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Jul 18, 20215 min read

Post 34 - Given by the Father: Election in the Gospel of John-Part 6b


(This is a continuation of the previous post.)


John the Baptist

In the first chapter of the Gospel of John, upon seeing Jesus, John the Baptist announces to his followers, "Behold the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world... I have seen and bore witness that this is the Son of God" (John 1:29, 34 ESV). Yet, despite his public proclamation to all that Jesus is the Messiah, only two of his disciples leave John's ministry to follow Jesus. We know that the apostle Andrew was one of them and it is thought that the apostle John is the other (John 1:37, 40).


Have you ever wondered why all of John's disciples didn't follow Jesus? Doesn't it seem odd that once John declared that Jesus was the Messiah, they all didn't leave John to follow the Son of God? Wouldn't you? And have you ever wondered why John the Baptist himself, did not join up with Jesus?


I believe these questions are clearly answered in the verse we began to study last week - John 6:37.


John 6:37

All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out. (John 6:37 ESV)


Simply put, although John the Baptist was a faithful prophet and a chosen vessel, he was not one of those given to Jesus by the Father. To be clear, this "exclusion" did not reflect on John's ability to repent and put his faith in Jesus, nor on his future, eternal destiny. Far from it. In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus said this of John the Baptist, "Truly, I say to you, among those born of women there has arisen no one greater than John the Baptist" (Matthew 11:11 ESV).


For three years, the Father meticulously orchestrated every aspect of Jesus' earthly mission, including who could and couldn't "come to Jesus" - that is, accompany Jesus in his ministry. I propose that, while the apostles Andrew and John were part of the Father's careful plan to send only specific, pre-chosen people to be with Jesus, John the Baptist and his other disciples were not so chosen. In other words, John the Baptist was not given to Jesus by the Father.


In the past several posts I have been making the case that many of the commonly disputed verses those verses in John Chapter 6 (vv. 37, 44, 45, 65) were referring to a specific, three-part, pre-cross work of the Father, applicable only to the apostles. We can see the exclusive apostolic application more clearly when we track the phrase "those the Father gives/gave me" (or similar phrases) through the Gospel of John.



Given by the Father

The phrase "those that the Father gives/gave me" (or similar wording) is found nine times in Scripture, all in the Gospel of John. We find it twice in John 6, once in John 10, five times in John 17, and once in John 18.


  • John 6:37 - "All that the Father gives me will come... "

The first time we see this phrase is in John 6 which occurs about one year before the cross. Note that Jesus uses the present tense. The giving by the Father and the coming to Jesus seems to be in progress – an on-going thing – perhaps, not yet complete.


  • John 10:29

We are now about 4 months from the cross. Jesus makes this statement,


My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. (Jhn 10:27 ESV)

My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, . . . (Jhn 10:29 ESV)


Notice in v. 29, Jesus now uses a verb tense- the Greek perfect tense - indicating that the giving by the Father is a past action. The sheep to whom Jesus is referring have already been given and are already with him, responding to his voice, and following him.


  • John 17:6

Fast forward to the night before the cross. In John 17, Jesus is in the upper room where he prays to the Father specifically for his eleven remaining apostles.


"I have manifested your name to the people whom you gave me out of the world. Yours they were, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word. (Jhn 17:6 ESV)


We now have this phrase rendered in the past tense (aorist, active, indicative). Those who were with Jesus were those who were given to him by the Father. Jesus goes on to say, “I gave them your words... they received them... they accepted them... they believed“ (v.8). The teaching is done. The drawing is done. The giving is done. "They/them" are the apostles.


In this prayer to the Father, Jesus makes reference to the eleven remaining apostles three more times as "those you have given me" (John 17:2, 9, 24).


  • John 18:9

Just for good measure, we get one more instance of this phrase in Chapter 18. Jesus is being arrested in the garden of Gethsemane, accompanied by his apostles. Jesus makes a plea to the arresting guards:


. . . if you seek me, let these men go." (Jhn 18:8 ESV)


The explanation we get for this plea for freedom for the apostles is found in the following verse.


This was to fulfill the word that he had spoken: "Of those whom you gave me I have lost not one." (John 18:9 ESV)


In addition to once again referring to the apostles as those given to him by the Father, note the reference back to the fulfillment of prophesy from John 6 that none of those given to him by the Father should be lost.


And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, ... (John 6:39 ESV).


Note that when Jesus refers to not losing any the Father has given him, it has nothing to do with apostasy - the falling away from the faith, as some contend. Jesus was ensuring that his apostles would not be captured or killed. It was the Father's will, and Jesus' burden, to ensure that these eleven men would not be prevented from their mission to go into the world and make disciples of all nations (Mat 28:19) - establishing the "foundation" of the Church.



Final Thought

I understand that the argument presented here is not absolutely conclusive, but I believe it is the most logical understanding of the phrase "those the Father gives/gave". It is a biblical/expositional constant, referring to the apostles. It is not a reference to the manner in which we, the post-cross Christians, came to believe in Jesus. The universal process for becoming a Christian is expressed clearly in Paul's letter to the Ephesian church: In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, (Ephesians 1:13 ESV).


Contrary to much traditional teaching, I believe that you and I were not given to Jesus by the Father. But, we're in really good company. Neither was John the Baptist. Neither was Nicodemus, Neither was Mary, nor Barnabas nor Timothy. Neither were many other faithful followers of Jesus who, through the grace of God, believed in the gospel of salvation, called on the name of the Lord, and received the Holy Spirit.


We are Christians. This means that we are the true children of God, the followers of Jesus Christ. We are justified by faith, loved by God, co-heirs of the heavenly kingdom, and no longer slaves to sin. We’ve experienced the power of the Holy Spirit, tasted the goodness of the word of God. We’re free, forgiven, and blessed. And as we abide in Christ, we have assurance of our eternal destinies. And that is sufficient.


To learn more, please consider picking up my book - God's Elect: The Chosen Generation

(also available on Kindle)


(Also available at Barnes & Noble & Christianbook.com)


Next Post: We'll finish our review of the doctrine of election in the Gospel of John with a brief review of a beautiful illustration by Jesus that sums up the purpose and effect of the gospels, God's initial phase to save the world through his Son. Here's a link to the next post:



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