This part of Paul’s description of God’s mighty deeds tells us that we are safe because God predestined us for adoption into His family. This was not based on who we were or foreknown good works, but on God’s good pleasure. It was in love that God in His good intention adopted us with the full privileges of sons. This is for the praise of His glorious grace. The term for grace is used both as a noun and a verb in this passage. We are called to rejoice in His grace and not fear the bad fate that the pagans fear. All who believe are safe because God will complete this with the final stage of adoption at the resurrection. We must acknowledge that everything about this is to God’s glory because we had no claim to any benefits of being sons because we were aliens and strangers. We look at passages in 1 Peter and Matthew that explain this further. We are to spread abroad the virtues of God by proclaiming what He has done for us unworthy sinners. In Matthew 11 the religious leaders rejected Christ. Yet Jesus offers rest to all who would come to Him no matter how badly they had failed and been beat up by false religious authorities. The universal call of the gospel is proclaimed to all.

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