fields or the primal dust of the world. So this passage shows us that God had wisdom from everlasting from before there was even an earth. God has had wisdom in eternity past. God also has a will. We won't turn there, but Ephesians chapter three, verse 11 says this, according to the eternal purpose which he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord. Now that word for purpose can also be translated resolve. God had an understanding, and he had a will. And with those two things in mind, I think it kind of warms up our brain and it naturally flows out that God would do something with perfect wisdom and with a will. So now let's get into the passages where Christ is elected. Let's turn to Matthew chapter 12. I'm gonna go to a number of passages today. Matthew chapter 12, verse 18. Here we're going to see how the Holy Spirit appropriates that prophecy that we read in Isaiah directly to Christ. So just one verse, verse 18. Behold my servant whom I have chosen, my beloved in whom my soul is well pleased. I will put my spirit upon him and he will declare justice to the Gentiles. So this is quoting from what we read earlier, Isaiah chapter 42, and we won't turn back there, but if we did, This is what it reads in verse one of chapter 42. Behold my servant whom I uphold, my elect one in whom my soul delights. So we see that the father has chosen and elected the son. I mean, just think about that for a minute. Think about the love that the Lord had in choosing His Son, electing His Son for our redemption. Well, let's read more about this. Like I said, we're gonna be turning to a number of passages. 1 Peter, turn with me to 1 Peter. 1 Peter chapter one. Looking at verses 18 through 20. Knowing that you are not redeemed with corruptible things like silver or gold from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot, he indeed was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you. It's that last verse right there. It really, it reinforces what we've seen and it also is a bridge to our next point. Here we see that Christ is foreordained before creation. He was, as the Father says, a lamb, a lamb without blemish or spot, actively ordained, actively ordained for the purpose of redemption. And now we see him manifested in the last times for us, for us. So the second point is that along with Christ's election, we were also elected. See, Christ's election is foundational to our election. There's a chronological order that we've seen from eternity past, before the foundation of the world, there was an ordination. But there's also an operational order here, a functional. Christ was chosen so that we might be chosen. Let's go to Ephesians chapter one. Ephesians one. And we'll read verses three and four. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blameless before Him in love. So we are chosen in Him. Ambrose the author I mentioned points out that that Jesus is a storehouse of grace for us He tells us that we should know this quote the ancient love Which the Lord hath born to us in Christ is not love of yesterday but before all worlds That's the love of Christ. That's the love that we have seen in the election of Christ. So in eternity past, the Father elected the Son actively, deliberately chose the Son for the purpose of redemption. And that's really important for us because Christ was chosen, we are chosen. Ambrose writes this, quote, we are chosen in Christ as in a common person. He was the first person elected in order and we in him. So Jesus was elected so that we might be elected in him. The son of God was not only sent, he was deliberately chosen for us. So as we come to the table, let us see Christ as someone who is elected and chosen, and let us see that we are elect in Him. Let's pray. Dear Father, we thank you for electing Christ. Thank you for choosing Him of your own wisdom and of your own will before the world began. In Jesus' name, amen.